Learning In: Using Case Clinics and Cultural Autobiographies as Regenerative Cultural Policy & Management Teaching Tools

By Carla Figueira, Strategic Policy Advisor, ENCATC and Aimee R. Fullman, Professor in Arts Management, State University of New York at Buffalo, United States of America

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Learning In: Using Case Clinics and Cultural Autobiographies as Regenerative Cultural Policy & Management Teaching Tools

Carla Figueira & Aimee R. Fullman

Introduction: Facing Crossroads in Cultural Policy & Management

As social learning practitioners, we have been experimenting with ways to translate the principles of regenerative cultural policy and management (Figueira and Fullman 2025) into classroom and professional development settings. In this article we introduce two such methods—Case Clinics, a structured peer-to-peer process where one person presents a real challenge and the group listens, asks clarifying questions and offers reflections to surface collective wisdom, and Cultural Autobiographies, a guided exercise in which participants explore and share aspects of their identity, experiences and values to better understand their own lenses and those of others. Together, these approaches cultivate reflexivity, empathy and collective problem-solving, helping students and practitioners ‘learn into’ complex challenges rather than merely trying to ‘fix’ them.

Methodological note:
This article is written in two voices to reflect the relational and reflexive nature of the methods we discuss. By presenting our perspectives separately at times and jointly at others, we aim to model the ethos of social learning: valuing multiple standpoints, acknowledging positionality, and inviting dialogue rather than presenting a singular authority.

Carla:
Cultural managers often find themselves at a crossroads in navigating between institutional priorities and community needs, or balancing the urgency of project delivery with the slow work of building trust. These crossroads can be paralysing if faced alone. But they can also become fertile spaces of regeneration if approached collectively.

In my work with communities of practice and social learning theory, I have seen how engaging our uncertainties together creates openings to address challenges that no individual analysis could achieve. The Case Clinic (see Appendix A) is one of the most practical ways I know to operationalise this.

Aimee:
Before a group can come together to co-create solutions, individuals need to be aware of their own strengths, diversity of viewpoints, and biases. The practice of exploring cultural autobiographies in a group setting invites student or participants as practitioners to unearth how their identities, experiences, and values shape their perspectives on cultural policy and practice. The exercise (see Appendix B) is built around a group discussion combined with prompts, breakout groups, and uses the tool of a safe word agreed on by the group that can be used by any participant at any time to protect space for vulnerability and reset a conversation. In randomized breakout groups of 2-6 people, each member of the group takes 5-10 minutes to express what parts of their identity have the most meaning for them and why. This reflexive exercise grounds each individual in their own experience while opening them to others’ and creates an opportunity to reflect on how the significance of their multiple roles and identities change based on their environment. Furthermore, this exercise illuminates areas of commonality between individuals that may not have been otherwise visible and can highlight the strengths of difference within a community of practice that can then be drawn on for collective problem solving as illustrated in Case Clinics.

Together, these two tools—Case Clinics and Cultural Autobiographies—help cultural managers not only to solve problems but also to learn into them, cultivating the listening, reflexivity, and empathy that regenerative cultural policy requires.

Social Learning as a Framework for Practice

Carla:
Social learning theory teaches us that learning is not just about transmitting knowledge but about becoming—about shaping our professional identities through engagement with others. Wenger-Trayner’s formulations—communities of practice, social learning spaces, and systems convening—are particularly useful for cultural managers, who routinely cross boundaries of nation, discipline, and institutions within societies.

What matters in moments of uncertainty is not who has the right answer, but who is willing to engage with alternative viewpoints, to care about making an impact, and to pay attention to what emerges. Case Clinics are designed precisely for that.

Aimee:
For engagement to be authentic, people must come into the space aware of their own lenses. Exploring cultural autobiographies address: What experiences shaped the way you see culture? What are your privileges and blind spots? How does your story connect—or conflict—with others’? This reflexive grounding can then prepare participants to step into a Case Clinic with humility and openness and a shared cohesive community foundation

Case Clinics: A Peer-to-Peer Process

Carla:
A Case Clinic begins when one person shares an authentic challenge they face in their work. The group follows a structured process of: listening, asking clarifying questions, sharing resonances, offering suggestions, and reflecting together.

Unlike a typical brainstorming session, the goal is not to flood the case-giver with solutions, but to slow down, listen deeply, and allow collective wisdom to surface. Participants learn from the case itself but also from the process: how to hold uncertainty, how to listen without rushing to judgment, how to see patterns across contexts.

