This morning in Ireland the group have been coming together to begin dreaming about what the International Youth Work Trainers Network might look like following yesterday’s laboratory beginnings – it was an opportunity to think big and think creative. After a slightly slower start than planned (due in part to an untimely fire alarm) the group set out as individuals on drawing their comic interpretations of what the network might look like.

Gallery of comic creations

After the group had created their individual comics to represent their visions for what this network might look like, a gallery was laid out on the floor and participants sought to group together around common themes or ideas to develop a more shared concept. Spending about 45 minutes in groups of between 5 and 6 each thematic cluster created a larger comic representation of the network on flip chart before breaking for lunch.

A peoplebox – not a toolbox

While listening to one of the groups they discussed not needing another toolbox of resources and methodologies as there were already many of these out there. The idea of a ‘peoplebox’ where you can find an expert or trainer on any particular topic – so that you don’t need to reinvent the wheel – and that this network could be a space for that.

So what are the aspirations?

After lunch the group came back together to feedback on their vision and creations and a number common themes and aspirations emerged (some similar to those identified in day one) including…

• Always being needs led
• Strong values and trust, which are common to everyone
• A space for personal development and continual learning, which welcomes beginners and has an open door
• Open for the world and accessible for everyone
• Representative to influence decision makers
• Peer support structure or community – that is light and joyful to be a part of
• Collective decision making process which everyone can engage in

This is by no means an exhaustive list as there were a huge amount of aspirations that came out of the session, and I’ll be making all of the notes from the day available to participants and the wider community to help inform development going forward.

And what exactly is this?

Also during the feedback a number of different words emerged to name the group including network, guild and union – and that naming is still up for discussion as part of the process.

So where to next?

This afternoon the group is going to continue to develop their vision for the network (or guild – or union) and thinking about the questions which need to be answered.

I’ll be blogging again this evening and sharing with you some videos of personal reflections from some of the participants to further help you be part of the process. As always the group are extremely keen to hear your views so that you can feed into the creation of this network.