Staying in the Fire: Bodies, Stories, Collective Action
Reflection and action are inseparable for leaders to lead well and to support others to be effective leaders. Remaining present as leaders to the crises of our times requires us to attend to our bodies, confront our discomfort while sustaining dialogue across difference. It calls us to:
Engage within ongoing struggles for equity and decolonization.
Honor the land as both teacher and witness
Be body aware.
Situate our work as a community of practice
“Staying in the fire” represents both the challenge of engaging with our collective differences and the possibilities that emerge through transformation. Fire serves as a powerful metaphor for processes that melt, smelt, and burn—reshaping what exists and creating space for something new. Across cultures, fire is used in practices of renewal, clearing landscapes, forging connections, and marking transitions.
Our bodies are not neutral. En-gendered, contested, and complex bodies bear the marks of history while also generating possibilities for a transformative future. Bodies, and the stories they hold, are shaped by violations of power, by reclaiming personal authority and collective power, by resistance, and by relationality. Stories of our relationships and interdependence with each other and the land, of displacement, migration and belonging, remind us that embodiment is always situated within specific geographies, Indigenous histories and resistance, and settler dynamics that demand accountability, care, and the ability to hold nuance and complexity.
In the spirit of ‘staying in the fire’, we invite you to explore these tensions, uncertainties, and the possibilities that meaningful collective action requires for reimagining relationships and creating more just and equitable systems together.
Centered in social justice values, this gathering invites you to engage in narratives of embodiment as analytic, felt and lived practice. Through movement—body movements and social movements—we recognize that collective action emerges not only from ideas, but also from felt experiences, from the ways bodies gather, resist, and reimagine the world.
In this gathering space, the Wild Seed Centre for Art and Culture, with research led by Dr. Janelle Joseph we will move together—critically and creatively—toward more just, grounded, and embodied leadership.
Engage within ongoing struggles for equity and decolonization.
Honor the land as both teacher and witness
Be body aware.
Situate our work as a community of practice
“Staying in the fire” represents both the challenge of engaging with our collective differences and the possibilities that emerge through transformation. Fire serves as a powerful metaphor for processes that melt, smelt, and burn—reshaping what exists and creating space for something new. Across cultures, fire is used in practices of renewal, clearing landscapes, forging connections, and marking transitions.
Our bodies are not neutral. En-gendered, contested, and complex bodies bear the marks of history while also generating possibilities for a transformative future. Bodies, and the stories they hold, are shaped by violations of power, by reclaiming personal authority and collective power, by resistance, and by relationality. Stories of our relationships and interdependence with each other and the land, of displacement, migration and belonging, remind us that embodiment is always situated within specific geographies, Indigenous histories and resistance, and settler dynamics that demand accountability, care, and the ability to hold nuance and complexity.
In the spirit of ‘staying in the fire’, we invite you to explore these tensions, uncertainties, and the possibilities that meaningful collective action requires for reimagining relationships and creating more just and equitable systems together.
Centered in social justice values, this gathering invites you to engage in narratives of embodiment as analytic, felt and lived practice. Through movement—body movements and social movements—we recognize that collective action emerges not only from ideas, but also from felt experiences, from the ways bodies gather, resist, and reimagine the world.
In this gathering space, the Wild Seed Centre for Art and Culture, with research led by Dr. Janelle Joseph we will move together—critically and creatively—toward more just, grounded, and embodied leadership.
Location
Wild Seed Centre for Art and Activism
24 Cecil St, Toronto, ON, Canada
24 Cecil St, Toronto, ON, Canada
Date & Time
Conference
Oct. 14, 2026, 3 - 6:15 PM
Wild Seed
Dinner 6:30 - 9 pm
Music Room Hart House
Oct. 15, 2026 10- 6 PM
Oct. 16, 2026 10- 6 PM
Oct. 17, 2026, 10- 6 PM
Conference Orientation Sessions:
Sept. 30, 2026 4-5 p.m. ET
Oct. 2, 2026 9 - 10 a.m. ET
Conference Debrief Sessions:
Nov. 18, 2026 4 - 5.30 p.m. ET
Nov. 20, 2026 9 - 10.30 a.m. ET
Oct. 14, 2026, 3 - 6:15 PM
Wild Seed
Dinner 6:30 - 9 pm
Music Room Hart House
Oct. 15, 2026 10- 6 PM
Oct. 16, 2026 10- 6 PM
Oct. 17, 2026, 10- 6 PM
Conference Orientation Sessions:
Sept. 30, 2026 4-5 p.m. ET
Oct. 2, 2026 9 - 10 a.m. ET
Conference Debrief Sessions:
Nov. 18, 2026 4 - 5.30 p.m. ET
Nov. 20, 2026 9 - 10.30 a.m. ET
Research Study with Dr. Janelle Joseph
Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Racial Justice, Health and Sport at Brock University.