It is important to note that Case Clinics exist in different forms and under different names. The version I use is rooted in the ‘design clinic’ format developed by Travis Tennessen, refined from the case clinic model of Etienne and Beverly Wenger-Trayner, which emphasises equity and clarity (Tennessen, 2024). Similar practices can be found in facilitation frameworks such as Liberating Structures. What unites these variants is the commitment to create a respectful, structured space that honours the case-giver, fosters collective reflection, and enables learning for all.

Aimee:
I find that participants who have already reflected on their cultural autobiographies bring a different quality to the Case Clinic. They are more aware of their positionality and less likely to dominate or silence others. They recognise that their contributions are situated in cultural and environmental context rather than universal and are more able to easily embrace both values and shifts in position that come with new insights. That awareness strengthens the integrity of the collective process and creates space to embrace alternative viewpoints and for a solution to evolve based on community needs.

Application in Practice: From Social Learning Communities to the example of ASEF LinkUp

Carla:
My engagement with Case Clinics goes back to 2023, when I began participating in social learning workshops with Etienne and Beverly Wenger-Trayner. Since then, I have experienced, facilitated, and witnessed many Case Clinics in different contexts, including within communities of facilitators and in my Social Learning Fellowship. Each time, I have been struck by the way the process enables vulnerability to become a strength. Sharing an authentic challenge—whether as a case-giver or as a witness—creates a depth of listening and a quality of response that is rarely found in more conventional professional exchanges.

In one such Clinic during my Fellowship, I brought forward a challenge I was grappling with in preparing to facilitate the ASEF LinkUp Cultural Diplomacy Lab 2025 edition, and received feedback not only from fellow peers but also directly from our mentors, Etienne and Beverly. As with other of my Case Clinic experiences, what was most transformative was not simply the suggestions, but the generosity, empathy, and multiplicity of perspectives that surfaced. The process reminded me that uncertainty can be a powerful place of learning.

Thus, preparing the ASEF LinkUp Cultural Diplomacy Lab, I knew participants might benefit from such a tool. To guide them, I developed a written Case Clinic request and format as an illustrative example (included as an Appendix to this article). This was not based on an actual Lab session but it drew from real dilemmas I have faced when convening across sectors and cultures. By sharing it, I wanted not only to give participants a template, but also to model transparency: showing that even facilitators wrestle with uncertainty, and that acknowledging it can invite richer collective engagement.

Aimee:
That element of vulnerability is vital. By offering a real concern, you gave participants more than a set of instructions—you opened the door to trust. They could see you not only as an expert, but also as a practitioner navigating the same kinds of tensions they themselves encounter. In my experience, when leaders and educators share their own stories, process, and vulnerabilities—whether through a case clinic or a cultural autobiography—it creates space for students and other practitioners to do the same and turns these methods into genuine social learning experiences.

Why These Tools Matter for Cultural Managers

Carla:
Case Clinics respond to a pressing need: they give cultural managers a safe space to unpack dilemmas, test ideas, and build confidence through the wisdom of their peers. They model empathy and trust as professional competencies, not as soft add-ons, and generate practical, grounded suggestions that no consultant’s report could replicate.

Aimee:
Cultural autobiographies, meanwhile, help practitioners recognise the subjectivity and meaning they bring into their work. This reflexivity is crucial for equity and inclusion and helps surface biases, privileges, values, and assumptions—elements that, if left unacknowledged, can distort policy and practice.

Together:
In combination, these tools foster regenerative practice. They move us away from extractive logics (‘using’ communities, ‘fixing’ problems) and towards relational approaches that honour complexity, cultivate agency, and prioritise care.

Conclusion & Questions for Reflection

Carla:
Case Clinics remind us that facing management and policy crossroads need not be a solitary act. They show how collective reflection can transform dilemmas into opportunities for learning.

Aimee:
Cultural autobiographies remind us that learning together requires us first to know ourselves. Only then can we engage others in ways that are authentic, respectful, and generative.

Together:
We see these methods as complementary entry points into regenerative cultural policy pedagogy—experiential and reflexive tools that educators and practitioners can adapt for classrooms, labs, and professional communities alike.

Questions to spark discussion:

1. What crossroads in your own cultural practice could you bring to a Case Clinic?
2. How might reflecting on your cultural autobiography change the way you participate in collective and social learning?
3. What conditions are needed to make these tools safe, inclusive, and transformative?
4. How could cultural management education integrate these approaches more systematically?

