[DEBATE] Facilitating the Unknown
picture: Flaleman
A Conversation on Holding Space
What happens when a facilitator stops trying to inform/teach/manage — and instead holds space for the unknown?
Overview
As part of the Timelab Academy series, this event draws inspiration from the writing and facilitation practices of Francis Laleman. Together, we’ll explore the concept of “resourceful exformation” — an approach that doesn’t aim to inform, but to unearth, unsettle, and open up new meaning.
Rather than steering toward fixed outcomes, the facilitator becomes a gentle companion in not-knowing. Exformation, in Francis’s words, is a way to:
“open up space and a plane and a volume and a time and a word, to be continuously reconstructed and replenished with new meaning […]”
What to Expect ?
An evening where experts from diverse facilitation backgrounds and organizational structures share their experiences and discuss the possibilities of "resourceful exformation" in their own practices. Together, we’ll explore what it means to engage in “gentle cooperative facilitation.” Where do design processes leave room for openness—and where do they resist it?
Philippe Vandenbroeck (ShiftN) will guide you through a conversation with members of ConstructLab Belgium and Jim Segers (City Mine(d)).
Practical Info
- Date: June 26, 2026
- Time: 20:00 - 21:30
- Location: Timelab, Kogelstraat 34, 9000 Ghent
- Registration: recommended
- Fee: €15
- Language: English
Who is it for?
For anyone facilitating, teaching, or managing groups—as well as artists and designers who want to reflect on their role in participatory design processes.
Sign up
Join us for an evening of unthinking, reimagining, and stepping gently into the unknown — a conversation about what it means to facilitate with care.
Questions? Feel free to reach out to us at team@timelab.org.
Can't wait ?
Want to learn more about Francis' concept of "resourceful exformation"? Find his book in our Timelab Bookshop.
Timelab Academy
This event is part of our public program, shaped by the ongoing journey of Timelab Academy. Curious to see where it leads next? Come join us for more moments like this!
[LECTURE] 29th of May - Conversations for Deeper Understanding with Caitlin Walker
[EXCURSION] 19th of June - Towards Reciprocal Ways of Working - Field Trip to Aalst
[WORKSHOP] 25th of June - Shaping Relations Otherwise - by Josina Vink
[DEBATE] 26th of June - Facilitating the Unknown with Philippe Vandenbroeck, ConstructLab, City Mine(d)
[BOOK BRUNCH] 10th of August - "Unlearning Routines of the Impossible" (2025)
[MASTERCLASS] Ontwerp je eigen participatietools