Training Topics | Creative Praxis

training topics

Creative Praxis is an art-based, healing-centered, joy-filled training organization for youth,

educators, and community members working towards liberation.

All trainings are available in-person and online. Creative Praxis works with community to adapt all trainings to meet the need. All trainings can be adapted for multiple audiences: young people, educators, community members.

Anti-racism

Our Anti-Racism Trainings includes 10 topics, detailed in the tabs below:

"Liberation is a praxis: the action and reflection of men and women upon their world in order to transform it."

- Paulo Freire

Liar, Farmer, Commander: an anti-racist and re-indigenized training

Mode: In-person or Online

Description: Deepen participants (educators, business, community leaders) analysis of racism, colonialism, and imperialism, grounding them in the history, legacy, and global impact of these systemic forms of oppression on an individual, cultural, and institutional level. he training works with participants to collectively construct new anti-racist and decolonizing principles for their personal and professional lives. It is the aim of the training that these principles will inform approaches, practices and policies, collectively working to undo the lie of racism and uproot the seeds of colonialism.

Media Literacy

Mode: In-person or Online

Description: This arts-based, healing-centered media literacy training designed to help communities navigate today’s digital world filled with misinformation, harmful narratives, and addictive platforms. In this session participants—including youth, caregivers, staff, and community members—will engage in interactive activities to build critical skills for conscious, empowered media consumption. Each participant receives the Cut Through the Noise Zine, an 18-page, culturally relevant guide to understanding how media impacts our brains, relationships, and behaviors. Participants will build tools for fact-checking, recognizing bias, setting healthy digital boundaries, and fostering critical conversations at home, in schools, and in community spaces.

Civic Engagement

Mode: In-person or Online

Description: With voter apathy at an all-time high and civic knowledge steadily declining—only 47% of Americans can name all three branches of government (Annenberg Public Policy Center, 2022)—the urgency for accessible, community-driven civic education has never been greater. Creative Praxis’s Civic Engagement Training addresses this critical gap by providing culturally relevant, interactive sessions designed to strengthen individual and community power. Participants will gain tools to navigate democratic processes, critically assess information, and advocate effectively for themselves and their communities. Through our Live Free series, Creative Praxis combines media literacy, civic education, and community organizing strategies to foster an informed, resilient, and engaged citizenry. Grounded in our extensive facilitation experience and deep community connections, this training empowers local residents to drive meaningful systemic change at both the local and national levels.

Community and Youth Organizing: Building Power, Connection, and Change

Mode: In-person or Online

Description: This arts-based, evidence-informed training invites participants to explore community organizing through the lens of personal and collective story. Using Creative Praxis’s "I Am" and "We Are" frameworks, participants will reflect on identity, connect to shared histories, and harness storytelling as a tool for building movements. Through interactive art practices, dialogue, and somatic reflection, participants will strengthen their power analysis and learn how to enter, build, and exit a community with integrity. This session also explores core organizing strategies, common blockers, and pathways toward collective liberation. According to the Building Movement Project, communities that invest in grassroots organizing skills see a 25–30% greater success rate in advancing systemic policy change. Participants will leave with practical tools for strategy development and renewed confidence to organize with compassion, accountability, and transformative vision.

The Power of Words: Language as a Tool for Liberation, Healing, and Action

Mode: In-person or Online

Description: This training explores the deep and lasting impact words have on how we view ourselves, how we treat others, and how we build—or break—relationships within schools, nonprofits, and communities. Participants will examine how language shapes perception and power, and how it has historically been used both as a tool of oppression and subjugation, and as a catalyst for healing, unification, and movement-building. Grounded in research, this session addresses the harm caused by deficit-based, shame-based, and racialized language—language that neuroscience shows can activate threat responses in the brain and diminish cognitive functioning and social connection. Research from the BRM Institute and the Mayo Clinic confirms that the words we use—internally and externally—can influence everything from workplace culture to individual well-being, decision-making, and community cohesion.

During the session, participants will learn to recognize and disrupt oppressive language patterns, and co-create human-centered, liberation-based alternatives that promote belonging, equity, and joy. Through interactive dialogue and arts-based reflection, attendees will develop a shared vocabulary that supports inclusion, accountability, and transformative action. Together, we will craft affirmative language tools that schools, nonprofits, and community members can immediately implement to foster cultures where people are seen, valued, and empowered to thrive. This training provides not just awareness, but practical steps and language frameworks proven to shift hearts, policies, and outcomes for the better.