 

References

FIGUEIRA, C. and FULLMAN, A. R. (2025) Regenerative cultural policy: sustainable development, cultural relations, and social learning. International Journal of Cultural Policy, 31 (4), 451–466.

FIGUEIRA, C. (under review) Making a Difference Together: Leveraging Communities of Practice and Social Learning for International Cultural Relations. ifa Input Paper.

FIGUEIRA, C. and PERSAUD, R. (2023) Unconference as a pedagogical tool for ‘decolonising’ teaching and curricula. ENCATC Congress Proceedings.

LIBERATING STRUCTURES (n.d.) Liberating Structures Website. Available at: https://www.liberatingstructures.com

TENNESSEN, T. (2024) Design Clinics are a Simple, Focused, Equitable Activity. LinkedIn Post, 2 April 2024. Available at: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/travis-tennessen-562bb9170_design-clinics-are-a-simple-focused-equitable-activity-7156410539911311360-Eh6Z

WENGER-TRAYNER, E. and WENGER-TRAYNER, B. (2021) Learning to Make a Difference: Value Creation in Social Learning Spaces. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

WENGER-TRAYNER, E. and WENGER-TRAYNER, B. (n.d.) Wenger-Trayner Social Learning Website. Available at: https://wenger-trayner.com

ASEF (2025) Case Clinics @ the ASEF LinkUp Cultural Diplomacy Lab: Request Guidance & Format. Internal document, authored by Carla Figueira.

 

Appendix 1

 

Case Clinic Request and Format (ASEF LinkUp Cultural Diplomacy Lab Example)

This illustrative example was prepared by Carla Figueira for participants in the ASEF LinkUp Cultural Diplomacy Lab. It was designed both to provide a template and to convey some of her own concerns and dilemmas as a facilitator—modelling that vulnerability can be a strength in social learning.

The format builds on approaches developed by Etienne and Beverly Wenger-Trayner, with inspiration from Travis Tennessen’s ‘design clinic’ model, and is related to other participatory methods such as those found in Liberating Structures. While versions differ in naming and detail, they all share a commitment to structured peer support, equitable participation, and collective reflection.

 

Case Clinics @ the ASEF LinkUp Cultural Diplomacy Lab

 

We include case clinics in the Lab to demonstrate how this tool can be useful for us to support and learn from each other as cultural diplomacy and international cultural relations practitioners facing similar challenges and issues, albeit in diverse contexts and facing different constraints. We also use the case clinics discussions and materials to map out issues and challenges, solutions and opportunities, and collect examples to illustrate what works / does not work in our domain of practice for the public output of our Lab engagement.

 

Case Clinic Format (~20-minute version)

 

The purpose of a ‘case clinic’ is to respectfully engage the collective wisdom of the group around a particular challenge of a member, in order for everyone to learn. Learning is more robust when participants have a wide variety of skill-sets, community roles, and life experiences.

 

Case clinics are best accomplished in less than 30 minutes with one facilitator/timer moving the group through the format below and one taking notes (we can also use transcripts and generative AI to help). The facilitator/timekeeper can use a phone timer or watch and then raises a hand to indicate when to move on to the next step. Stick with the time limits to help keep members energized and focused.

 

All participants are responsible for protecting the learning space, honouring all voices, and enabling effective note-taking. Participants should strive to be concise and follow the format respectfully. Holding out a hand with palm up and/or a gentle verbal reminder (“Remember that we’re doing ‘share more about’ now.”) can help speakers stay on track.

 

The request for help should address an authentic challenge in the member’s work, and should relate to a particular organizational and/or geographic context.

 

This format is effective because:

• It ensures members understand the real challenge(s) before giving suggestions.
• It encourages the equitable sharing of ideas.
• It allows the member making the request space to listen and learn.
• It allows all members to reflect on what they are learning through the process.

 

Tips on crafting a case clinic request: “Could you help me…”:

• Singular: Make one request, not two or three jammed together.
• Simple: Group members should be easily able to remember your request. Keep it short!
• Practical: It should relate to an ongoing, active challenge in your practice/work/project.
• Actionable: It should relate to something about which you are empowered to change.
• Inviting: It should encourage members to become more curious about and invested in your work.
• Energetic: It should reveal your enthusiasm for moving forward with solutions.

 

Examples of a case clinic (generic) request: “Could you help me…

…improve my project partner onboarding?

…get more funds for my project?

