Ann Cassano

I am Belgian-Italian, born in Belgium. I have lived in Belgium, China and The Netherlands. I work with refugees with a creative background (visual artists, designers and artisans). I work with Deep Democracy and process work, I love using embodied exercises in facilitation.

I am mostly driven by the question of how people change their mind, after spending years campaigning for asylum rights where very little happened. How do we connect with people we might not like, have little in common with without resorting the 'middle ground'. That is how I ended up studying systems change and I am looking for ways to bring it into my work. I am also researching how to use art as part of systemic change.

What I value most as a leader? When I think of good leaders, I think of people who are capable of being in service to a common cause, not self-promoting. I think of people who are able to understand their own strengths and weaknesses, are aware of their ranking, how they come across. People who are able to define what they stand for, and bring that across without demanding others stand for exactly the same things. To be clear: I am not describing the kind of person I am, but the kind of person I hope to one day become.

When I am not working, I love movement: flamenco and other kinds of dance. I read and walk (not at the same time).