Facilitation Lab
Facilitation Lab Dublin
Practice: Gamestorming 2.0
In Partnership With Open Ireland Network , Innovate Island, and IASA Global Ireland Cluster
December 1, 2025
10am - 3pm GMT
Dublin, Ireland
Thomas Street West, Dublin 8
Dublin, Ireland D08 TCV4
Dublin, Ireland D08 TCV4
Bring your real challenges. Leave with new insights, confidence, and skills.
Whether you’re a seasoned facilitator or just getting started, Facilitation Lab is your sandbox for solving real problems with facilitation. This isn’t theory—it’s live, collaborative practice.
Each session follows Practice Playground, a dynamic format where participants take turns facilitating and role-playing through real-world challenges. It’s a low-stakes, high-support space designed to help you grow fast.
Got a workshop you’re designing? A team dynamic you’re navigating? A tricky moment you want to handle better next time? Use the structured activity to explore those challenges, get feedback, and discover what works.
Here’s how to make the most of your session:
The best part? You’ll be learning with others who are passionate about creating better collaboration, just like you.
Whether you’re a seasoned facilitator or just getting started, Facilitation Lab is your sandbox for solving real problems with facilitation. This isn’t theory—it’s live, collaborative practice.
Each session follows Practice Playground, a dynamic format where participants take turns facilitating and role-playing through real-world challenges. It’s a low-stakes, high-support space designed to help you grow fast.
Got a workshop you’re designing? A team dynamic you’re navigating? A tricky moment you want to handle better next time? Use the structured activity to explore those challenges, get feedback, and discover what works.
Here’s how to make the most of your session:
- Come with a real facilitation challenge you’re working through.
- Step into the facilitator role, or play along and offer thoughtful feedback.
- Leave with not just ideas—but actual progress on something that matters.
The best part? You’ll be learning with others who are passionate about creating better collaboration, just like you.
December 1, 2025
10am - 3pm GMT
Dublin, Ireland
Thomas Street West, Dublin 8
Dublin, Ireland D08 TCV4
Dublin, Ireland D08 TCV4
Interested in a private cohort for your team?
Let us know
Spread the word
Featured In The Lab
This month, we’re coming together to celebrate the release of Gamestorming 2.0, the long-awaited update to the best-selling book on creative collaboration. With three new chapters and 95 powerful techniques, Gamestorming 2.0 shows us how to design enlivening group experiences that spark creativity, deepen connection, and make work more engaging—whether in-person or online. During our celebration, you’ll have the chance to play some of the new games featured in the book—Event Horizon, Hidden Variables, Squiggle Birds, Coffee Question, and Altitude. We’ll explore how these playful techniques can elevate collaboration and give away a copy of the book. Join us, play a few games, and win a copy while we honor this exciting milestone for the facilitation and innovation community.
About Facilitation Lab Dublin
Facilitation Lab Dublin is a monthly in-person meetup for changemakers, collaborative leaders, and facilitators across Dublin. Our purpose is to foster learning by doing in a psychologically safe environment, building a strong and supportive community of peers across the region.
As Regional Leads, Gar cultivates a space for experimentation and collaborative leadership development, with a focus on people-powered organizational change.
Facilitation Lab Dublin is a global network of regions, including other virtual meetups organized by continent and in-person meetups organized by cities. See the region list for a full list of all active meetups.
You can also join us in the Facilitation Lab Community Hub to stay connected with the facilitation community and get reminders of all upcoming events.
Agenda
Opener
An attendee will lead us through an engaging opener
Practice & Role Play
Attendees take turns role-playing as facilitators and participants as we practices different methods
Debrief
After some quiet reflection we’ll debrief the role-play and key learnings
Closer
An attendee will lead us through a purposeful closer
Who Should Attend
Experienced & New Facilitators
Who want to level up their facilitation skills and enhance their ability to effectively engage participants
Chiefs of Staff
Who want to align initiatives across departments and ensure strategic projects are implemented successfully
Product & Project Managers
Who want to steer stakeholders to the best outcomes and learn best practices in stakeholder management
Teachers & Trainers
Who want to design the most impactful learning and create engaging learning experiences
Key Takeaways
Gain hands-on experience with a spectrum of facilitation techniques, from classic to cutting-edge.
Receive immediate, constructive feedback in a nurturing environment to refine your facilitation skills.
Explore the depths of your existing facilitation knowledge and boost your confidence through low-stakes practice sessions.
