Through the Center for Courage & Renewal, the authors offer personal and professional retreats and programs designed to explore vocational and life questions, offer renewal and encouragement, and deepen engagement in professional practice. Using what they call the Circle of Trust[R] approach, they invite groups into a communal process based upon a set of principles and practices through which they engage their deepest questions in a way that welcomes their inwardness even as it connects them to the gifts and challenges of community and to the larger world. To date the majority of the participants have come from K-12 and higher education settings. And although conducting their retreats is not the same as creating learning spaces for academic subjects, through these participants the authors have seen evidence of how elements of the Circle of Trust[R] approach have broad applicability to many kinds of pedagogical settings. This chapter describes the history, rationale, and core content of the principles and practices that define the Circle of Trust[R] approach as developed by Parker J. Palmer and the Center for Courage & Renewal. Courage to Teach[R], Courage to Lead[R], and other Courage & Renewal programs are built upon this distinctive approach. (Contains 1 note.)