EAGT
GESTALT CONFERENCE
MADRID | 21-24 SEPTEMBER 2023
Activity recognized as of Health and/or Social Interest by the Consejería de Sanidad of the Comunidad de Madrid (regional government of Madrid).
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Photography by : Alex Azabache
GESTALT THERAPY AN ENGINE OF CHANGE
Gestalt Therapy should consider everything that happens around us.
New social relations result in new pathologies and alterations in our internal and external structure and must be addressed.
We have the responsibility to develop personal and social awareness that facilitate changes to foster the wellbeing of our society.
AETG PRESIDENT
Dear Gestalt colleagues,
We are on the verge of the next "XIV European Conference of Gestalt Therapy". It will be the first time that it will be held in Spain, and we are preparing it with all our enthusiasm, effort and commitment, so that the meeting will be fruitful for everyone.
We celebrate this year our 40th anniversary of the AETG, and the current board, in unanimity with our assembly, we thought it was a good opportunity to open up beyond the Pyrenees and create a meeting space with Europe and at the same time, be a bridge with the associations and Gestalt therapists from Latin America who would like to participate in this conference.
Gestalt Therapy in Spain is at a key moment for our future. On the one hand, we have experienced an important growth in the last four decades and our association is in very good health, with a good consolidated training programme and Gestalt schools all over the country. We are also facing an update regarding the validation by the Government of the research that supports our professional practice, and to maintain our place in the current psychotherapeutic treatments. So, we think it will be very interesting to share the different experiences and changes that were generated in other countries, and in other Gestalt associations, and to join our efforts in the same direction.
We want to take a close look at how Gestalt therapy, within the models that put the attention on the relationship between the patient and the therapist, leads to an effective therapeutic work, where our presence, our listening, and mindfulness, accompanied by knowledge, are able to generate a healthy change.
It is a great opportunity to meet after the forced restrictions generated by the pandemic, and to continue researching and advancing in the new challenges we face as gestalt therapists.
The slogan we have chosen is "Gestalt Therapy, an engine of change", because we think that one of the great values of Gestalt is the process of change that it generates in people, to continue building ourselves integrally, acting before the new challenges of psychotherapy and the different applications of Gestalt in other fields, such as social, health, education, environment, research and personal growth.
At the same time, we also want to focus this engine of change towards ourselves, where are we heading? What changes do we have to generate in order to continue growing with the basic pillars of Gestalt? In the here and now, the present moment we are living in, increasing our awareness ability and assuming our responsibility.
These and many other topics focused on the Gestalt engine of change will be present in our meetings, in the plenary sessions, workshops, conferences and in the different symposiums that we will hold and that we invite you to actively participate in their preparation.
Madrid, a city open to change, a meeting point for walkers and travellers, a cradle of artists and different cultures awaits us. We invite you to be protagonists of our history, wishing you a productive and profitable conference, making us cross the frontier of contact, and have a unique and transforming experience.
GESTALT THERAPY, AN ENGINE OF CHANGE. 21- 24 SEPTEMBER 2023. MADRID. SPAIN.
Ángel D. Saavedra Valdayo
President of the AETG
We are on the verge of the next "XIV European Conference of Gestalt Therapy". It will be the first time that it will be held in Spain, and we are preparing it with all our enthusiasm, effort and commitment, so that the meeting will be fruitful for everyone.
We celebrate this year our 40th anniversary of the AETG, and the current board, in unanimity with our assembly, we thought it was a good opportunity to open up beyond the Pyrenees and create a meeting space with Europe and at the same time, be a bridge with the associations and Gestalt therapists from Latin America who would like to participate in this conference.
Gestalt Therapy in Spain is at a key moment for our future. On the one hand, we have experienced an important growth in the last four decades and our association is in very good health, with a good consolidated training programme and Gestalt schools all over the country. We are also facing an update regarding the validation by the Government of the research that supports our professional practice, and to maintain our place in the current psychotherapeutic treatments. So, we think it will be very interesting to share the different experiences and changes that were generated in other countries, and in other Gestalt associations, and to join our efforts in the same direction.
We want to take a close look at how Gestalt therapy, within the models that put the attention on the relationship between the patient and the therapist, leads to an effective therapeutic work, where our presence, our listening, and mindfulness, accompanied by knowledge, are able to generate a healthy change.
