SOIL: TJ Pod Practice Spaces
[Covert photo of the interior of a greenhouse building filled with bushy plants on either side of a path down the middle. One of the plants on the right has many branches and a red flower. You can see the frame of one of the green house walls in the background.]
I wanted to share a few more resources for folks curious about strenghtening their communities with pod work.
SOIL has been doing truly amazing resource building since 2020. I have seen a massive rise in calls for "TJ facilitators" to come in and help mediate conflicts for folks in communities and organizations that haven't done fundamental community accountability work. I usually have to ask lots of questions to arrive at why they want specifically a TJ facilitator, and even more questions to arrive at whether that level of support is actually what's needed.
Usually what people want is assurances that whoever comes in to support will not cause more harm and will understand their human complexity. Furthermore, they want people who respect some of the values of their community. The logics are similar to seeking out queer therapists when you are a queer person. But TJ doesn't require professional experts from outside your community to practice.
Back to basics, Pod Work helps you build the kinds of relationships that can mobilize in response to harm without feeling like the only option is outside intervention. For many communities someone who won't cause more harm and will understand their human complexity AND be available to respond in a moment of crisis AND within the available cost and timeline constraints is a tough find.
Practicing with your people builds the community support needed to respond to life. SOIL is providing Pod Greenhouse as a practice space. Here's info from their site:
The Pod Greenhouse is a virtual work and practice space to support pod-building.
Making dedicated time for pod work continues to be one of the biggest obstacles people face in building and maintaining their pods. SOIL hopes that this space will foster practice, connection and community. We hope that by providing a regular space throughout the year dedicated to pod-building, it will offer opportunities for relationship building, cross-pollination, community support, and self-accountability.
The goal of our Pod Greenhouses is to support individuals to build their pods and build capacity for transformative justice and collective care.
Please note: Pod Greenhouses are not trainings.
Announcing SOIL’s 2025 Pod Greenhouses: March 15, June 28, Sept 20, Dec 6; 12:30pm-3pmET / 9:30am-12pm PT
Registration information for each Greenhouse will be sent through the SOIL email list. Registration for the March 15th Pod Greenhouse will be sent to the SOIL email list on March 3rd. Click here for more event information.