Scott218, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
This conference is also a research study led by Dr. Janelle Joseph, Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Racial Justice, Health and Sport at Brock University. The research examines the question: how does embodiment contribute to learning about leadership and unconscious processes?
Every member of the conference will be a research participant. You have been invited based on your previous contact with ICI and demonstrated interest in training. The research will include:
Every member of the conference will be a research participant. You have been invited based on your previous contact with ICI and demonstrated interest in training. The research will include:
an information session before the conference,
a questionnaire before and after the conference,
journaling at the conference
focus groups/interviews after the conference.
There is a total possible compensation of $100 CAD via email. Participants may withdraw at any time from the research. Participants who withdraw from any aspect of the research may complete the conference.
To indicate interest in this conference and research, please read the Letter of Information and consent form attached to the invitation email, and send your signed consent form to Dr. Janelle Joseph at [email protected] using the subject line "Staying in the Fire".
This project “How does embodiment contribute to learning about unconscious processes?” is supported in part by funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.
If you have questions about this study, or about the information used for research purposes, you may contact Dr. Janelle Joseph; [email protected] using the subject line "Staying in the Fire'. You may also contact the Brock Office of Research Ethics at (905) 688-5550 ext 3035, or [email protected] citing ethics protocol number "25-367 - JOSEPH" if you have questions about your rights as a participant.
Conference Registration Fees
Early Bird Registration: $400. Canadian until September 28, 2026
Regular Registration: $450. Canadian until October 9, 2026
Bursaries are available:
Type the following when asked for a coupon:
25%: TWENTYFIVE
30%: THIRTY
35%: THIRTYFIVE
Contact [email protected] for more information
Attend the Conference Orientation Sessions
Sept. 30, 2026
4-5 p.m. ET
Oct. 2, 2026
9 - 10 a.m. ET
Zoom Link:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84517236093
4-5 p.m. ET
Oct. 2, 2026
9 - 10 a.m. ET
Zoom Link:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84517236093
Welcome to Toronto!
Accommodation
Below are some recommendations for your stay in the city. All of the listed options are near the Bus Pickup/Dropoff location, and College Station. Booking through travel sites such as booking.com or expedia.ca can provide more affordable packages for these locations. If you need help finding a place to stay, contact us at [email protected].
Getting to & from the Airport:
Union Pearson Express
Union Pearson Express
The public transit system in Toronto is called the TTC. the Union Pearson Express Line runs every 15 minutes, from Pearson to Union Station.
Tickets can be purchased online or at a station kiosk.
To locate the UP Express stations in Pearson, please refer to the map shown.
The TTC has 2 major subway lines, and streetcars running across the city.
Tickets can be purchased at the black Presto Kiosks, or you may pay directly with your credit/debit card by holding your card up to the subway gate scanner (please note the gates only accept Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Interac, Apple Pay, and Google Pay).
Your ticket will last for 2 hours after validation. If you have purchased a physical ticket, keep it with you as proof of payment.
Google/Apple Maps update in real time to reflect TTC schedules. You can find a full map of the transit system here.
Tickets can be purchased online or at a station kiosk.
To locate the UP Express stations in Pearson, please refer to the map shown.
The TTC has 2 major subway lines, and streetcars running across the city.
Tickets can be purchased at the black Presto Kiosks, or you may pay directly with your credit/debit card by holding your card up to the subway gate scanner (please note the gates only accept Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Interac, Apple Pay, and Google Pay).
Your ticket will last for 2 hours after validation. If you have purchased a physical ticket, keep it with you as proof of payment.