It is a great opportunity to meet after the forced restrictions generated by the pandemic, and to continue researching and advancing in the new challenges we face as gestalt therapists.
The slogan we have chosen is "Gestalt Therapy, an engine of change", because we think that one of the great values of Gestalt is the process of change that it generates in people, to continue building ourselves integrally, acting before the new challenges of psychotherapy and the different applications of Gestalt in other fields, such as social, health, education, environment, research and personal growth.
At the same time, we also want to focus this engine of change towards ourselves, where are we heading? What changes do we have to generate in order to continue growing with the basic pillars of Gestalt? In the here and now, the present moment we are living in, increasing our awareness ability and assuming our responsibility.
These and many other topics focused on the Gestalt engine of change will be present in our meetings, in the plenary sessions, workshops, conferences and in the different symposiums that we will hold and that we invite you to actively participate in their preparation.
Madrid, a city open to change, a meeting point for walkers and travellers, a cradle of artists and different cultures awaits us. We invite you to be protagonists of our history, wishing you a productive and profitable conference, making us cross the frontier of contact, and have a unique and transforming experience.
GESTALT THERAPY, AN ENGINE OF CHANGE. 21- 24 SEPTEMBER 2023. MADRID. SPAIN.
Ángel D. Saavedra Valdayo
President of the AETG
Ángel D. Saavedra
WELCOME TO 14th EAGT GESTALT CONFERENCE
EAGT PRESIDENT
Dear all,
We are meeting for the first time at an EAGT Gestalt bilingual conference. It is an experiment aimed at bridging the gap between familiar ways of contacting the novelty and diversity of our Gestalt community and all those who have not previously been able to participate in EAGT's English-only events and therefore missing for so long, too long. The organizing committees have embarked on a long and challenging journey, facing the unknown, and now invite us to open ourselves to the new possibilities that this new path brings.
May it be time for us to take advantage of the fullness of diversity that flows from different cultures and different ways of embracing the situation without language barriers! We are kicking off in Madrid. Current technological solutions make it possible, and it's only up to us if we want to use them in building a strongly engaged Gestalt community.
The title of the conference, “Gestalt Therapy as an Engine of Change,” is also a bold invitation to embrace the now- for- next.
More than two years into a pandemic that coexists with multiple national crises, war in Europe, economic downturn, and political polarization in more and more countries, many Gestalt therapists are deeply challenged. It is likely that the global state of perpetual crisis has actually led to more frequent emotional and even abusive behavior. Experiencing oneself in all facets of uncertainty and, at the same time, helping clients to stay grounded in the same field is an unprecedented task. We’re just not meant to live under this level of tension for such a prolonged period.
The tensions are also visible on a broader political level. Just take the recent elections in Spain, which we chose in 2019 during the previous EAGT conference in Hungary, to meet. This is another example of the increasing polarization of societies, including Europe, a manifestation of the growing energy of so-called conservative and nationalist tendencies. Importantly, in this challenging situation, something unexpected happened for those familiar with the Spanish political scene - the ultra parties did not win a parliamentary majority. Many believe that the Spanish elections have halted the recent trend of growing support for right-wing European forces. The hope is still in the field.
This means that we need to get together and speak up. It's essential for people to show up and make a difference and bring about real change. A success, even if it seems incomplete, is a success! Spanish society has been given time and space to seek a new point of balance instead of focusing on one thing over another.
The polarity, especially bipolarity, is simple and allows us to define and evaluate the difference quickly, that is, the non-familiar, dis-similar, opposing Other. As a result, the lines of polarization shift within families, institutions, and organizations and also cast a shadow between us. We are in prominent and growing confusion and thus in rising fear. The old signposts have lost their value, and the new ones are not there yet. Moreover, we are already clearly seeing transhumanism, artificial intelligence, infodemics with their excess of information and fake news, the threat of pathogens released from the former permafrost, the unpredictability of the weather, and much more. This is a new reality of scattered ground and a melting sense of grounding that we are all experiencing.
