An open space game?

Mon May 2 10:23:44 PDT 2005

I was at a quarterly meeting recently where I realised that the 40
participants mainly had different views of the reason they were there -
Actually a group concerned with SUSTAINABILITY

So I volunteered to be content person guiding their next quarterly
meeting

My plan - loose as it is - is to try to get them to create the same map
on the wall

With 4 playing areas

Area 1 which is just below the top right corner of the wall is yellow
postits- will each person complete a mission in life that they will
always be championing around sustainability

Area 2 the very top corner is sustainability: I want to leave that area
blank unless diverse views of what sustainability's gravity come up in
which case they can all be put up there

3 Now as we look at each other's postits in area 1 I want to ask people
to discuss which of a list of 15 conflict barriers I have seen
repeatedly to most conflicts to do with creating the world we want have
a vote as to which conflicts are stopping you from progressing your
mission postit (discuss in groups if necessary)

4 Since house rules only give me 2 hours, we now get back to a circle
and attend to 4: what worldcongress (eg large open space) would we need
to map back, invite network representatives of sustainability to etc if
we were to get everyone to see the same number 1 conflict (whichever it
is) as the main problem to resolve

I wrote this for 2 reasons:
-Any suggestions on improving this and is it an Open Space type of game
or not?

A picture of this game appears at
http://www.disruptive-mice.org/forums/102/ShowPost.aspx

sincerely
chris macrae

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>From  Mon May  2 11:05:41 2005
Message-Id: <MON.2.MAY.2005.110541.0700.>
Date: Mon, 2 May 2005 11:05:41 -0700
Reply-To: chris at chriscorrigan.com
To: OSLIST <OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU>
From: Chris Corrigan <chris.corrigan at gmail.com>
Subject: Why OST helps us solve wicked problems
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In my post on Friday, I mused about the depth we access in Open Space.=20
Today, I read a paper which most of you will find useful, at the very least=
=20
because it makes a stunning case for OST. I've posted this at my weblog too=
:

In the Open Space world, we talk about the four pre-conditions that make fo=
r=20
great open space events: diversity, complexity, passion and urgency. The=20
more you have of these, the juicier the event becomes. That is counter=20
intuitive to most ways of thinking, because in most cases it seems that=20
problem solving processes aim to homogenize, simplify, rationalize and slow=
=20
down. If we can just get a handle on the problem, the thinking goes, we can=
=20
apply the best possible solution.

This mechanistic view does not work with so-called "wicked problems." It ca=
n=20
generate solutions or options or ways forward which are reductionist. For=
=20
me, it is the kind of thinking that arrives at one vision statement for an=
=20
organization of 100 people instead of a multi-faceted vision that is=20
inclusive and brings everyone along.=20

So via elearning post <http://www.elearningpost.com/archives/007124.asp>,=
=20
today I came across this paper (http://www.touchstone.com/tr/wp/wicked.html=
)=20
that looks at how wicked problems are solved by non-linear processes:

"The natural pattern of human problem solving appears chaotic on the=20
surface, but it is the chaos of an earthquake or the breaking of an ocean=
=20
wave. It reveals deeper forces and flows that have their own order and=20
pattern. The non-linear pattern of activity that expert designers follow=20
gives us fresh insight into what happens when we work on a complex problem.=
=20
It reveals that in normal problem-solving behaviour, we may seem to wander=
=20
about, making only halting progress toward the solution. This non-linear=20
process is not a defect, not a sign of stupidity or lack of training, but=
=20
rather the mark of a natural learning process. It suggests that humans are=
=20
oriented more toward learning (a process that leaves us changed) than towar=
d=20
problem solving (a process focused on changing our surroundings)."

Designers who work this way, in the experiment discussed in this paper=20
exhibit the following strategies:

They would start by trying to understand the problem, but would immediately=
=20
jump to formulating potential solutions. Then they would go back to refinin=
g=20
their understanding of the problem. Rather than being orderly and linear,=
=20
the line plotting the course of their thinking looked more like a=20
seismograph for a major earthquake... We call this pattern both chaotic, fo=
r=20
obvious reasons, and opportunity-driven, because in each moment the=20
designers are seeking the best opportunity to progress toward a solution.

