ACCOMPLISHMENTS

• 2010 ACCOMPLISHMENTS: 1. Established seven 16-week compassionate communication practice groups, led by two experienced facilitators. 2. Hosted three public conferences attended by 225 people that focused on various applications of compassionate communication including self-compassion, honest self-expression, and somatic and body awareness in our communication. 3. Developed a strategic plan with the guidance of a consultant to translate compassionate communication into a form that businesses and organizations find beneficial. 4. Led training sessions in organizations spanning several economic sectors including schools, healthcare organizations, social service agencies, and religious groups. 5. Created a resource group that taps the skills and talents of community members to support us with outreach, marketing, fundraising, and planning. 2011 GOALS: 1. Host a Train-the-Trainer conference for experienced practitioners of compassionate communication to learn effective ways to share and facilitate their work with others. 2. Develop a leadership and immersion program consisting of four in-person retreats to support the ongoing development and deepening of compassionate communication consciousness in students. 3. Establish programs in three central Ohio schools to teach students relationship intelligence including critical thinking and creative problem solving, taking responsibility for one’s own needs, caring about the needs of others, valuing all needs equally, communication and social skills, and finding strategies that can meet everyone’s needs. 4. Establish a Restorative Justice program based on the process of restorative circles that help people address conflict in the context of their community. 5. Plan a capital fundraising campaign to acquire a Center for Compassionate Communication, which will serve as a community learning and living center.

GOALS

Compassionate Communication of Central Ohio (CCCO) imagines a community where violence is virtually non-existent; where people interact with each other in a way where everyone's needs are equally valued; where heart connections are the rule, not the exception. Relationships are characterized by respect and trust. CC-CO is part of an international movement toward nonviolence developed by Marshall Rosenberg over a period of 40 years and exists in over 30 countries around the world. The nonviolent philosophy follows the teachings of Mahatma Gandhi and Dr. Martin Luther King. The actual nonviolent communication process is practical and transforming for individuals, families, and organizations. Compassionate Communication of Central Ohio was established in Columbus in December 2004 by a coalition of 21 people committed to fostering nonviolence through teaching and dissemination of the nonviolent communication process. Within a relatively short period of time, CC-CO has provided numerous trainings, orientations, and study groups, and has hosted several local and national conferences with two of them featuring the world renowned psychologist and founder, Dr. Marshall Rosenberg. CC-CO has intimately impacted over 1,000 residents of central Ohio and beyond. The need for CC-CO is growing, and we are requesting support from all who desire and are willing to contribute to developing a more compassionate world. Our organization is committed to making a difference in all facets of our community in central Ohio and beyond. We are discovering that people are attracted to our NVC offerings from areas throughout Ohio and several other states. Our aim is to eventually influence those community systems--education, health, justice--that most directly affect people's lives, especially children and adults most vulnerable and at risk. We are focused on working with the general public and also those public and private organizations whose transformation would be most beneficial to the community.

In more than twenty years of practicing dozens of modalities for social change, personal development, and spirituality, I have never come across a system as comprehensive and transformative as Compassionate Nonviolent Communication (NVC). I have seen many people's lives permanently change as a result of practicing NVC, mine included. Most important, NVC can be adapted and applied to literally any situation in life, whether that is business, family, community, politics, or our relationship with ourselves. NVC is a life-changing way of interacting that facilitates the flow of communication needed to exchange information and resolve differences peacefully. With its focus on human feelings and needs, the practice of NVC emphasizes emotional intelligence over intellectual analysis in expressing what is going on in people. With its reliance on objective observations rather than evaluations, NVC avoids making people defend themselves from value-laden judgments. And finally, by employing clear requests in place of demands, NVC raises the bar for communication skills by allowing everyone to get their needs met on their own terms without coercion, fear of retribution, or loss of self-esteem.