Workshop Goal and Program

1. Assuming Good Intentions

When we hear a mispronunciation of one's name, outdated terminology, or misquoting of a study, we ask on the one hand that we all assume good intentions and be willing to speak up to correct mistakes, and on the other hand, acknowledge constructive feedback with grace. In a safe room, the opportunity is to learn from one another - not to fear making mistakes or worry about offending others by sharing a different preference or perspective.

• For those who may want to correct another party or introduce a different perspective, how can we remind ourselves that offense was likely not intended and encourage expansiveness and growth rather than defensiveness?

• For those who are corrected, how can we listen with openness and take the insight as a perspective that we can openly learn from and build upon to be more thoughtful and inclusive?

2. Expecting Unpredictability and Disorder in the “Curious Messy Room” and Being OK with Uncertainty and Not Knowing the Answers

At times we will find ourselves wanting to know - what’s happening next, where this conversation is going, how these ideas will all come together, how to answer a question you may not know, or what will be useful . . . or not. And at times we may find the ideation process messy. Exploring all the possibilities can be both exciting and daunting.

We hear you and understand. And we are grateful to have you join our Curious Messy Room where messiness is part of the joy and discovery. If these questions were easy to solve, we wouldn’t need to spend this time together in the first place! Thank you for having the courage to help us reimagine possibilities together. And thank you for trusting the process.

3. Respecting Everyone’s Voice

Whether we are in breakout rooms, Slack conversations or on the main “stage”, we encourage everyone to hold and honor the space by respecting each other’s voices. Every voice matters. Please take a moment to actively listen and ensure all voices are represented in discussions. If you are in a breakout room, what are ways you could invite other voices to be heard? If you are in a Slack conversation, is there a voice that is missing? Actively including and holding space for others is a key component of creating a respectful place for all to feel heard.

We will provide live captioning and ASL interpretation throughout the event. If you need anything else, please let us know. Here are a few additional things we all ask participants to co-create with us to make the environment inclusive and thoughtful for all participants.

1. Describe Visuals and Pacing Speech

When speaking, please describe visuals and the environment and moderate your pace of speaking to help our ASL interpreters and live captioners capture all information.

2. Introducing Yourself and Naming on Zoom Video

Please state your name before asking a question or making a comment so that everyone knows who is speaking. When joining the Zoom, please rename your Zoom name to “First Name_Last Name” so that everyone can see who you are and refer to you by name when speaking with you. We invite you to include other important information such as titles and pronouns as well.

3. Use Clean Backgrounds (if possible)
   

We encourage clean (not bright or busy) backgrounds (real or virtual) to minimize distractions and visual overload.

4. Audio Settings

Please try to limit as much background noise as possible. Please stay muted when not speaking and raise your hands with the Zoom setting to speak.

5. Being Mindful of Introducing Colors

When sharing photos or visuals please also note how colors may look differently for every participant. Here and here are some references to color blindness and what colors to avoid or how to be more mindful when sharing any photos with such colors.

6. Anything else let us know?