SPOKEN,
UNSPOKEN
AND
HIDDEN
IDENTITIES
IN INTENSE TIMES
7-12 February 2027 | Arad, Israel
SPOKEN,
UNSPOKEN
AND
HIDDEN
IDENTITIES
IN INTENSE TIMES
7-12 February 2027 Arad, Israel
Welcome
The 39th OFEK International Group Relations Conference
in the Tavistock Tradition
Dear Prospective Participant
In emotionally intense times, questions of who we are and where and to whom we belong can become more urgent than ever.
These questions bring us to the complex and often elusive territory of identity.
What is identity? Where are its boundaries?
Is identity something stable and enduring? Or something that is continually being formed and transformed?
Can several identities exist simultaneously within the same person? And if so, what happens when they complement one another, and what happens when they collide?
We often speak about identity as though it were something clearly defined: something that belongs to us, describes us, and tells others who we are. Yet perhaps identity is only the visible tip of a much deeper and more complex iceberg—a world of experiences, relationships, loyalties, fears, desires, memories, identifications and conflicts that live within us and shape how we experience ourselves and the world around us.
Beyond our personal identities, we inhabit organizational, professional, social, cultural and national identities. These identities coexist within us, overlap with one another, reinforce one another—and at times come into tension or conflict. And what happens when our sense of self does not fully correspond with the identity of the organization, community or nation to which we belong?
Of all this, some is spoken. Some remains unspoken. And some may remain hidden—even from ourselves—while continuing to influence our perceptions, emotions, choices, relationships and responses.
These and many other questions will be at the heart of our exploration and learning throughout the conference. We will examine how identities are constructed, negotiated, defended, revealed and concealed—and how they may shift as we move between different roles, relationships, groups and contexts.
Learning from Experience
The conference offers an opportunity to explore these questions not only intellectually, but through experience.
In keeping with the Tavistock tradition of learning from experience, participants and staff will form a temporary organization in which authority, leadership, roles, boundaries and relationships can be explored as they emerge in real time. In doing so, we can gain more insight about ourselves, and the organizations and communities we belong to.
Participants will take up different roles and encounter the conscious and unconscious dynamics of group and organizational life. The conference invites us to observe our own behavior as it happens, to experience and reflect upon what is taking place, and to experiment with new ways of understanding and acting.
The aim is to create a space in which we can become curious about the identities we inhabit, the identities we encounter in others, and the identities that emerge between us, and the impact they have.
We invite you to join us at the 39th OFEK International Group Relations Conference, where together we will explore spoken, unspoken and hidden identities, in relation to authority, leadership, role and organization.
We look forward to seeing you there,
Saleem Khliefi, Conference Director
About the Conference
Organizations operate not only according to stated tasks, but often under the influence of group and systemic processes, both overt and covert, rational and irrational. These processes drive behaviors and decision-making, and have a powerful impact on the organization’s life, culture and effectiveness.
A Group Relations Conference creates a temporary organization to study these processes through direct experience.
The conference, in which both participants and staff come from a wide range of professions, backgrounds and cultures, provides opportunities to:
- Study the dynamics of authority, role and leadership in relation to spoken, unspoken and hidden identities;
- Learn about both covert and overt group processes through participating in groups that vary in size, structure and task;
- Discover the unspoken and at times unconscious feelings and processes that are often put aside in our everyday working life and buried under the drive to fulfill formal tasks;
- Explore the conscious and unconscious elements of the formal and informal roles we take up and experiment with familiar and unfamiliar roles;
- Better understand the hidden assumptions, fantasies and irrational forces that help shape group and organizational life and the way we find and take up our authority and our roles;
- Work with competition, collaboration, conflict, coalition-building and delegation, as well as with care and envy;
- Explore what keeps us stuck in familiar patterns and discover forces that can free us up;
- Apply what has been discovered to our own organizations, communities and networks.
The learning in the conference is experiential, modeled after the ‘Tavistock’ working conferences, developed at the Tavistock Institute of Human Relations. There are no lectures or theoretical discussions. Rather, we form a temporary learning organization, where the topics and issues arising in the conference are studied as they evolve, here and now and in real time. In this way the lived experience of conference participants forms the raw material for exploration.
Since 1987 OFEK has been offering international Group Relations Conferences every year.
For the last two years, the conference took place in Cyprus. This year’s conference will once again take place in Israel.
Language
The working language of the conference is English. However, in groups or situations where everyone present speaks another common language, that language can also serve as the working language.
All of us live and work in groups and organizations, from our earliest family groupings to our social and professional communities. A Group Relations Conference is for anyone wanting to learn more about group dynamics or to develop their ability to act more effectively within groups, networks and institutions; as well as in expanding their own reflective skills and gaining new insights about themselves and others.
For example, leaders, managers, entrepreneurs, consultants, HR professionals, coaches, facilitators, clinicians, educators, researchers, activists, administrators, public sector and non-profit professionals, marketing, legal and financial professionals, medical professionals and more.
No previous experience is necessary, just curiosity and a desire to learn.
If you have been to a Group Relations Conference before, participating another time can offer a different, deeper learning about oneself and the systemic forces that influence us personally and in the workplace. For those whose previous participation was online, the in-person experience offers expanded dimensions and richness.
Ourselves: The way we manage ourselves in a group; the complexities of identity and how we perceive our identity and sense of place in relation to others; how we influence and are influenced by others; the way we take up our roles in different settings, both consciously and unconsciously; how we find and take up authority; how we take up formal and informal leadership and followership roles; and the feelings and fantasies that inhibit or enhance our role taking and leadership potential.
