FACP Practice Groups Next Generation Divorce in Tampa and Choose Collaborative in South Florida are planning World Creativity and Innovation Week events in April. Both groups are planning their events to take place in lieu of their normal monthly meetings.
A virtual World Creativity and Innovation Week event, Collaborating to Achieve Goals, will take place on April 21 from 12 noon to 1:30pm EST. This call is open to the world and will be promoted internationally.
The first 30 minutes of this event will consist of an expert panel on the subject of Collaboration. The panelists include:
- Professor Jim Friedman, PhD: The UN Custodian for World Creativity and Innovation Week
- Robert K. Merlin, Esq. – President of FACP and IACP Board Member
- Mr. Javier Bikandi – Director of Citizen Services and Digital Services of the Basque Country which promotes collaborative and open government
From there, attendees will break out into meeting rooms based on interests. Meeting room topics include: the environment; collaboration in family law, collaboration in government; health; education, business, arts etc.
In February, Arianna Diaz, IACP Communications Director hosted two virtual events for Collaborative Professionals about the WCIW event.
See recording here
Ariana emailed this list of resources to Collaborative Professionals about how to participate in the event.
- How To Participate in World Creativity and Innovation Week & Day Guide (Full list of instructions and resources on how to participate and host your celebrations)
- February 9 Publicize Collaborative Practice During WCIW Presentation (Full list of instructions and resources on how to participate and host your celebrations)
- Recording of February 9 WCIW Presentation to revisit and share with Colleagues
- WCIW Outreach Letter
- WCIW Press Release & Instructions On How To Send Press Releases
- WCIW Proclamation & Instructions On How To Send Proclamation
If you have any additional questions, please feel free to contact Arianna Diaz, IACP Communications Coordinator, at arianna@collaborativepractice.com.
FACP members are encouraged to follow World Creativity and Innovation Week/Day on social media and use the hashtags #WCIW #IAmCreative for posts.
WCIW/D FaceBook
WCIW/D Twitter
WCIW/D Instagram
WCIW/D LinkedIn
Why You Should Get Involved
Collaborative professionals witness the life-altering effects of Collaborative Divorce for individuals and families every day. For trained and seasoned Collaborative Divorce professionals, resolving conflict peacefully is a normal occurrence.
For the newcomer, however, peaceful conflict resolution is nothing short of miraculous. With 50% of marriages ending, almost everyone knows someone who has experienced a devastating divorce.
World Collaboration Starts at the Foundation
…The Family
Conflict is a normal part of life—both on a personal level and a global level. Whether a conflict is marital or political, how much better would it be if those conflicts were resolved collaboratively?
Imagine a world where Collaborative Divorce and Collaborative Process were the norm—where our governments, businesses, and educational systems operated collaboratively by default.
Imagine a culture in which young and old alike are aware that tools exist for peaceful resolution of conflicts of any type.
The first major conflict that many children experience is the divorce of their parents. Imagine if they witnessed this conflict being resolved through Collaborative Divorce instead of litigated divorce?
What would the world be like if our leaders were trained in Collaborative Process?
Collaborative is Creative
There is nothing more creative and innovative in the area of conflict resolution than the Collaborative Process. For this reason, the World Creativity and Innovation Week (WCIW) organization reached out to the International Academy of Collaborative Professionals (IACP) about participating this year and in future years. As the theme of the 2022 international celebration is Collaboration, engagement in this event could not be more timely.
World Creativity and Innovation Week, April 15 – April 21, 2022 was established in 2001. The purpose is to celebrate the use of creativity and innovation to advance the UN’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals. Individuals and organizations from 81 countries participated in 2021 and already organizations from 94 countries are planning events for 2022.
The Collaborative Process is relevant to all of the UN Goals but in particular to UN Sustainable Goal #16: Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions.
Be the Collaborative Leader in Your Community
Participation in World Creativity and Innovation Week gives Collaborative Divorce professionals and Collaborative professionals in other areas of law the opportunity to raise public awareness.
Florida Academy of Collaborative Professionals (FACP) members Sheila Furr and Karen Sacks are leading the way as the FACP committee chairs for WCIW in Florida.
“This event is really important,” said Sheila. “World Collaboration starts at the foundation and that foundation is the family.”
Collaboration isn’t always easy. Emotions sway even the most analytical individuals. Collaboratively trained professionals, with creativity and compassion, make it possible to resolve disputes and create lasting agreements.
FACP members can use this opportunity to educate people in their own communities on some of the key tools in peaceful conflict resolution. Tools like helping divorcing couples identify their interests rather than their positions. Tools like using particular language when engaging in conflict resolution.
“I have participated in World Creativity and Innovation week for three years,” said Joryn Jenkins, FACP member and Collaborative divorce attorney. “It has helped me educate people in my community about what we do. One of the attendees to my presentation last year became a client and benefited from the Collaborative Divorce Process as a result.”
How FACP Members Can Get involved
Florida Collaborative Practice Groups are encouraged to do local celebrations/events during World Creativity and Innovation Week between April 15 and April 20.
Celebrations can include:
- Outside speakers like public officials;
- A presentation about Collaborative Divorce and Collaborative Process and how it fits in with UN Goal 16 (and all of the UN Goals for that matter!);
- Collaborative Divorce/Process Success stories;
- A presentation of some of the key tools used by Collaborative Professionals to achieve peaceful resolution.
Tools presented can include words professionals do and do not use in conflict resolution, the importance of establishing interests as opposed to positions and so on.
Individual Collaborative Professionals can also do their own celebrations/events between April 15 and April 20.
Individual celebrations could consist of an office reception and informational talk. The professional may speak live or virtually at local schools, universities, churches and clubs about WCIW. A professional may choose to do both—for example, they may speak to their Rotary Club and also hold a WCIW reception at their office on a different day.
Events/Celebrations can be recorded or shared on Facebook Live.
Regardless of size or type, all celebrations are registered here on the World Creativity and Innovation website.
Celebration events come in many styles and sizes depending on the time and resources of the individuals involved in planning.
The key is creativity.
FACP Statewide Virtual Celebration: On Thursday, April 21, 2022 at noon, FACP members are invited to participate in a statewide virtual celebration on zoom. This celebration will be shared on Facebook Live. FACP members will share stories of their local events and the feedback they received from community members learning about Collaborative Divorce and Collaborative Process as the way to handle conflict i.e. The student that learned a better way to talk to his teachers etc.
On April 15 – 21, FACP members will be joined by individuals from around the world who will be celebrating the use of creativity and innovation in achieving the UN’s sustainable development goals. The participating individuals and organizations come from many different industries and walks of life. All international events will center around the theme of Collaboration.
For more information about getting involved at the state level, contact Sheila Furr at drfurr@sheilafurrphd.com and Karen Sacks at ksacks@crsforlife.com.
