Call for participation
It has been over 20 years since Haim Omer launched his new view on how to approach violent and self-destructive behaviour from children by means of Non Violent Resistance (Omer 2004/2021). It has become of great significance to many people. People who struggle with their role and attitude as authority figures in families, schools, organisations and communities.

We are proud and grateful to organize the 8th International Conference on Non Violent Resistance in The Netherlands exactly 20 years after the Lorentzhuis (centre for systemic therapy, education and consultation in Haarlem) welcomed Haim Omer for the first time in Amsterdam. A special anniversary! 

So many developments have taken place in these 20 years, both in The Netherlands and around the world. We hope this conference will be a celebration of the passion and hard work of so many colleagues. It will also pay attention to what is still in the process of being developed and researched in the present and future.

Working with the approach is rarely simple. In the practice of Connecting Authority and Non Violent Resistance, we often see a preference for the aspects of presence, de-escalation and relational gestures. It is so much easier to be kind and to show your sympathy and compassion, but in some situations this isn’t enough. Saying yes only has meaning if you also dare to say no. So let’s not forget the R in Non Violent Resistance! It often requires infinite courage and unwavering perseverance to stand up for your values and to resist unacceptable behaviour. Therefore, the theme we have chosen for the 8th International Conference is about this courage.

It is our intention to meet and inspire each other with all kinds of stories about what has been developed and researched in recent times. We are also curious about new people from new countries and what they have discovered and learned or how their practices have evolved. We invite everyone who feels like it and is interested in actively contributing to the conference, to send us a proposal for a workshop. We intend to create a diversity in presentations and speakers, by the use of different formats and working methods in their workshops. We hope for dynamic and interactive sessions.

Examples for the format of the workshop:

• A single presentation, leading to a discussion
• A live panel: a structured discussion on a defined topic, with prepared questions for the discussion
• A multiple-perspective discussion of a Connecting/New Authority and Non Violent Resistance-oriented case presentation
• A live demonstration or supervision: demonstrating how you work in practice
• A clinical workshop: teaching a specific intervention in detail, which is practice based or evidence based.
• A lecture with ‘Questions and Answers’ and/or real experiences of clients
• A poster-presentation about a program, clinical case, research project, a play that can be used as tool in counselling and intervision etc.

Examples of topics:

• Innovative Connecting/New Authority and Non Violent Resistance interventions or protocols
• Creative clinical and non-clinical usage of Connecting/New Authority and Non Violent Resistance-principles or tools
• Interrelations between the Connecting/New Authority and Non Violent Resistance-approach and other psychological theories.
• Experiences and role requirements of therapists, counsellors and other authority figures
• Experiences of clients (parents, children, director of a school, pupils, managers, employees)
• Cross-cultural, cross-geographic and cross-demographic implementations of Connecting/New Authority and Non Violent Resistance.
• Connecting/New Authority and Non Violent Resistance interventions across different institutional settings (e.g. schools, communities, residential care, organisations).

The lists above are only as an inspiration. The workshops and presentations are not limited to these formats or topics. What we do find important is that the link with the theme of this conference is clearly expressed and addressed in every workshop.

Practical information
There is room for 24 workshops (4 timeslots of 6 rooms). This means that we will have to make a selection from the proposals that we receive. When making this selection we will take into consideration criteria such as the content of the proposal, a diversity of countries and topics, and a link with the theme ‘courage’. We also welcome the living experiences of parents, children and others, that have applied Connecting Authority and Non Violence Resistance in their lives or work.

• A workshop lasts 75 minutes.
• The rooms have different sizes and therefore allow different numbers of participants. Please let us know whether your workshop is suitable for a smaller or larger number of participants. The rooms can accommodate a minimum of 30 and a maximum of 200 people. 
• Most workshops will be conducted in English. There is a possibility however for one other language per workshop round.
• We can offer one free ticket per workshop for the conference on the 4^th and 5^th of April 2025. Attention: even when you consider to send us a proposal for a workshop, we still ask you to inscribe and pay as participant. In case your workshop is selected, you will get a refund for one ticket.
• Submission for a workshop proposal takes place via a form on the conference website: www.nvr2025.com.
• The deadline for submission is the 22th of September 2024. The selection will take place in the beginning of October. We will reply to all applicants about our decision in the second week of October.

What we would like to receive from you (all in English):

• A title and an abstract describing the content of your workshop. Please be clear about the content of your workshop and your plan of action.
• For the “brief description” section (see form below) max. 450 words. 
• A photo of (all) the presenter(s), which we will place in the introductory text of your workshop. 
  
• The video upload is no longer necessary.