With her unique warm, resonante work, Filipa provides foundational NVC courses through to trauma healing, advanced and spirituality NVC programs. Filipa is a recognized practitioner of Robert Gonzales Living Compassion NVC, and co-created the book The Spirituality of Nonviolent Communication: A Course in Living Compassion (2022), which is some of the teachings and practices of Robert Gonzales (now available in German as well as English). Filipa is the content provider for the NVC mobile app NVConnect.
Filipa provides public and personally tailored trainings and sessions globally online, and onsite in New Zealand: for individuals, couples, parents, groups, communities, educators, social workers, therapists, and as tools for clients - through workshops, retreats, coaching, keynote presentations, and private sessions. Stay informed by signing up for Filipa’s tri-annual newsletter on her website.
Why Filipa is passionate about living and sharing NVC & Living Compassion…
“My daughters were toddlers when I was blessed to be introduced to NVC. Now in their 20’s Jessica and Melissa astound me every day with what is possible when a human being develops amongst adults who are able to see, affirm and value them in their universal human needs. Witnessing their abilities to compassionately connect with themselves, articulate their needs with clarity and self-responsibility, while acknowledging and valuing the needs of others, is for me a window into 'the peaceful world our heart's know is possible'! Holding NVC principles as my guiding light, my daughters experienced more resonance with their natural unfolding and life reaching for life.
The use of language they learned was life enhancing. I grew up, like most people I think, amongst adults who did their best but were caught in the violence of right-wrong thinking, full of judgments, labels, punishments, and rewards... rather than the self-awareness, relational skills, and capacity for empathy, that free and loving human development and wellbeing requires.
I am forever grateful for NVC; the tools and consciousness that empower me to live, model and share what is truly life serving. Perhaps the most precious of NVC gift has been in learning to how to embrace all of myself, including fear and shame when my actions are not life serving. And to be able to acknowledge and empathise with the painful impacts my actions had on others (and myself). I have many regrets in my parenting journey, my wounded parts get triggered, I can be reactive and get stuck in survival and conditioned patterns. Learning to embrace all of me has opened the doorway to deeper and deeper levels of my authenticity, my true self - and so there is more of me available to live and give.
Seeing my daughters hold themselves in compassionate embrace are some of my most treasured celebrations.
It is ever more observably clear to me that NVC principled & empathic child nurturing, is the greatest social change work (as well as the key to all the ways we long to heal our wounds, grow in wellness, live free and, as Marshall said, ‘do love’)”.
Filipa has been teaching and developing her NVC work since 2010. She is contracted by the New Zealand Ministry of Education to provide NVC for early childhood teachers. Filipa is a founder and a trustee of Aotearoa NZ NVC Charitable Trust (the global contact point to NVC in New Zealand).
Filipa has an honor’s degree in English Literature, a post-graduate diploma in Information Systems, and an informed background in Early Childhood development as well as trauma. Some other areas of interest: private pilot, outdoors hiking and swimming, Dances of Universal Peace and other dancing, different meditation practices including Anthroposophical and Vipassana.
