National Training (6 Day)

What is the 6 Day National Training?

The 6 Day National Training is a program for people committed to understanding the craft of community organising - who want to play a key role in leading the activities of the Alliance inside their organisation and acting as a bridge between our member organisations.

The residential course builds a close community of leaders across participating civil society organisations that represent the diversity of our Alliances in Sydney and Queensland. The 6 Day National Training is also open to those seeding new Alliances in Canberra and across Australia.

Leaders are equipped with the tools they need to be more strategic and effective and to build and strengthen their organisations in the process. The course focuses on power, organisations, relationships and leadership.

The next confirmed 6 Day National Training will be March 8-13 in Brisbane. If you would like to attend this program please download the Expression of Interest form.

Pre-requisites for the 6 Day National Training program:

Attended a 2 Day Foundations training institute
Endorsed by a partner organisation

Testimonials

My 6-day training experience was bittersweet. I couldn’t believe that I had lived all my life (into my late 40’s) in this country without understanding how things work and how to ACTUALLY get things done. I loved making connections with people whose passions were different than mine. We were able to take the learnings we’d been given, and then apply them to our different situations. So useful - so passionate - so powerful!

- Donna Easthorpe - Churches Housing / Riverside Baptist Church

“The Sydney Alliance training brought home to me the power of relationships, which are the best tool we have for bringing about crucial social and political change. Relationship building is an art and a science, and the Alliance organisers expertly and patiently taught us the fundamentals over six intensive days. I have already taken forward learnings into my private and public life, and the training completely reframed my understanding of my own agency, from scheduling my own time more effectively to reflecting on and articulating the leadership qualities I see in myself and those around me.”

- Isabelle Napier, Sydney Policy Lab

I walked out of six day training with an acute sense of the power of relationships. I walked in good at them, I left understanding my power, my influence and how to be great at them. After 6 day training I felt a renewed sense of purpose in my own leadership and duty to act on it!

- Marcela Hart, Settlement Services International

Six day training shook up some of my deep-seated assumptions about power and politics. I left more strategic, pragmatic, and effictive - not only in my political & community engagement, but in my union and in my work.

- Dr Rosemary Hancock, National Tertiary Education Union

I have grown so much through the leadership insights and practice the Alliance gives. Most of us would have experienced if not heard of ‘the elegant tenacity of the status quo’ so aptly coined by Ron Heifetz of Adaptive Leadership fame. The 6 Day National Training on Community Organising arranged by the Sydney Alliance is intense, transformative and long enough to get some shift in our own practices and thinking. Most importantly it is an opportunity to engage with other leaders in the Community Services sector for shared learning and developing strategic relationships. The leadership insights and practice the Alliance gives have been pivotal in the development of my own leadership capacities.

- Rev Garry Derkenne, former Chaplain, Uniting

My 6 Day training experience would be best described as a mirror that reflected all that was lying beneath the surface of my skin. It challenged me to the core where I found myself, for the first time, really dissecting Power and the thoughts I have about myself as a Woman, as a Sikh and as an Organiser.

- Sukhi Kaur, South Asian Communities Organiser, Sydney Alliance

The 6 Day training uncovers some of the deep-seated values and assumptions that form the foundations of our society, and inform our own thinking. Awareness of these issues creates the potential for change that would previously have been impossible...paradigm changing!

- Rev Mike McGarrity, Mission Leader, Connect Community Church NSW

The 6 Day training is a once in a lifetime opportunity. Amazing people as trainers and participants.

- Frank Watson, Quakers Canberra

I couldn't recommend the national training enough. It really broke down all of my assumptions about power and community organising and rebuilt my understanding of how we create change.

-Jacqui Mumford, Lead Organiser, Nature Conservation Council

6 day training was when the pin dropped. The puzzle had all its pieces fall into place. Community organising made wholistic sense. We can win together!

- Andrew McCloud, Organiser Sydney Presbytery, Uniting Church

Gratitude for a powerful and transformative 6 days! Action already begun!

- Ann Love, Srs of St Joseph

My behaviours are different after the week. that I am a bit more honest with myself and others as to why taking action is so important to me. In the beginning, I think I wasn't sure about what my motivations were. Now that I"ve done this training, I feel really excited about organising. I can't thank Sydney Alliance enough for their amazing workshop. It really made a difference to me. I would recommend this training to anyone interested in organising or improving your organising skills.

- Tanzih Ahmed, QLD organiser Democracy in Colour

This was a very significant event for me. From beginning to end it was well managed and presented and the topics were fresh and highly relevant.I am a reasonably hardened and experienced academic and have been involved in teaching, reserach, seminars and conferences for over 50 years. The training program ranks among the outstanding learning experiences of my career. Clearly this is a program that has worked well in many settings. And the presenters were confident of both the content of their presentations and the style in which they were presenting.I found it particularly valuable to be involved in a sharing of ideas and discussion of their application to my own setting and to engage actively with the very diversely talented group who were my fellow students. Thanks to all concerned in mounting it.