Cultivating Resilience and Holding Hope in a Chaotic World

Join us on Anēwan Country at the annual SDN Retreat – no hierarchy (whoever comes is meant to be there), no experts (we all are), and we create our own agenda from the ideas you bring. Together we create opportunities to build trust, offer support and create insights.

Our spirit is one of connection, renewal, and shared strength as we gather to reflect and imagine new possibilities. Be a part of this convivial small group experience and feel empowered as a more effective catalyst for social change.

Image showing feet of people gathered in a circle

Grounded together. Sharing hope. Building resilience.
Image Credit: David ('Sal') Salomon, 2022

Where: 
Uralla NSW
When: 

16-21 January 2026

Note that registrations are now closed for this retreat.

The venue is in the historic town of Uralla and is close to Oxley Wild Rivers National Park.

The retreat starts on Friday evening and ends on Tuesday evening.

Accommodation at Coach & Cedar Hotel "the Top Pub”.

All rooms have an ensuite bathroom.

There will be free time, shared meals, and an outing.

SDN acknowledges the traditional custodians of the country we meet on and pay respects to their elders past and present.
Registrations are now closed as we have reached the maximum numbers for the Retreat.

Join the Wait List

Workshop Report

Retreat Report: Uralla 2026

Participants at the SDN 2026 Annual Retreat
Group photo: Roslyn, Doug, Roger, Carl, Joan, John, Kath, Sal, Bernie, Harry. Front row – Nicolette, Dave, Carol, Robin, Amy, and Cooper.

The annual Social Developers Network retreat was held at the Uralla Community Centre in northern NSW. It is an excellent venue for an SDN retreat and we were accommodated at the nearby Top Pub and Dingle B&B.

There were sixteen participants – eight men and eight women. Nine had attended an annual retreat, but this was the first experience for seven, including two younger people. We came from Port Macquarie, Bonny Hills, Macksville, Armidale, Sydney, Adelaide, Brisbane, and the northern NSW border/QLD.

Over four days the topics presented ranged from poetry to philosophy, from China to change, and from meditation to a music concert. Games of decision-making, legacies, labyrinths and Aboriginal histories, were all part of an exciting and varied program. As were utopias and lives well-lived, how to deal with blame, ‘a can of worms’ and a smoking ceremony. Add one famous Indigenous C&W performer and this Retreat could not have been better!

A fascinating variety of presentations was on offer, as this selection indicates:

  • Our Lost Connection with Nature
  • China: Past and Present
  • Be the Change you want to See
  • The Oven Bird
  • Truth and Treaty
  • Open Heart and Mind
  • Pathmakers: Markets, Meaning and Commons
  • Blame! How to process it.
  • Legacy – paying it forward
  • Re-imagining Utopia
  • Life’s Purpose, As I See It
  • Uncle Roger in concert

Keep an eye open on this website or in the SDN newsletter for invitations to further SDN Retreats.

Details
Retreat Name: 
SDN 2026 Annual Retreat Uralla
Status: 
Completed
Retreat Location Map: 

Uralla, NSW

Retreat Venue Website: 
Uralla
Retreat Begins: 
Fri January 16, 2026
Retreat Ends: 
Wed January 21, 2026
Retreat Fee: 
$380.00
Retreat Concession Fee: 
$180.00
Retreat Deposit: 
$50.00
Download Retreat Flyer: 
PDF icon SDN Annual Retreat Flyer Uralla 2026 Jan.pdf