Change
starts
with new perspectives
Facilitation, Process, Change
ABOUT PETRA HILGERSTransformative Facilitation
Petra is a UK-based facilitator and award-winning poet and textile artist, working at the intersection of art, transformation and social change. Her work explores how art and creative processes can witness, tend and repair.
As a qualified social pedagogue and change facilitator, Petra brings over 20 years of experience working internationally and locally with communities, organisations, and groups of all sizes. She specialises in exploring conflict and the impacts of whiteness and racism
Her approach is deeply rooted in creative, "quantum view"-inspired methods that engage diverse groups in meaningful conversations.
With an MSc in Organisation Change and Development, Petra has helped charities navigate culture change with a strong focus on anti-racism, justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion (AJEDI).
Collage ©petrahilgers for my niece Johanna and all of us who are embracing a turbulent change. 
PHILOSOPHY“The world you live in, including the experience of your body, is completely dictated by how you learned to perceive it. If you change your perception, you change the experience of your body and your world”
—Deepak Chopra in “Ageless Body, Timeless Mind”
SERVICESLet’s be honest: change can freak us out. Especially when we don’t feel like we’ve got a say in it. The less control we feel, the more resistance bubbles up; and when that resistance builds, everything gets harder. For us, for the people around us, for the work we’re trying to do.
But here’s something we forget: we’ve all done change before. Loads of it. Every season of life, every challenge, every growth, milestone and new beginning: that’s transformation. It’s part of our human journey.
Still, when change shows up in ways we didn’t choose or plan for, it can bring up fear. Will I be heard? Will I be safe? Will there be space to go at my own pace, to pause when I need? That’s where things can get sticky. And where facilitation can make a real difference.
I like to think of facilitation in the spirit of the French word facilité, meaning "ease." It’s about lightening the load. Whether we’re navigating a difficult conversation, working through team tensions, or facing big-picture change, my role is to make that journey a little easier for you and your group.
I come to this work with a deep commitment to social justice. I bring an anti-oppression lens into every space I hold, making sure the space is not just “inclusive” in name, but truly responsive to the different needs and dynamics in the room. As a facilitator, I aim to create the kind of space where people feel like they can actually show up as they are and with the concerns and questions they bring. Where hard things can be said and still held with care. Where conflict isn't something to be feared but something that, when worked through well, can move us forward with more understanding and deeper connection.
By taking responsibility for the process, I allow leaders and organisers to fully participate in discussions without worrying about facilitation. Whether it’s a single session or a longer-term engagement, I meet you where you are—online, hybrid, or in person.
I offer any of the following and a combination of them:
Elsewhere
I’m a member of Courageous Spaces, a collective of trainers, coaches, facilitators and consultants who facilitate spaces to creatively explore the impact of race and racism on all our lives.
I’m a co-founder of deep:black London and still occasionally involved in their work.
You can follow me on LinkedIn for discussion, posts and updates.
You can find out about my poetry here and my textile art here.