How will Gestalt psychotherapists, Gestalt practitioners in organizations, NOGTs, Gestalt training institutes, Gestalt associations, and all other organizations where Gestaltis are present respond to the call to propose "Gestalt therapy as an engine of change"?
As Gestaltists, we have all seen great action plans being created, only to be shelved and never implemented. Will we provide input to effect change and then wait for someone else to step into action to implement it? Or will we take the lead by engaging in the public debate and taking real action on the issues that Gestalt therapists and practitioners have the most direct impact on?
Recently I received an email and read an important line that a Gestalt colleague wrote: "... to choose a path informed by all that Paul Goodman modeled for us: ears that listen, minds that think, hearts that care, voices that dissent and bodies that take a stand in the public square."
I believe it's the core of social activism, and it's all that we need to continue the courageous mission of the agents of change.
I’m so happy to meet you in Madrid and online to experience the togetherness and interconnectedness.
Warmy, Renata Mizerska, President EAGT
We are meeting for the first time at an EAGT Gestalt bilingual conference. It is an experiment aimed at bridging the gap between familiar ways of contacting the novelty and diversity of our Gestalt community and all those who have not previously been able to participate in EAGT's English-only events and therefore missing for so long, too long. The organizing committees have embarked on a long and challenging journey, facing the unknown, and now invite us to open ourselves to the new possibilities that this new path brings.
May it be time for us to take advantage of the fullness of diversity that flows from different cultures and different ways of embracing the situation without language barriers! We are kicking off in Madrid. Current technological solutions make it possible, and it's only up to us if we want to use them in building a strongly engaged Gestalt community.
The title of the conference, “Gestalt Therapy as an Engine of Change,” is also a bold invitation to embrace the now- for- next.
More than two years into a pandemic that coexists with multiple national crises, war in Europe, economic downturn, and political polarization in more and more countries, many Gestalt therapists are deeply challenged. It is likely that the global state of perpetual crisis has actually led to more frequent emotional and even abusive behavior. Experiencing oneself in all facets of uncertainty and, at the same time, helping clients to stay grounded in the same field is an unprecedented task. We’re just not meant to live under this level of tension for such a prolonged period.
The tensions are also visible on a broader political level. Just take the recent elections in Spain, which we chose in 2019 during the previous EAGT conference in Hungary, to meet. This is another example of the increasing polarization of societies, including Europe, a manifestation of the growing energy of so-called conservative and nationalist tendencies. Importantly, in this challenging situation, something unexpected happened for those familiar with the Spanish political scene - the ultra parties did not win a parliamentary majority. Many believe that the Spanish elections have halted the recent trend of growing support for right-wing European forces. The hope is still in the field.
This means that we need to get together and speak up. It's essential for people to show up and make a difference and bring about real change. A success, even if it seems incomplete, is a success! Spanish society has been given time and space to seek a new point of balance instead of focusing on one thing over another.
The polarity, especially bipolarity, is simple and allows us to define and evaluate the difference quickly, that is, the non-familiar, dis-similar, opposing Other. As a result, the lines of polarization shift within families, institutions, and organizations and also cast a shadow between us. We are in prominent and growing confusion and thus in rising fear. The old signposts have lost their value, and the new ones are not there yet. Moreover, we are already clearly seeing transhumanism, artificial intelligence, infodemics with their excess of information and fake news, the threat of pathogens released from the former permafrost, the unpredictability of the weather, and much more. This is a new reality of scattered ground and a melting sense of grounding that we are all experiencing.
How will Gestalt psychotherapists, Gestalt practitioners in organizations, NOGTs, Gestalt training institutes, Gestalt associations, and all other organizations where Gestaltis are present respond to the call to propose "Gestalt therapy as an engine of change"?
As Gestaltists, we have all seen great action plans being created, only to be shelved and never implemented. Will we provide input to effect change and then wait for someone else to step into action to implement it? Or will we take the lead by engaging in the public debate and taking real action on the issues that Gestalt therapists and practitioners have the most direct impact on?
Recently I received an email and read an important line that a Gestalt colleague wrote: "... to choose a path informed by all that Paul Goodman modeled for us: ears that listen, minds that think, hearts that care, voices that dissent and bodies that take a stand in the public square."
I believe it's the core of social activism, and it's all that we need to continue the courageous mission of the agents of change.