Embodying DEIAJ: A Human-Centered Approach to DEIAJ in Practice

Mode: In-person or Online

Description: This interactive, arts-based, and somatic-centered training invites participants into a courageous and compassionate space to explore Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Accessibility, and Justice (DEIAJ) through the lens of personal story, collective identity, and systemic awareness. The session is designed to foster deep connection—within oneself, across teams, and with the communities we partner with—by honoring both individual and shared lived experiences.

Grounded in somatic learning practices and Creative Praxis’s healing-centered framework, participants will move beyond performative approaches to DEIAJ and toward embodied, actionable practices that reflect care, accountability, and liberation. Through movement, dialogue, creative expression, and critical inquiry, participants will examine how systemic oppression—along with internalized racial superiority and inferiority—shapes their roles, interactions, and institutional culture.

The training supports teams in cultivating a shared language and shared responsibility around equity and inclusion, while also generating tools for sustaining joyful, just, and connected communities. Participants will leave with six tangible tools they can use to embed DEIAJ into both their personal practices and organizational culture.

Uncovering Implicit Bias: Dialogue, Power, and the Stories We Carry

Mode: In-person or Online

Description: This arts-based, somatic-centered training invites participants into a deep exploration of implicit bias through the lens of neuroscience, storytelling, and embodied learning. Drawing inspiration from Augusto Boal’s Theatre of the Oppressed, the session creates a shift from monologue to dialogue—challenging participants to move beyond passive observation and into active reflection, relationship, and responsibility.

Using creative tools and human-centered frameworks, participants will explore how the brain makes System 1 (automatic) judgments based on repeated exposure to narratives—particularly those reinforced through media, cultural messages, and dominant systems. These mental shortcuts, or implicit biases, often bypass critical thinking (System 2) and can cause harm even when unintentional—shaping how we perceive, engage, and make decisions about others based on race, gender, ability, age, and more.
The training centers both personal and cultural awareness, offering participants the opportunity to examine the narratives they've inherited, the “stock stories” that shape societal norms, and the ways these internalized beliefs impact relationships, communities, and systems—especially when held by people in positions of power. Through interactive theater, dialogue, and reflection, participants will develop practical tools for disrupting bias and practicing equity in both their daily interactions and institutional decision-making.

Understanding and Cultivating Power

Mode: In-person or Online

Description: This interactive, arts-based training invites participants into a healing-centered space to reconnect with their personal story and cultivate a deeper understanding of power at the individual, communal, and systemic levels. Using a liberation-rooted framework, participants explore shifting from “power over” to “power within” and “power with.” Through practical activities, participants will strengthen affirming language, conscious body awareness, and collective action skills, while learning to identify and dismantle power blockers like internalized oppression and systemic narratives. Research shows that when individuals develop a strong sense of agency, their ability to drive community change increases by over 40% (Youth Activism Project), and organizations that nurture leadership at all levels see a 35% rise in effectiveness and trust (Building Movement Project). Participants will leave equipped to embody ethical, courageous leadership for liberation, healing, and systemic transformation.

Creating Anti-Racist Spaces

Mode: In-person or Online

Description: This immersive, arts-based, and evidence-informed training invites participants into a deep exploration of racism—not only as a historical construct, but as a living system that continues to impact individuals, communities, and the land we inhabit. Participants will examine the origins of racism, how it manifests in the body and mind, and the detrimental effects it has on our schools, institutions, ecosystems, and collective futures. The training will also explore why racism persists and its devastating global consequences, emphasizing the urgent need for dismantling these systems for the survival and thriving of all beings. Rooted in an intersectional analysis, the session looks at how racism interweaves with other forms of oppression—such as ableism, sexism, and classism—and how these forces show up in everyday practices, language, spaces, and structures. Research from the Harvard School of Public Health shows that structural racism contributes significantly to health disparities, shortened life expectancy, and community destabilization, underscoring that dismantling racism is not just a moral imperative, but a public health and planetary necessity.

