Facilitation Matters is the must-attend event for coaches, trainers and facilitators throughout Australasia. Every year we change the focus—and the format, so you get to experience new ideas and fresh ways of doing things.
This year we’re coming back to an age-old principle of facilitation and acknowledging that the wisdom is always in the room. And when you have 100 experienced practitioners in one space, the depth and breadth of that wisdom is epic!
We’ll still be having awesome workshops and interactive plenary sessions, but we’re adding in more practice labs, more coaching clinics, and more open space discussions.
We’ve done a little of each of these things at previous festivals, and people told us they wanted even more. So, we’re going all in.
Here’s some of what you can expect:
Connection
Build real connections with others doing good work in the world. Find new friends and foster existing relationships.
Activities
Gather powerful activities you can immediately use in your own context.
Coaching Clinics
Get targeted support, fresh perspectives and practical guidance to sharpen your facilitation skills.
Open Space Discussions
Join dynamic, participant-led discussions shaped by the topics that matter most in the room.
Your Agenda
Pitch the topics you want to explore and help shape the multi-layered agenda of Day 2. Focus on what matters to you.
Interactive workshops and plenary sessions where you get to learn by doing, not just listening. You’ll get to connect with others in the room and contribute your insights and experience.
Hands on practice labs where you get to experience activities in action.
No more talking about how something is done, you get to experience useable activities as a participant. Then, you can explore how to use them in your own context.
Peer-to-peer coaching clinics where you get to bring your challenges and have a wise crowd offer support and advice.
We’ll have over 1000 years of combined facilitation experience in the room, and someone there has the answer you’re looking for.
Open space discussions about the topics that are important to you.
You get to set the agenda for part of the festival. What do you want to explore in depth? What do you want to share with others? What’s the burning question you’re currently wrestling with?
This festival is for coaches, trainers and facilitators who want to:
Stay up to play with current best practice, while gathering new ideas and fresh perspectives.
Explore topics that don’t usually make a conference agenda. This is your chance to meet with peers and talk about the issues that are pressing for you.
Expand your networks and get a real sense of what other people are doing in different spaces.
Get support from experienced practitioners who are willing to share ideas and offer advice.
As always, we’ll focus on both the art of facilitation and how to grow your facilitation business. Here’s the line-up that’s been confirmed so far:
Designing for All Brains with Marc Jacquemin
Around 20% of the population are neuro-diverse, so if you want to access the wisdom in the room, then you need to design sessions in a way that all brains can engage and contribute. In this session, you will explore what designing for all brains really looks like, and you’ll leave with some practical considerations for ensuring your sessions are truly inclusive.
Marc Jacquemin is a Learning Architect and facilitator with a passion for designing experiences where people feel like they truly belong. As an autistic facilitator, he believes that difference isn’t something to be managed, but something to be drawn out. As such, he designs for the full spectrum of how people think, process and participate, and brings that same approach into every session he runs. You can connect with Marc at www.happymind.co or www.linkedin.com/in/marcjacquemin
The Power of Experiential Learning with Elizabeth Clement
It doesn’t matter what topic you’re trying to teach, most people know more about it than you give them credit for. They don’t necessarily need more content, they need ways to reflect and make sense of what they already know. In this Practice Lab, you will get clear on what Experiential Learning actually is and you’ll experiment with a bunch of interactive exercises that you can adapt for your own context.
Elizabeth Clement is on a mission to make sure no training is ever wasted - which, given she's also raising two kids and two rabbits, means she knows a thing or two about engaging reluctant learners. As the founder of Fully Engaged, Elizabeth helps L&D professionals design and deliver training that actually sticks - grounded in evidence-based practice and a genuine belief that good design changes everything. You can connect with Elizabeth at www.linkedin.com/in/elizabeth-clement/
Wisdom through a Te Ao Māori Lens
The word wisdom means different things to different people, different cultures, and through different worldviews. In this session, you’ll discover what wisdom means through a te ao Māori lens and how that wisdom is shared with others in the world.
Donna Barlow-Rolleston is a cultural capability facilitator who is passionate about creating powerful learning experiences that grow understanding, respect, and confidence in te ao Māori. She designs and delivers engaging sessions where people feel safe to ask brave questions, reflect honestly, and take meaningful action toward being in respectful relationships. You can connect with Donna at www.puawaananga.co.nz or www.linkedin.com/in/donna-barlow-rolleston-7b5042232/
Unlocking Your Creative Genius with Kate Yesberg
Workshops don’t have to be driven by flipcharts and post-it notes, and yet often we fall to traditional methods by default. Not because they’re necessarily better, but because we’re not sure how to do it any other way. In this session, Kate will help you unlock your creative genius, so you can re-think the way you design and deliver workshops. You’ll explore what creativity actually is, how you can access your own creativity, and why everyone (even senior leadership teams) secretly want to play.