Realize the potential to learn from anyone, appreciating the value of diverse experiences and perspectives.
Featured Facilitators
Gar Mac Críosta
Gar Mac Críosta is the Chief Adventurer in Business Model Adventures although recently he’s been fully immersed in healthcare acting as a Digital Advisor for Strategy & Architecture in the HSE working on the MyHealth@IE (Shared Care Record Program), HSE Health App and more, including the development of an Architecture and Service Design Practice in the HSE.
Previously Gar worked on Digital for Care Digital Health Strategic Framework and Implementation Plan for Ireland. Gar was Product Lead for the COVID Tracker App in the Health Service Executive (HSE) in Ireland (www.covidtracker.ie) a COVID-19 pandemic response app. Gar has been an active contributor to IASA Global, developing & delivering education and certification programs. Gar has facilitated the development of change programs with C-level executives, senior managers, technology leaders, and executives in the areas of business model innovation, digital strategy, architecture, and design across various industries. Gar is an IASA Fellow, a Distinguished Architect Professional (IASA CITAD), and a Fellow of the Irish Computer Society, and a LEGO Serious Play Practitioner (LSP).
Previously Gar worked on Digital for Care Digital Health Strategic Framework and Implementation Plan for Ireland. Gar was Product Lead for the COVID Tracker App in the Health Service Executive (HSE) in Ireland (www.covidtracker.ie) a COVID-19 pandemic response app. Gar has been an active contributor to IASA Global, developing & delivering education and certification programs. Gar has facilitated the development of change programs with C-level executives, senior managers, technology leaders, and executives in the areas of business model innovation, digital strategy, architecture, and design across various industries. Gar is an IASA Fellow, a Distinguished Architect Professional (IASA CITAD), and a Fellow of the Irish Computer Society, and a LEGO Serious Play Practitioner (LSP).
John Lynch
John Lynch is founder and design director at Context Studio, an award-winning service design studio based in Dublin. His work applies design to help businesses, non-profits, and public sector bodies create better outcomes for the people they serve.
With a background in software development, John’s career in design has taken him to Denmark and the U.K., and he’s worked with clients across the globe.
He is a voluntary board director at the Institute of Designers in Ireland, has served as co-chair of Service Design Ireland (formerly Service Design Network Ireland), and as a local leader for Interaction Design Association (IXDA) Dublin. He contributed as a member of the Service Design in Government Working Group at Department of Public Expenditure and Reform, and co-curated the 2022 “Design in Government, Impact for All” conference in Dublin.
With a background in software development, John’s career in design has taken him to Denmark and the U.K., and he’s worked with clients across the globe.
He is a voluntary board director at the Institute of Designers in Ireland, has served as co-chair of Service Design Ireland (formerly Service Design Network Ireland), and as a local leader for Interaction Design Association (IXDA) Dublin. He contributed as a member of the Service Design in Government Working Group at Department of Public Expenditure and Reform, and co-curated the 2022 “Design in Government, Impact for All” conference in Dublin.
Maria McCann
A distinguished Digital Organisational Psychologist with over 25 years’ experience driving people-centric digital transformation across public and private sectors. Maria specializes in enabling frontline excellence by placing people at the heart of digital change. Her expertise bridges technology and human behaviour, demonstrated through leadership of national programmes including Ireland’s Individual Health Identifier and the digital health response to the Ukraine crisis (Crisis Leadership Award, CIO Awards 2023) and the Digital Health App.
Kathryn Lynch & Charlie Tuxworth
Kathryn Lynch and Charlie Tuxworth both play pivotal roles in steering Innovate Island, an influential all-island community dedicated to driving inclusive growth and professionalising innovation across Ireland’s SME sector.
Leadership at Innovate Island
Innovate Island was founded by Charlie Tuxworth, an experienced business leader and innovation strategist with over three decades in business change and digital transformation. As Founder and Chair, Charlie brings his extensive background in enterprise software and innovation management to shape the strategic vision of Innovate Island, crafting best practices and spearheading the professionalisation of innovation through workshops, events, and policy advocacy. He is also recognised internationally for leading the development of ISO standards in innovation competency, positioning Innovate Island as a driver of global best practices.
