Call for Workshop Proposals

InterAction is issuing a call for workshop proposals for Forum 2013, to be held April 29-May 1 at the Gateway Marriot in Crystal City, VA. Any interested parties may submit a proposal. All proposals must be received at InterAction by November 15, 2012, via email, to workshops@interaction.org. Submitting Your Proposal Developing Your Workshop Focus & Format Workshops should be tightly focused on a central topic, engage the audience with an interactive format and provide participants with a substantial learning experience. Topics should address current and relevant issues and/or controversies and should promote open, honest and candid dialogue. Unconventional and interactive workshop formats are highly encouraged. (Please think beyond talking heads!) Workshop proposals that promote a specific organization, program or commercial product will not be accepted. This year InterAction will be showcasing workshops in a few cross-cutting themes that are designed to highlight some of the most pressing issues the NGO sector is currently facing. We hope to select a track of workshops within each theme that address a variety of sectors and audiences, representative of InterActions membership. We have developed the following list of working themes, but final determinations will be made based on the variety and quality of the submissions: Accountability & Transparency; Working with the Private Sector; Linking Relief & Development; Shaping the Humanitarian/ Development Future; U.S. Government and NGO Relations. On the proposal form, you can select a theme with which your workshop could be associated. Workshops will not be exclusive to these themes, and submissions that are outside of the identified themes will also be seriously considered. Attached is the Workshop Proposal Worksheet, which will assist you in addressing the key elements in designing an effective workshop. Use the workshop sheet to organically develop your idea, and use the final section of the form to crystallize your idea into a proposal (do not write it as a sales pitch). Please submit your worksheet via email to workshops@interaction.org by November 15. Important Things to Know When Developing Your Proposal If your proposal is selected it is expected that you, or your designee, will manage the development and execution of the workshop with support from InterAction staff. Basic A/V (laptop, projector & screen) will be available, but wireless Internet is not guaranteed. Accepted workshop proposals can be assigned to any of the 1.5 hour workshop slots on any of the three days of Forum; therefore please do not submit a workshop proposal if there is inflexibility in the time/date it can take place. Following the above guidelines does not guarantee a successful proposal, but not following them could result n the elimination of your proposal form consideration. Due to the high volume of submissions, not all proposals will be accepted for Forum 2013, and we reserve the right to request applicants with similar topics combine efforts. If your proposal is accepted, you will be contacted in January 2013.

Guidelines for Developing Your Workshop Further Workshop Format Please consider nontraditional formats that encourage dialogue and participation from the audience. The following are some examples of workshop formats that have worked well at previous Forums, but also feel free to think outside the box!
Example 1: Classic Panel Discussion Moderator (1) Presenters (3) Sample Agenda Welcome & Introductions (10 min) Presenter 1 (15 min) Presenter 2 (15 min) Presenter 3 (15 min) Q&A with Audience (25 min) Closing (5 min) Workshop Survey (5 min) Example 2: Interview/Conversation Debate Moderator (1) Presenters (2) Sample Agenda Welcome & Introductions (10 min) Present Topic of Debate (5 min) Interview/Conversation: Part 1 (15 min) Break for Questions or Comments from Audience (15 min) Interview/Conversation: Part 2 (15 min) Break for Questions or Comments from Audience (15 min) Final Remarks from Presenters (10 min) Workshop Survey (5 min) Example 4: Skills Building Workshop Facilitator (1) Content Expert (1-2) Sample Agenda Welcome & Introductions (10 min) Presentation of Concept (10 min) Activity Break Out Groups (40 min) Report Out (10 min) Q&A with Expert (10 min) Closing (5 min) Workshop Survey (5 min)

Example 3: Lightning Rounds with Break Out Discussions Moderator (1) Presenters (3) Sample Agenda Welcome & Introductions (10 min) 5-minute Presentations with Question to pose to group (15 min) Break Out Discussions with Presenters (35 min) Report Out (20 min) Closing (5 min) Workshop Survey (5 min)

Audience Response System InterAction is working with a sponsor to provide an Audience Reponses System for all of our sessions. Click here for some information about Audience Response Systems. If your workshop is selected you may be given the opportunity to utilize this tool, so begin to consider how you might integrate it into your session. Workshop Feedback/Evaluation InterAction has a standardized evaluation process that will be facilitated in every workshop by volunteers. Please reserve time for your attendees to complete the evaluation. Volunteers will also collect the responses from the participants. An analysis of the feedback, as well as copies of the response s will be made available to you after the Forum through your InterAction staff liaison.

