The Council Path

The Way of Council is a personal practice, a group process and a life-pathway.

We begin in gratitude and respect for “those who came before.” We honor the indigenous cultures, earth-cherishing traditions, those first nation peoples that, despite cultural repression and genocide, kept their stories alive, demonstrating time and again the beauty, power and necessity of a circle way. We include in our gratitude, as we do in our practice, the plants and animals, all of Nature—the seen and unseen—and most of all our ancestors, who dreamed the sacred circle ways so long ago.

We invite you to begin your journey with the Way of Council by exploring our Resources page.  In particular, we recommend reading the 2nd edition of The Way of Council, by Jack Zimmerman and Virginia Coyle.

The next step on the path is to attend one or more trainings from a Center for Council or one of our Associated Organizations.  Visit our Directory to find a location or training near you.

After that, it’s practice, practice, practice!  Skilled facilitators and trainers have spent many hours sitting in Council circles – as participants, facilitators, and as witnesses. The Way of Council becomes a part of their being and their way of life.

At some point, you may decide to become a certified Council trainer, and help to spread the practice to others and their organizations and communities. May it be so!