 

This year’s Lab theme is Collective Responsibility, and we would like to prioritise requests for help to concrete challenges related to it, but it is enough that is related to our domain of cultural diplomacy / international cultural relations engagement. Prior to the in-person Lab, please share with us and/or post on Padlet your Case Clinic request. Have a read through the format in the next page, as it will help you understand the flow.

 

Below is an example of a Case Clinic request:

Carla’s Case Clinic request

 

What is the focus?

Facilitating ASEF LinkUp 2025 as a Social Learning Space: Navigating Constraints and Potential – Bringing together government officials, cultural professionals and artists to discuss cultural diplomacy.

 

Why is this important?

This work is important to me because I see ASEF LinkUp ( https://culture360.asef.org/asef-linkup/ ) as a potential incubator for a long-term community of practice in international cultural relations. I want participants to feel that their experience was valuable, inclusive, and meaningful—even within tight time constraints and institutional agendas. This also reflects my own learning journey: how to convene across cultures and sectors, facilitate under constraints, and balance participation with outcomes.

 

What is the context? (you can include visuals)

ASEF LinkUp 2025 is a cultural diplomacy lab that brings together 20 mid-career professionals (10 from the arts/culture sector and 10 from the government/diplomatic sector, from both Asia and Europe) for 3 online sessions and a 4-day in-person programme in Yogyakarta, Indonesia (June 2025).

It is co-organised by the Asia-Europe Foundation (ASEF) and partner organisations. It includes cultural visits, networking, and working sessions. My role, as facilitator, is to help shape this as a social learning space, with the ambition to seed a community of practice (CoP). I will be working with other facilitators, and we will have some local support in Indonesia.

 

My question for the group:

Could you help me think through how to design ASEF LinkUp 2025 as a meaningful social learning space within the constraints of a packed programme, limited bonding time, and potentially conflicting expectations—from organisers, participants and institutional partners—that we produce a tangible output?

 

The goal is learning for everyone.

Be concise!

Bring creativity!

Protect the learning space!

(stick with the format)

7-Step Design Clinic Format

 

1. “Could you help me…” (<2 mins)
   1. A member asks for help related to a specific challenge in their ongoing/upcoming work/project, with brief context/background to provide a frame.

 

1. “This work/project is important to me because…” (<1 min)
   1. The member who made the request talks briefly about the larger goals and aspirations of their project work.

 

1. “Share more about…” (4 mins + additional context)
   1.  Group members inquire about the context/circumstances surrounding the request for help.
   2.  At the end of this step, the facilitator should ask the member making the request if she/he/they want to share essential additional context (since they will be silent for the next two steps)

 

1. “This makes me think of…” (4 mins)
   1. Group members share experiences and stories that this challenge makes them think about, related to work or broader life experiences. Note: the member making the request listens quietly during this time.

 

1. “You might try…” (4 mins)
   1. Group members provide suggestions about wise next steps to move the work forward. Note: the member making the request is still listening quietly.

 

1. “You have me thinking…” (<2 mins)
   1.  The member who made the request shares their thoughts about the conversation. They might choose to touch on aspects including…:
      1. …the feelings the conversation evoked.
      2. …new ideas they encountered.
      3. …actions they hope/plan to take.
      4. …things they’re inspired to change or work toward.
      5. …new information about related efforts.
      6. …new ways they’re thinking about their work.

 

1. “I would like to keep in mind…” (~2 mins)
   1. All members go round-the-circle sharing something notable about the conversation by completing the thought, “I would like to keep in mind…” Note: Sharing by each member should be concise – 1-3 sentences.

 

 

Appendix 2

 

Appendix 2: Cultural Autobiography Exercise

 

This exercise was first developed as part of a workshop for the 2007 Global Youth Assembly convened in Edmonton, Canada by Aimee R. Fullman.

 

Introduction: 20-40 minutes

 

• Provide Safe Word (e.g. “Pineapple”)
• Intro: DNA: The Story of You https://youtu.be/tyaEQEmt5ls
  • What form of identity is this video focused on?
  • How can the arts and culture build trust?