This session is designed to move far beyond theoretical discussions. Participants will co-create anti-racist, liberation-centered practices tailored to their schools, nonprofits, organizations, and communities. Through interactive exercises, somatic reflection, storytelling, and design thinking, participants will engage in tangible skill-building: examining the language we use, how we design physical spaces, and how we show up relationally. Participants will leave with practical tools, co-created strategies, and action plans that move from intention to disruption, from learning to liberation.

LGBTQIA+ Justice

Mode: In-person or Online

Description: This interactive, arts-based training session provides culturally relevant and practical tools for creating sexual orientation- and gender-inclusive practices grounded in a liberation framework. Participants will deepen their knowledge around identity, implicit bias, and the role of media in reinforcing homophobic and transphobic ideologies, while gaining a historical analysis of how gender and sexual orientation have been shaped, policed, and resisted over time. The session fosters a sense of community and establishes a safe, courageous space for learning, reflection, and collective discovery. Participants will strengthen their understanding of power, intersectionality, and the differences between sexual orientation and gender identity, while gaining strategies for LGBTQIA+ justice rooted in shared principles. Practical tools for using gender-inclusive language and building inclusive, supportive environments for LGBTQIA+ coworkers, youth, and clients are also explored, equipping participants to champion equity and liberation in their organizations and communities.

TRAUMA-INFORMED

Our Trauma-Informed Trainings includes 8 topics, detailed in the tabs below:

"There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you."

- Maya Angelou

Trauma-Informed and Healing-Centered Approaches

Mode: In-person or Online

Description: This session is designed to provide participants with intentional time to build relationships, engage in self-reflection, and deepen their understanding of trauma-informed practices. This session will provide participants with a deeper understanding of stress and trauma, including how they manifest in the human body. Participants will gain practical, age-appropriate tools for creating trauma-informed and healing-centered spaces and practices on both personal and professional levels, utilizing an anti-racist, restorative-based framework.

Space Matters: Creating Healing-Centered Environments

Mode: In-person or Online

Description: This immersive training explores how the physical spaces we occupy—classrooms, offices, community centers, and homes—can either support healing or perpetuate harm. Through art-based reflection and somatic practices, participants will begin by reconnecting with their personal sense of "I AM", recognizing how their presence, energy, and design choices influence the environments they help shape. Grounded in trauma-informed and healing-centered frameworks, this session deepens understanding of how trauma and stress manifest in the body, and how our surroundings can either soothe or trigger those responses. Research from the Center on the Developing Child at Harvard underscores that consistent, safe, and responsive environments are critical for mitigating the effects of trauma and promoting resilience.

During the session, participants will examine the impact of physical environments on an individual, cultural, and systemic level—looking at everything from color and lighting to spatial layout and sensory cues. Participants will explore how to design spaces that are not only trauma-informed, but also rooted in joy, dignity, and restoration. Together, we will co-create action plans for transforming classrooms, offices, and shared spaces into affirming environments where people can feel grounded, seen, and empowered. This training blends evidence-based practices with creative strategies, ensuring participants walk away with both the tools and inspiration to reimagine space as a powerful catalyst for healing and connection.

Creating Wellness Practices and Policies

Mode: In-person or Online

Description: This interactive, arts-based training invites participants to explore what wellness truly means—both individually and organizationally. Using a restorative practices framework, participants will assess wellness values, identify barriers, and explore seven common blockers to sustainable care. Through somatic-centered activities and group dialogue, participants will co-create trauma-informed, healing-centered practices and policies that reflect the needs of their full team. Research shows that organizations with explicit wellness strategies see a 25% reduction in burnout and a 40% increase in job satisfaction (American Psychological Association). Participants will leave with practical tools, a step-by-step workbook, and actionable strategies to transform wellness from an idea into a living part of their organizational culture.

Self-Regulation & Co-Regulation: Understanding the Nervous System to Build Healing-Centered Relationships

Mode: In-person or Online

Description: This arts-integrated, evidence-based training offers participants practical tools to understand how stress and trauma manifest in the body and impact behavior, communication, and connection. Grounded in neuroscience and Creative Praxis’s healing-centered approach, participants will explore how the nervous system functions and gain strategies for self-regulation and co-regulation through somatic exercises, reflection, and art-based activities. Research shows that educators trained in regulation practices see significant increases in student achievement and emotional resilience (Center on the Developing Child, Harvard University). Participants will leave with easy-to-implement techniques, a foundational understanding of nervous system activation, and a shared language for creating calm, connected, and empowering environments across personal and professional spaces.

