(r)evolution lab

(r)evolution lab goes local: Lausanne and Zurich

In the past two weeks, two (r)evolution labs took place in Lausanne and Zurich. It was the first time that (r)evolution lab happened on a local level in the local languages. A total of fourteen participants got empowered to organize imp!acts in Zurich, Bern, St.Gallen (university course), Geneva and Lausanne (internal company imp!act). After this first project management weekend, both groups will practice their facilitation skills in April in a second training weekend.

We want to thank the facilitators team Anna, Mario and Lorenz (Zurich) as well as Natalia and Silène (Lausanne) for their amazing work and the participants for continuing spreading the changemaker vibes in their cities!

The next imp!act events will take place in Olten (internal FHNW) from 12 - 17 February, Lima/Peru from 22 - 25 February, Poznan/Poland from 28 February - 3 March, Lima/Peru from 13 - 16 March, Lausanne (internal in a company) from 14 - 17 March, St. Gallen (internal HSG) from 9 - 12 April, Bern from 25 - 29 April. The dates for Zurich and Geneva will be announced soon! Get an overview and find more information here.

"So many beautiful souls spinning around together"

Emmanuel was one of the participants of last year's (r)evolution lab and co-organized together with a bunch of likeminded peers imp!act Geneva in spring 2017. Here's how he experienced the programme.

Amazed. Inspired. Empowered. Dreamful. I felt so, and so much more, during my experience at the RevLab in 2016. After seeing with my bare eyes what a crazy pack of changemakers could do in only 3 days at imp!act, I couldn't stand it; I wanted to be a part of it, and in turn give what I received.

Turns out, I learned so much more again! The RevLab was truly tailored to our needs and demands, I felt, and I really felt like euforia was unravelling under my eyes. So many beautiful souls spinning around together, to deliver a surprising solution-oriented training for an organisation team. The training is so complete, in fact, that I use almost everything in my daily life and NGO even now, after imp!act is finished.

With its very clear shape (2 week-ends, each of them oriented towards specific parts of the event planning) and its awesome guests and speakers, RevLab really has premium feeling with a friendly taste, as I could not feel rigid or heavy hierarchy during the sessions. RevLab is simply a gathering of same-minded individuals that want to come together to unfold the potential of youth, and let it explode! Truly a next-gen training session, the kind I want to find again as I move through my path towards the state of change enabler <3

Join (r)evolution lab and organize your own transformative event in your neighborhood, city or company! The next programme cycle will start soon: 24-24 September (Zurich) and 3-5 November (Bern) 2017. Find more information and the registration form here.
 

Join our imp!act teams Geneva or Zurich!

Last weekend, our new imp!act teams Geneva, Zurich and St.Gallen met for the first time at the (r)evolution lab main training weekend and started working on their imp!act events for spring 2017. The teams are super motivated and have already developed great ideas to make imp!act happen successfully in the three cities. However: they're looking for support! imp!act teams Geneva and Zurich are still looking for team members who participate at (r)evolution lab and gain there the skills to co-organize the imp!act events.

(r)evolution....what?
The (r)evolution lab is a space where you can connect with like-minded people for an innovative and experiential learning journey towards the organization of your own imp!act event in April/May 2017. It allows you to share, learn and experiment a wide range of highly professionally valued skills and knowledge, such as team and project management, leadership, facilitation and wellbeing strategies. Within the RevLab you also experience a different kind of working culture based on co-creation, radical collaboration, pushing boundaries and euforias oooops-culture (daring to try and fail).

The next trainings are from 3-5 February 2017 and 10-12 March 2017. In between, the teams meet regularly in order to prepare their imp!act event.

Interested? Get in touch with us on revolutionlab@euforia.ch!

(r)evolution lab: The first Main Training weekend in Bern

After almost a year of online meetings, co-creation sessions and reflections, the first training weekend of euforia's new (r)evolution lab eventually took place.

The (r)evolution lab was conceived on the same idea as the former eTP (euforia Training Programme), namely empowering youths to organise their own imp!act event. However, the new programme has more to offer than project management and facilitation session; it fosters participants’ personal development and wellbeing management. The new (r)evolution lab also aimed at going beyond imp!act and fully integrating STEP into action. Through our well-established “train-the-trainers” approach, STEP into action volunteers are empowered to scale our large-scale event targeting high-school pupils.

On 25 November twelve participants from across Switzerland attended the very first (r)evolution lab training weekend. After introductory sessions, team building activities and a short presentation of the imp!act and STEP into action programme flows, participants got involved in practical workshops and built their city teams. We can already look forward to three teams organising imp!act in Geneva, St. Gallen and Zurich in spring, and two teams getting started for STEP into Action 2017 to take place in Bern and Geneva next fall.

After this first training weekend, participants will put their learnings into practice and continue working together. They will meet again for two in-person trainings on personal development and outreach (3-5 February) and on facilitation (10-12 March).