Our organizations: The powerful irrational forces that operate under the surface of our day-to-day work and get in the way of the fulfillment of our organizational tasks and mission; how we give voice to and inhabit our identities in our organizations; and the way groups interact under the sway of unconscious impulses and drives.
The wider context: The social and political forces that shape our lives, often in ways that we are not aware of; social and political identity, our expectations and assumptions about authority; our ideas about leaders and leadership; and the part we can and do play in the society around us.
The conference will take place at the Roxon Desert Arad Hotel, a modern retreat perched on a high plateau where the city limits meet the Judean and Negev deserts. Located at the geographic interface where human civilization transitions into wild desert, The hotel offers a tranquil, distraction-free environment with clean spaces and panoramic mountain views.
Accessibility:
The hotel is equipped with elevators to all floors and features wheelchair-accessible public spaces throughout. Upon arrival, dedicated disabled parking spaces offer a smooth, step-free path into the entrance. Level pathways lead directly to all main workshop halls, dining spaces, and designated accessible restrooms. Specially adapted accessible bedrooms with roll-in showers are available; if you require one of these rooms, please let us know in advance so we can coordinate your booking.
Conference Staff
All staff take up consultancy roles in addition to their other roles.
Directorate
Saleem Khliefi
Leila Djemal
Shely Halachmi-Sussman | Israel
Stephen Markowitz | Israel
Consultant Staff
will be drawn from
Eliat Aram | UK
William Crouch | UK
Sivanie Shiran
Miri Tsadok
Eliat Aram | UK
Name Last Name | Country
Julian Lousada | UK
Sivanie Shiran
Miri Tsadok
Name Last Name | Israel
OFEK – Organization, Person, Group – The Israeli Association for the Study of Group and Organizational Processes (Public Benefit Non-Profit Company) is an educational non -profit organization founded in 1986. Its primary aim is to help promote learning and change in individuals, groups, organizations and society through the study, development and application of psychoanalytic and open systems theories in the Tavistock tradition of Group Relations.
Since its establishment OFEK has run annual international Group Relations conferences in association with The Tavistock Institute of Human Relations, London.
It also runs bi-annual Hebrew language conferences, theme conferences, bespoke conferences and workshops for organizations, scientific meetings, ongoing professional development courses (OFEK Learning Center – TouchOFEK Continuing Education)
organizational consulting projects primarily in the non-profit sector (through OFEK in the Field) and additional activities both for its members and for the wider public.
The Tavistock Institute of Human Relations applies social science to contemporary issues and problems. It was formally founded as a registered charity in 1947. The Institute is engaged in evaluation and action-research, organizational development and change consultancy, executive coaching and professional development, all of which support sustainable change and ongoing learning. The Tavistock Institute has been a sponsoring organization for OFEK Group Relations Conferences since their inception in 1987.
www.tavinstitute.org
Registration
The Venue
The conference will take place at the Roxon Desert Arad Hotel, a modern retreat perched on a high plateau where the city limits meet the Judean and Negev deserts. Located at the geographic interface where human civilization transitions into wild desert, The hotel offers a tranquil, distraction-free environment with clean spaces and panoramic mountain views.
Cyprus, with its history of division and unresolved conflict, offers a container where past and present converge. Its location at the crossroads of three continents, and its lived experience of community tensions, creates a unique space for exploring the overt and covert dynamics of group life.
The hotel is fully accessible and offers some accessible bedrooms.
Where and When
The conference is residential and takes place at the Roxon Desert Arad Hotel in Israel.
It will begin on Sunday, 7 February 2027 at 13:30 and end on Friday, 12 February 2027 at 12:00.*
*A detailed timetable will be available at the beginning of the conference.
How to Register
To register for the conference, please fill out the online Registration Form.
Last date for registration: 30.01.2027
Note: Early registration is advised as space is limited
Registration will take effect once payment has been made.
Fees
Fee is quoted in New Israeli Shekels (NIS)
The conference fee includes accommodation and full board (three meals/day),
with a lodging choice of single or shared occupancy*.
*For shared occupancy, a roommate will be assigned if a preference
is not stated in advance of the conference.
Organizational Discount
For two members from the same organization there will be a 300 NIS discount each.
For three or more there will be a discount of 400 NIS each.
Bursaries
A limited number of partial bursaries will be available, sponsored by OFEK and by the Tavistock Institute of Human Relations. To apply for a bursary, please fill out the Registration Form indicating that you would like to apply for a bursary. We will then send you a Bursary Request Form in which you can include a short description of the relevant background. Both forms must be submitted by 30 November 2026.
Methods of Payment
Payment can be made:
- By credit card* online
- By credit card over the telephone
* Credit card payments drawn on an Israeli bank can be made in installments.
Cancellation Policy
Notice of cancellation received after Wednesday, 2 December 2026 will incur cancellation charges as detailed below:
- Until 07.12.26 – No charge
- 08.12.26 – 01.01.27 – 600 NIS
- 02.01.27 – 25.01.27 – 1000 NIS
- After 25.01.27 – Conference fees cannot be refunded.
As the program of the conference constitutes an integrated whole and its events are inter-related, participation in all sessions is highly recommended.
Previous participants of the OFEK International Conference have said:
Contact
For further details or if you have any questions please contact the conference administrators:
Shely Halachmi-Sussman and Stephen Markowitz
intgrc@ofekgrouprelations.org