Self and Community Care

Mode: In-person or Online

Description: This interactive training offers a holistic exploration of wellness, guiding participants through practices that nurture the body, mind, and spirit. Participants will reflect on and define what wellness means to them personally and collectively, gaining practical strategies for sustaining both self-care and community care. Through culturally relevant mindfulness practices, somatic exercises, breathwork, tapping, and boundary-setting techniques, participants will build a personalized toolkit for daily resilience. The training also explores the critical difference between self-care and community care, offering frameworks for building networks of compassionate support—what we call "building a net that works"—to care with and for one another. Grounded in somatic awareness and liberation-centered practices, this session invites participants into deeper reflection, connection, and actionable healing strategies.

Burnout & Compassion Fatigue

Mode: In-person or Online

Description: This session provides intentional time for participants to deepen their connection with themselves and the group, explore the root causes of burnout and compassion fatigue, and engage in somatic-centered, whole-body practices to cultivate rejuvenation, wellness, and care. Participants will gain tangible tools and strategies to enhance their well-being on both an individual and collective level. Through practices such as incorporating movement and play, setting and maintaining boundaries, and building a “net that works,” Creative Healing supports participants in sustaining their commitment to community work while prioritizing their own health and resilience. The Creative Praxis team brings over 20 years of experience in addressing burnout and compassion fatigue through interactive, culturally relevant, and healing-centered practices shared with communities globally.

Working Through Grief and Loss

Mode: In-person or Online

Description: This arts-based, somatic-centered, and evidence-informed training creates a compassionate space for participants to explore the complex journey of grief and loss. Designed for those personally navigating grief or supporting others, the session offers time for reflection, grounding, and creative expression. Participants will explore how grief manifests in the body, mind, and spirit, and gain practical tools for healing, integration, and emotional resilience. Framed through a whole-person lens, the training addresses the physical, emotional, cognitive, social, and spiritual dimensions of grief, offering strategies for cultivating empathy, presence, and care. Rooted in the belief that grief is a necessary and transformative process, this session supports participants in honoring loss while reconnecting to hope and community.

Social Emotional Learning 101 & 102: Cultivating the “I Am” and the “We Are”

Mode: In-person or Online

Description: This training will explore the foundations and transformative power of Social Emotional Learning (SEL) through a culturally relevant, youth-centered, and liberation-based lens. Participants will deepen their understanding of what SEL is, why it matters, and how to intentionally integrate it into learning environments—not as a sidebar, but as a central part of developing thriving, whole young people. Using Creative Praxis’s “I Am” and “We Are” framework, the session will break down SEL’s five core competencies—self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision-making—while grounding participants in how SEL nurtures identity, agency, empathy, and interconnection.

During the session, participants will engage in arts-based, somatic, and interactive activities designed for K–8 youth, while exploring the importance of modeling SEL as adults. Participants will also examine the role of power, culture, and community in shaping emotional development and relational engagement. Tools for building authentic relationships with students, families, and fellow educators—both online and in person—will be explored, alongside strategies for fostering safe, joyful, and emotionally intelligent learning spaces.
Finally, participants will walk away with a toolkit of interactive SEL activities, sample lesson structures, and practical strategies they can immediately use to strengthen SEL in their schools, classrooms, and community programs. The training will support participants in honoring and teaching SEL as a daily practice that cultivates the full humanity of our youth and ourselves.

RESTORATIVE PRACTICES

Our Restorative Practices Education Trainings includes 4 topics, detailed in the tabs below:

“If the structure does not permit dialogue the structure must be changed.”

- Paulo Freire

RESTORATIVE PRACTICES

Our Restorative Practices Trainings includes 4 topics, detailed in the tabs below:

"If the structure does not permit dialogue the structure must be changed.”

- Paulo Freire

Restorative Practices 101 & 102

Mode: In-person or Online

Description: The session provides participants with intentional time to deepen their connection with themselves and the group and gather best practices for embodying and implementing tools for restorative practices. During the sessions, participants will gain holistic, preventive, and proactive tools for building community, while moving away from a punitive punishment framework when addressing harm to a restorative discipline model. Additionally, the sessions will provide culturally-relevant, practical tools for de-escalation and self-regulation when someone becomes activated or in crisis. Restorative Practice sessions will allow for intentional time for all staff to co-create an aligned action plan with strategies to help create safe, calm, and courageous learning spaces for students, staff, families, and community members, focusing on the core elements of restorative practices.