I’m so happy to meet you in Madrid and online to experience the togetherness and interconnectedness.
Warmy, Renata Mizerska, President EAGT
Renata Mizerska
MAIN SPEAKERS
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(Barcelona, 1964) holds a Doctorate in Philosophy (University of Barcelona).
He was resident lecturer in the Philosophy of Science and Coordinator of the Philosophy module of the Masters in Holistic Science at Schumacher College in Dartington (England, 1998-2003), and has been invited to lecture at universities in Europe and the Americas.
He has been the recipient of the Philosophy Award of the Institut d’Estudis Catalans, the Resurgence and Scientific & Medical Network Essay Award, and the Joan Maragall Award.
Most recently he is the author of Técnica y totalitarismo: Digitalización, deshumanización y los anillos del poder global (Technics and Totalitarianism: Digitalization, Dehumanization and the Rings of Global Power, Fragmenta, 2023).
And Pandemia y posverdad: La vida, la conciencia y la Cuarta Revolución Industrial (Pandemics and Post-Truth: Life, Consciousnessa nd the Fourth Industrial Revolution, Fragmenta, 2021), the first two books (published in both Catalan and Spanish) of a trilogy analyzing our times from philosophical, scientific and literary perspectives.
He is also the author, with illustrator Neus Camaño, of Redescubrir el mundo (Redescovering the world, Akiara, 2023).
He was resident lecturer in the Philosophy of Science and Coordinator of the Philosophy module of the Masters in Holistic Science at Schumacher College in Dartington (England, 1998-2003), and has been invited to lecture at universities in Europe and the Americas.
He has been the recipient of the Philosophy Award of the Institut d’Estudis Catalans, the Resurgence and Scientific & Medical Network Essay Award, and the Joan Maragall Award.
Most recently he is the author of Técnica y totalitarismo: Digitalización, deshumanización y los anillos del poder global (Technics and Totalitarianism: Digitalization, Dehumanization and the Rings of Global Power, Fragmenta, 2023).
And Pandemia y posverdad: La vida, la conciencia y la Cuarta Revolución Industrial (Pandemics and Post-Truth: Life, Consciousnessa nd the Fourth Industrial Revolution, Fragmenta, 2021), the first two books (published in both Catalan and Spanish) of a trilogy analyzing our times from philosophical, scientific and literary perspectives.
He is also the author, with illustrator Neus Camaño, of Redescubrir el mundo (Redescovering the world, Akiara, 2023).
Jordi Pigem
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Ph.D., Clinical Psychologist. Gestalt psychotherapist.
Founder and director of the Centro de Terapia y Psicologia.-CTP in Madrid, Spain.
Founder and director of CTP Training Institute for Gestalt Therapy. ECP of EAP. Master in Clinical Psychology.
Full member and past President and honorary member of Spanish Association for Gestalt Therapy (AETG).
Full member of European Association for Gestalt Therapy (EAGT); New York Institute for Gestalt Therapy (NYIGT); European Association for Psychotherapy (EAP); World Council for Psychotherapy (WCP); IGTA; AAGT among others.
International Gestalt Therapy trainer and supervisor.
Expert in Communication. Specialised in the processes of mourning and grief. Training in Transactional Analysis and NLP.
Co-director of the Gestalt Therapy publishing company: Los Libros del CTP. Author of books, chapters and papers on Gestalt Therapy.
Translator into Spanish of books and papers about Gestalt Therapy, including the foundational book: “Gestalt Therapy: Excitement and growth in the human personality”.
Founder and director of the Centro de Terapia y Psicologia.-CTP in Madrid, Spain.
Founder and director of CTP Training Institute for Gestalt Therapy. ECP of EAP. Master in Clinical Psychology.
Full member and past President and honorary member of Spanish Association for Gestalt Therapy (AETG).
Full member of European Association for Gestalt Therapy (EAGT); New York Institute for Gestalt Therapy (NYIGT); European Association for Psychotherapy (EAP); World Council for Psychotherapy (WCP); IGTA; AAGT among others.
International Gestalt Therapy trainer and supervisor.
Expert in Communication. Specialised in the processes of mourning and grief. Training in Transactional Analysis and NLP.