Kathryn Lynch serves as Co-Chair, exemplifying her commitment to a ‘rising tide for all’ through leadership and advocacy for inclusive SME growth. With her expertise as CEO of Chronos Consulting, Kathryn has crafted innovative operating models that prioritise people and sustainable organisational adaptation. Her role as Co-Chair sees her championing cross-border collaboration, fostering a thriving community of practitioners while driving meaningful conversations about the human impact of innovation in Ireland and beyond.
Distinctive Contributions & Philosophy
Kathryn Lynch: Known for her pursuit of human-centric innovation, Kathryn integrates executive coaching and emotional intelligence into her approach. Her leadership extends to roles on national and EU advisory boards, with her dual master’s degrees in Strategy & Innovation and Sustainable Enterprise guiding research that explores creativity, inclusion, and sustainability in tech SMEs. Kathryn advances the cause of making innovation accessible, empathetic, and impactful, always aligning the mission of Innovate Island to international standards and thought leadership.
Charlie Tuxworth: Drawing on a foundation of enterprise software leadership, Charlie’s impact is seen through his transformation initiatives in financial services and his advocacy for the creation of innovation management standards like ISO56011. His mentoring, keynote speaking, and leadership in various advisory panels extend his influence across the UK and Ireland, ensuring Innovate Island remains the definitive point of guidance for innovation professionals
Leadership at Innovate Island
Innovate Island was founded by Charlie Tuxworth, an experienced business leader and innovation strategist with over three decades in business change and digital transformation. As Founder and Chair, Charlie brings his extensive background in enterprise software and innovation management to shape the strategic vision of Innovate Island, crafting best practices and spearheading the professionalisation of innovation through workshops, events, and policy advocacy. He is also recognised internationally for leading the development of ISO standards in innovation competency, positioning Innovate Island as a driver of global best practices.
Kathryn Lynch serves as Co-Chair, exemplifying her commitment to a ‘rising tide for all’ through leadership and advocacy for inclusive SME growth. With her expertise as CEO of Chronos Consulting, Kathryn has crafted innovative operating models that prioritise people and sustainable organisational adaptation. Her role as Co-Chair sees her championing cross-border collaboration, fostering a thriving community of practitioners while driving meaningful conversations about the human impact of innovation in Ireland and beyond.
Distinctive Contributions & Philosophy
Kathryn Lynch: Known for her pursuit of human-centric innovation, Kathryn integrates executive coaching and emotional intelligence into her approach. Her leadership extends to roles on national and EU advisory boards, with her dual master’s degrees in Strategy & Innovation and Sustainable Enterprise guiding research that explores creativity, inclusion, and sustainability in tech SMEs. Kathryn advances the cause of making innovation accessible, empathetic, and impactful, always aligning the mission of Innovate Island to international standards and thought leadership.
Charlie Tuxworth: Drawing on a foundation of enterprise software leadership, Charlie’s impact is seen through his transformation initiatives in financial services and his advocacy for the creation of innovation management standards like ISO56011. His mentoring, keynote speaking, and leadership in various advisory panels extend his influence across the UK and Ireland, ensuring Innovate Island remains the definitive point of guidance for innovation professionals
In Partnership With
Open Ireland Network
Open Ireland Network is a social enterprise dedicated to fostering open source innovation across the island of Ireland. By connecting individuals from government, business, and academia, we support knowledge sharing and open source best practices for innovation and social impact.
Innovate Island
We are the all-island, go-to community for practitioners, advocates, and explorers of innovation. We share great content, best practice and thought leadership, and represent our members at a national and international level.
IASA Global Ireland Cluster
The IASA Global Ireland Chapter is your hub for professional development, networking, and staying at the forefront of the technology landscape. Connect with like-minded IT architects, share insights, and explore the latest trends shaping Ireland’s digital future. Become a member today and contribute to a vibrant community of innovation and excellence.
What People are Saying
"The community’s warmth and generosity in tending to me and the issue made me feel cared for and supported. Beyond the suggestions, which were immediately useful, the culture of the community makes leaning into that growth edge easier, and more delightful."
Katrina Mitchell
Senior Technical Advisor, JHPiego
“I just wanted to say thanks for the great session last night. Your feedback and suggestions were fantastic. I left very energized!"
Dan Corbin
Instructor at Pragmatic Institute
Photo Disclaimer
Please note that photographs, video & audio recordings will be taken throughout this event. These will be used by Voltage Control for marketing and publicity in our publications, on our website and in social media, or in any third party publication. Please contact our events manager if you have any concerns or if you wish to be exempted from this activity.