KINSHIP: An Online Course

Course Website: http://kinshipcourse.com /// KINSHIP is an exploration into being together in a time when being apart has fractured our relationship to self, other, and the more-than-human in ways that have left us painfully adrift. It is a timely collective inquiry into how community, relationality, and belonging can revitalise our sense of aliveness as creatures of and participants in this animate earth, and how such a renewal might influence our actions towards greater flourishing.

Kinship course graphic

What does it mean to belong? What does it mean to be in relationship with the ever-unfurling world we find ourselves a part of? What, exactly, is community? And who do we really mean when we say “we”?

Our relationships are what enable us to step forth into being and enlivenment. Without relationship there is no thing, no body, no where, how, or why. So long as the relationships that sustain us here on earth are severed, so our sense of being here wanes. It is our relationships (to self, other, and earth) that offer us the greatest sense of belonging, and it is belonging that offers us the meaning we thrive on as a species.

Community is the vessel, the social infrastructure of life, relationality is the alchemical catalyst, the yoke of togetherness, and belonging is the meaning and magic amidst it all.

Together we will look at how these three elements enable a transformative form of relationship to arise, one that is regenerative, life-affirming, and sacred to those who enter into it: kinship.

WATCH VIDEO HERE

Course structure#

The course runs from 15th March - 5th May 2022, and sessions run for 2 - 2.5 hours. Each week, we will have a different theme, with 2 - 3 sessions each. The themes include: Why Kinship, The Politics of Relationship, Relational Ecosystems, The Individual, The Community, The More-Than-Human, Relational Imaginaries, Being & Becoming Kin.

Collective Inquiry Sessions are every other Thursday and last for 1.5 hours, which are shared spaces in which we dive deep into the previous weeks’ themes and begin to embody the principles of kinship in our online community (and beyond). These sessions are designed to midwife generative inquiry, both individually and collectively, and serve as a virtual campfire, around which we will gather, discuss, reflect, embody, collaborate, create, and practice.

Sessions will be held via Zoom. Recordings, readings, practices and the forum will be available via the Kinship Mighty Network.

Learning outcomes#

On completion of the course, you should be able to:

Deepen your understanding of the role of relationships in creating healthier ways of being (both individually and collectively)
Discover what kinship means in your own life & rediscover your sense of place/rootedness in the world (and self)
Expand knowledge of different ways of relating to self, human, and more-than-human beings
Re-evaluate the notion of the “other” through intersectional and “multi-perspectival” lenses
Cultivate deeper awareness of nuance, complexity, and the value of a “both/and” perspective
Gather tools and practices for deepening a multitude of relationships in your own life
Shift your perception of kinship towards more expansive, unorthodox and/or radical possibilities relevant to the issues and contexts we find ourselves entangled in today
Connect with others and open up the possibility for collaboration with a deeper understanding of how to relate authentically online
Begin to question the line between introspection & “outrospection” (how does your individuality relate to the collective? and vice versa)
Expand knowledge of useful terms and concepts, and be part of questioning what a new ecologically intregrous language might look like (or a language towards flourishing for all)
Actively contribute and develop your ideas through consistent opportunities for feedback