Windcall Residency Program

Our aim is to honor and renew the commitment and energy of those who work towards a more just society. If you’ve been doing this difficult work and need to step back to see what’s ahead, we encourage you to apply to the Windcall Residency Program.

Windcall is a supportive environment to explore the unknown with the space and time to build new visions or to find again what feeds your soul.

The application deadline for 2009 and 2010 has been closed. Check this site again in early 2010 for the next application deadline and other updates, or you may email us at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

How the Program Works

Windcall benefits a group of three leaders at a time over the period of two or three  weeks. All programs -- with the exception of the nightly dinner/peer exchange with other residents -- are at the Residents' discretion. The program, room and board, and food are free to the Residents through the generous contributions of Windcall alumni; donors; unions; social, environmental and economic justice organizations; and institutional funders (please contact us if you would like to sponsor a Resident). During the program, leaders create an individualized agenda designed to unearth their own questions and visions.

A Windcall Resident's time might include:

• Wide-open reflection time to envision new possibilities time and space Residents almost never have in their daily lives
• Mutual support in a safe environment and powerful exchanges with colleagues who work on different issues yet face similar challenges
• Writing and opportunities to be creative, nourishing new insights and sources of inspiration
• Activities in nature which take Residents out of constant strategizing and encourage visioning and a different kind of risk taking
• Dialogue about reflection, renewal and strategies for sustainable personal and organizational practices

Criteria

Windcall Residents are leaders in local and national efforts to achieve social, economic and environmental justice in the U.S. and Puerto Rico. We give first consideration to grassroots community and labor organizers working in low-income communities. We also accept applications from cultural workers, advocates, and activists. If leaders are in one of these categories, their applications are enhanced if they can demonstrate how their work engages other people in taking collective action for social change. All Residents have at least five years experience with organizations demonstrating their long-term commitment to social change.

Windcall is for individuals only, although spouse and/or partners who are both qualified for the program may attend Windcall at the same time, as long as they each qualify and are accepted.

Prospective Residents apply for the program through a short application, including a personal statement about why the applicant thinks a period of reflection would be beneficial, and references. Residents are chosen by a national Selection Committee comprised of former Residents who are familiar with the challenges faced by social, economic and environmental justice leaders.

Locations

Windcall Residencies are hosted at a variety of beautiful locations and sites vary from year to year (prior sites have been in Montana, Vermont and the Olympic Peninsula in Washington State).  Every site is chosen to make sure our residents have comfortable accommodations, are immersed in a beautiful natural setting and have access to a variety of restorative activities – art, yoga, nature hikes, etc. See application for more information.

Impact

The Windcall's effectiveness is based on twenty years of insights into burnout, experiential learning strategies for leaders, and the dynamics of social justice organizations and movements. Evaluations and reflections by the Residents themselves - who are not only participants but also seasoned social, economic and environmental justice leaders have demonstrated Windcall's impact.

• Residents almost uniformly report that the WRP played a key role in sustaining their vision, sense of balance, and sheer ability to stay at the helm of their organizations or in another leadership role.
• Many report, long after their Residencies, that they have a new appreciation for reflective leadership and have found ways to keep themselves healthy and off the burnout track.
• Many have been inspired to create truly sustainable organizations that promote leadership development, succession planning, and healthier work cultures.
• A significant number of residents have been inspired to innovate in some way, ranging from creating new organizations and new projects to developing new methodologies.

For many, it was the first time they have truly felt valued for their considerable personal sacrifices.

Windcall's approach to reflective renewal produces real gains for people who are completely committed to their work, live by endless lists, and who often haven't had a vacation in years. By being in a small cohort, Residents benefit from the insights of others -- stepping back to see their work in a wider context and reflecting on the past and future in ways that daily life seldom permits. The results are powerful for leaders and their organizations.

"Without Windcall, many activists would not have found a way to take care of themselves and think about how to do activism in a more sustainable and effective way."
Taj James, Movement Strategy Center, Oakland, CA

"Many activist leaders deal with grief every day. We see human and ecological injustice. And it hurts. Ideally this pain is transformed into the energy that fuels our work. But often, the intensity of our lives keeps too much of the pain buried deep in our hearts and in our overstressed bodies."
Dianne Bady, Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition

"I have been inspired by the essential beauty of wilderness, of a genuine silence, of a comforting darkness, but even more by the deep compassion and sense of humanity of my fellow residents. Windcall allows us to surround ourselves not only with trees, flowers, birds and streams-but with the deep-rooted strength of freedom fighters."
Bill Gallegos, Communities for a Better Environment, Los Angeles, CA