Dare to Meet - In the Middle of All
A Deep Democracy Seminar for staying present in polarised times
Let’s experience how to facilitate tensions - within and around us - can help us stand our ground and find unexpected solutions
WHAT: A 3-day experiential seminar for all who work (and live) with people — leaders, facilitators, coaches, creatives, changemakers, and curious humans.
WHERE: eeden Hamburg I Stresemannstr. 132a I 22769 Hamburg
WHEN: 30th January - 1st February, 2026
It is a space to slow down, turn inwardly, and explore how clarity, stability, and groundedness can arise when we dare to meet conflict — within ourselves and around us — instead of avoiding it.
Prior experience with Deep Democracy is not needed and also welcomed.
What is this seminar for? And why do we call it Deep Democracy Lab?
Polarisation is shaping our times — in public discourse, organisations, teams, families, and within ourselves.
Positions harden.
Listening becomes difficult.
And conversations often turn into either–or dynamics.
This Lab is an invitation to explore facilitation as a relational practice: not as neutral moderation, but as the ability to stay present, express voices clearly, and support dialogue between polarities.
By working with live situations, you’ll experience how tension itself can become a resource — creating understanding, movement, and unexpected alliances.
This is about developing the capacity to stand in the middle, or on one of the sides with awareness and to facilitate conversations where difference is not smoothed over, but consciously brought into relationship.
What we will explore
In this experiential seminar, you will:
learn to notice body signals and inner reactions in moments of tension or confrontation
explore how your personal history influences how you deal with conflict, power, and authority
discover recurring patterns in your life — and why certain situations feel especially charged
experiment with your own natural way of facilitating instead of following rigid techniques
experience how misunderstanding, friction, and escalation can become doorways to dialogue and transformation
We move fluidly between inner work, relationship dynamics, and group processes — learning directly from what unfolds in the room.
Real experiences. Real questions. Real learning.
How we work
Our approach is rooted in Deep Democracy and Process Work, but you may but you don’t need to know these methods beforehand.
We work with:
lived experiences instead of theory-heavy models
curiosity instead of judgment
awareness instead of quick solutions
This Lab is a space for experimentation, reflection, and practice — honouring both vulnerability and strength.
What you might leave with
more resilience in staying present during difficult moments
a deeper trust in your own perceptions and responses
a clearer sense of how you relate to conflict and can facilitate tension
practical insights you can apply in your work and everyday life
Ultimately, this is a journey into eldership — the capacity to stand beside yourself with compassion, take responsibility for your impact, and include all parts of the conversation, even the uncomfortable ones.
Facilitators
Anna Gabryjelska-Basiuk
Processwork Diplomat, Systemic Mediator, OD Consultant, B.ONFIRE Partner, faculty member of the Polish Processwork Institute, and co-founder of Processwork Institute Lithuania. For over 13 years, she has supported leaders and teams in navigating conflict, power, and change with awareness and integrity.
Stephanie Bachmair
Processwork Diplomat, Leadership Coach & Content Creator, founder of B.ONFIRE. She works with changemakers, teams, and organisations navigating uncertainty, transforming narratives, and shaping new individual and collective stories. Initiator of Worldwork Journalism and host of Pioneer Spirit & Mainstream Thoughts.
🗓 Schedule
Friday: 10:00 – 18:00 CET
Saturday: 10:00 – 18:00 CET
Sunday: 10:00 – 13:30 CET Open Forum (optional): 17:00 – 19:00 (CET)
💶 Cost
450 € (plus VAT for Germany-based participants)
350 € (reduced rate for self-payers / NGOs / other regions)
Scholarships on seminar fees are available upon request.
🌍 About Process Work / Deep Democracy
Process Work (also known as Deep Democracy) is a multidimensional approach to individuals, teams, and systems. It uncovers the developmental momentum hidden within polarities and conflicts. Developed by Arnold Mindell, it is a community-building and conflict-resolution model that works with all forms of information present in a system — sensory, emotional, relational, symbolic, systemic.
It can be used to coach individuals, facilitate teams and organisations, and support national and international processes across communities and borders.
“Process Work interventions enable individuals to understand their own lives, discover their potential, feel more interaction and aliveness, and live with greater creativity and connectedness.”
— Drs. Max and Ellen Schupbach, Deep Democracy Institute