Topics Covered:

Core Elements of Restorative Practice
Community Building Practices
Culturally Relevant De-escalation and Addressing Conflict
Repairing Harm
Whole School/Organization Action Plan: Community Building /Healing Strategies and Intervention Protocol

B is for Boundaries: Cultivating Power, Healing, and Care through Intentional Practice

Mode: In-person or Online

Description: This interactive, arts-based training offers participants a sacred and intentional space to reconnect with their personal “I Am”—their strengths, hopes, and aspirations—while listening deeply to the stories and reflections of others. Grounded in Creative Praxis’s healing-centered and somatic framework, “B is for Boundaries” explores the essential role that boundaries play in fostering personal power, collective care, and sustainable healing.

Participants will unpack the meaning and purpose of boundaries—not as walls, but as frameworks for honoring our needs, values, and energy. Together, we will examine the challenges that can make setting and maintaining boundaries difficult—what we call boundary blockers—including internalized narratives, cultural expectations, and systemic pressures. Through storytelling, movement, and reflection, participants will begin to map their own boundary needs and explore how boundaries can serve as a path to clarity, rejuvenation, and deeper connection.

The session includes time for practice and skill-building so participants leave with tools they can use immediately in their personal lives, relationships, and workplaces.

Exploring Shame and Empathy: Cultivating Connection, Compassion, and Courageous Community

Mode: In-person or Online

Description: This immersive session invites participants into a reflective, art-based exploration of shame, empathy, and the transformative power of vulnerability. Drawing from somatic practices, neuroscience, and community-building traditions, participants will examine how shame manifests in the body and impacts our relationships—personally, communally, and systemically. Using Creative Praxis’s arts-based, healing-centered framework, the training supports individuals and teams in recognizing the deep connection between empathy and belonging, and how cultivating both can shift culture, behavior, and accountability within communities and institutions.

Building Community and Repairing Harm

Mode: In-person or Online

Description: Building Community and Repairing Harm is an interactive, somatic-centered training designed to guide participants through Creative Praxis’s “I Am” and “We Are” frameworks for creating safe, inclusive, and resilient communities. Drawing from the work of M. Scott Peck and grounded in restorative, human-centered practices, this session explores the five stages of community-building, including fostering vulnerability, co-creating agreements, and designing activities that deepen connection. Participants will also examine pathways for repairing harm when conflict occurs, moving beyond punitive models toward practices that center accountability, healing, and restoration. Through hands-on experiences, reflective dialogue, and art-based activities, participants will leave with tangible tools for cultivating belonging, addressing harm, and sustaining community rooted in care and liberation.

ETHOS

Our Ethos Trainings includes 8 topics, detailed in the tabs below:

"The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice."

- Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Youth Programming

Mode: In-person or Online

Description: This art-centered, liberation-based training equips participants with the tools to design, maintain, and evaluate dynamic youth programming that fosters leadership, critical thinking, and systemic change. Participants will deepen their understanding of adolescent development, youth voice, non-traditional educational methodologies, and humanistic approaches to engagement and retention. Through Creative Praxis’s framework, participants will explore how their personal ethos impacts what, how, and why they teach, and learn strategies for entering, building, and exiting community with care and intentionality. The session also offers practical tools for lesson planning and creating activities that place young people at the center of their learning process. Grounded in a youth-led, anti-racist framework, this training supports participants in building programs that not only nurture individual growth, but also lead to collective action, long-term program sustainability, and strengthened community cohesion on local, national, and global levels.

Telling Our Stories: The Art of Public Speaking and Storyelling

Mode: In-person or Online

Description: Telling Our Stories is an arts-based, somatic-centered training designed to cultivate the power of personal and collective storytelling. Participants are invited into a safe and courageous space where connection, vulnerability, and growth are honored. Grounded in Creative Praxis’s “I Am” and “We Are” frameworks, the session focuses on building peer connections, strengthening public speaking skills, and using storytelling as a tool for healing, community-building, and social change. Through guided prompts, participants will explore the three essential elements of dynamic public speaking: clear narrative structure, audience engagement, and a strong call to action.
During the training, participants will learn strategies for crafting and sharing engaging, heartfelt, action-centered stories—whether as community organizers, facilitators, educators, students, or fundraisers. They will practice using prompts to spark storytelling, techniques for reading and connecting with an audience, and crafting narratives that inspire movement and change. Participants will leave with tangible tools to shape intentional, purpose-driven stories, strengthened communication skills, and a renewed sense of resilience and collective power ready to be shared with the world.

