The Focus on Facilitation (FoF) community of practice is a learning community devoted to strengthening member skills in the art of facilitation. Facilitation, in this case, refers to helping groups of people share ideas, do work, or achieve an outcome in a participatory and collaborative way. FoF began over 20 years ago (around 2002) and has grown to over 450 members from across the US and internationally. Most of our members are from the Dane County, Wisconsin area. FOF is also part of the Liberating Structures community of practice as a regional user group.
FoF meets on a monthly basis during the academic school year, provides a virtual space for members to participate. As of September, 2024, FoF will be supported by members of the FOF Virtual Hosting Team. Members of this team include: Darin Harris, Jeremy Kautza, Janice Belgredan, and Meg Domroese.
We welcome you and invite you to join us virtually, or to learn more from the resources housed on this website.
Darin Harris, Living Giving Enterprises
Jeremy Kautza, Kautza Coaching and Consulting
Janice Belgredan
Meg Domroese
Darin Harris is co-founder of Living Giving Enterprises, an organizational and leadership
development company that houses Journeyofcollaboration.com.
For 30 years, Darin has led people, programs, and projects to unparalleled performance. Local, state, federal, and international public sector, non-profit, and private, for-profit organizations call on his expertise in organizational consulting and facilitation. He draws from a suite of professional skills including group facilitation and problem-solving, strategic planning, process improvement, project management, and policy analysis and evaluation.
His clients include X4 Health; Menasha Corporation; Washington State Employee Credit Union; Friends of the Pheasant Branch Conversancy; Wisconsin’s Green Fire; University of Wisconsin-Madison; University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire; University of Vermont; WI Department of Human Services; Madison Metropolitan School District; Middleton-Cross Plains School District; Williamson Street Grocery Cooperative; American Players Theatre; City of Columbus; Middleton Chamber of Commerce; International Crane Foundation; WI Department of Natural Resources; River Alliance; Wisconsin Environmental Initiative; and the Environmental Council of States (ECOS).
In 2007, he teamed with FacilitatorU to create a comprehensive, week-long facilitative leadership program called Journey of Facilitation and Collaboration (JoFC) that has drawn nearly 800 participants from across the US, Canada, Europe, Asia, and Australia.
Darin is a speaker, author, and instructor who guest lectures at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Edgewood College in Madison, WI and Northland College in Ashland, WI. He held a distinguished prefix title for his work at UW-Madison, where he worked as an internal consultant at the Office of Strategic Consulting for over 15 years.
Jeremy Kautza
Jeremy Kautza is a sought-after and highly successful Certified Technology of Participation® Facilitator and Mentor Trainer with over 25 years of facilitation experience. He brings in-depth expertise in strategic planning, conflict resolution, organizational change management, and interest-based negotiation alongside a human-centered approach to the clients he serves. He strongly believes in inclusive and participatory engagement and utilizes methods that create space for all voices to be actively and respectfully heard.
In October of 2023, Jeremy founded Kautza Coaching & Consulting, drawing on years of experience in a wide variety of sectors including for-profit, non-profit and community-based organizations. Notably, Jeremy has extensive experience leading diverse employee groups at the University of Wisconsin in his past work for the Office of Strategic Consulting where he helped schools, colleges, and divisions build capacity for organizational effectiveness, change, and improvement within complex systems. He also travels the country hosting trainings for facilitators, consultants, and all types of leaders who want to add participatory methods into their toolbox.
Jeremy is an Associate Certified Coach through the International Coaching Federation, Scrum Master, Six Sigma Yellow Belt, and Prosci Certified Change Management Professional. Jeremy serves as a leader and liaison between the Technology of Participation trainer network and the Institute of Cultural Affairs, and is an active member of the Technology of Participation curriculum and certification committees.
Janice Belgredan is thoroughly enjoying retirement, spending a good amount of time doing things that give her joy, including participation on the FoF hosting team.
Meg Domroese has over 25 years of experience in community-centered conservation, consistently fostering connections between science, education, and outreach. Throughout her career, she has built partnerships across a wide range of stakeholders—from scientists at the American Museum of Natural History to Indigenous leaders in Bolivia, and from Wisconsin researchers to community leaders and land managers.
As Director of Programs and Impact at Gathering Waters: Wisconsin’s Alliance for Land Trusts, Meg supported over 40 nonprofit land conservation organizations in addressing critical challenges, including climate change, water quality, habitat protection, and equitable access to nature’s benefits. Over her decade of leadership, she designed and facilitated more than 200 training workshops, discussions, working groups, peer support groups, and multi-day conferences—both in-person and virtual.
Meg’s facilitation practice is rooted in learner-centered design, ensuring that adult learning principles guide her work. She excels at designing and adapting processes that drive progress toward goals and foster continuous improvement. With training from the Journey of Facilitation and the Deep Diversity Institute, Meg actively refines her facilitation methods, including experimenting with new tools and approaches along with the Focus on Facilitation community!
