[Fwd: The Giving Conference - Chicago - July 9-11]

Thu Jul 15 05:19:05 PDT 2004

i'll share my reflections on the giving conference. you can visit
http://ashleycoop.blogspot.com/2004_07_01_ashleycoop_archive.html#1089784875
40767254 to read these same words with all of the appropriate links, or you
can surf on over to the giving conference wiki and play in the proceedings
yourself.
http://www.globalchicago.net/giving/givingwiki.cgi?GivingConferenceWikiHome

a constant joke at the giving conference was amazement at the fact that
people actually showed up, from locations far and near. the joke revolved
around the "why". popular opinion seemed to find the invitation fairly
vague. what made people come? and who were the people that were moved to be
there?

from my perspective, two prominent pieces were the main attractors of this
conference. the theme, opening space for giving to flourish, attracted a
group of people whose visions included the gifts they personally had to
offer and extended beyond themselves to giving for the greater good. the
sessions generated were quite impressive, here's a few of them:

* Social Venture Bank -- how to establish a "social venture bank" that
could provide seed funding and planning support to help new, long-term,
sustainable collaborations get off the ground.
* Better World Project Stories Online Giving Auction Market -- inviting
stories from all kinds of people, networks and communities, with all kinds
of purposes and passions generally aligned with simple principles capturing
the essence of "highest good" and enable them to offer their visions in an
efficient marketplace where they can get the funding and other kinds of
support they need to realize their dreams (large and small) of a better
world.
* Essential Foundations For Sustaining Giving -- What is essential in an
organization/community to encourage and sustain giving and flourishing
* Building Bridges between the Left and the Business and Professional
Communities
* Giving As Meaning/Purpose
* Gift And The Property Of Movement -- If one of the essential properties
of a gift is that it must keep moving, what does this mean or how do we
relate to this?
* Living In Truth

the other attracting component that i noticed was that everyone who showed
up had deep respect and admiration for the person(s) that they knew who had
extended to them the invitation. the power of networks and personal
connections was very evident as this eclectic group mixed with one another,
sharing wisdom, resources, connections, and much more. i continue to be
moved by the possibilities and the increased efficiency of action that is
made possible when the right people are connected with one another.

during one circle, a participant asked, "who are we?" if you're curious
about the priests, educators, facilitators, writers, techies,
philanthropists, inventors, entrepreneurs, activists, financial advisors or
other types that showed up, peruse the list of participants.

as i settle back into being home, it is this question that continues to
echo inside my head: "WHO ARE WE?" i think about all of the people that i
am connected to. i think about all of you who have mentioned the kavanah
post, who are we that choose to be intentional, aware of our actions,
directing our hearts to Spirit, living in truth, sharing our gifts and
passions with ourselves, our neighbors, our communities? a shining network
of truth livers. WHO ARE WE? and how do we continue to connect and unite
with one another so that the ripples of our actions spread wider and deeper
into the hearts of beings all across this planet?

warm regards,
ashley

> [Original Message]
> From: Ted Ernst <ted at chicagohumanist.org>
> To: <OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU>
> Date: 7/15/2004 12:51:20 AM
> Subject: Re: [Fwd: The Giving Conference - Chicago - July 9-11]
>
> Not sure if anyone's already reported back, but this was an amazing
> conference.  I'm not sure that I can articulate any more than that at the
> moment, but perhaps this message will spark some reflections from
MichaelH,
> ChrisC, DougG or SusanK who were all in attendance.  Hopefully I'll find a
> way to add my thoughts along the way as well.  One outcome is that I've
> started a blog at http://tedernst.blogspot.com  Want to come play with me?
> :-)
>
> peace,
> ted
> ___
> Humanize the Earth! http://www.chicagohumanist.org
>
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: OSLIST [mailto:OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU] On
> > Behalf Of Chris Corrigan
> > Sent: Friday, May 14, 2004 6:43 PM
> > To: OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU
> > Subject: Re: [Fwd: The Giving Conference - Chicago - July 9-11]
> >
> >
> > Michael Herman wrote:
> >
> > >   maybe chris will say more now, but
> > > either way, we will certainly report back with whatever
> > results show
> > > up.
> >
> > Hi folks:
> >
> > I will say a few things more.  This conference is exciting to
> > me because it's all about offering what we have to give and
> > making connections to direct that effort towards something.
> > It certainly has its lineage in the current work going on
> > around the world with Practice of Peace, and in fact, it's
> > rooted in the very spirit in which Harrison offered OST to all of us.
> >
> > I'd love to see OST facilitators there because I think we
> > bring something very valuable to offer people who are
> > motivated to create networks and align resources towards
> > action.  I have no idea what will come of this conference in
> > Chicago, but I am sure that if Open Space is involved, then
> > whatever we do will be widely replicable elsewhere.  It's
> > about finding the most efficient way to get people and
> > resources together to get down to work.
> >
> > You can keep up with some of the thinking behind the
> > conference by visiting the weblog of our little movement at
> > http://www.gifthub.org
> >
> > If you can make it to Chicago in July, it'll be great to see
> > you and have you join the mix as we explore some seriously
> > interesting possibilities.
> >
> > Cheers,
> >
> > Chris
> >
> > --
> > CHRIS CORRIGAN
> > Bowen Island, BC, Canada
> > (604) 947-9236
> >
> > Consultation - Facilitation
> > Open Space Technology
> >
> > Weblog: http://www.chriscorrigan.com/parkinglot
> > Homepage: http://www.chriscorrigan.com chris at chriscorrigan.com
> >
> > *
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