Google/Apple Maps update in real time to reflect TTC schedules. You can find a full map of the transit system here.
What is Group Relations?
ICI’s conferences work with a method of studying and understanding group behaviour called group relations in which participants learn about unconscious processes in groups that arise in the "here and now" and how they as individuals respond within these dynamics. Wilfrid Bion (1961) wrote about the the basic assumptions within groups that reflect their anxieties, defences and desires. These include:
projections that individuals take on and act out, dependence on a leader; scapegoating to avoid conflict and fleeing the group's work.
Other dynamics include assuming a "oneness" in the group that denies individual agency and "meness" that denies the existence of the group.
Within group relations participants work in small and large study groups with a consultant who offers observations and suggestions to facilitate your learning and enable the process of exploring what’s going on. Participants self authorize to direct their own learning.
Further reading
While it’s difficult to really understand what group relations is like without experiencing it, here is some more background information that can help you prepare: http://ici-ici.ca/readings
Conference Planning Committee
Members of the conference planning committee have worked together to develop themes and the design for the conference. Members of this group will also take up conference roles with other ICI practitioners.
Jo-anne Carlyle
Jo-anne Carlyle PhD, Clin. Foren. Psychol., Org. Consultant, Psychoanalytic Psychotherapist. Having worked as a clinician, researcher, teacher and consultant for over 30 years, she is transitioning to work that has greater social impact for the final phase of her career.
Tanya Lewis
Tanya Lewis PhD works in leadership development at Bureau Kensington. Her work experience includes post secondary education and non profit community based settings. She is an ICI coordinator.
Janelle Joseph
Dr. Janelle Joseph is an Associate Professor and a Canada Tier 1 Research Chair in the Faculty of Health Sciences at Brock University. Dr Joseph’s research focuses on leadership related to race, gender, equity, and de-colonization.
Lubna Khalid
Lubna Khalid is a consultant living in Toronto. Her interests include women’s leadership and empowerment training. She is an active member of ICI, offering learning on the nature of difference, leadership, and authority in groups.
mak wemuk
mak wemuk, JD (he/him) is
Coahuiltecan and Latine (Chicanx). He consults on racial equity and social justice (Luna Consulting & Coaching). He formerly led Equal Voice Action, a membership organization of working poor families.
Coahuiltecan and Latine (Chicanx). He consults on racial equity and social justice (Luna Consulting & Coaching). He formerly led Equal Voice Action, a membership organization of working poor families.
Anita Prasad
Anita is a grassroots community development and social justice worker. She is the Executive Director of Working for Change, a grass roots survivor based organization. Anita is an ICI coordinator.
Barbara Williams
Barbara Williams, EdD, Director of Bureau Kensington (BKI), a consulting practice working with movement building and feminist networks and organizations internationally.
Leo Wilton
Leo (He/Him/His) is a Professor in the Department of Human Development at the State University of New York at Binghamton. In the field of group relations, he explores how cultural dynamics manifest within groups, organizations, and social systems and their relation to contemporary societal issues in people’s everyday lives.
Schedule
To follow
Exploring Difference Conference Activities
To follow
About ICI
ICI is a community network in Toronto and beyond of leaders and activists that provides learning spaces for:
Individuals committed to social justice and addressing forms of oppression through the honest exploration of leadership, power and authority
Individuals committed to working with unconscious and conscious dynamics in groups with integrity, curiosity and regard for one another across our differences
Embodiment
We develop awareness of our (group) unconscious processes through:
The individual experience and focus on body sensings - learning to ‘read’ one’s own physical and psychical body - what the body ‘tells’ me about my experiences and my interconnectedness to the natural world. What is ‘read’ by others about my bodily ‘communication’ - what you/I might or might not be aware of or dispute that my body positioning/movements suggests to others
How individual “grounding activities” (albeit done in a group) - that we would initiate - help us get in touch with our own body -language/knowledge. How ‘group activities’ activate the ‘collective body-knowledge of the group physically and unconsciously (some are representations of knowledge or explorations of difference and require verbal language, some are fun/silent/body-language only).
Exploring Difference, Identity and Identifications
Identity claims and identifications provide a way of naming oneself in relation to others and of pointing to misalignments, misrecognitions, misunderstandings, and ‘conflicts of difference.’ Identity-based analysis helps us see how systems of power affect people differently — revealing felt- patterns of privilege or exclusion that would otherwise remain unspoken and invisible.