Speakers Speakers should be diverse and representative of the topic. Consider a representative from the disability community, gender balance, a youth perspective and/or voices from the field. Workshops should not include more than four speakers (including a moderator), and speakers should be from a variety of perspectives. No more than one speaker per organization per workshop. InterAction provides complimentary registration to the Forum for each speaker (maximum of 4 per workshop) on the day on which they are speaking. If a speaker wishes to attend additional days of the Forum, he/she may purchase additional day passes at a reduced rate of $166 per day via the speaker registration process. *InterAction does not provide additional complimentary registrations beyond the 4 allotted for each workshop. Additional support staff may sign out guest passes to gain entrance to the workshop, but it will not into give them access to the rest of the Forums events. InterAction does not provide complimentary hotel or cover travel expenses for speakers. Speakers will need to provide copies of visual presentation (PowerPoint) one week prior to the event. Electronic copies of handouts and final visual presentations will also need to be given to InterAction after the event for distribution to Forum attendees. On the final day of the Forum we will be facilitating an opportunity for people to gather around workshop topics and speakers with whom they would like to have further discussion. As you plan your workshop, please keep this in mind and let us know if one or more speakers can be made available to the attendees on Wednesday, May 1, from 3:30-5:00p.m. to facilitate further discussion and answer questions. Major deadlines If your workshop is selected you will be expected to meet the following deadlines: February 1 Website Content Submission (Initial) At this point in time we will need some information about your workshop to post on our website. A title and short description will be required, but we will also accept speaker information if it is available. You will be asked to provide regular updates for the website as your planning progresses. February 15 Workshop Format Form This form will collect information on the format of your workshop and how it will affect the room your workshop will be assigned. You will need to indicate your preference on how the audience will be seated (theatre or rounds), how the stage should be set up (panel or talk show) and what A/V will be required. At this time it will be necessary for you to indicate exactly how many speakers (including the moderator) your session will include. After this point in time you will not be able to increase the number of speakers involved in your session. Please keep in mind that InterAction does not guarantee access to Internet at your session. March 1 Program Content Form This form will collect your final workshop title, short description (no more than 150 words) and speaker names, titles and organizations. After this point in time we will not be able to accept changes for the printed program. April 15 - Speaker Registration All speakers must register for the Forum via the Speaker Registration Form. This is required in order for speakers to gain access to the Forum and for the collection of speaker biographies and headshots for our materials and smart phone application. InterAction will print a master list of speaker bios sorted alphabetically to go in each participants packet.

Workshop Proposal Worksheet

Name of Contact: ____________________________________________________________________ Organizational Affiliation: ______________________________________________________________ Email: ______________________________________________________________________________ Phone Number: ______________________________________________________________________ This year we will be including some workshops that are aligned with common themes. Here are some possible themes. Please select one of the below for your workshop, or select other: Accountability & Transparency Linking Relief & Development Shaping the Humanitarian/Development Future U.S. Government and NGO Relations Working with the Private Sector Other

Our members work in wide variety of sectors/focus areas. Please indicate all audiences that your workshop would appeal to:

Areas of Work
Communications Compliance Fundraising Human Resources Information Technology Leadership Monitoring & Evaluation Policy & Advocacy Programming Security Support

Sectors of Work
Children & Youth Civil Society Conflict Democracy & Governance Disability Economic Development Education Environment & Climate Change Food Security & Agriculture Gender Health Human Rights Humanitarian/Disaster Relief Nutrition Refugees, Displacement & Protection Shelter Urban Poverty WASH

Why should we have this workshop?

What would be the goal of the workshop? What would be the desired outcomes?

Proposed Workshop Title

Workshop Description

Proposed Speakers/Moderator: (Please keep in mind we only permit 4 speakers (including a moderator) in any session and we discourage more than one speaker from any organization.)