 

 

Cultural Autobiography Prompt has three lists which are presented sequentially:

 

LIST 1: Location Ø  Education Ø  Professional Experience Ø  Values Ø  Volunteer Work Ø  Languages Ø  Skills Ø  Hobbies or Interests

LIST 2: Ø  Gender Ø  Sexuality Ø  Ethnicity, tribe or race Ø  Religion/Spirituality Ø  Values Ø  Communities I belong to Ø  Individual Preferences Ø  Expression of Culture Ø  Consumption of Culture

LIST 3: Ø  Communication Style Ø  Attitude towards conflict Ø  Approach to completing tasks Ø  Decision making style Ø  Privacy Ø  Approach to knowing and learning

 

For each list, ask participants how they are related and what else could be missing. For List 1: this information is commonly asked for on a resume or within the hiring process. The second list provides an opportunity to engage with cultural policy and cultural rights; these are often also questions you and your family might ask about someone you are dating or looking to partner or live with. The third list represents common areas of conflict within relationships and teams.

 

As a group, consider how these lists relate to cultural policy in specific contexts and then what attributes might be missing from each list.  For example, in the US it is illegal to ask someone if they are or plan to be pregnant when conducting a job interview. In this day and aga, our consumption of culture is not limited to our geographic location and ancestral history.

 

Breakout groups of 2-6 people (randomized).

 

Confirm a safe work provided by the group to add both protection and levity; often a fruit or vegetable is a good choice. The safe word can be used by any participant or the facilitator at any time to reset the conversation if needed. By establishing a safe word it will be less likely you need to use it and assure participants that there are safeguards in place which promotes greater depth of engagement.

 

 

Breakout Group instructions:

Each group will have about 20-45 minutes and then we will return to the larger group to share out your group experience and reflections. Teaching Note: This activity can easily be extended for an entire 2-3 hour period. Once students start to engage it is difficult for them to stop and often the social cohesion created is more meaningful than student understanding of the thematic learning.

 

 

In your breakout groups:

Share your 5-10 minute cultural auto-biography with your group (Optional: you can use your object or symbol that you brought) using the guided questions below:

• What part of your identity is most important or meaningful to you? Which is the least?
• What are some of the stigmas and stereotypes associated with your identities?
• What causes are you most passionate about?
• What communities are you a part of?
• What is your depth of engagement in these causes and communities?

 

Reunited Community Prompts: 20-30 minutes

• How did you find this experience?
• What surprised you about this exercise?
• Did you learn something unexpected about yourself or another?

 

 

Reunited Group Discussion:

• How does the environment or situation you find yourself in change how you express your identities?
• What cultural policies are most relevant to the areas of identity that are most important to your group?

 

 

This exercise can often bring together a class or group into a deeper level of trust, engagement, friendship and collaboration; it can be successfully with individuals whom have never met as well as a seasoned group that believes they know each other well.

 

 

Carla Figueira, Strategic Policy Advisor, ENCATC 

Carla Figueira is a lecturer, researcher and consultant in cultural policy and management and international cultural relations. She has expertise in social learning, systems convening, and collaborative visual methods. Carla is currently a Visiting Research and Knowledge Exchange Fellow, School of Creative Management, Goldsmiths, University of London, UK, where, at the Institute for Creative and Cultural Entrepreneurship, she was Senior Lecturer / Assistant Professor and convened for a decade the MA in Cultural Policy, Relations and Diplomacy and the MA in Tourism and Cultural Policy. She is an International Relations graduate from Instituto Superior de Ciências Sociais e Políticas da Universidade de Lisboa (Portugal) and she moved to London after a career in arts management at Lisbon’s Local Authority. In the UK, she gained an MA in Arts Management (City University, Chevening Scholar) and a PhD in Cultural Policy and Management (City University, Praxis XXI Scholar). Carla is a founding member of ICRRA, the International Cultural Relations Research Alliance, hosted by Institut für Auslandsbeziehungen and the British Council. She is a member of ENCATC, the European network on Cultural Management and Cultural Policy education, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, and a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy. 

 

Aimee R. Fullman, Professor in Arts Management, State University of New York at Buffalo, United States of America 

Aimee R. Fullman is an independent consultant specializing in cultural policy, arts management, and international cultural relations. With over 25 years of experience, her work spans research, policy advising, and arts administration, engaging with organizations such as Americans for the Arts, National Endowment for the Arts, Canadian Heritage, British Council, UNESCO, and the U40 Cultural Diversity Network. Aimee’s career is driven by her passion for the transformative power of arts and culture in fostering thriving cultural expression in societies and healing. From 2019 to 2023, she directed the National Resource Center for Creative Forces, the NEA’s military, arts, and healing network. Aimee has taught arts administration at universities in the US, UK, and Europe for the past 15 years, bridging theory, research, and practice. With a background in dance, classical music, and musical theater, she combines her artistic roots with a commitment to meaningful engagement in communities worldwide.