About CAT

Community Action Training

The blended international training programme “Community Action Training” (CAT) aims at developing competences of young social activists in designing movement-based nonviolent campaigns addressing urgent societal challenges.

The program is initiated and delivered by Centre for Training and Consultancy (CTC) since 2018. CTC is a Georgian foundation working since 1999. The mission of CTC is “Empowering People for Change”, which expresses its commitment to provide excellence, opportunities and capacity to individuals and groups contributing to democratic, social and economic development in Georgia and in the Region at large.

The course is non-ideological and hands-on for activists that already have a good understanding of social transformation, change processes and nonviolent actions. It will provide the learners with concepts, approaches, models as well as with practices, tools and tips for designing nonviolent campaigns, internal group and movement organizing and collective resilience and security.

The international course is delivered in English Language and is delivered by CTC’s International and Georgian trainers/mentors team.

Key thematic areas addressed by the programme are:

• Nonviolent campaigning: Principles and practices of social transformation and strategic nonviolence
• Internal organising: Structures, leadership, communication and decision-making
• Resilience and security: Wellbeing and collective security frameworks

The blended educational programme is composed of a 4-weeks e-learning course and a 5-days residential course; the programme unfolds over the course of 6 weeks.
• E-learning course: “Reflecting on nonviolent change-making”
• Training course: “Mobilising communities and fostering change – A Training in Social Transformation”

The e-course aims to foster a reflection on practices used by the participants in their activist groups and movements and to assess learning needs in preparation of the training course programme. The residential training course builds upon the e-course and explores principles and practices of strategic nonviolence, movement organising and approaches to collective security. It shall also serve as a space for shaping a networking and support framework within the CAT programme.

The programme`s educational approach is based on non-formal education, peer-to-peer learning, the “Designing Learning for Peace – Peace Education Competence Framework” and the international activist training programme “Community Action Training” (2018-2020).

Programme rational and philosophy

The programme is based on the assumption that young community activists have the need to improve their understanding and practices in designing nonviolent campaigns, movement organising and establish plans for individual wellbeing and collective security of their groups and movements. That is why, the programme offers a learner-centred space for exploring fundamental concepts and models for strategic change-making, learning from successful campaigns of other movements and reflecting on own approaches and practices.

For the programme, nonviolence is understood as an instrument for change; as an alternative to violence in dealing with social conflicts and societal challenges. Thus, the course will focus less on the understanding of principled (holistic) nonviolence of the Gandhian tradition but primarily focus on nonviolent principles, actions and techniques for community mobilising and organising. In this sense, the course understands nonviolence as instrumental for change based on the elements of social construction, interdependence, and collective strategic action.

By combining an e-learning course with a residential training course, the programme would like to make best use of both formats to allow the participants to 1) explore theory and practice of strategic nonviolence as one approach to social transformation, 2) learn through case studies from past expertise and experiences and 3) to reflect on their own approaches and practices while engaging in a shared learning process with others.

With this approach the programme intends to be hands-on, needs-based and practical while drawing from academic theory and practitioner expertise gained in diverse contexts of the world. The programme, is non-ideological in the sense that is purely based in the assumption – and statistical evidence – that nonviolence is more effective than violence to bring about change.

Therefore, the participants will not receive any instructions on what to strive for, what to change in which direction, but be introduced to practical theories and successful practices that aid the design of strategic campaigns for social transformation.

CAT Editions

CAT Edition I

2018 (Autumn)

CAT Edition II

2019 (Spring)

CAT Edition III

2019 (Autumn)

Our Trainers

The international course is delivered by CTC’s International and Georgian trainers team.

Sebastian Schweitzer is a trainer and consultant working in the non-formal educational sector since 2003. Since 2006, he has focused his work on the South Caucasus and the Western Balkans. Sebastian facilitates seminars and training courses on peacebuilding, conflict transformation, and active participation for civil society organisations and activists. He is also researching and educating on peace education and social transformation, and advises strategic planning processes for movements and CSOs. Sebastian developed the CAT curriculum and is involved as a senior trainer

Tamar Tatishvili is a trainer and consultant working with nonprofit organizations and civil society groups in Georgia. Tamar is currently responsible for the nonprofit management program and its e-learning component, at the Center of Training and Consultancy. Tamar earned her MPA with a concentration in nonprofit management from Andrew Young School of Policy Studies, Georgia State University in 2012 as a E. S. Muskie Graduate Fellowship Program participant. Prior to joining the Center for Training and Consultancy Tamar worked in various development NGOs. Tamar is currently studying educational technology at the University of Tartu