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Dulwich Centre Institute of Collective Narrative
Practice
The Dulwich Centre Institute of
Collective Narrative Practice is vitally interested in the interface
between narrative therapy and work with wider groups and communities.
We seek to:
- Develop effective, hopeful and respectful ways of
using narrative practices to respond to collective trauma and
significant hardship. For
example, to respond to women who have experienced violence, or
groups of vulnerable children, or working with those in prison, or
those struggling with physical illness, or broader communities who
are struggling with the effects of grief, poverty and/or
colonisation.
- Explore ways in which narrative practices can foster
healing, conversation
and also local social contributions and actions.
- Link the use of narrative practices with local cultural expressions
(music, art, video, drama, dance)
New narrative methodologies
We are in the midst of developing a range of
narrative methodologies for use with individuals, groups and communities
who have experienced hardship. These methodologies are easy to engage
with and yet rigorous and effective. If you are interested in
co-developing or trialling these new methodologies in your local context
please contact us.
* The Tree of Life: a collective narrative
approach to responding to vulnerable children
The Tree of Life narrative methodology was developed by Ncazelo Ncube &
David Denborough in response to the experience of vulnerable children in
Southern Africa. It is now proving extremely popular with workers in
Australia, Canada, A DVD is now available that
explains this approach. Workshops are also being held to support workers
engage with it in their own contexts.
* The Team of Life: responding to trauma through sport
This methodology enables young people and older people who may not be
used to speaking about aspects of their lives to engage in rich and
meaningful conversations through sporting metaphors. What is more, these
conversations can take place on the sporting field, or in the gym, in
locker rooms, at half-time, during time-outs and so on. It has been
developed particularly to assist young people who have been through
significantly hard times to come to terms with these experiences of
trauma in ways that are invigorating, safe and enjoyable. The Team of
Life is now being used with young African refugees in a Victorian
school and in Indigenous communities in far north Queensland. More
information about it will be available very soon.
* River of memory, river of dreams
This methodology enables forms of collective remembrance. It was
developed in response to requests from counsellors in Rwanda who are
responding to survivors of the genocide in that country. More
information about this way of working will be available soon.
* Collective narrative documents
Collective narrative documents richly describe the special
skills and knowledge of how individuals, groups and communities are
sustained through difficult times. Once created, these documents can
then be shared between groups in ways that enable those who have endured
hardship to experience making a real contribution to others. This
process is now being used by therapists and community workers in a
wide-range of contexts. In coming months examples of these documents
will be placed up on this site.
* Narrative song-writing
A range of narrative therapists and community workers in Australia and
Ireland are now using music song in their work with individuals, groups
and communities. In coming months we will place a range of these songs
on this website and ideas for practitioners as to ways of using music
and song as part of their narrative practice. To read more about
narrative song-writing, click
here.
All of these methodologies can be used with
individuals in therapeutic consultations or with wider groups and
communities.
Working in partnerships
The Dulwich Centre Institute of Collective Narrative
Practice works in close partnership with two other organisations: the
Evanston Family Therapy Centre (Jill Freedman & Gene Combs) and the
Narrative Therapy Centre of Toronto (Angel Yuen & Ruth Pluznick).
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Jill Freedman |
Gene Combs |
Evanston Family Therapy Center:
Jill Freedman & Gene Combs
Evanston Family
Therapy Center (EFTC) is a not-for-profit organization, located
in Evanston, Illinois, U.S.A., that has been providing training
and consultation in Narrative Therapy for over twenty years,
both locally and internationally. We have been invited to share
our ideas all over the world, including Russia, Israel,
Singapore, Taiwan, Hong Kong, South Africa, Australia, New
Zealand, many European countries, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Cuba
and Rwanda. Locally, EFTC has provided consultation to many
community groups such as The Cancer Wellness Center, The
American Indian Center, Cook County Hospital, agencies serving
people with HIV/AIDs, elementary and high schools in both the
private and public sectors, and community mental health centers.
In 2003, EFTC sponsored the North American Conference on
Narrative Approaches to Therapy and Community Work. We are
currently working to extend ideas of narrative therapy and
consultation into collaborative community work. As a part of
this effort, we have engaged in a joint project in Rwanda with
The Dulwich Centre Foundation and Ibuka, an organization for
survivors of the Rwandan genocide. |
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Angel Yuen |
Ruth Pluznick |
Narrative Therapy
Center of Toronto:
Angel Yuen & Ruth Pluznick
The Narrative
Therapy Centre of Toronto (NTC) is committed to helping
practitioners put narrative ideas into action. Our core faculty of
experienced therapists, along with local and international guest
lecturers, offer both training and supervision. The NTC’s approach to therapy emphasizes social justice and equity.
Angel & Ruth have participated with the Dulwich Centre on
training within Israel and the Palestinian Territories. |
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Collaborative Colleagues
The following colleagues are being involved in the development
and trialling of a range of collective narrative methodologies
in different contexts. More collaborative colleagues will be
listed here shortly, including Ncazelo Ncube (South Africa),
Tileah Drahm (Australia) and Eileen Hurley (USA). |
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Alfonso Diaz-Smith,
Mexico
I'm very interested in
exploring collective ways of working through a narrative
framework to address injustice within my context. I'm currently
drawn to finding ways to attend to issues of male violence and
environmental politics. I am interested in exploring different
traditions of documenting stories such as video and other
creative expressions, as well as establishing connections with
others around these ideas. |
Training in collective narrative
approaches
The Dulwich Centre Institute of Collective Narrative
Practice offers training to workers and community members in ways of
responding to individuals, groups and communities who have experienced
trauma and hardship. For more information about this training contact
Virginia Leake and/or see the
training page on this website.
Recent
narrative community/collective workshops
Recent workshops
in Australia
have been facilitated by Barbara Wingard, Cheryl White, David Denborough
and Carolyn Koolmatrie at the Royal Flying Doctors Service in Cairns and
at Nunkawarrin Yunti (Aboriginal Health Service) in Adelaide. If you are
interested in the documentation and songs that were developed as part of
these workshops please contact us. Overseas workshops have been held in:
9th-10th June 2007
Moscow, Russia
15th-17th October 2007
Adelaide, Australia
1st-2nd November 2007
Toronto, Canada
5th-6th November 2007
Chicago, USA
16th-21st November 2007
Kigali, Rwanda
Supporting the resistance of survivors of Genocide
A workshop for the trauma counsellors and assistant lawyers of Ibuka
David Denborough, Jill Freedman and Cheryl White
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