Fwd: Master Planning & opening space

Sat Aug 2 16:09:18 PDT 2003

Romy Shovelton surfaced and had the following to contribute to Avner. I
guess she is not curretnly on the LIST -- so I will pass it on.

ho
>Date: Sat, 2 Aug 2003 11:12:22 -0400
>From: Romy Shovelton <romys at compuserve.com>
>Subject: Master Planning & opening space
>Sender: Romy Shovelton <romys at compuserve.com>
>To: Avner Haramati <avner at inter.net.il>, Harrison Owen
><owenhh at mindspring.com>,
>    John Thompson <jtp at jtp.co.uk>
>
>Avner
>
>
>Thanks to the generosity of Harrison (as always), he has woken me up to
>a hugely important issue that you posted on the OSLIST, despite my being
>virtually invisible there these days.
>
>Firstly, I am in awe every time I hear of the work you are doing. What a
>gift to Israel and our world.
>
>So... needless to say, I would be honoured to see if there is anything I
>can add or support.
>
>As you might imagine, most of my own thinking would chime 100% with that
>of Harrison. And....  I have a couple of other thoughts.
>
>1) I agree that an important primary focus will be on mentoring the
>planners & politicians, to get them to a place where they see the real
>value of the direction you are taking in engaging the people - as Harrison
>says, so that they see how genuinely aligning with the desires of the people
>(rather than doing so in theory only) GIVES them extraordinary power,rather
>than taking it away.
>
>What I might add, is that I believe you can move to participatory democracy
>in stages. It is true that, in many ways, when the people have tasted Open
>Space,
>you can't put the 'genie back in the bottle': they have a sense of the
>effectiveness
>of running their own show, and will not easily go back to 'business as usual'.
>However.... just as Open Space has a clear and strong framework (within
>which is the freedom to create our world together),it is almost always
>helpful to
>be very clear on 'the givens' in any situation: these form part of the
>framework.
>
>So...you might say that a 'given' is that, in the current democratic and
>legal
>context, the planners and politicians have certain responsibilities for
>taking
>certain decisions. For the time being, they can retain those
>responsibilities -
>using the participation and dialogue with the people as the best possible
>way of
>making the best possible decisions ie.deciding with the people... and NOT
>loosing
>power, rather building it.
>
>I agree that ultimately and ideally we will move to a situation where
>decisions
>are being taken through a process of hugely broader engagement of the
>people. And..
>even in that situation there are likely to be groups of people, and some
>individuals,
>who are asked to work on behalf of the people (eg. the teams who have just
>been
>working to produce some of the five-year-plan detail.). In a way we are
>perhaps
>grooming the P&P to work in a way that democracy was originally intended
>to work?
>
>So.. in short, I believe it's possible to work with the planners &
>politicians (P&P)
>without frightening them! In this way to bring them along into genuine
>participation
>with the people (as Harrison has said, in a lot fewer words!).
>
>2) In addition to mentoring the P&P, Harrison is right that I have some
>experience of
>involving them in working directly with the people to draw up and
>implement plans.
>Working with John Thompson and his colleagues (www.jtp.co.uk), we use
>community
>architects, planners & urban designers to help 'the people' and the
>planners &
>politicians to take community desires to the next stage - to literaly
>visualise
>what the physical and social space could be like. The result is very often a
>Master Plan. Working groups are often formed, and these can also benefit
>from the
>expert input of community planners etc. These are people that can speak
>the language
>of the P&P, while almost translating the will of the people.
>
>I have just returned from two such pieces of work in Yorkshire in England.
>In one,
>the main event, which pulled things together and effectively launched the
>implementation stage, included some significant transformation activities, to
>signal the change eg. closing the main street completely and building a
>(temporary)
>dry-stone wall down the centre - reclaiming local skills and acting as a
>seat for
>great local entertainment in the evening.
>
>btw John Thompson has personally worked in many contexts with significant
>conflit. I
>will copy him on this note, to see if he has worked in Israel? You may
>well have
>local 'experts' who play a similar role. If not perhaps John might be able
>to help?
>
>3)the other thing, which I'm sure you will have given the P&P to
>understand, is that
>using Open Space (and appropriate related work)will not only support them
>in their
>power and popularity, it will also be MUCH more effective and streamlined
>in creating
>the needed output eg. Master Plan and its implementation. Having the
>people on board
>at the start is quicker and cheaper than lengthy objections and
>obstruction later.
>
>4) btw on the question of elections, I'm sure your aim will be to involve
>those of
>all parties and 'sides'. And they will be advised to show genuine interest
>and desire
>for dialogue too. Of course what you don't want is them using your
>gatherings as a
>political platform: they would be invited to join in like everyone else.
>Perhaps
>you have a more specific concern here?
>
>So... Avner please forgive me for probably stating the obvious.... At
>least maybe
>I'm endorsing your own thinking (as well as that of Harrison)?!
>
>In summary, it would be wonderful to support you in your work. Please do let
>me know if there is anything at all that I can do.
>
>btw it was also such an honour to be invited to assist with /facilitate
>the work
