L.A.C.E. Framework

The L.A.C.E. Framework

Love
- Who and what (personal background, faith, culture, history, identities and values) do you bring into the room?
- What do you know about the historical and contemporary forms of oppression that have shaped America and its institutions?
- What unnecessary suffering breaks your heart? What are you doing about it?
- How are you cultivating ongoing awareness raising and knowledge building in your life?
Authenticity
- How do your values and identities contribute to the way that you view the world and how you show up?
- In what ways are external contexts and personal goals shaping who you are and who you are becoming?
Courage
- What are your own limits, challenges and strengths?
- How are you working to move through your challenges and enhance your strengths?
- Who/What do you need to acknowledge, resolve, forgive, release or repair?
Empathy
- How well are you listening to your own needs?
- How do your mind and body respond to stress, joy and relaxation?
- What are you doing for self-care, self-regulation and self soothing?

Resources: Write an “I am From” Poem. Use sensory language in your poem to recall and activate smells, tastes, sights, and tangibles that capture the look, feel, smell, touch and sights of your home, your family, your life and your community based on the model found here as developed by George Ella Lyon : https://modelsofexcellence.eleducation.org/writings/where-im?_ga=2.5723187.1094989728.1621386059-1197592076.1621386059.

Love
- What reading, reflecting, learning and unlearning do you need to do in order to connect with other members of your communities?
- What would it look like to re-envision connection and community so that the joys and challenges that we explored (individually) become woven together with the joys and challenges of others in the community? What are your contributions to bringing this about?
Authenticity
- How are the values of others in the community interfacing with your own values?
- How are community values shaping and reshaping who you are and who you want and need to be?
Courage
- What are your agreements around handling conflict and redressing negative behavior?
- What agreements have you made around valuing one another, vulnerability, confidentiality, trust, acknowledging and forgiveness?
Empathy
- How are you holding space for the emotions and experiences of others?
- How are the emotions and experiences of others surfacing curiosity and action?

Resources: L.A.C.E. Dinners; Talking Sticks; Art of Hosting

Love
- What do our families, universities, workplaces, places of worship, neighborhoods and societies look and feel like when they are healthy, alive and just?
- Who do we need to be and what do we need to do to bring about the equity, justice and transformation that we need?
Authenticity
- How are we aligning our values and actions in ways that reflect the best possible versions of ourselves and our communities toward the realization of more just systems, structures and societies?
- Who are we becoming and what are we leaving behind as we create systems that recognize the full humanity of each person?
Courage
- What are we drawing on to inspire, persist and respond to as well as transform challenges and barriers?
- Who/What do we need to acknowledge, resolve, forgive, release and repair?
Empathy
- How are we engaging--moment by moment—with the people, issues and challenges that arise as we move forward to carry out the vision?
- Where do repair, healing and reconciliation fit into our vision for transformation?