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GAATW International Secretariat and Kolkata-Sanved are co-organising a workshop on Dance Movement Therapy for women colleagues providing psycho-social assistance to trafficked and/or abused women migrant workers in Asia:
Dance Movement Therapy Workshop for Care Givers
What is Dance Movement Therapy (DMT) & What it is Not?
Dance/Movement Therapy (DMT) is defined by the American Dance Therapy Association (ADTA) as "The psychotherapeutic use of movement as a process which furthers the emotional, cognitive and physical integration of the individual."
DMT offers the individual the opportunities to be expressive, release tension or trauma, find their inner voice, and their independence. It can be practiced both as an individual and within group therapy in; health, education, social service settings and in private practice. It is founded on the principle that movement reflects an individual’s patterns of thinking and feeling. DMT can help participants shift to a more positive self image, less satisfying behaviors can be transformed to healthier expressions, and social struggles can be worked through alternative movement outlets. Psycho-physical techniques can provide new hope and possibilities for people who suffer from the pain and hardship of life’s psychological and social problems.
The foundations of DMT are formed from three influences; modern dance movement, movement analysis and the developing theories of psychotherapy. Marian Chace is the American pioneer of Dance Movement Therapy. Other pioneers include Blanche Evan, Mary Whitehouse, Trudy Schoop and Rudolf Laban.
Benefits of DMT
Dance/movement therapists work with individuals of all ages. They work directly with individuals and in group settings. We all have experienced the healing effects of movement, whether it be dancing the "electric slide" or taking an aerobics class. The dance/movement therapist intentionally taps into the healing nature of movement by using the art of dance as an observation/assessment tool and then as a means of choreographing responses to issues and movements members bring to a group. The dance/movement therapist responds, echoing and answering each person's movement, thus promoting feelings of self-worth. By utilizing the physical elements of breathing, posture, gesture, tension release, space, force/weight and time, people gain numerous benefits:
- Increase self-awareness, self-esteem and personal autonomy
- Experience links between thoughts, feelings and actions
- Increase and practice adaptive coping behaviors
- Express and manage overwhelming feelings or thoughts
- Maximize resources for communication
- Access internal resources through creative movement play
- Experience the impacts of personal actions on others
- Explore and experience internal and external reality
- Initiate physical, emotional and/or cognitive shifts and change
- Develop trusting relationships
- Manage feelings that interrupt learning
- Enhance skills in social interaction
Dance Movement Therapy does not aim to replace clinical methods to deal with trauma, nor are DMT sessions dance classes.
Who Can Participate in GAATW & Kolkata-Sanved Co-Organized Workshop?
Although DMT workshops can be used by many people in many diverse situations and indeed Kolkata-Sanved has worked with many different groups of people GAATW-IS has organized these workshops primarily for its member organisations in Asia. Recognizing the need for psycho-social care and the absence of affordable non-clinical methods to offer the services, we approached Kolkata-Sanved as a resource group. Introductions to Dance Movement Therapy & Art Therapy were given to colleagues at the Asia Regional Consultation in 2009. Later in the year, a DMT workshop was organized for Shakti-Samuha, a member of GAATW that is founded and run by survivors of trafficking. In 2010 another workshop was organized for members in Odisha, India. At the International Members Congress and Conference in 2010, Kolkata-Sanved and Gabfai-Thailand worked together to present an opening performance. And in 2011 GAATW-IS, upon request from members, organised a DMT workshop for social workers and care givers from Indonesia. The feed back from members who have participated in these workshops have been very positive. What has been emphasized again and again by colleagues is what minimal resources are needed for DMT (some space, some time and your willingness) and how they have been able to use it in various settings.
Encouraged by the positive feedback GAATW-IS and Kolkata-Sanved are planning to organize an 8 day DMT workshop for women colleagues working to provide psycho-social assistance to trafficked women and abused women migrant workers in Asia.
So if you are a woman and work in a shelter, a drop-in centre, a counselling centre or a short-stay home, for trafficked women or abused women migrant workers, this workshop is for you.
Although colleagues from GAATW Member organizations will get preference this workshop is not a members-only event. Maximum number of trainees is 25.
Date and Venue
The workshop is a residential one and will be for 8 days. It will be held in Thailand in mid-February, 2014. Exact date and venue will be announced by end of December, 2013.
Next Steps/Timeline
- Expression of Interest & Preliminary Queries: Until 12 December, 2013
- Last Date to Receive Applications: 6 January, 2014
- Selection of Participants: By 20 January, 2014
- Logistics and Other Communication between Participants and Organisers: 25 January-10 Feb, 2014
- DMT Workshop: Mid-February
- Follow-Up Communication and Support Visit: March-August, 2014
For more details on the content and methodology of the workshop click here.
Click here for the Application Form.
A Few Words about GAATW and Kolkata-Sanved
The Global Alliance Against Traffic in Women (GAATW) is an Alliance of more than 100 non-governmental organisations from Africa, Asia, Europe, LAC and North America. The GAATW International Secretariat is based in Bangkok, Thailand and co-ordinates the activities of the Alliance, collects and disseminates information, advocates on behalf of the Alliance at regional and international levels.
GAATW promotes rights of women migrant workers and trafficked persons and believes that ensuring safe migration and fair work places should be at the core of all anti-trafficking efforts. GAATW advocate for living and working conditions that provide women with more alternatives in their countries of origin, and to develop and disseminate information to women about migration, working conditions and their rights.
GAATW currently has 63 member organisations in Asia most of whom work directly with trafficked women and/or abused women migrant workers.
For more information visit www.gaatw.org, Contact: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Kolkata Sanved has pioneered the use of Dance Movement Therapy (DMT) as an effective, alternative approach to recovery and rehabilitation for survivors of human trafficking and violence; HIV/AIDS patients and people living with psychosocial disabilities. Breaking through barriers of traditional counseling and therapy, Kolkata Sanved uses movement and dance to enable individuals to reclaim their physical selves and their souls through a newfound sense of freedom, peace and confidence. The organization was awarded the prestigious Beyond Sport Award for Best Health Project in 2009, Dian Von Furstenberg Award for transforming other women’s lives in 2011 and Newsmaker 2012 for outstanding achievement and inspiration.
Kolkata Sanved believes that all individuals, from marginalized and mainstream populations, should live with dignity and self-respect. This basic sense of empowerment and integrity can be achieved through dance movement therapy (DMT).
The uniqueness of Kolkata Sanved’s programme lies in the fact that it harnesses the power of dance in two distinct yet interrelated ways: dance as an art form and dance as expressive movement therapy focused on self empowerment. DMT can be very alienated from the arts, and seen merely as a means of therapy only. But essentially as with any creative art form or practitioner, it is nurturing and developing the body, mind, thinking and creativity of the individual; that is what art does.
For more information visit http://www.kolkatasanved.org/
Contact: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B4Gy7SgN280
Filmed during the Transforming Steps project in Kolkata, India, this clip shows choreographer Mafalda Deville working with women from Kolkata Sanved (www.kolkatasanved.org). The piece they're developing will be performed at Sadler's Wells, London in March 2012 to raise awareness of the global problem of human trafficking.
“I saw that some survivors have tremendous artistic skills and they really want to be artists. I started training survivors to do dance therapy.” Sohini, Kolkata Sanved
“Why didn’t GAATW-IS organize this workshop for us before? This is extremely useful for us” - Participants at the Shakti Samuha Workshop
My week with everyone at Kampung Damai, the place where we all came together for DMT, was a magical time. Since then I have used DMT as self-care for many groups. Most recently with the LGBT groups in south east Asia. – Dewi Nova, Participant at the Indonesia Workshop