>in Rome, with representatives from Israeli, Palestinian and Italian
>universities.
>As you will know, the intended event at the end of April was postponed:I
>am planning
>to drop an email to Sharon Rosen and Daniel Kropf to see what news there is.
>While so far, Sharon and I have only 'met' by  telephone, it was wonderful
>to spend
>a brief time with Daniel when he was in London at the end of April/early May.
>
>With very best wishes Avner
>
>Romy
>
>-------------Forwarded Message-----------------
>
>From:   Harrison Owen, INTERNET:owenhh at mindspring.com
>To:     Romy Shovelton, romys
>
>Date:   31/07/03 12:05 PM
>
>RE:     Some help?
>
>
>Haven't seen you on the OSLIST recently -- and presume you are alive and
>well. Avner Haramati (Israel) put up a note, and I thought some of your
>experience might be helpful. He said: --
>
>Dear colleagues
>
>9 months ago we opened (holded) a space in a Regional Council that includes
>25 villages and Kibutzim ( corporate villages). They decided to build a 5
>years strategic plan for the region together with the inhabitants. 11 teams
>worked on the issues that stemmed from the Open Space and last friday 10
>teams that included inhabitants (130 of them) and civil servants presented
>their final suggestions in an open event/market to the public and guests
>and were acknowledged as the official guidelines of the strategic plan. The
>teams decided that they want to continue. The issue of the missing team was
>as Harrison calls it "clear as mud" and was publicly declared by the Head
>of the Council as the next focal point.
>The event and all the process was declared by the Inhabitants and the
>Academic and Govenmental guests as the first manifestation of real
>participatory democracy that they have experienced and they were thrilled.
>One of the inhabitants shared her understandind of the process: " We were
>excited by the 4 principals but I would like to add to the 4th: It ends
>when it ends but then it starts again". Or as Tova said " After 9 months
>the baby was born but now all the work of raising him up starts" It seems
>that they are getting addicted to this, and our role along the way is just
>slightly to remind them of the tune (in their words).
>
>And the question:
>We (with Tova) are in a process of using OS in the context of inhabitants
>participation in building a "Master- Plan" for a small city.  We would be
>very thankful to hear and learn about your experience in this kind of work,
>especially on the allignment with the city planners and the planning
>stages, and how coming elections effects it?
>
>Thank you
>
>Avner Haramati
>Jerusalem
>
>I answered: --
>
>I think Romy Shovelton has done some work in this area -- she is sometime
>lurker on the list -- but just to get her attention, I will forward this to
>her. As far as your question goes -- You have surely asked the tough one. I
>find that both city planners and politicians are (in general) adverse to
>Open Space. The bottom line is control. They think they should have it
>(control), Open Space makes it clear that nobody really does -- and so the
>problem. While there are undoubtedly ways to integrate Open Space events
>into the whole process (At the beginning to set the stage, in the middle
>for course corrections and working the "clear as mud issues", and at the
>end -- or continuing -- for implementation) I find that the critical thing
>it to seek the active, continuing, participatory involvement of planners
>and politicians.  Things go badly astray when planners and pols consider
>the Open Space to be an exercise of the people which they may observe, and
>from which they may receive recommendations -- the old "senior management"
>model. Pulling this one off is a major task, and usually involves something
>like a "soul change" for the P & Ps. Indeed for some of them it requires
>that the world as they have seen it be turned upside down. All of a sudden
>the people are "in charge" and the task of the planners and politicians
>becomes one of working out the technical details -- a most important task
>-- but definitely secondary. This is called democracy. From the sounds of
>things (your story) you are off to a good start. My suggestion would be to
>spend a lot of time with the P & P in mentoring relationship, helping them
>to understand to genuine power of aligning their efforts with the desires
>of the people. As Gandhi was purported to have said -- help them to find
>out which way the parade is going and clear the route and manage the
>traffic. Actually, Gandhi didn't say that exactly, but I think he could have.
>
>Harrison
>
>
>Hope all goes well with you. I am in Maine, enjoying the summer. If you
>want to respond to Avner directly < avnerh at inter.net.il > will do it. And
>it would be great to see you on the list.
>
>ho
>
>Harrison Owen
>7808 River Falls Drive
>Potomac, MD 20854 USA
>phone 301-365-2093
>Open Space Training www.openspaceworld.com
>Open Space Institute www.openspaceworld.org
>Personal website http://mywebpages.comcast.net/hhowen/index.htm
>
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>
>
>
>
>
>
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>Date: Thu, 31 Jul 2003 07:04:59 -0400
>To: Romy Shovelton <romys at compuserve.com>
>From: Harrison Owen <owenhh at mindspring.com>
>Subject: Some help?
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Harrison Owen
7808 River Falls Drive
Potomac, MD 20854 USA
phone 301-365-2093
Open Space Training www.openspaceworld.com
Open Space Institute www.openspaceworld.org
Personal website http://mywebpages.comcast.net/hhowen/index.htm

OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU
To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options,
view the archives of oslist at listserv.boisestate.edu
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