If you couldn’t attend the first training but feel intrigued and would like to step in, please get in touch! imp!act teams Geneva and Zurich are still looking for motivated team members. Email revolutionlab@euforia.ch to know more.

 

(r)evolution lab and The Unleash Project — New ways of empowering youth, young leaders and organizations

 

We believe that the world needs more people who come together to design bold solutions to address the challenges of this increasingly complex and rapidly changing world. We also believe that our current education system is outdated and does not provide us with the kind of skills and attitude required to assume leadership and create innovative solutions. We think it is high time to mainstream new ways of learning, working and innovating that are adapted to the challenges our economy, society and environment face in the 21st century.

 

(r)evolution lab and The Unleash Project tackle these challenges: two open source, transformative and experience­ driven education programmes provide a platform for young people, executives and organizations to collaborate across generations and sectors. (r)evolution lab empowers participants to acquire professional skills in order to lead an imp!act event where youths discover their potential to turn ideas and passions into real life projects. The Unleash Project, on the other hand, focuses on equipping young people to shape their own meaningful careers together with executives, companies and partner organizations.

Not sure which programme is the right one for you? — Let us explain them in a nutshell:

 

(r)evolution lab – organize your own imp!act event

(r)evolution lab is a training program for (un)reasonably motivated young pioneers. In this experiential learning journey you will learn, share and above all experiment a wide range of skills and knowledge highly valued in any professional context: team and project management, facilitation, leadership, training design and wellbeing strategies. Equipped with these tools and skills, you can lead your own imp!act event from building your team to facilitating the event, empowering youth in their city to embrace their changemaker potential.

>>> To join the (r)evolution lab, it is highly recommended that you have participated in an imp!act event and are willing to share this experience by co-organizing your own imp!act – including the organization, team management, recruitment of participants, funding and facilitation of the event.

 

The Unleash Project – from career to vocation

The Unleash Project is a transformative education program that empowers youth, executives and organizations to embrace the emerging era of digitalization, knowledge, innovation and purpose. It provides future and present decision­makers with the experience, tools and mindset it takes to move from careers to vocation: where they live their values, do what they are passionate about and use their key strengths to address needs they truly care about in the world.

You learn through experience how to co-­create trustful, open and empowering work environments and foster the emergence of purpose and innovation at your workplace. You will benefit from peer support and learning groups, coaching and inspiration by your peers, executives and leading experts in the area of the future of work

>>> To join The Unleash Project, you either have completed (r)evolution lab, the former “euforia training programme eTP” or already have experiences in Project Management and/or Facilitation and are ready to shape your own meaningful career.

 

Both projects start in November 2016. Applications are open now:
(r)evolution lab
The Unleash Project

What wellbeing can learn from the tribe space…

Sidsel.jpg

On the very first "Share & Grow night" I brought in the topic of wellbeing as a collective focus for everybody who is engaged in euforia. "What makes me well?" is an important question to answer not just for the people working at euforia, but in particular for the volunteers who give their periodical full energy, heart and time into projects they really care about.

So how do we navigate in wellbeing? Where can we find methods that sustains the kind of wellbeing and that does not stay on the surface?

As i went through the Kaospilot training, part of the education was also go through a programme called the Council Guide Training. The Council Guide Training is a Native American teaching about tribal life tools, methods and protocols.

The training takes 3 years to conduct, and I learned a great deal about what makes the difference from learning things that stay on the surface to what it means (and takes) if we want to work with deeper and more profound layers of learning and wellbeing… Wellbeing in yourself, in your relations as well as in your community. I also learned that these ancient ways of understanding and being in the world holds pieces of wisdom that we can still greatly benefit from today.

So in the first "Share & Grow nigh" about wellbeing, this particular friday evening, I decided to bring in some of these tools, some of the atmosphere and some of the practises that I found valuable to share. I was curious about who was gonna show up, and how they would receive this slightly peculiar and strange approach.  

But when you work with euforians, you also know that you work with a bunch of openminded, openhearted and curious people, which makes it always a joy to bring in new things. Therefore the connection, the personal learning, the closeness and the density of care and trust just kept growing throughout the evening. It was in the end an evening where I learned as much as anyone else in the room.

I was blessed with having people around me open to learn and to explore what really matters to them. Each person learned something profound for him- and herself, and together we learned that one of the things what really matters in life, is for all of us to always and continuously refine that internal listening and interpretation system, that allows us to better understand the signals from our bodies, the impulses from our hearts, the energy of the spirit and the waves of our emotions. This is the way to make sense of our experiences, take authentic actions and respond truthfully to our surroundings.

The feeling from this evening and from this group has been preserved in me, and it still touches me to see that we human beings somehow belong to the circles, that we need a community to support and challenge us, and that we need go grow an ever deeper connection with ourselves if we want deep or powerful wellbeing to exist in our lives.

