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IPOP, Pride Business Forum and Prague Pride are excited to offer
Open Forum:
Space for Dialogue in a Time of Growing Polarisation
A space to express yourself. A space to be heard.
November 19th, 2026,
17:00-20:00
Prostor 8, Šmilovského 8, PRAHA
a
February 19th, 2027
17:00- 20:00
Looking for venue, BRNO
Do you sometimes feel uncertainty, fatigue, or concern about the way LGBT+ people and gender issues are discussed in today’s public sphere? Do you have a sense that society is increasingly – or once again – becoming divided into “us” and “them”? Does it affect you when questions of identity and diversity become tools in political struggles, culture wars, or public disparagement?
Whether you experience these developments personally or simply feel that something is shifting around you, this space may be for you.
Open Forum is a structured, facilitated dialogue focused on issues that affect us all and often evoke tension, conflict, or polarisation. The aim is not to decide who is right or wrong, but to create a space where different experiences, emotions, and perspectives can be expressed and heard. Open Forum supports the possibility of listening to others—and to ourselves—in a different way: with greater openness, humanity, and understanding.
Together, we will explore how current social and political developments are affecting LGBT+ communities and individuals. We may touch on experiences of safety and vulnerability, the growing polarisation of society, the politicisation and instrumentalisation of gender-related issues in public discourse, and the ways these debates influence the everyday lives of LGBT+ people.
We may also explore questions and tensions within the diverse LGBT+ community itself—for example, experiences of misunderstanding, exclusion, or differing perspectives on belonging, identity, and whose voices are recognised and valued within the community. This is not a debate in which participants are expected to arrive with fixed opinions or defend a particular position. Rather, it is a space for sharing experiences, asking questions, expressing disagreement, and acknowledging uncertainty.
We warmly invite anyone who identifies as LGBT+ and would like to share, listen, reflect, or simply be part of a space where there is no need to pretend or perform. The dialogue will be facilitated in a way that supports respectful communication and the possibility of hearing one another, even across differences. You may leave with a greater sense of relief, connection, or a new perspective on what we are collectively experiencing in these times.
The Open Forum will be held in Czech and English, with interpretation provided.
How we would like to do that?
We'd like the space to be one where people feel safe enough to express what they want to in relation to the subject and for cisgender (non-trans) LM+ members to learn more about the lived realities of trans and non-binary members, in an effort to diversify perspectives, and build understanding and community.
We are very aware that safety is both an individual and collective experience.
With that in mind, we have developed the following ground rules in the spirit of supporting a deeper conversation:
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We’d love the discussion to be as honest and caring as possible.
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Come with the intention to have a respectful learning experience.
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Show respect to everyone in the room in the way you speak and express yourself.
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Share your feelings using I statements (ie I feel angry…) rather than You statements (ie You are stupid).
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Use active listening. Try to put yourself in the shoes of the person speaking.
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Take time to breathe, regulate and de-escalate if feelings run high in the group.
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There will be facilitation throughout and also ask for help from the facilitators and other group members if you are struggling.
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No verbal attacks.
Our facilitators
Stanya Studentova, Dipl. PW
Anup
Karia,
Dipl. PW
Anna Ryvolová, Dipl. PW
Stanya originally trained as psychologist at MU Brno. She works with a wide range of human experiences, often those that we see as extreme, disturbing or conflictual, seeking the creativity that is inherent in our difficulties. Her aim with individuals, groups or teams is to help open up the possibility for finding “beauty”, making connections and growing in resilience. She is a founder of IPOP and faculty member of RSPOP UK. She also leads clinical team in Community Mental Health organization and consults in third sector organisations.
Anup works internationally as a facilitator, psychotherapist and consultant supporting individuals, groups and organisations. He is interested in the role of awareness in individual and collective change. He is passionate in discovering what lies beyond the boundaries of our everyday lives and limitations, and the need to address asymmetrical systemic social issues that organize the field. He teaches processwork in UK and Czech republic and teaches in diverse settings & consults with organisations around leadership, conflict facilitation and change. He has worked for many years in the fields of trauma, mental health, HIV/AIDS and with refugees and people seeking asylum.
Anna has worked in the field of adult education and development and psychotherapy for many years. She works as the director of the IPOP (Institute of Process Oriented Work), with which she has been associated since its foundation, and as a therapist and facilitator
at the Po Poli Centre. She has a long-standing focus on facilitating public discussions and open forums regarding needed changes for the future. She is interested in good neighborhoods in the city and likes to support everything that contributes to it.
Standa Háša,
Dipl. PW
Tereza Kadlecová
Aleš
Rumpel
Psychologist, psychotherapist, facilitator. He is a member of the management of IPOP, Department of Management at the University of Economics in Prague, where he deals with organizational development. In his psychotherapeutic practice he works with individuals and couples. He supervises teams in organizations, facilitates groups in various areas, and deals with personal growth. He works as an organization development consultant, dealing with alternative approaches to management, organizational life, power in the organization, leadership, change management.
doplnit
doplnit
Fortna
The Convent of Discalced Carmelites. Hradčanské square 184/3, Prague - Hradčany
Accommodation is available directly at the venue. It is charged separately and must be booked here (please write "IPOP" in the note)