...from the inside out...

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Curriculum details

This is a comprehensive programme for experienced development practitioners seeking to explore challenging new ways of understanding development and improving its practice and impact.  The course is over a block period of 5 weeks. Experienced participants are drawn from diverse sectors and countries around the world and this affords rich opportunities for sharing and learning.  The programme includes a 10-day residential mountain retreat which takes participants deeper into nature where the natural environment becomes central to the learning journey - the accommodation and facilities at the mountain retreat are designed to enhance the experience and connect participants to nature. 

 Aim and Objectives

 The ultimate aim of the programme is for participants to leave with a more coherent, conscious, informed and genuinely effective developmental practice. This will be achieved by: 

• Exposing participants to challenging alternative ways of understanding and practising development.
• Creating opportunities to review, give form to, and learn from participants’ experiences and past practice
• Providing accompanied opportunities to test and build a methodology, tools and techniques appropriate to the improved future practice of individual participants.

The thinking behind the course

With the increased understanding of the systemic nature and inter-relatedness of all aspects of society we see the development practitioner as operating at the interface between systems; the work of the development practitioner lies in the realm of relationship. Development is not simply about addressing the needs of “the poor or marginalised” as though they were outside of the mainstream of society, simply needing to be integrated by providing them with resources, or building their capacity. The poor and marginalised are firmly locked into relationships that make them an integral part of the dynamic balance, or imbalance which forms global society.

Development practitioners, the organisations and agencies that employ them, and those that fund them are all integral parts of these same relationships – rather than agents of change external to them. Therefore, unless the agents and agencies of development lead through being actively and consciously engaged in their own internal developmental change processes, there is little chance that they can play any significant role in facilitating meaningful change in the relationships of which they are a part. Ultimately everyone is the leader of their own developmental change processes, which start on the inside and emanate outwards through relationship.

Selection of participants

Our experience of running the course over the years shows that the composition of the learning group makes a significant contribution to the value gained by individual participants; each course has taken on its own unique character shaped by the group of participants.  The ideal group will comprise practitioners who bring diverse experiences from different aspects of the development sector, and different parts of the world – yet share sufficient commonality of purpose as development practitioners. We are targeting experienced development practitioners - policy makers, leaders, managers and community development practitioners who are committed to developmental practice.  From our experience we are convinced that practitioners from different parts of the sector have much to benefit in learning from, and with each other. The programme is NOT designed as an introduction to development work. Participants will be carefully selected on the basis of:

• Having gained a quality of experience that can only be achieved by spending time practising in a conscious and questioning way. Quantity and quality of experience will be highly valued in making final selections.
• Having reached a point in their career where they have substantial questions related to development practice and its efficacy.
• Having the will, the ability, and the support to commit themselves to staying the duration of the 5-week programme.

Programme, Structure, Methodology and Certification

Although the bulk of the 5-week programme will take place in Cape Town, it will also include a 10-day residential mountain retreat at Towerland which takes participants deeper into nature, away from the urban setting.  Full attendance of all 5 weeks is required as the success of the course relies heavily on the participation of all. 

The methodology underpinning the design of the programme draws heavily on action learning, which places high value on the experience of participants; the importance of periods of reflection; and on introducing challenging new ways of seeing, thinking and understanding in order to draw new learning from experience.

A certificate of attendance will be awarded to participants on successful completion of the course and its requirements.

The programme will be led by Nomvula Dlamini and Desiree Paulsen and administered by Pauline Solomons. For the residential mountain retreat aspect of the programme the CDRA draws on peers from Proteus to facilitate and inform the learning process.  

Dates and Structure

The course starts at 9.00am on Monday 1 September 2008, in Cape Town, and closes at 3.30pm on Friday 3^rd October 2008.  Most working days will last from 8.30 am to 5.30 pm.

Although leisure time is planned into the course design, participants are asked to ensure that they are available to engage in course activities for the whole 5 weeks, including some weekends.

The programme, which comprises 3 weeks of structured sessions, starts off with about 7 days in Cape Town and this is followed by a 10-day residential mountain retreat which will run over a weekend.  The final 2 weeks of the programme sees participants return to Cape Town. The cost of travel, accommodation and meals on the mountain retreat is included in the course fee.

Costs

The total course fee is R16 000; this covers travel, accommodation and meals on the mountain retreat, a lunch and tea/coffee for the working days in Cape Town and course materials.

In addition, participants from outside of Cape Town should budget to cover the costs of their travel to, and accommodation in Cape Town for non-retreat days (including Saturdays and Sundays) which is in total 23 days and excludes arrival and departure days. We have information on recommended guest houses and this can be obtained from pauline@cdra.org.za ).  Assistance in finding accommodation in Cape Town will be given to those who request it.

Application dates 

Applications to participate in the programme close on 21^st May 2008.

Contact Pauline for further information or visit our website at www.cdra.org.za to download an application form.

Application process

We request that participants send the following together with their completed application form:

• A covering letter in which you motivate for participation in the programme
• Your Curriculum Vitae, which should include relevant development work experience
• A short essay (not more than 3 pages) which reflects on your experience of development and identifies essential challenges, dilemmas, tensions and questions which have come out of your practice and which you would like to explore in more depth as part of the learning process.

The deadline for the essay is also 21^st May 2008 and participants will be informed of the outcome of selection by 2^nd June 2008.