New Way Forward - a virtual series operationalizing the work of EDIB into your everyday, nonprofit work.
Holding the Mic: Awareness, Power & Practice for Facilitators and Non-Facilitators Alike
Facilitation isn’t just about following an agenda—it’s about fostering connection, guiding engagement, and creating spaces where ideas and voices can thrive. It’s about holding space for the ‘necessary’ conversation while navigating power, privilege, and group dynamics with intentionality. Every meeting, training, and discussion is an opportunity to operationalize equity, yet many organizations struggle to translate their values into everyday practice.
This interactive session is designed for those who may not always see themselves as facilitators but often find themselves in the role, and advanced facilitators alike. You’ll explore what it means to facilitate with awareness, presence, and authenticity, understanding how your unique style, identity, and positionality influence group interactions. We’ll also examine facilitation as a tool for embedding equity, diversity, inclusion, and belonging (EDIB) into organizational culture—helping you move from intention to action in the spaces you lead.
Session Objectives
- Strengthen personal facilitation awareness, presence, and style to foster connection and engagement.
- Explore the everyday role of power, privilege, and positionality in facilitation, learning how to navigate group dynamics to create more equitable and inclusive spaces.
- Identify and define your core facilitator values, understanding how they shape your approach to holding space and guiding conversations.
- Recognize facilitation as an essential lever for EDIB, with practical strategies to ensure that equity is not just an aspiration but an integral part of how teams and communities work together.
Join us to uncover your facilitator self and learn how to lead with clarity, confidence, and purpose—so that every space you create reflects the values of equity, inclusion, and belonging in action.
Facilitated by:Estelle Acquah
Estelle Acquah is an expert policy and equity leadership professional, with over 17 years of experience in the non-profit, public, and private sectors. As Founder and CEO of Aya Advisors, LLC, Estelle works with individuals and organizations to build the knowledge, skills, and mindsets needed to challenge inequitable systemic barriers, foster effective leadership, and cultivate organizational cultures that support growth, belonging, and meaningful change. As an expert learning facilitator and group coach, Estelle convenes a dynamic and engaging learning experience that cultivates cultural transformation and growth towards racial justice and liberation. Estelle has received racial equity, inclusion, and community organizing training through The National Equity Project, Community Equity Partners, The Equity Lab, Bread and Roses Community Fund, New Leaders Council, and Bright Morning Consulting. She is a founding Board Member of Novastar Academy (a school in Kasoa, Ghana). Estelle is a proud graduate of Brown University and the University of Pennsylvania.
Professional Image alt text: Image of a dark-skinned Black woman with thick, voluminous curly hair that frames her face, and a wide smile. She wears a vibrant, patterned top featuring shades of green, cream, and white. The lighting highlights her rich skin tone, and the background is a neutral gray color. Her posture is relaxed yet poised.
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