Programs and IIT Frequently Asked Questions
You want to learn and practice Nonviolent Communication and have questions about the different options? We have put together a list of Frequently Asked Questions to support you to get clear about which trainings are most suitable for you; our 9-day International Intensive Trainings, an Online Course or one of the many in-person workshops offered worldwide by our Certified Trainers.
CNVC organizes 9-day International Intensive Trainings (IITs). You can find the list of upcoming IITs here. You can subscribe to the CNVC email list at this link in order to receive email announcements of upcoming intensive trainings.
In addition, there are hundreds of NVC-related training courses held all over the world (and online) organized by Trainers certified by CNVC. You can look for Events and Workshops, or you can learn more about our 900 Certified Trainers and reach out to them directly.
You can find online events, trainings, and workshops at this link.
NVC training courses, organized by any of the hundreds of Certified Trainers, vary in cost. Most of the events listed on our website specify the fees that are requested and if they are not, please use the contact form at the bottom of the event page.
What is an International Intensive Training?
- A residential retreat
- An experiential workshop for developing fluency in Nonviolent Communication including the three main ingredients of speaking honestly, receiving others with empathy, and practicing self-care.
- An opportunity to learn and practice Nonviolent Communication with CNVC certified trainers and other like-minded people from around the world
- A time to form relationships with like-minded people who share your values and goals
- A group of people from different cultures working together toward transformed relationships and social systems
- Listening to presentations about various aspects of Nonviolent Communication
- Participating in small groups for experiential learning
- Informal practice with other participants during meals, walks, etc.
- Contributing to other participants and receiving their support
- Living in an NVC Community for 9 days
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The cost of an IIT has two parts: 1) Tuition; and 2) Accommodations (room and board and facility use fee). These costs are listed on the specific page for each IIT.
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Accommodation charges vary from one facility to another. Even if you do not sleep or dine at the facility, there will be an Accommodation fee called a “Commuter Fee.” This is separate from, and in addition to, the Tuition.
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Meals begin with dinner on the first day of the training and include lunch on the last day of the training.
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Additional meals due to early arrival or late departure are not handled by CNVC. Similarly, CNVC does not handle arrangements for lodging before the IIT check-in time nor after the check-out time. When these accommodations are available, participants will make arrangements with and pay the venue directly..
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Transportation to and from the training location is the responsibility of each participant, although often we create a system to help you organize ride sharing. We also provide you with common transportation options.
This is a typical schedule. Please note that organizing teams sometimes adjust the times and structure depending on local circumstances.
8:00-8:45am - Breakfast
9:00-9:45am - Community Meeting
10:00am-12:00pm - Session One
12:15-1:00pm - Lunch
1:45-2:45pm - Empathy Home Groups
3:00-5:00pm - Session 2
5:15-6:00pm - Community Meeting
6:00-6:45pm - Dinner
7:30-9:30pm - Session 3
On (start) day 1: Dinner is served. Please arrive between 3:00 pm-5:00pm in order to register, settle into your room, eat dinner, and be ready for the first meeting at 7:00pm. The scheduled start of the program (first meeting) is at 7:00pm (19:00h).
On (last) day 10: The last meeting ends at approximately 12:00pm. Lunch is included on the final day.
We accept all major credit cards, PayPal, or bank wire transfers. Payment options vary depending on the country in which the IIT takes place. Sometimes, you pay for both the tuition and accommodation to CNVC and other times, you pay tuition to CNVC and pay separately for the accommodation. We always provide clear instructions.
Each IIT has its own landing page on the CNVC website. You can see the upcoming IITs here. You can pre-register for an IIT by filling out the Pre-registration form at the bottom of the IIT landing page. Once you submit this form, you will receive instructions on the next steps including making your payment and/or requesting financial assistance for tuition.
Once an IIT is filled, we create a waiting list. If the IIT is full when you fill out the Pre-registration form, (1) your name is automatically placed on the waiting list in the order received, and (2) we will ask you to hold off on making your payment.
