Weeklong for Advanced Focusers 2026

Weeklong for Advanced Focusers
November 12 - 19, 2026

Online Only

In English with Portuguese Translation

The Weeklong is the flagship event of The International Focusing Institute (TIFI) and began in 1979.  It is a warm and intimate event, and features a certification ceremony. In the early days, anyone who wanted to become certified by the Institute was required to attend a Weeklong.  Now, the Weeklong is still a celebration of certification with TIFI, but it is so much more. At the Weeklong, you will connect or re-connect with our warm and diverse international community.  It is a rare opportunity to be with an intimate group of advanced practitioners, to learn from one another, to share your wisdom and to live Focusing in community for a week.

More information about the history of the Weeklong here

WHO ATTENDS THE WEEKLONG? 
It is intended for all those who are certified by The International Focusing Institute (TIFI) or will be recommended for certification by the start date of the Weeklong.  Many come to the Weeklong at the time of their certification or soon thereafter, but we also have many long-time Focusers (including Coordinators) who come for the special experience that the Weeklong offers.  For those who will not be certified by the time of the Weeklong, we do make some exceptions if you are are advanced in your study of Focusing.  If you are not certified (and won't be by the time of the event), please write to us at [email protected] to let us know your background with Focusing; we will contact you and often we require that you meet with a member of the team to approve an exception. All who attend need to be members of TIFI. 

BENEFITS OF THE WEEKLONG
The Weeklong can reinvigorate or launch your work, and strengthen the foundation of your life-long participation in our global Focusing community.  It is led by a Facilitation Team of Coordinators from different countries and backgrounds.  They are supported by several Collaborating Coordinators, and together this team creates an event rich with learning and sharing.

At the Weeklong, you will deepen or learn new skills, connect with others through common interests, experience a variety of cultural perspectives, and build upon the legacy of Focusing and The International Focusing Institute. There are also ample opportunities to share your skills and your particular Focusing approach.

At the Weeklong, you will gain:

• A deeper understanding of your special place in the ongoing evolution of Focusing and the worldwide Focusing community;
• Deep and life-long connections to Focusers from around the world who share your passion and interests and can offer you continuing support and contact as you take your next steps;
• Practical skills to help you to deepen your Focusing practice, professionally and personally;
• A new or renewed sense of clarity and confidence about how you can offer your own gift of Focusing freshly to the world.

At past Weeklongs, people have found that they were able to more deeply discover themselves, their gifts, and their aliveness through the experience of deep connection in an accepting and supportive community — a community that has continued long after the week was completed. The Weeklong is about deepening our understanding and practice of Focusing; deepening our understanding of ourselves and what we bring to the world; and deepening our ability to create together a community based on felt sensing.

FEATURES OF THE WEEKLONG
Daily Plenary Presentations (required) – These presentations are given by the Facilitation team.

Home Groups (required) – These are small groups (not more than 15 people), facilitated by one of the Coordinators on our Facilitation Team.  The Home Groups are an important part of the Weeklong because they give you a chance to process what you are learning and experiencing and to connect more deeply with some of your fellow participants.  Each will differ slightly based on the personalities of the leader and the group, but each will include Focusing time, sometimes as a whole group and sometimes in dyads or triads. The Home Groups are monolingual -- you will be assigned one in either Portuguese or English.

Opportunities For You To Present Workshops (optional) – Once you have registered, you can submit a workshop to offer during the Weeklong.  Please e-mail to [email protected] the following information: your workshop title and a one-line description. We try to fit into the schedule all submissions but earlier is better.

Certification Ceremony - One of the most memorable and moving moments at the Weeklong is always the Certification Ceremony.  Details coming. 

SCHEDULE - Check Back

ATTENDANCE REQUIREMENTS - This is an ONLINE LIVE EVENT - Recordings are made for watching required plenaries that you cannot watch due to your time zone. All registrants participate in a live home group. 

IMPORTANT: IF YOU SIGN UP, YOU ARE COMMITTING TO ATTENDANCE AT ALL REQUIRED ACTIVITIES.  The hallmark of the Weeklong is the building of community cross-culturally among Focusers from all over the world.  To maintain the special, intimate nature of the Weeklong, you must commit to attending all Home Groups and all Plenaries.  We also ask you to make an effort to attend as many of the optional events as possible.

