Workshop to build facilitator skills

The Ku‘ikahi Medi-ation Center will present a workshop titled “Become a Brilliant Bystander Facilitator” with Kimberly Dark from 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Aug. 22 at the Engineering Partners Inc. conference room, 455 E. Lanikaula St. in Hilo.

Offered for the first time on Hawaii Island, this community workshop provides a half-day of skills-building for anyone who attends meetings and wishes they would run smoothly, stay on track and end on time.

“You can have a positive influence on the way things are done in a meeting or group even if you are not the ‘official’ facilitator,” Dark said. “By learning the skills of the ‘brilliant bystander,’ you can re-route conflict into useful discussion, restore fairness in power struggles and encourage others to participate.”

Dark teaches people to use their talent, skills and creativity to lead from the side. Workshop participants will explore reasons people stay silent even though they know someone needs to speak up (and how to help), practice strategies for stopping a “discussion bully” and learn to ask intelligent questions to increase participation.

“If you attend meetings of any kind — at schools, on the job, on boards or in community settings — and you want to sidestep conflict by helping people informally organize their goals, or wish someone would say something when a difficult topic comes up, then this workshop is for you,” Dark explained.

Dark has been consulting in conflict resolution and facilitation for more than 20 years. She has served on the San Diego Mediation Center Community Justice Advisory Board and as principal for Current Change Consulting.

As her schedule allows, Dark teaches in the sociology departments at the University of Hawaii at Hilo and California State University, San Marcos.

To register, contact Ku‘ikahi Mediation Center program coordinator Gail Takaki at 935-7844, ext. 9, or email gail@hawaiimediation.org.