Please wait until your registration has been confirmed before making travel reservations.
At the beginning of the IIT, the Trainer / Organizer Team will discuss an agreement with all participants about audio/video recording and photography. To preserve choice on the part of other participants, and to create an environment that encourages people to share their personal experiences, we ask you to align your actions with the agreed policy.
You can find the policy here.
We want the IIT to be a deep learning and personal growth experience for participants and to create a space likely to meet needs for community, trust, and emotional safety. Because of the emotional depth and intensity at an IIT and the range of issues that arise that may not be suitable for children, our policy at this point is to have only registered adult participants at these events (i.e. not children or non-registered partners/family members).
If children and family member(s) are with you while you are at the IIT, it is our request that they reside off-site unless the venue is a public facility with other guests present. We support parents of young children to participate and if you bring your children, we ask you to have a full-time caregiver(s) available throughout the duration of the training to ensure that you are free to participate fully.
If you would like to share NVC retreat experiences with your children, there are opportunities in our network, such as family camps, in which you can participate together as a family.
A couple from Europe that had their children with them while they were at an IIT and took turns attending IIT sessions and taking care of their children who were staying offsite at a nearby hotel shared the following about their experience:
“I came to appreciate why children being on the sessions could disturb the connecting processes, because the emotional work involved was indeed very delicate many times. Just minor disturbances may be a hindrance to one's ‘listening’ to one’s own and others' emotional processes, I believe. But it became less of a problem in that the whole event was structured as a kind of smorgasbord of offerings, making it easy for me and my husband to take turns. But I do regret my not being able to participate more totally and fully during the nine days.”
Yes. People find great value in attending IITs several times during their NVC journey. We provide a 10% tuition reduction to people who have previously attended an IIT.
We strongly recommend that Certification Candidates attend an IIT before becoming certified, but we are no longer in integrity with having a "requirement" in the Certification Process. Therefore, Assessors have established the following requests if a candidate does not attend an IIT before becoming certified:
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Multi-day, in-depth, residential training
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International NVC experience
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Areas fully experienced: NVC community (ongoing peer support), spirituality, and social change
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Significant NVC experience with multiple CNVC certified trainers and mentors
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Established a connection to CNVC, have a clear priority to support CNVC's mission, willing and able to renew annual certification
Certified Trainer who did not participate in an IIT before becoming certified for the first IIT as a certified trainer.
Oh we have lots of them! Find them here and also look for them in our Youtube channel.
Each IIT has its own special flavor, as it is being put together by a unique group of Certified Trainers and the local Organizers Team. However, the sessions at each IIT meet CNVC’s criteria and cover the core concepts of NVC as described here.
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While the precise number of participants varies depending on the venue, there is always a finite number of spaces available, so we encourage you to pre-register for the IIT you are interested in, so you will be kept up-to-date whether the maximum amount of participants is getting close.
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Anyone can join as long as there is free space available; if someone is younger than 18, there are some conditions for joining.
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The number of participants varies from one IIT to another. Typically, there are 60-80 participants, but there are some IITs with fewer and others with more. The largest one so far was approximately 115 participants.. The number of participants depends on two factors: the capacity of the venue, and the agreement of the Trainer and Organizer Team on what they think the ideal size is.
Although our 9-day International Intensive Training offers an in-depth and highly valuable learning experience, unfortunately we are not able to offer CEUs (Continuing Education Credits) for our IITs.
We have attempted to qualify to offer CEUs in the past -- exploring the possibility with various licensing boards, countries, and states in the U.S. -- and unfortunately, we have found it either to be either impossible or to have substantial barriers -- as an international organization, the complexity of qualifying in even a few countries is beyond our reach. .
However, if an individual wants to go through the process with their licensing board individually, we are very happy to help by providing a certificate of attendance, daily schedule, course objectives or any other paperwork that may be supportive.
Still have a question?