THE FACILITATION TEAM & PLENARY PRESENTATIONS

Cecilia Burgos, Buenos Aires, Argentina.

For Ceci, Focusing has been a sense of "coming home"; and being able to find a delicate way of being from felt experience. She explores movements and gestures as doorways to the living process that wants to unfold. She was introduced to Focusing in 1999 as part of the Body Centered Counseling training she undertook in Argentina. She continued her training and in 2003 got her certification as Focusing-Oriented Therapist and Focusing Trainer. She has been a Coordinator since 2019. Interested in the felt and conscious body, she explores different methods such as Eutonia, Tai Chi and Hakomi. She has been teaching Focusing since 2004.  Further info @cbfocusing @focusingzn

PLENARY: Title and description coming

Joseph Sing, Hong Kong

Joseph is a Coordinator based in Hong Kong. Trained as a counselor, he has extensive experience working with clients dealing with depression and anxiety. Eight years ago, he co-founded the Hong Kong Focusing Institute, where he has played a pivotal role in promoting the work of Eugene Gendlin in Hong Kong.

Over the years, Joseph has invited more than 10 Focusing trainers to share their expertise with helping professionals in Hong Kong, significantly expanding the reach and understanding of Focusing practices in the region.

Through this journey, Joseph has had the privilege of learning from numerous Focusing experts from the West. However, what he values most about Focusing practice is how it fosters a deeper connection between practicing partners, creating a supportive and enriching experience through active listening.

With the aid of technology, Joseph regularly practices Focusing with partners from various countries and is excited about the opportunity to connect with more Focusers in Argentina.

PLENARY: Title and description coming

René Veugelers, Netherlands

René is a Coordinator, Focusing-Oriented Therapist (FOT), art therapist, psychiatric nurse and group social worker and is trained in Emerging Body Language (EBL). He teaches Children & Focusing internationally and works in the Netherlands with parents, children and adolescents. His work emphasizes the non-verbal world and inner-child wanting by integrating experiential Listening and Focusing skills. He utilizes a Dynamic Expressive approach using symbols and art materials to help deepen bodily awareness to support the individual's process. More info at: www.childrenfocusing.org

PLENARY: Title and description coming

COLLABORATING COORDINATORS

João da Fonseca, Portugal

Jane Quayle, Australia

and Information coming soon

OUR FOCUSING ELDERS
It has become a tradition at the Weeklong to invite an "Elder" to join us.  An "elder" is someone who has been around long enough to have a lot of wisdom to share; someone who has extraordinary Focusing knowledge and stories to tell from their interactions with Gene Gendlin, with other pioneers of Focusing, and from their own experiences of living Focusing. To be announced

THE PRICE
Group 1 or 2 country - $500 early bird (until September 1), $550 regular
Group 3 or 4 country - $250 early bird (until September 1), $300 regular
Group 5 or 6 country - $100 early bird (until September 1), $125 regular

PLEASE Check your country group at this link>> please before registering. Registering for the wrong country group will cause extra fees for processing that we must charge you for. 

--->Registration Deadline November 6<---
 

DISCOUNTS AND SCHOLARSHIPS

Coordinators and Coordinators-in-Training  automatically receive a 50% discount; please contact us for a discount code. 

THE DR. JANET KLEIN SCHOLARSHIP FUND - applications due by September 1

Dr. Janet Klein
For many years, Janet Klein taught the Weeklong alongside Mary McGuire.  Together, the two of them developed Interactive Focusing, a method of Focusing which honors and enhances the relationship which develops between Focusing partners.  She was so committed to making the Weeklong accessible to all students, regardless of ability to pay, that she frequently paid the tuition for students out of her own pocket.

When Dr. Klein died unexpectedly in 2010, her family and The International Focusing Institute felt that the best way to honor her was to create a scholarship in her name to assist students to attend the Weeklong.  That fund continues to this day to make the Weeklong accessible.

How to Apply for a Scholarship
Applications Due by September 1, 2026

To read Janet Klein's biography as well as the announcement of her passing, please visit this page.

To donate to the Janet Klein fund, please visit our donations page and at the bottom of the page under "Fund," select "The Dr. Janet Klein Scholarship Fund."