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| about WIST | WIST calendar |
 Women's Institute for Social Transformation (WIST) Program Calendar
Programs for women who are social activists, union organizers, teachers, faith-based workers, artists and performers, community builders, concerned citizens--any woman committed to creating a world of justice and peace.
For more information and/or registrations contact: Simonetta Romano Women’s Institute for Social Transformation (WIST) Phone:(845) 534-2031, Fax: (845) 534-1237, E-mail: WIST@grail-us.org, website: www.grail-us.org
Transformative Leadership Project
These new leaders must be committed to equality, equity, empowerment of all, human rights, peace, sustainability, and shared power. They must act in a
participatory, egalitarian, responsive, transparent, and accountable way. They must be able to identify and address the complex local or global systems that
support or undermine positive social change. They must be able to tap into the source of individual and collective wisdom and take risks, overcome obstacles,
build consensus, and use their power as an instrument of liberation and empowerment of others.
“They are more like midwives giving birth to other people’s ideas than ‘stars’ of the show. They invest in their own spiritual (not necessarily religious) growth;
they proactively inform themselves about the state of the world; they see patterns in addition to events; they have the courage to take on difficult issues;
they act from a source of wisdom, compassion and empathy, rather than charity and ‘doing good’.” (Monica Sharma, “World Wisdom in Action – Personal to Planetary
Transformation” in Kosmos, Fall/Winter 2007)
This new leadership paradigm has been defined “transformational” or “transformative” by many authors, scholars, organizational consultants and people working in
the area of leadership development for sustainable change.
Dr. Monica Sharma, Director of Leadership and Capacity Development at the UN, an expert in the field of “transformative leadership” who has been working to help
develop and implement social justice projects all over the world, led a seminar on the concepts and methodology of “Transformative Leadership” at the 2008 Spring
retreat of the NYC Grail Politics and Spirituality. The one-day event, co-sponsored by the Women’s Institute for Social Transformation, aimed at offering an
introduction to the methodology and practices through which each individual can develop the qualities and skills of a transformational leader, in any area of
work. Participants actively engaged in a process of self discovery of their own desire for change as well as their own commitment to action in areas of their
particular concern. The seminar, attended by 33 women, Grail members and friends, was very inspiring for all of us.
The Women's Institute, believing that women have a great potential for becoming transformative leaders and changing the world, is presently working to develop a
long term, hands-on, residential training for young women leaders in organizations and groups committed to social justice, environmental sustainability, and peace, in consultation with Dr. Sharma. The participants will be helped with developing, implementing and managing projects they are already involved with, learning skills and competencies in the process.
The Institute is looking for co-sponsors to help with financing and designing the training that is planned to start in the Spring 2009.
If you know of any organization that would be interested in co-sponsoring or participating in this project, please contact Simonetta Romano at WIST@grail-us.org
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