 

Our dear "booster" Sidsel organised the first "Share & Grow night" for our volunteers. The next one will probably take place in November 2016. We'll keep you informed!

Walking the talk on wellbeing

The wellbeing of our team and all its members is euforia’s highest annual goal. Therefore, wellbeing is also part of the (r)evolutionLab in the form of personal development sessions. Our volunteers Anna and Gordon reflected about wellbeing and share their insights.

Wellbeing has become one of the main goals of the euforia movement. As part of this we have created a more holistic approach to the (r)evolutionLab (former euforia Training Programme eTP) where hard skills and practical experience are now accompanied by personal development sessions.  In the beginning of July we dug into the fertile soil of personal development as part of the preparation for autumn imp!acts. At imp!act we encourage people to step out of their comfort zone, find out more about their purpose and start acting upon it. So as a facilitator it`s key to walk the talk both on a personal as well as on a team level.

imp!act can be like dancing on a rainbow. From up there one can have a glimpse of new landscape, discover new prospects and find great dancing partners. Once the raindrop of inspiration strikes the ground it is time to see how those panoramic views can become part of your journey and how the drop becomes part of what makes you grow.

I believe that wellbeing is the goal of this journey and I see personal development as the way to get there. Wellbeing must start at the individual level, and from a good foundation you can then help those around you to develop their own well-being. With a good self and a good community 'tribe' you can then be of service to bigger issues. Where you can develop well-being as a strong component in your ideas and projects.

One of my most enriching experiences as a trainee and coach of the euforia Training Programme (eTP) for me is to experience and explore wellbeing for myself and in our community.  Our team created a space in which we supported each other to shine in our own ways, be ourselves and this gave me the opportunity to grow greatly. I hope we find ways to bring this experience to more people and help to spread this in society.

So for me personal development is the methodology. It is the thing you do to increase your wellbeing. And what is wellbeing? Well, that depends on you and on the person. But it often has something to do with nature, having the time to do things properly, creativity, fulfilling a purpose, friends and family. You can use personal developments tools to help you develop your own well-being and to help your friends and team mates to develop theirs. And then spread the love and build a world dedicated to the well-being of each and every one of us. People, animals, plants. The water and the air. Even the rocks.

From imp!act to eTP – A Short Story

[ Fränzi tells you why you should take part of the next eTP ]

It was beginning February 2015. I started my felted 150th attempt to finish my last course at ETH. Only this one semester to go. Then only 10 weeks on the diploma project. It would have been done! At least I would have been done. Literally. For sure. This time it only took me 2 days to realise (again) that this is really not the place I wanted to be and that there was that itching thought that I actually should not be there neither. This time there was no way back, no hidden possibility nor any other hope. I successfully dropped out of my 8 years love-and-hate story with studying Architecture (see what happens when you do this ;) ). What a long time to take a decision you might think. Sometimes things are not that obvious. Sometimes we need to get underneath the logic of our kitchen-table psychology and dig deeper - or just participate in a crazy workshop called imp!act!

It hit me somewhere between Thursday morning and afternoon. I am sure you remember the Card Game, the contemplation about your strengths and interests, the fu*ing stressfull brainstorming and that funny games in between (who could resist to dance with Lonely Boy!?). What wowed me was not only Anna’s Super-Power or the crazy superheros but also a so long missed clearness in knowing what I wanted: I wanted exactly this! I wanted to be a facilitator, walk people trough processes, give them space to develop concepts, gain insights and get things done! It was clear: “I want to do an imp!act!”

I am sure you also had some two or three insights during or after imp!act. Exactly this is the reason I want to invite you to join the euforia Training Program (eTP) to get to the next Level (of enlightenments :) ) with imp!act! Because sometimes we need to get underneath the logic of our kitchen-table psychology and dig deeper - or just participate in a crazy Training Program called eTP!

Euforia Training Program (eTP) will provide you with the tools and trainings you need to organise a complete 3.5 day imp!act workshop yourself and inspire more euphoric people to start their own projects. You will take responsibilities and transfer your knowledge into practice. You’ll learn about collaboration methods, about team and project management, you’ll practice outreach and funding and train your presentation skills.

Why would you put effort in this? You can explore new fields of experience in a safe environment where you’ll be stipulated to experiment and get things done. You will be part of an amazingly big community with tremendous knowledge that will support you in any way you need and that also wants to make a difference* on earth – together with you. Sounds unreal? No it’s true and it’s even FUN!

Take on the challenge and find your place in this world as an actor and contribute to a real change!

 

*Evaluations of surveys among former imp!act participants show that six months after the workshop an average of 60-90 % make an effort to design their living habits more sustainable. 50-70% get involved in an existing organization and 30 percent carry further their project they developed at imp!act. Really great projects have already emerged, such as essento which develops and markets delicious food based on insects or DoItYourself Geneva that campaigns for a more resilient and environmentally friendly society centred on the sharing of knowledge.