Welcome To The Opening Doors Institute
The Opening Doors workshop enhanced my personal growth and perception by providing a safe space for self-reflection. It allowed a diverse community of strangers to engage in conversations about our biases, the constructs of our social systems, and our personal responsibility in creating a diverse, equitable, and inclusive society. - Vivian Washington, Michigan State University Extension, 2023
Transformative Retreats: Changing Lives, Changing the World
Decades of Experience in Empowering Workshops, Fostering Dialogue, and Inspiring Collective Action for Personal and Social Change
Mission: To create spaces where all people can thrive personally and professionally equipped with frameworks and language leading to an unleashing of their radical imaginations in order to create a partnership vision and strategies for collective action.
Vision: A world where all people can experience the life they are longing for - one that is relational and regenerative, challenging and yet joyous and affirming, with mutual interest and care for the earth.
At the end of a recent three-day Opening Doors Retreat, a participant shared that her experience was so powerful that she was sure we were changing the world. Our team of facilitators has had decades of experience leading workshops that inspire, motivate, challenge and empower participants. The feedback we get most often is that people are changed and hopefully, that together we are changing the world.
The Opening Doors Retreats began in 1992 with the heartfelt desire to create a welcoming space where participants can bring their whole selves and not be harmed. These retreats have remained popular and spread mostly by word of mouth for all of these years because we have been able to do just that. We have trained countless individuals and organizations since then, using a model that reflects a changing social context and builds on the experiences, learning and feedback from past workshops and thus is ever-evolving to meet the changing nature of this work. Foundationally we embrace the idea of dialogue, discovery and disclosure as paths to building partnerships and dismantling the destructive divisions that have harmed us all. You can find out more information about our approach here.
We feel honored by the number of people who have shared how much our work has transformed and inspired them to make changes in their organizations and communities. You can find some recent testimonials at Opening Doors Testimonials.
In addition to the retreats we have other opportunities for growth. Most importantly we work with both individuals and organizations to match their needs. You can find more info about them here.
Learn more about our innovative approach that centers our shared humanity, along with joy, healing, long-lasting change, and accountability.
Upcoming Retreats
The Opening Doors Institute Workshop is all inclusive, including two nights of lodging, seven meals, facilitation and participant resources.
“Opening Doors workshop enhanced my personal growth and perception by providing a safe space for self-reflection. It allowed a diverse community of strangers to engage in conversations about our biases, the constructs of our social systems, and our personal responsibility in creating a diverse, equitable, and inclusive society.” – Vivian W. (2023)