Co-director of the Gestalt Therapy publishing company: Los Libros del CTP. Author of books, chapters and papers on Gestalt Therapy.
Translator into Spanish of books and papers about Gestalt Therapy, including the foundational book: “Gestalt Therapy: Excitement and growth in the human personality”.
Carmen Vázquez
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Gianni Francesetti, MD, Psychiatrist, Gestalt Therapist, International Trainer and Supervisor, Adjunct Professor of Phenomenological and Existential Approaches to Clinical Practice at the Department of Psychology of the University of Turin, Italy. He is Co-Director of the International Institute for Gestalt Therapy and Psychopathology—IPsiG and of the Turin School of Psychopathology.
Former President of the European Association for Gestalt Therapy (EAGT) and of the Italian Federation of Associations of Psychotherapy (FIAP). In the EAGT he has been the chair of the Training Standards Committee, the Professional Competences and Qualitative Standards Committee and the Research Committee.
He has authored many books and articles on psychotherapy and psychopathology, including his latest book, Fundamentals of Phenomenological-Gestalt Psychopathology: A Light Introduction (2022), translated in many languages.
Former President of the European Association for Gestalt Therapy (EAGT) and of the Italian Federation of Associations of Psychotherapy (FIAP). In the EAGT he has been the chair of the Training Standards Committee, the Professional Competences and Qualitative Standards Committee and the Research Committee.
He has authored many books and articles on psychotherapy and psychopathology, including his latest book, Fundamentals of Phenomenological-Gestalt Psychopathology: A Light Introduction (2022), translated in many languages.
Gianni Francesetti
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Georgette Kempink is an organisational development coach and passionate about
working in healthcare in the Netherlands. She supports teams in the workplace as well
as leaders in boardrooms.
She co-founded her company Broosz in 2003 to facilitate change in organisations and communities of practice where people search for new ways of organizing and long for the human dimensions in work become central again. The company name refers besides to creativity and energy to the fragility and difficulty of change processes.
The last thirteen years Georgette works in the field of long-term care and nursing homes. She is involved in the development of care teams and healthcare organizations to make a transition from hierarchy to self-organization and inspire them with a Gestalt spirit. She’s co-author and co-editor of three Dutch publications about new ways of organizing.
She started her career as a dancer and ballet teacher. She has a Master’s degree in Gestalt Psychotherapy, is an accredited Gestalt Practioner in Organisations(GPO), was Executive Committee Member (2019- 2021) and nowadays an active member of Intagio (International Association for Gestaltin Organisations).
She co-founded her company Broosz in 2003 to facilitate change in organisations and communities of practice where people search for new ways of organizing and long for the human dimensions in work become central again. The company name refers besides to creativity and energy to the fragility and difficulty of change processes.
The last thirteen years Georgette works in the field of long-term care and nursing homes. She is involved in the development of care teams and healthcare organizations to make a transition from hierarchy to self-organization and inspire them with a Gestalt spirit. She’s co-author and co-editor of three Dutch publications about new ways of organizing.
She started her career as a dancer and ballet teacher. She has a Master’s degree in Gestalt Psychotherapy, is an accredited Gestalt Practioner in Organisations(GPO), was Executive Committee Member (2019- 2021) and nowadays an active member of Intagio (International Association for Gestaltin Organisations).
Georgette Kempink
SCIENTIFIC COMMITTEE
Cristina Nadal
José Luis Gil Bermejo
Marta O’Kelly
Raquel Ayala
Lorena Rodríguez
Dieter Bongers
ORGANIZING COMMITTEE
Ángel D. Saavedra
Alicia Valdayo
Irene Poza
Alejandro Rodríguez
Pilar Bermejo
Carmen Morales
Eduardo Salvador
Dieter Bongers
Michal Lewandowski
Belén Muñoz
Secretaría Técnica: SIASA
WHO IS IT FOR?
- Psychology professionals and students.
- Medical professionals and students.
- Social sciences and humanities professionals and students.
- Health and socio-health sector.
- Social workers and Social Work students.
- Organisational development professionals within a Gestalt approach.
- Educators, trainers and teachers.
- Psychotherapists.
- Professionals from other fields interested in Gestalt Therapy.