Common design methods, approaches, and processes are rooted in the same ontologies that created the current layers of crises facing the world and are inadequate to produce liberatory responses to these crises. We need new ways of designing rooted in new ontologies and epistemologies. The ancient practice of Relational Design (RD) offers one meaningful approach (Udoewa & Gress, 2023). How can relationship-building methodologies be an act of design? Come to the workshop to learn and experience.

A presentation by Victor Udoewa and Savannah Keith Gress based on their paper “Relational Design” published in the Journal of Awareness-Based Systems Change.

“Relational Design has many meanings—designing in, with, or for relationships. However, the design methodologies often remain unchanged. What if relational design meant relationship-building itself? How can relationship-building be an act of designing? Learn about experiences of Relational Design and join the conversation about what it means to design and to relate.”

A community session co-facilitated by Victor Udoewa and Savannah Keith Gress exploring the insights we can access from our collective embodied wisdom as a part of Elon University’s 2024 Design Forge Conference.

“Sometimes our best efforts to solve group, organizational, societal, and systemic challenges result in unaffected, worsening, or temporarily resolved problems. We usually rely on individual analysis and strategic thinking using mainstream, institutional knowledge sources. What if we were to access the wealth of other types of knowledges in the world around us: aesthetic, intuitive, emotional, spiritual, relational, energetic, communal, lived experiential, embodied, etc.?There are a number of practices, both old and new, that explore these other types of knowledge by creating awareness and using intention to act. Join us as we explore the rich wisdom of our collective embodied knowledge in order to create social change by addressing a specific situation and crafting a strategic path forward.”

Hosts Dequonna Wise, Monique Douglas and Savannah Keith Gress along with guest vocalist Dawn Anthony celebrated the harmony women bring to the world on International Women’s Day.

Events included:

• Performace by the Persona Bell

• Fireside Chat with Monique Douglas sharing her life’s journey conducted by Dequonna Wise

• Community Choral Experience in The Historic Grace at Brooklyn Collective CLT orchestrated by one of Charlotte’s favorite vocalists Dawn Anthony

• 6 Recipients of “Women Who Bring Harmony to the World” Awards:

  • Gwendolyn Harris

  • Gwen Jackson

  • Shefalee Amin Patel

  • Tiffany "Tip Jones" Keaton

  • Rocío González Zornosa

  • Lindsey Braciale

• 🪻Closing Performance by Pamela DeMarche and friends

Parents are notoriously bad at choosing schools that teach effectively, and those choices typically increase inequity.

Join us as we pull back the curtain on common myths, review Charlotte-specific school data, and consider more just and effective ways to identify great schools.

Participate in the artist talk with Ato Ribeiro about his piece “We Face Forward”. Then, reflect with us on what we can learn from the fight for housing justice in Charlotte. From there we will open the conversation on how we as a community can move together from separation to belonging for all.

This dialogue will center around the profound impact of societal unhealthy beliefs on our minds and wellbeing and the voices of both experts and the community will come together to share thoughts on moving forward despite this impact. The evening will include talks with Kamille Mays about her piece “Overwhelmed” and Sachi Rome on her piece “O Take Me to the Water, the Key to Hear Me Dream”.

Are you ready to explore art, enjoy artist talks, and be a part to conversations that lead to a healthier community? Well you are in the right place! Hear from community members who have unpacked the roots of exclusion and erasure in our shared historying of swimming in America including how, why & where it occurred in our city of Charlotte. Then, join the conversation with others in the room.

Join in the conversation Clarence Heyward’s art sparks in a night of art and dialogue at the Brooklyn Collective. The evening will include a presentation by the artist followed by an interactive discussion with other attendees. Participants will imagine our own skin as green screens and explore our experiences of being projected upon, what we project on each other, and how our perceptions manifest in policy–including in Charlotte’s past and present. True to the practice of dialogue (sometimes called the art of listening deeply enough to be changed by what is shared) participants will learn from one another’s experiences and perspectives before considering opportunities for moving beyond our projections.