Building Capacity for Conflict Transformation in Community Organizing Spaces

“Transforming Culture is doing exactly what their mission says they will. We talk about abolition but a lot of us don't know how to do it in real life or synthesize the literature into principles. Transforming Culture shows us how to do it because they live it every day. It was such a pleasure co-facilitating with Josue - ease, shared philosophy, baseline brilliant.”

“I believe that all organizers from the various groups, organizations, and collectives working on animal rights activism in Mexico City (which is where I’m based) should go through this program to have more and better tools to address the different situations that arise within the activist community.”

“[What I like the most is] The introspection I gain from doing the exercises, the motivation to challenge the discomfort that can come with self-questioning, and the understanding of giving those involved in conflicts the opportunity to learn, make amends, and heal.”

“I’ve really enjoyed the collective building, the atmosphere, and the loving disposition felt in each session; it truly comes across as a safe space for interaction.”

“I’m grateful that these spaces exist, where there is so much knowledge, the environment feels very safe, and I’m learning to name many actions I had already identified.”

“It would be important for leaders and organizations to take the course as part of their training to improve activist spaces.”

“I have really enjoyed everything, especially the horizontal approach, and I believe this has been achieved largely thanks to Josué. He has created a safe, kind, and empathetic space. His tone of voice and personality make us feel very comfortable. In my case, I’m not very extroverted, and Josué is always respectful when encouraging participation. I’ve never felt out of place or uncomfortable sharing anything.”

I attended Josue’s workshop at IARC 2023. I learned and reflected a lot about communication and conflict styles, both of other people as well as my own, which I am convinced will help me to navigate conflicts both in activist groups and in more private settings. I felt very comfortable in the workshop at all times. And: conflict isn’t a bad thing!

I really liked the fusion between theory and practice, as well as the explanations that made understanding easy. The workshops were tailored to the organization's needs, which made the materials exactly what was needed.

I had the opportunity to attend Transforming Culture’s workshop Navigating conflict for stronger communities at the International Animal Rights Conference in September 2023. The workshop was eye-opening for me as the methodology easily brought to the surface my own behavioral patterns that can make navigating conflict a challenge. I left not only knowing more about myself, but how to apply these skills to my own activist community. I am grateful for the work Transforming Culture does and I hope many more people get to go through this experience.

“The workshops series is helping me to have more empathy by recognizing how we are all capable of unconsciously replicating dominant culture, and it is giving me very useful tools to normalize new ways of relating collectively.”

Josue’s workshop left a big impression on me because I felt it was such an important topic to him personally - he was speaking from his heart! It was truly inspiring to see. I loved how deeply Josue dived into the topic of conflict. It's a really hard one and so complicated to think about. This is why it was so impressive to see how inspired he was to do it! I really believe that the most important and truthful actions are usually the most difficult to take. Having these difficult conversations, diving directly and deeply into our problems - this is how we heal our movement. We want to make the world better, so we must start within ourselves. Josue inspired me to continue doing so!

Josue showed great empathy and compassion, as well as presenting me with a wonderful roadmap to the window of transformation. I think anyone in a conflict situation will appreciate his support and resources.

“Josue was able to create a clear plan for mediation and conflict resolution. He was able to highlighting discussion points that’s were most important to me, and help breakdown barriers that were present. I was made to feel very relaxed a free to speak in sessions, and I truly felt listened to and understood. It was a comfortable mix of personal understanding and professional respect that helped sessions progress. Josue was open to learning and deepening his understanding of specific topics to help provide the best services to all parties.”

“Josue is an excellent activist, always looking to learn and be up-to-date in order to share all the knowledge obtained with different groups in the animal liberation movement. When I coordinated the Animal Save Movement group for Colombia, Josue gave us support and accompaniment in different processes to resolve some internal conflicts between different members of the 12 groups formed throughout the country. With the different dynamics developed together and the accompaniment, we had the necessary tools to best resolve the situation at the time.”

“During his years of activism in Animal Save Guatemala, Josue demonstrated leadership as an organizer and managed to open spaces to address different issues with different groups, forming alliances that allowed activism to have a safe and empathetic space for all participants. Both in terms of organization and the creation of a growing community, he made possible the emergence of new spaces and activist groups.”

“Josue's ability to de-escalate and mediate conflicts is excellent. The whole process was quite clear, I was clear about the next steps at all times and no decision was made without taking the participants into account. A mutually beneficial solution was found and a plan was devised to prevent it from happening again”

Transforming Culture is a gem in the animal advocacy space that I think deserves more of our attention. They provide training and resources on conflict navigation and effective communication strategies, done through the lens of understanding white supremacy, dominant culture, and oppressive systems. I’ve personally met their founder, and he’s spoken passionately about the need to build cultures of trust within our organizations. This offering is truly unique in the movement, and I highly encourage supporting it!