Ringing in the New Year
With a few words from our Founder...
We have so much to celebrate as we say good-bye to 2008. It has been a year of renewed connections and
hope. In this edition of our newsletter you'll learn about the workshops,
trainings, and community events we've been privileged to be a part of in the
last quarter. We invite you to take the
time to read about the bold initiatives that organizations led by people-just
like you-are taking to address the effects of oppression and reach for the best
of ourselves as we commit to create a just world. We're also highlighting an exciting public
workshop opportunity-back by popular demand! LJS will present a two-day Pre-Conference Training for the International
Association of Facilitators North American Conference in April 2009 in
Vancouver, B.C. See Upcoming Events for more about how to register!
All of us at LJS & Associates wish you a joyful 2009!
Early registration ends December 15th - sign up
soon! There's a special opportunity on April 20th and 21st
to join Nanci, Barb MacKay, and Shoshanna Cogan as they co-facilitate a two-day
Pre-conference Training for the International Association of Facilitators North
American Conference in Vancouver, BC. The conference is April 22nd
& 23rd and the theme is "Explore Diversity." Nanci will also be
presenting a concurrent session during the conference. You can register directly at www.iafna.org/AnnualConference/annualconf.html
or contact our office for more information. We look forward to seeing you
there!
IAF Canada
April 20th & 21st 2009
"You Don't Know What You Don't Know: The Facilitator's Path to
Authentic Cross-Cultural Practice"
Facilitated
by
Nanci Luna Jimenez, CPF©,
Barbara J. MacKay, CPF©
and Shoshanna Cogan
2 Day International Association of Facilitators North American Conference
Training Workshop
Register HERE Or contact Kati for
more information.
|
In The News:
Nanci will be a guest on Diversity Matters, the internet
radio program that gives voice to the power of inclusion in the workplace and the
world. After January 12, 2009 click on www.diversitymatters.org to listen to her
interview with Richard Friend and Judy Seidenstein, co-founders of this unique,
on-demand web radio program. We will send an e-announcement when the program
goes on-line!
 Making a Difference
in the Pacific NW
Nanci was profiled in the fall edition of the online
magazine, Colors of Influence.
Founded and edited by Maileen Hamto, Colors
of Influence highlights how people of color in the Pacific
Northwest are working to promote change in their communities.
Here's a sample of what Nanci had to say in her Q&A profile: "For systemic,
transformative change we need to win over and think well about our allies. Part
of LJS's mission is to offer training and support to allies, assisting them to
become clearer in their commitment to end injustice on their own behalf-not for
the targeted group, but rather for themselves." Listen to Nanci's interview and read the full article here!
|
|
More Young Latina
Leading
Nanci facilitated a Transformational Communication
workshop for the National Hispana
Leadership Institute's Annual Executive Leadership Training in Fairfax, VA. NHLI
gathered another group of remarkable young women for this powerful event. "I left
wanting to communicate my hardships with other
Latinas and the community [so] we can focus our similarities and not our
differences," said one participant. Nanci shared, "this year's training
was bittersweet," as it marked the transition for outgoing President Marisa
Rivera-Albert and the welcome for incoming President Christina Lopez. LJS wishes Marisa the best as she dives into the
next chapter in her work to empower Latinas worldwide .
Bienestar in the Latino Community
As part of AVANCE's annual
conference, Nanci delivered a morning keynote address: Wellness in Our Latino Families: The Barriers and Basura that Block
Bienestar, and an afternoon workshop: Leadership
Skill-deepening for Healing the Blocks to Wellness: For Ourselves and Our
Families. Since 1973,
AVANCE has helped parents prepare their children for school by focusing on what
parents can do during the critical first three years of their child's life. In
addition to skills training, the conference was an opportunity for awards and
recognition for the incredible work being done in their chapters in New Mexico,
California and Texas.
 
The Crossroads of
Health and Oppression
Nanci delivered a keynote address for the South Nevada
Hispanic Employee Program's annual training in Las Vegas, NV. A fundraising
event, this special luncheon honored the graduates of the Family Leadership
Institute (FLI), an organization founded by retired Colonel Consuelo Castillo
Kickbusch. This powerful event drew over 250 attendees.
Nanci's keynote focused on issues of health as well as the intersection
of wellness, oppression, and addiction.
 
Celebrating Women of
Color
Nanci returned to Las Vegas where over 300 women (and men)
gathered for the 2nd Annual Women of Color Conference. This year's
theme, "Empowering Our Future" brought together an amazing cadre of presenters
from around the country. Nanci had the privilege of discussing issues that
women of color face with co-panelists: Punam Mather, Senior Vice President for MGM Mirage; Dina Titus, Nevada State Senator, Clark County District
7; and Cuc Vu, Chief Diversity
Officer for the Human Rights Campaign. The panel was facilitated by Candi
Castleberry-Singleton, Chief Inclusion and Diversity Officer with University of
Pittsburgh Medical Center. Later in the day, Nanci led a workshop entitled Unity Among Women of Color: Celebrating
Sisterhood, Overcoming Barriers that Divide Us. This was an "amazing
collaboration," Nanci said, planned by a committee with representatives from
all the minority chambers in Las Vegas and participants from all over the
state. See more photographs here.
University of California
Puts into Practice
Nanci led three workshops for two of the University of
California campuses at the start of the school year. At UC, Irvine Nanci led a session for the
Housing staff during their week-long staff development training session Today We Learn, Tomorrow We Lead. With
simultaneous translation for about 2/3 of the participants, Nanci led the group
of about 100 through a series of activities, sharing insights into the effects
of oppression and internalized oppression, especially in the workplace.
 
