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Lumos Transforms
Case Study

Embedding eTIRO for Visionary Change in the Documentary Film Community of Color

By January 27, 2025January 29th, 2025No Comments
The Color Congress Logo

The Color Congress Logo

SECTOR: Arts and Advocacy
EMPLOYEES: 90+ Member Organizations

 

 

 


The Challenge: Weaving Resilience into a Complex Ecosystem

Color Congress is a visionary ecosystem-builder committed to amplifying the collective power of people-of-color-led organizations serving nonfiction filmmakers, leaders, and audiences across the United States. Its network forms a vibrant tapestry of film festivals, artist support and narrative change entities, micro cinemas, filmmaker collectives, and public media.

Operating within a fast-paced sector that has historically been oppressive and does not center or prioritize audiences of color, Color Congress is leading the charge to shift industry norms and elevate narrative change. Their work fosters cultural transformation within the documentary field and builds the capacity of their member organizations to engage in this vital work.

As leaders in the social documentary space, Color Congress recognized that sustaining its groundbreaking work required weaving embodied resilience into its organizational framework. With a diverse ecosystem of 90+ member organizations—each with unique priorities, budgets, and geographic contexts—the potential for tension or misalignment was significant. Without intentional scaffolding, these differences could unravel the collective strength of the Congress.

To meet this challenge, Color Congress embarked on a proactive journey of culture creation, grounded in shared values and embodied practices that could support collaboration and resilience. They envisioned an organizational fabric strong enough to hold tensions, honor diversity without flattening differences, and foster alignment around shared goals.

Recognizing that this vision required an intentional framework, Color Congress partnered with Lumos Transforms to integrate embodied trauma-Informed resilience-oriented (eTIRO) principles and practices. This collaboration ensured that Color Congress’ guiding principles, community agreements, and shared commitments would be more than ideals—they would become the threads that wove their ecosystem together, enabling transformative impact both within their network and across the broader documentary sector.

The Solution: Strengthening the Fabric of Collaboration

Color Congress and Lumos Transforms joined forces to implement a foundational eTIRO program to strengthen the network’s capacity to collaborate, navigate differences, and sustain its collective vision. Initially launched in 2022 as a six-month engagement, this project developed into an evolving partnership extending into 2025 to offer consistent support for building resilience within the network and fostering alignment amidst the complexities of Color Congress’ evolving work.

Key components of the program included:

  • eTIRO Capacity Building Trainings: Customized workshops introduced the eTIRO framework and embodied practices and provided tools for participants to understand and engage with their own trauma responses. These sessions enabled members to foster deeper self-awareness and navigate conflict constructively. As one participant reflected: “I was fascinated by, and so grateful to attend, an (eTIRO) workshop offered by Lumos Transforms….What eTIRO encourages is a look inward at the triggers and trauma we hold as individuals, which we can often knowingly or unwittingly weaponize and use against each other, even those with whom we seek to share community. And I have to say: if the members of the Color Congress can adapt eTIRO into our own self-care praxis, we can extend that care and regard into the Color Congress, and then into the documentary field.”
  • Care Team Support: Lumos provided a dedicated two-person Care Team to support Color Congress’s monthly virtual gatherings. The team facilitated Resilience Toolkit practices, guided reflections on eTIRO principles, and offered one-on-one emotional support for individual participants during meetings to ensure participants felt present and supported.
  • Support for Historic Convening: At their first in-person convening, Color Congress partnered with Lumos to provide container-building support that allowed participants to connect, build trust, and align. While Color Congress presenters led sessions on theory of change, narrative storytelling, and future-building, Lumos staff facilitated the practical application of eTIRO principles as a decision-making tool and also provided in-person, responsive Care Team support.
The Results: Sidestepping a Stronger, Unified Network

The partnership between Color Congress and Lumos Transforms yielded transformative results, enabling the network to lead with resilience, intention, and alignment.

  • Embedding eTIRO Principles into Organizational Culture: eTIRO principles became an integral part of Color Congress’s culture, equipping members to engage with each other and their work in ways that are grounded in care, respect, and accountability.
  • Achieving Strategic Focus with Values Alignment: Through eTIRO practices, Color Congress successfully narrowed a broad array of ideas for potential funding into one priority area, aligning their efforts without compromising their shared values or agreements. This process not only provided strategic clarity, but also reinforced trust within the network.
  • Sustained and Strengthened Community Bonds: Contrary to initial fears of fragmentation, Color Congress emerged more unified than ever. No organizations were lost; instead, members reported a deeper sense of connection and an increased readiness to respond collectively to challenges, reflecting a network woven together with resilience and shared purpose.
  • Strengthened Capacity for Collaboration Amidst Change: As a fiscally sponsored organization transitioning to independent 501(c)(3) status, Color Congress withstood external pressures and grew stronger. Members enhanced their ability to navigate disagreements, deepen relationships, and remain unified in a rapidly evolving political landscape often hostile to their work and communities.

Through this partnership, Color Congress not only sustained its vision, but amplified its impact, becoming a stronger, more cohesive network poised to lead the documentary field with intention and care.

Conclusion: A Model for Embodied Collaboration

The partnership between Color Congress and Lumos Transforms exemplifies the power of eTIRO practices in organizational transformation. Together, we have woven a vibrant and resilient ecosystem of leadership that amplifies narrative change, centers care, and ensures sustainability for years to come.

This project serves as a model for organizations proactively seeking to integrate resilience and equity into their core operations. By embedding eTIRO principles and prioritizing values-aligned collaboration from its inception, Color Congress set a visionary standard for BIPOC-led organizations to thrive, grow, and lead the way in reshaping cultural narratives.

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