1. HOST
The Host is the organizer and facilitator of activities to welcome friends, family, and anyone interested in the topic they wish to share. As a Host, you are both a pioneer and a co-learner. The most important thing is not how perfect your session is, but your presence, listening, and the joy of learning together.
Creative Freedom (Topic, Activity & Space)
- Topic: You have complete freedom to choose! It could be a question you are grappling with, a problem you want to solve, a project you're nurturing but need support (ideas, resources, teammates), a research topic, an outdoor activity, or a casual meetup. You could also explore a specific location in Da Nang together.
- Share Your Treasure: Everyone possesses a unique treasure to share—a passion, a skill, life experiences, professional knowledge, or personal struggles (faced or overcome). All of this is a gift you can share with the community.
- Examples:
Facilitate discussions on topics like: "How to practice healthy love?", "Coping with failure?", "Maintaining an early morning fitness routine?", "Dealing with loneliness?", "Traveling with minimal resources?"Organize outdoor activities: Cycling to Ban Co Peak for the view, camping in Hoa Bac, learning about traditional fish sauce making in Nam O village, or community volunteering.Organize learning activities: Learning practical skills (instrument, sewing, handicrafts, natural health products, basic motor repair, photography/videography...).
- No Need to be an "Expert": Unlearn the belief that you must be an expert to share knowledge. Every act of sharing is an act of learning and contributing to the community's richness. Your presence helps build Da Nang as a Learning City. Just go for it!
- Co-host: You are welcome to invite a companion and register as a Co-host.
- Harvest everyone’s learning journey: Harvesting creates space to deepen our learning experiences, and also becomes a way to carry and share these stories with the wider community. How can you all harvest the personal and collective learnings creatively? What should be harvested are the important elements: lessons learned, ideas, stories, meanings, questions, and newly emerging insights… Feel free to do the harvesting in your own way!
2. Session Preparation Guidelines (For Reference)
Guiding questions to help you prepare your Host session:
- What is the Goal of your Session?
- Will participants explore knowledge, practice skills, or experience something?
- What kind of learning space do you want to create? Joyful, introspective, or creative?
- Who is your intended audience?
- How will you structure the activity to achieve the goal? (Games, discussion, walking, open questioning, crafts, cooking, nature observation...)
- How can you create a collective learning space where many people can speak up, be seen, and be heard?
- What materials, tools, or space adjustments are needed?
- What do you hope participants take away after leaving your session?
3. During & After the Activity
A. During the Activity
- Briefly introduce your intention and what you wish to explore together.
- Sense the participants' energy to coordinate content and time appropriately.
- Encourage participants to share their feelings, lessons, and questions.
- Record key questions raised and capture some meaningful moments (or ask someone to help).
- End the session with a Collective Harvest (Shared Learning).
B. Harvest (A Crucial Step)
Harvesting means recording and sharing reflections on the learning journey of both the host and participants. This process is an opportunity to look back, find new perspectives, new lessons, and new questions to carry forward in life.
Harvest formats are diverse: storytelling, images, written reflection, videos... and sharing in a circle.
C. After the Program – Sharing with the Community
Learning becomes more meaningful when we share what we've learned. Your sharing encourages the spirit of giving, participation, and co-creation within the learning community.
- Share your Harvest on Facebook and tag Vcil Community x Vcil Living Lab - Da Nang.
- Required Hashtags: #Danangalearningcity #Danangthanhphohoctap #learningbeyondboundaries #hoctapkhonggioihan
- Alternatively, you can send your post-program harvest via emai.
4. Principle: Whoever, Whenever, Whatever
Whoever comes is the right person,
Whenever it starts is the right time,
When it's over, it's over,
Whatever happens is the only thing that could have.
This is a critical principle: The Host needs to embrace "emergence" and listen to what might emerge. Accept the possibility that very few or no people might attend. This is normal when hosting activities. Instead of having expectations, cherish what unfolds, as it is a gift from the universe. And be proactive! If no one attends, dedicate this time to self-reflection & learning!
Trust that every moment, every person, every encounter carries a "secret treasure" waiting to be unlocked.
🌸 Thank you for joining us to co-create "Learning Cities"!
