The thematic workshops are an opportunity to establish a collaborative and open dialogue around a specific sub-theme. Much academic discussion prioritizes formalized arguments, surety and conclusions. The thematic workshop is an opportunity to explore concepts and questions with the objective not of reaching a conclusion but of raising new questions and uncovering new possibilities for future research.

In order to create a truly collaborative environment, it is important that workshop facilitators strive to include a broad range of participants and construct their workshop from the broadest possible theoretical focus. In order to maximize the diversity of opinions and ideas represented in the workshops, organizers are encouraged to collaborate with graduate students, community members and social movement organization representatives.

The following guidelines have been developed to maximize collaboration and communication.

Recruitment of Participants
The conference Web site offers a listserv to start an online discussion on one or more questions related to the theme of your workshop. We encourage you to get the ball rolling on the discussion as soon as possible and well before the conference (see section entitled "Role of Facilitator" for further details). Contact both academics (especially graduate students) and activists, encouraging them to join the listserv. Generating a large and lively discussion before the workshop will promote not only greater participation during the actual workshop, but also more focused and productive proceedings.

So far, 13 thematic workshops are scheduled for Thursday and Friday. There will be between six and seven workshops running concurrently. Workshops will last for two hours.

While many social movement scholars participate in movements, there is much to be learned from engaging activists in the development of research ideas and agendas. In an effort to engage in research that is truly relevant to movements, workshop facilitators are encouraged to actively work with activists and movement groups to further refine the topic of your workshop. This collaborative work may include developing research questions in conjunction with activists, co-facilitating your workshop with members from a specific SMO or members of a relevant social movement community.

Role of Facilitator
Pre-Workshop Workshop facilitators are requested to use your listserv and the conference Web site to post information on your workshop and to participate in emerging discussions about your topic. In particular, we recommend posting workshop materials and the workshop agenda:

• Materials: Facilitators should post a clear description of the workshop as well as resources for participants using the electronic communication structures established by the organizing committee. Facilitators are encouraged to also post materials related to the topic (e.g., research papers, press releases, newspaper articles, Web site links). In particular, graduate students who need to have their papers accepted to receive institutional funding to attend the workshop should be encouraged to post their abstracts and/or papers to this section of the Web site as confirmation of acceptance.
• Agenda: Post your preliminary agenda for the workshop to the listserv. This will allow prospective participants to make suggestions and help insure shared expectations.

At the Workshop
In order to insure that workshops are truly inclusive and participatory, workshop facilitators are requested to minimize formal lectures and integrate activities to introduce material. As you prepare for your workshop, please consider ways to integrate activities and maximize participation. Consulting with workshop participants, colleagues and organizations can provide ideas for interactive opportunities.

Agenda: It is important to make unspoken rules clear by setting an agenda and following it. Present the agenda to the workshop participants at the beginning of the session so that everyone is informed about how the session will proceed. You might want to consider developing a tentative agenda where the first section may be set but invite feedback from participants about how to use remaining time.

Introductions: Begin the session with introductions. Participants should introduce themselves. Don't assume that workshop members know you; take the time to introduce yourself. Be sure to clearly explain your theme so that everyone may begin the workshop with understanding.

Records: Consider asking a participant to take notes and offering to send the notes out to workshop participants by e-mail after the workshop. Having a formal record kept of the discussion will facilitate future collaborative work and communication.

Plans for Future Work: All of the participants in your workshop share an interest in your theme. The workshop may create many informal relationships, but you may also foster a formal relationship by linking the participants together. Setting up an e-mail list is a good first step for fostering collaborative work as a group. Consider passing around a piece of paper and asking everyone to put down their contact information. You may also wish to use part of your workshop time to discuss ideas for future work and ask people to volunteer to work on those ideas and report back to the list.

Resources: The goal of your workshop is to raise new questions and stimulate new ideas. Some of these ideas may be less new to you than to workshop participants. Providing a resource list with a reading list and Web references is a valuable gift to your participants. It will allow them to further explore some of the ideas raised during the workshop. Taking time during the workshop to review the resource sheet and asking participants to recommend additions is an opportunity for both you and the workshop participants to expand your knowledge base. If your workshop includes members from a social movement organization, encourage members in advance to bring organizational materials to distribute. Also, you may want to consider contacting relevant SMOs and asking them to send you materials to distribute to the workshop.