Creating a Safe Space

Short description

In order to deal with sensitive issues such as hate speech, it is first necessary to create an environment where everyone feels free to participate without fear of being judged or attacked. It is therefore necessary to create a safe space in the group.

For this purpose, different dynamics will be carried out to promote active listening, respect, empathy, equality and equity, in order to create an environment in which everyone feels comfortable to participate.

Aims & Objectives

To create among the group a good and comfortable environment of work, in order to talk about hate speech and other sensitive topics.
To promote the implication of all the participants in the group dynamics, to involve them in the educational process.
To establish an agreement on the basic rules and limits that the group has for the educational process.

Material and equipment needed

Requirements for facilitators

There may be times when the emotional charge is high. It is therefore important that the facilitator has a strategy to cope with these situations, such as a relaxation and self-control exercise with the whole group, an inspirational message, or that people in the group show their support verbally or the person concerned.

Instructions

Step by step explanation

Activity 1: Getting to know each other. Scars of our life (30 min)

Participants and facilitators stand in a circle, seated on chairs or pillows.
One by one, each person will say their name and tell the story of a scar they have. At no point is it specified what type of scar to talk about (physical, psychological, recent, past…), leaving the space free for each person to express themselves up to the level at which they feel safe…
The facilitator will thank the participants for sharing their stories and actively listening to each other’s stories, leaving the way open to explain what a safe space is.

Activity 2: Boundaries and rules of the safe space (30 min)

The facilitator will begin to introduce the concept of safe space as an environment in which all people feel free to participate without feeling any fear, judgement or oppression.
To create a safe space where everyone feels free and confident to participate, boundaries and rules must be established among the whole group.
Each participant will write on different post-its the boundaries and rules they would need to feel in a safe space. They can write as much as they can think of. Participants will stick the post-its on the corresponding “Rules” or “Boundaries” flipchart.
The facilitator will then read each of the post-its on each flipchart aloud and, in consensus with the group, write down on a new flipchart the rules and boundaries that will govern the safe space for that working environment.
These rules and boundaries can be reviewed throughout the workshop and participants can provide input as needed to make the working environment a safe space.