ICI believes that exploring difference recognizes that speaking positions within any identity category are not all the same but contain within them complex differences and emotional ties that can be explored to build a shared terrain. By reflecting on the desires and defences embedded in moments when identifications are evoked, groups can build a deeper understanding of unconscious processes underlying identifications. So the challenge — and the invitation — is to hold both truths at once: how can we honour the specificity of identity as a political tool without losing the shared ground that makes collective social transformation possible? What practices help us stay open to complexity, even when it’s uncomfortable?
Individuals committed to social justice and addressing forms of oppression through the honest exploration of leadership, power and authority
Individuals committed to working with unconscious and conscious dynamics in groups with integrity, curiosity and regard for one another across our differences
Embodiment
We develop awareness of our (group) unconscious processes through:
The individual experience and focus on body sensings - learning to ‘read’ one’s own physical and psychical body - what the body ‘tells’ me about my experiences and my interconnectedness to the natural world. What is ‘read’ by others about my bodily ‘communication’ - what you/I might or might not be aware of or dispute that my body positioning/movements suggests to others
How individual “grounding activities” (albeit done in a group) - that we would initiate - help us get in touch with our own body -language/knowledge. How ‘group activities’ activate the ‘collective body-knowledge of the group physically and unconsciously (some are representations of knowledge or explorations of difference and require verbal language, some are fun/silent/body-language only).
Exploring Difference, Identity and Identifications
Identity claims and identifications provide a way of naming oneself in relation to others and of pointing to misalignments, misrecognitions, misunderstandings, and ‘conflicts of difference.’ Identity-based analysis helps us see how systems of power affect people differently — revealing felt- patterns of privilege or exclusion that would otherwise remain unspoken and invisible.
ICI believes that exploring difference recognizes that speaking positions within any identity category are not all the same but contain within them complex differences and emotional ties that can be explored to build a shared terrain. By reflecting on the desires and defences embedded in moments when identifications are evoked, groups can build a deeper understanding of unconscious processes underlying identifications. So the challenge — and the invitation — is to hold both truths at once: how can we honour the specificity of identity as a political tool without losing the shared ground that makes collective social transformation possible? What practices help us stay open to complexity, even when it’s uncomfortable?
ICI 2026 Principles
Commitment to work towards social justice through equitable access to resources. This includes considering: working digitally, timezones, flexible cost, meeting relational responsibilities, prioritizing anti-racism, anti-misogyny, anti-ableism, accessibility, community well-being.
Commitment to exploring the complexity of difference with clarity and curiosity. This includes how judgements and identifications are both discerning and limiting and tend not to be challenged. This requires engaging in difficult conversations.
Commitment to accountability through being responsible and accountable to ourselves and the group, and to recognize and care for the land we are on.
Commitment to exploring interdependence in groups through exploring their unconscious processes and anxieties and defenses with the support of a consultant who provides containment, focuses on the task and fosters curiosity about language, bodies, what is explored and ignored.
Commitment to embodiment as a source of knowledge about our experience and to recognize human needs for rest, nourishment and relatedness.
Commitment to shared leadership through role clarity, benefitting from others’ expertise and developing leadership.
Commitment to working with judgement by taking up the work of articulating oppressive dynamics without punishing remarks that foster silence and exclusion.
Commitment to exploring the complexity of difference with clarity and curiosity. This includes how judgements and identifications are both discerning and limiting and tend not to be challenged. This requires engaging in difficult conversations.
Commitment to accountability through being responsible and accountable to ourselves and the group, and to recognize and care for the land we are on.
Commitment to exploring interdependence in groups through exploring their unconscious processes and anxieties and defenses with the support of a consultant who provides containment, focuses on the task and fosters curiosity about language, bodies, what is explored and ignored.
Commitment to embodiment as a source of knowledge about our experience and to recognize human needs for rest, nourishment and relatedness.
Commitment to shared leadership through role clarity, benefitting from others’ expertise and developing leadership.
Commitment to working with judgement by taking up the work of articulating oppressive dynamics without punishing remarks that foster silence and exclusion.