At UC, Santa Barbara LJS & Associates again worked
with the Residence Life staff. Nanci and
Lillian Roybal Rose delivered a one-day workshop for head and administrative
staff in August. In September, Nanci, Lillian and Barbara MacKay
facilitated a 2 ½ day Transformational Communication: Building Relationships for Authentic
Cross Cultural Alliances workshop for student leaders, resident
assistants and head staff.
Facilitating
Connections
LJS & Associates' first public workshop in Portland, OR,
Transformational Communication: Building
Relationships for Authentic Cross Cultural Alliances, drew a geographically
diverse participant group from both the east and west coasts. Co-facilitated by
Shoshanna Cogan and Nanci, this two-day event was, by at least a few accounts,
"magical." As one participant said, "this past weekend was absolutely
fantastic, inspiring and completely appreciated. I am still processing all the
amazing insights into both my life and the world around me." LJS is looking
forward to planning a similar event for October 2009 in the Washington, DC
area. Stay tuned for details.
Diversity Awareness
Day at McGraw-Hill
At the end of August, Nanci led a luncheon presentation: You Don't Know What You Don't
Know: A Journey of Cross Cultural Understanding. With videoconferencing from nine locations and individuals calling in
from across the US, Nanci presented to a group of employees at McGraw-Hill
headquarters. It was a chance to
highlight the work of the Employee Resource Groups and address the importance
of sharing and listening to each other's stories as a way to foster inclusion
in the workplace. As one of the
participants remarked, "Nanci was wonderful
and I wish she would have had more time to present her full program to us. The
awareness she is able to bring to the audience is very valuable for team
building and cross-cultural understanding."
Uniting NW Latinas 
Nanci traveled next to Seattle, WA where she conducted Latinas Unidas: Working with Our Hermanas,
Overcoming Barriers and Basura, a workshop for the 8th Annual
Nordstrom Latina Conference. Nanci focused her workshop on general issues of
identity as mujeres and specifically on the things that divide the community
and ways to build better unity. "Nanci touched on some very significant issues
in the Hispanic community and all diverse communities and the need for
partnerships," said one participant. With a record breaking attendance of over
250 Latinas, being a part of this incredible event was an honor. If you are in
the Seattle area next September, be sure and attend!
LJS Goes International
Nanci and LJS Associates Barb MacKay and Shoshanna Cogan co-facilitated
the two-day Pre-Conference Workshop You
Don't Know What You Don't Know: The Facilitator's Path for Authentic Cross
Cultural Practice for the European International Association of
Facilitators Conference in Groningen, The Netherlands. Nanci also led a concurrent conference session workshop:
The Invisible Participant: Identifying the Impacts of Institutional Power &
Developing a Practice of Inclusion. Looking back on the experience, "I
learned so much at this conference as I listened to participants from across
Western and Eastern Europe engage in fascinating dialogue about the cultural
divides and collective unhealed wounds within their nations," said Nanci. The Pre-Conference training will be offered again at the IAF Conference in
Vancouver, BC. Register for this amazing workshop here.
Finding Common Ground
Nanci delivered a keynote, A Common Humanity: Transcending to Unity through Difference at the
15th Annual City and Counties Diversity Conference in Portland, OR. Over 950 people came
together from many jurisdictions to create this amazing event with the theme United We Stand, Divided We Fall...Creating
Common Ground. Participants came
from Washington, Clackamas, Multnomah, and Clark counties as well as Metro, the
City of Portland, and the Portland Development Commission. "Transcending to
Unity" was the focus for the entire day and Nanci's afternoon workshop deepened
the theme of creating a common ground and exploring the effects of
institutional oppression. This was a "wonderful exchange of ideas that helped
participants leave with clear actions steps to take in their individual
workplaces," Nanci said.
 
Inspiring Entrepreneurs
for Social Change
In mid-November, Nanci spoke on a panel for the American
Democracy Institute (ADI), a member organization that focuses on professional
development in area of social and political entrepreneurship. Nanci joined
fellow panelists: Seth Green, Founder and
Board Chair, Americans for Informed Democracy; Carrie Sanders, Director
of Development, Charity: Water; and Liza Vadnai, Director of Strategic
Partnerships, GOOD Magazine as
they shared stories of why they were inspired to start their businesses with
the goal of fostering social change.
|
|