Positive Youth Development

Mode: In-person or Online

Description: This session offers participants the opportunity to ground themselves in the philosophy and practice of Positive Youth Development (PYD)—a strengths-based, holistic approach to supporting young people as they grow into healthy, engaged, and powerful adults. Framed through Creative Praxis’s Head, Heart, Hands, and Feet model, participants will explore how to co-design environments and experiences that nurture the whole child—intellectually, emotionally, creatively, and socially.

Positive Youth Development is not just a method—it’s a mindset. It centers youth voices, engages families and communities as partners, and invites adults to be co-creators of space where young people are seen, valued, and supported in identifying and walking in their power. This session blends art-based, healing-centered learning with practical tools to help participants intentionally cultivate growth-centered, inclusive, and liberatory learning environments.

Youth, Recruitment, Retention and Engagement

Mode: In-person or Online

Description: This session offers participants intentional time to reflect on and refine their approach to building authentic, long-lasting relationships with children and youth, their families and caregivers, and the broader community. Through interactive activities, storytelling, and guided dialogue, participants will explore holistic and culturally-responsive strategies for communication, trust-building, and outreach. The session will emphasize strengths-based engagement practices that honor community wisdom and lived experience, while providing practical tools for supporting program recruitment, retention, and youth-centered program design.

Participants will walk away with tangible strategies to deepen relationships, sustain engagement over time, and create welcoming environments that support the social, emotional, and cultural needs of youth and families. Additionally, participants will have space to co-create a customized outreach and engagement action plan tailored to their specific program context.

Youth Safety

Mode: In-person or Online

Description: The Youth Safety training provides youth-based organizations and institutions with essential policies, procedures, and best practices for creating safe environments for young people, staff, volunteers, and partners. Rooted in international best practices and aligned with all applicable state laws, this training covers critical areas including staff and volunteer screening, youth-to-staff ratios, risk assessment, emergency procedures, mandated reporting, confidentiality, and digital safety. Participants will learn practical strategies for youth supervision, parent/guardian communication, prevention of dangerous behavior, and responding to incidents. By centering community collaboration, legal compliance, and proactive safety planning, this training equips organizations to foster safe, supportive, and accountable spaces for all youth participants.

Human-Centered Monitoring and Evaluation

Mode: In-person or Online

Description: This training equips participants with tools to design reflective, inclusive, and action-driven evaluation processes. Using Creative Praxis’s five-part evaluation cycle—goal setting, question design, accessible methods, analysis, and reporting—participants learn how to center the experiences and needs of the communities they partner with. Through art-based methods, storytelling, interviews, focus groups, and rubrics, participants gain strategies for gathering meaningful qualitative and quantitative data. Research shows that organizations using participant-centered feedback see up to 33% stronger program outcomes and higher community trust (Center for Effective Philanthropy, 2021).

Human-Centered Monitoring and Evaluation moves beyond compliance, positioning evaluation as a tool for empowerment and systemic change. Participants leave with practical tools to co-create evaluations that foster connection, drive real-time improvements, and strengthen alignment with their communities.

I Am and We Are: understanding personal narrative, identities, and history and how they show up in learning spaces

Mode: In-person or Online

Description: This arts-based, healing-centered training invites participants to explore the critical role of personal narratives, identities, and collective histories in shaping learning spaces. Grounded in Creative Praxis’s “I Am” and “We Are” frameworks, this session provides intentional time for reflection, connection, and skill-building around how our lived experiences influence the ways we teach, learn, and build community. Participants will deepen their understanding of how identity, culture, and history impact relationships, classroom dynamics, and community engagement. Through interactive, somatic-centered activities, participants will gain tools to cultivate personal and collective power, honoring individual and shared stories as a foundation for creating inclusive, liberatory spaces where belonging, growth, and systemic change are possible.