Kate is an artist and creative leadership coach. But before that, she was a lawyer and leader who for a long time felt deeply uncreative. Reconnecting with her creativity was a game-changer in her work and life. Now Kate helps leaders and professionals harness their creativity, so that together we can use the full force of our creative powers to shape the world for the better. As an artist, Kate's represented by {Suite} Gallery and exhibits regularly around Aotearoa. You can also find her on stage as part of the pop-punk band Love Party. You can connect with Kate at www.kateyesberg.com or www.linkedin.com/in/kateyesberg/
The Wisdom in You with Ngahihi Bidios
When we talk about the Wisdom in the Room, it’s important to recognise that you are also in the room and you have wisdom within. Ngahihi will inspire you with his personal and professional journey, as he reminds you that the wisdom in the room starts with you. He will be outlining wisdom from his Maori culture, and offering it as a modern day solution for your facilitation and training.
Ngahihi is an award-winning keynote speaker, with deep experience in training and facilitation. He has a Masters Degree in Education (with Honours), and has worked as a secondary school techer, a tertiary lecturer and has had his own practice leading leadership development workshops. You can read more about Ngahihi at www.thefaceofnewzealand.com
Creating Spaces for Gen Z with Nicole Hoeata
If you’re facilitating in a room full of Baby Boomers and Gen X, it’s easy to assume that the Gen Z in the corner will pitch in when they’re ready. But what if that’s not the case? What if Gen Z needs—and are motivated—by different things? In this session you will learn what’s important to younger people in your workshops, and how you can create space for their wisdom to be heard.
Nicole Hoeata is the founder of Growth Hungry, a business dedicated to bridging the generational gap in the workplace. She works closely with young people to help them confidently step into employment, while at the same time helping leaders and organisations understand how to better attract, engage, and retain younger talent. You can connect with Nicole at www.growthhungry.co.nz
Exploring Psychological Safety with Cheryl Bowie
If you want people to share their ideas, thoughts, feelings and opinions, they first need to feel safe to do so. But how do you create a sense of safety in a meeting or workshop setting? In this session you will explore what psychological safety is, why it’s important in your sessions, and how you might help create it with your groups.
Cheryl Bowie is the founder of Mind Coach, a boutique executive coaching consultancy. Through coaching and facilitation, she helps create workplaces where people can bring their whole selves to work. Cheryl is passionate about using neuroscience, narrative/story, emotional literacy and mindfulness to support deep reflection and change. You can connect with Cheryl at www.mindcoach.co.nz or https://www.linkedin.com/in/cheryl-bowie-she-her-7b82a72/
Be Less Shit on Camera with Cam Fink
Most of us realise that video can be a powerful marketing tool. But knowing something works, and actually doing something about it, are two different things. There's often a weird, self-limiting belief that gets in the way of putting ourselves out there. In this session, you’ll get comfortable with the uncomfortable, and learn some practical tips for being less shit on camera. Make sure you have your phone handy, because you will be recording!
Cam Fink is first-and-foremost a professional videographer, and knows a thing or two about what works and what doesn’t when it comes to videos. He regularly works with ‘experts’ to create authentic promotional reels, and his fun, disarming nature makes it easy to step out of your comfort zone. You can connect with Cam at www.linkedin.com/in/camfink/
Articulating Your Own Expertise with Kerri Price (that’s me!)
I’ll be running two separate sessions to help independent trainers and facilitators clearly articulate the wisdom they have within and how to position that in the marketplace. These will be hands on sessions, where you get to work on developing your own IP and exploring what your niche might be.
I’ll also be emceeing the entire event, which means you’ll get to experience a bunch of my favourite activities in real life. I’ll be using all the in between spaces to help you connect and reflect, so that you can turn ideas into action.
Space is limited to 100 participants and every year we sell out.
Register now to secure your space.
When: Thursday 6th August – Friday 7th August 2026
Where: Arena Suites, Mercury Baypark, Truman Lane, Tauranga
Cost:
$595+GST (Members of The Facilitators Network)
$695+GST (Non-Members)
What PeopleSay
If you do any work with groups of any size, in any industry—whether you call yourself a facilitator or not—this festival will give you connections, lessons, ideas and tools to do your work even better. Come!!
Jacinta Cubis
Independent Facilitator
I feel like I’m just drifting back down off Cloud 9 after such a wonderful couple of days connecting with people I knew and making new facilitator friends. What a treat!! Absolutely loved it. Thank you so very much for creating ALL of this.
Michelle Morpeth
Outdoorsy
Such an important opportunity to be affirmed, learn, connect, grow and have so much fun. So masterfully developed, curated and executed. Designed to lift everyone up so powerfully and authentically.
Carla Moore
RESET for Working Parents
