Kiss*lab | Awareness and Ethical Concept

• Awareness Concept Kiss*Lab Event

  1. Is the Kiss*Lab a Safe Space?

  The Kiss*Lab is designed to minimise the risk of emotional or sexual harm and boundary violations. At the same time, it creates a carefully facilitated “safer space” in which participants can explore their personal boundaries and observe their bodily and nervous-system responses to intimate encounters.t.

  It is, however, not a “safe space” in which the goal is to prevent every uncomfortable situation or feeling. Emotional reactions can be just as valuable to the process as moments of curiosity, pleasure and joy.

  We recognize that we are meeting in a “shared space,” and that each of us arrives with diverse life experiences shaped by gender, class, sexuality, race, (dis)ability and many other aspects of our lives. We invite participants to co-create a space in which we can step beyond familiar patterns while remaining attentive to our own experience and to those of others.

   

  2. The Concept of Embodiment in the Kiss*Lab

  Embodiment means learning through the body – not only by thinking and talking about our experiences. In the Kiss*Lab, we invite participants to notice what happens in their bodies during encounters: sensations, impulses, tension, excitement, pleasure, uncertainty, or the wish to move closer or further away.

  Rather than immediately interpreting or analysing these experiences, we create opportunities to slow down, breathe, move and sense what is happening in the present moment. This can help us recognise personal patterns, become aware of our boundaries and make more conscious choices.

  For us, awareness is not about being hyper-alert or constantly focused on the other person and anticipating what might happen. It is about becoming more present in the moment, tuning into yourself, your body, and the person you are encountering.

  We invite you into playful exercises and encounters that deepen your connection with your own body, awaken curiosity, and keep mutual care at the heart of what we explore together.

   

  3. Boundaries & Consent

  We encourage participants to become aware of both their own boundaries and those of others. Boundaries are not always fixed; they can shift with the situation, the person we are with and our physical and emotional state.

  Between comfort and overwhelm there can be an edge – a space where something feels new, exciting, uncertain or challenging. We invite participants to explore this edge with curiosity, while staying connected to their own sensations and capacities. When something feels unclear, slowing down, pausing or asking can create space to notice what is actually happening.

  Consent is ongoing, mutual and can change at any time. A “yes” to one interaction is not automatically a “yes” to another. A “no”, a pause or stepping back is always respected. We do not explore other people’s boundaries; we explore our own experience at the edge of the familiar.

   

  4. Creating a Safer Space

  The Kiss*Lab has a clear structure and is carefully facilitated throughout. Each exercise is introduced and explained, and the intensity of the experience builds gradually. At the beginning, we create time and space to arrive, orient ourselves and connect with our own bodies before moving into closer encounters.

  Participants can pause or step out at any time. The Me Space offers an opportunity to withdraw without leaving the shared environment, while the Support Space provides access to individual support from a facilitator.

  Four facilitators are present and attentive to the group throughout the process, while two instructors guide and moderate the different phases. Support can also be requested nonverbally. After more intense phases, we create opportunities for grounding, co-regulation, movement, breathing and reflection.

   

  5. Responsibility & Support

  Awareness is a shared responsibility. We all bring different bodies, experiences, histories and perspectives into the space. We are responsible for our own actions and for paying attention to their impact on others.

  At the same time, awareness is not about constant vigilance or fear of doing something wrong. We want to create enough safety for curiosity, playfulness and joy to emerge. When uncertainty or discomfort arises, we invite participants to slow down, listen to their bodies and communicate openly.

  If someone experiences a situation as uncomfortable or that a boundary has been crossed, they do not have to explain, justify or resolve it on their own. Facilitators are available to offer support and help navigate challenging situations. Mistakes and misunderstandings can happen; what matters is how we respond to them and take responsibility.

   

  6. Arrive – Explore – Return

  The Kiss*Lab has a clearly defined beginning and end.

  Arrive
  We take time to arrive, orient ourselves and become aware of our bodies, sensations and surroundings.

  Explore
  We gradually enter the shared space of encounter. Through movement, slowing down, nonverbal communication and playful exercises, we explore intimacy, perception, boundaries and connection.

  Return
  We consciously bring the experience to a close. We create time to slow down, regulate, reflect and reconnect with ourselves before returning to our everyday surroundings.

• Ethical Statement concerning the Collaborative Research Approach of the Kiss*Lab

  We understand the Kiss*Lab as a collaborative research endeavour in which students, artists, researchers, facilitators, and participants contribute different forms of knowledge and experience. The project is not based on a one-directional relationship between researchers and research subjects; instead, questions, methods, and insights are developed through exchange and shared reflection within the team. Students are therefore encouraged to approach their work as a process of co-creation, while remaining attentive to the different roles, responsibilities, and power relations within the project. In our understanding collaboration does not replace individual responsibility during the research process. Each student has to define and develop their own research focus and methods and reflect on their ethical approach and analysis in dialogue with the project-team, participants, and in accordance with the requirements of their chosen research format.

  Students’ research in the context of the Kiss*Lab is guided by processes of consensus, in which participation, boundaries, roles, and forms of engagement are discussed and renegotiated as needed. Participants may decline to answer questions, withdraw from an interaction, or revoke their consent to be recorded at any time without any disadvantage. Any photographs, video footage, interviews, or other sensitive material will only be collected, stored, and used with explicit permission and in accordance with applicable data-protection requirements.

  Students are encouraged to approach their research reflexively, with care, and openness, creating a respectful and inclusive space in which participants feel seen, heard, and invited to share their perspectives, express concerns, and shape the research process. Students should remain attentive to different positionalities and power relations while fostering trusting, consensual, and collaborative forms of engagement. Research supervisors’ and event facilitators’ regular guidance and the opportunities for collective reflection with the Kiss*Lab team will support students in achieving an ethically responsible and care-oriented research process. We use the DGSKA (German society for social and cultural anthropology) Ethical Guidelines as a framework for orientation and ongoing reflection throughout the project.