Agents of Change:
Nonviolent Direct Action Training Series
From the Montgomery bus boycott to the decade-long fight that shut down the Keystone XL pipeline to this year's protests against ICE, the history of social movements is a history of direct action. When people put their bodies on the line to disrupt the status quo, they've brought about profound change and transformed the political and cultural landscape. In short, when we take direct action, we win.
In 2026, we face high-stakes and urgent fights as organizers and activists living under the Trump regime. We need our direct actions to be strategic and powerful. And we need everyone in our movements to have the skills and confidence to take bold action.
Agents of Change is a training series that will teach you how to plan safe and successful nonviolent direct actions (NVDAs) and organize with others for the long term. We will discuss key concepts of NVDA strategy, how actions fit into a theory of change, and case studies of successful actions. We will cover protest safety, de-escalation, risk levels, tactics, and action roles. We will also explore the somatic and psychological elements of participating in direct action and talk about how to do this work sustainably, while taking good care of yourself and others.
Agents of Change focuses on organizing in affinity groups: small groups of people who prepare for and engage in direct action together, often building trust and strengthening their relationships over the course of many actions. We invite you to join this training series as a group by organizing people you already know and trust to participate together! You could form an affinity group for Agents of Change from your volunteer group, your faith community, or your own personal network or friend group. Individual signups are warmly welcomed too; we will connect you with people who share your interests/values to form an Agents of Change affinity group based on your answers in this registration form.
This training series is for you if…
you want to move from being an NVDA participant to an NVDA organizer
you want to strengthen your understanding of NVDA history and strategy
you're ready to take on new roles or greater risk at actions
you want to find a group of people to consistently take action with
This series is intended to be at a 101 or 201 level, though we hope that all who engage will find some value.
Series Structure and Dates
We're starting with a kickoff event on the evening of August 6th! This is intended both for people who are already signed up and for those who want to learn more before committing. We'll hear stories from Troublemakers and friends about their experiences participating in NVDA. Organizers will share more details about the training and people who are already registered for Agents of Change will start building community as a cohort.
After kickoff, the structure of the series is three webinars on Zoom, followed by a weekend-long in-person Action Lab in Seattle. We will close out the series by doing an action (TBD!) where we'll put it all together.
Agents of Change is FREE to attend.
We ask that you commit to attending all three webinars and the Action Lab if you sign up (aside from extenuating circumstances, of course). Our goal is to build relationships and trust amongst the training group, so we want to have the same people showing up for each event.
Next Steps
Ready to sign up for Agents of Change? Sign up below (registration is through an encrypted form on the Jotform platform). Then, please RSVP separately for the kickoff event on August 6th (this event is listed on Action Network).
Not sure if you want to commit yet? Join us at the kickoff to learn more and decide if this training is right for you.
The deadline to register for Agents of Change is August 13th.
Questions? Email the training series coordinator at aoc@troublemakerscommunity.org.