Creative Facilitation: a train-the-trainer for facilitators, educators, artists, and organizers

Mode: In-person or Online

Description: The Creative Praxis Train-the-Trainer Intensive is an immersive, arts-based experience where participants deepen their understanding of facilitation grounded in a trauma-informed, anti-racist, and restorative framework. Through intentional reflection, experiential activities, and guided dialogue, participants explore the essential elements of liberation-centered facilitation—including setting up trauma-informed physical spaces, building culturally relevant practices for entering, building, and exiting community, and holding community containers that invite curiosity, learning, and vulnerability. Participants will engage with Creative Praxis’s "I Am" and "We Are" frameworks to explore how personal identity and collective connection are critical components of transformational learning.

During the training, participants will practice practical compassionate communication skills, group dynamic navigation, culturally relevant lesson planning, and multiple facilitation methods that honor racial, gender, and socioeconomic diversity. Participants will also co-create individualized implementation plans to integrate these practices into their own facilitation work across schools, nonprofits, businesses, and community spaces. Upon completion, participants will receive a Creative Praxis Certificate of Completion—tangibly demonstrating their expanded knowledge, skillset, and commitment to liberation-based facilitation. This training not only equips participants with tangible tools but also cultivates a facilitation mindset that fosters connection, critical thinking, and collective growth.

ART INFUSION

Our Art Infusion Trainings includes 3 topics, detailed in the tabs below:

"The future belongs to young people with an education and the imagination to create.”

- President Barack Obama

Art Integration

Mode: In-person or Online

Description: This immersive, hands-on training invites participants to explore the transformative power of integrating the arts into learning and community spaces. Rooted in Creative Praxis’s healing-centered and liberation-based approach, Art Integration offers a dynamic space for educators, facilitators, and organizational leaders to reimagine how art can deepen engagement, invite critical thinking, and support inclusive, embodied experiences.

Participants will examine the role of artistic expression as a tool for connection, cultural relevance, and emotional depth across a variety of settings—from classrooms and community meetings to strategic planning sessions and healing circles. The session highlights 4 to 6 tangible practices for integrating multiple art forms—visual art, movement, storytelling, music, writing, and theater—into lesson planning, group facilitation, and organizational design.

Through direct experience, reflection, and collaborative exploration, participants will leave with practical tools to weave creativity into their facilitation and engagement strategies, as well as a deeper understanding of how the arts foster voice, agency, and belonging.

Embodied Practices

Mode: In-person or Online

Description: This interactive training introduces participants to the foundations of embodied practice—intentional methods of connecting mind and body to deepen learning, leadership, and community care. Educators, staff members, and organizational leaders will explore how embodying practices such as movement, breathwork, and play can strengthen resilience, enhance connection, and increase overall learning capacity. Participants will have time to reflect on their current practices, examine where disconnection may occur, and learn actionable ways to integrate movement-based activities into daily lessons, meetings, and organizational routines. Research from the Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University shows that strengthening the mind-body connection significantly increases emotional regulation, resilience, learning outcomes, and cognitive performance—critical skills for leadership and sustainable community building. Through hands-on activities, somatic reflection, and play, this session equips participants to build embodied strategies that center wellness, equity, and collective liberation.

Art and Healing

Mode: In-person or Online

Description: Art and Healing is an arts-based, healing-centered training designed for everyone seeking new pathways for reflection, grounding, and personal growth. Participants will explore how different art modalities—such as visual arts, movement, music, and writing—can be powerful tools in the healing journey. This interactive session provides both the theory behind why the arts are essential for emotional and somatic healing, and hands-on opportunities for participants to experience and practice various creative methods. Whether you are new to artistic expression or already using the arts in your life, this training offers accessible, transformative approaches to support well-being, self-awareness, and resilience.

COMMUNITY BUILDING

Our Community Building Trainings includes 7 topics below:

Culturally Relevant De-escalation

Community Engagement 101 & 102

Working Through Conflict

Community Building 101

The Power of Dialogue andCompassionate Communication

Classroom Management

"I am what I am because of who we all are."

- Ubuntu

Community Engagement 101

Mode: In-person or Online

Description: Community Engagement 101 is an interactive, healing-centered training that introduces participants to the core principles of meaningful and sustainable community engagement. Rooted in Creative Praxis’s arts-based and liberation-focused framework, this session guides participants through the three essential phases of engagement: Entering, Building, and Exiting community with care and intention.

