Dr. Julia Kukard is based in So Africa and has over 30 years of experience in learning and development in organisations worldwide. She is trained as a coach, psychotherapist and facilitator and prefers to work within the Existential paradigm. Her doctoral research focused on leadership stuckness and how leaders can respond more fluidly and thoughtfully to the world. Out of this she transformed into an action researcher. Her coaching and facilitation work focuses on supporting the inner world of leaders to make better and more effective choices in and for their outer world. Her paper is included in the special issue on mindsets of transformation. A key take away for those of us who advance change: we may have to better embrace Change and transformation ourselves! The interview encourages action researchers to work with their own wounds to release more positive and collaborative dynamics.

BLOG LINK:

https://actionresearchplus.com/research-create-changes-as-your-inner-world-changes-by-julia-kukard/

https://www.jkukard.com/about

This conversation was an interview between Hilary and Julia about Julia's paper "Shamefully Stuck to Joyfully Jammed: Reflexivity in Researching Stuckness" for a special issue on mindsets of transformation. Julia discussed how her personal experiences with racism and grief informed her research on transformation and stuckness, particularly focusing on how inner worlds influence research and the importance of addressing both structural and individual aspects of wounds. They explored Julia's approach to coaching leaders through transformation cycles, emphasizing the role of relationships and alchemical processes in personal and organizational change. The discussion highlighted how Julia's work bridges existential psychotherapy with action research, focusing on helping people become more emergent and resilient through examining their inner worlds and resources.