Participants will explore how to develop an ethos of engagement that reflects their values, context, and role, while also examining real-world challenges and tools for inclusive facilitation. This session also highlights the role of play, creativity, and movement in fostering authentic connection, and introduces ethical asset mapping—supporting participants in co-creating maps rooted in power, self-determination, and historical analysis.

By the end of the session, participants will be able to articulate the three phases of engagement, design strategies for each, and implement community-centered approaches that honor relationships, power, and sustainability.

Community Engagement 102

Mode: In-person or Online

Description: Community Engagement 102 is an advanced, somatic-centered training for practitioners ready to deepen their practice by examining the systemic, historical, and relational dimensions of community work. Building on the foundations of Community Engagement 101, participants will explore how power, history, and context influence how we enter, build, and exit community.

Rooted in Creative Praxis’s “Building a Net That Works” framework, this session supports participants in mapping power dynamics, understanding collective roles, and applying tools for sustainable, equity-driven engagement. Participants will also identify and integrate 3–4 elements of play, creativity, and movement-centered approaches into their engagement practices to foster connection, resilience, and joy.

Through interactive dialogue, critical reflection, and arts-based experiences, participants will leave with strategies for community accountability, systems-level change, and practices that center imagination, healing, and long-term transformation.

Working Through Conflict

Mode: In-person or Online

Description: Working Through Conflict is a healing-centered training that challenges the common fear of conflict in communities, schools, organizations, and institutions. Rather than avoiding it, this session takes a deep dive into the essential role conflict plays in building authentic, resilient, and sustainable communities.

Grounded in Creative Praxis’s liberatory framework, participants will explore the phases of community building with a specific focus on how conflict arises, what it reveals, and how it can be transformed. Together, we’ll define what community truly means and examine how conflict—when navigated intentionally—can become a catalyst for growth, healing, and deeper connection.

This session introduces five key strategies for moving through conflict in ways that honor both individual and collective voices and power. By the end of the training, participants will leave with 3–5 actionable tools to support themselves and others in working through conflict with care, clarity, and purpose.

Community Building 101

Mode: In-person or Online

Description: Community Building 101 is an interactive, healing-centered training that introduces participants to the five core elements of the Creative Praxis framework for cultivating authentic and resilient communities. Participants will explore and practice the “I Am / We Are” framework, the five stages of vulnerability, compassionate listening, creating and maintaining agreements and boundaries, and the dynamics of power and voice.

Throughout the session, participants will develop a deeper understanding of how these elements intersect to strengthen relationships, foster trust, and sustain connection. They will apply practical tools to navigate tension, hold space, and co-create environments that honor dignity and belonging. By the end, participants will be able to implement these strategies in both personal and professional contexts to support healing, transformation, and community care.

The Power of Dialogue and Compassionate Communication

Mode: In-person or Online

Description: This interactive, arts-based, and healing-centered training explores the principles of the dialogic process, including respect, mutuality, and open-ended inquiry. Participants will learn compassionate listening techniques, with an emphasis on the teachings of Thich Nhat Hanh, and gain tools for implementing these practices in both personal and professional settings. By the end of the session, participants will be able to apply five key Creative Praxis listening techniques to foster intentional, strength-based, and empathy-driven dialogue while avoiding shame-based language. The training also focuses on becoming intentional talkers and listeners, drawing from Nonviolent Communication strategies. This session will provide tangible outcomes for teachers, businesses, and community members, equipping them with skills for collaboration, conflict resolution, and creating supportive, inclusive environments.

Classroom Management

Mode: In-person or Online

Description: This interactive, art-based, and evidence-informed training focuses on creating safe, equitable, and engaging learning environments through effective classroom management strategies that align with national standards. Participants will deepen their understanding of core classroom management principles, including the RAV framework (Respect, Appreciation, and Validation), while learning to implement key strategies such as pre-work (parent engagement, space design, and grounding/reflection practices), and rituals and procedures that promote safety, collaboration, and self-regulation. The training also emphasizes behavioral support techniques like boundary setting, de-escalation, and harm repair, providing participants with the tools needed to create a productive learning space. By the end of the session, participants will have actionable strategies to foster engagement, positive relationships, and sustained classroom management practices that support both students and staff in a nurturing, inclusive, and supportive environment.

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