I note two things about this quote. First, the fact that designers working=
=20
on a wicked problem are engaged in an iterative relationship with the=20
definition of the problem itself. Second, the pattern is=20
"opportunity-driven" meaning that exposure to new ideas at any point in the=
=20
process can contribute to breakthroughs.=20

This chaotic strategy is exactly the argument for Open Space Technology. We=
=20
need people working in these ways to solve these problems, OST provides the=
=20
space in a very short period of time to exercise the strategies that=20
contribute to solving wicked problems. In fact, the time constraints in Ope=
n=20
Space (1.5 hour conversations over a day or two) mean that there ISN'T time=
=20
to engage in linear thinking, and this may be why OST creates the condition=
s=20
for people to access the depth and resourcefulness that is needed to move=
=20
forward on this tough issues.

Chris
--=20

CHRIS CORRIGAN
Consultation - Facilitation
Open Space Technology

Weblog: http://www.chriscorrigan.com/parkinglot
Site: http://www.chriscorrigan.com

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=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D
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Content-Disposition: inline

In my post on Friday, I mused about the depth we access in Open
Space.  Today, I read a paper which most of you will find useful,
at the very least because it makes a stunning case for OST.  I've
posted this at my weblog too:<br>
<br>
In the Open Space world, we talk about the four pre-conditions that
make for great open space events: diversity, complexity, passion and
urgency.  The more you have of these, the juicier the event
becomes.  That is counter intuitive to most ways of thinking,
because in most cases it seems that problem solving processes aim to
homogenize, simplify, rationalize and slow down.  If we can just
get a handle on the problem, the thinking goes, we can apply the best
possible solution.<br>
<br>
This mechanistic view does not work with so-called "wicked
problems."  It can generate solutions or options or ways forward
which are reductionist.  For me, it is the kind of thinking that
arrives at one vision statement for an organization of 100 people
instead of a multi-faceted vision that is inclusive and brings everyone
along.  <br>
<br>
So via <a href=3D"http://www.elearningpost.com/archives/007124.asp">elearni=
ng post</a>,
today I came across this paper
(<a href=3D"http://www.touchstone.com/tr/wp/wicked.html">http://www.touchst=
one.com/tr/wp/wicked.html</a>) that looks at how wicked
problems are solved by non-linear processes:<br>
<br style=3D"font-style: italic;">
<blockquote><span style=3D"font-style: italic;">"The natural pattern o=
f
human problem solving appears chaotic on the surface, but it is the
chaos of an earthquake or the breaking of an ocean wave. It reveals
deeper forces and flows that have their own order and pattern. The
non-linear pattern of activity that expert designers follow gives us
fresh insight into what happens when we work on a complex problem. It
reveals that in normal problem-solving behaviour, we may seem to wander
about, making only halting progress toward the solution. This
non-linear process is not a defect, not a sign of stupidity or lack of
training, but rather the mark of a natural learning process. It
suggests that humans are oriented more toward learning (a process that
leaves us changed) than toward problem solving (a process focused on
changing our surroundings)."</span><br>
</blockquote>
<br>
Designers who work this way, in the experiment discussed in this paper exhi=
bit the following strategies:<br>
<br>
<blockquote><span style=3D"font-style: italic;">They would start by
trying to understand the problem, but would immediately jump to
formulating potential solutions. Then they would go back to refining
their understanding of the problem. Rather than being orderly and
linear, the line plotting the course of their thinking looked more like
a seismograph for a major earthquake... We call this pattern both
chaotic, for obvious reasons, and opportunity-driven, because in each
moment the designers are seeking the best opportunity to progress
toward a solution.</span><br style=3D"font-style: italic;">
</blockquote>
<br>
I note two things about this quote.  First, the fact that
designers working on a wicked problem are engaged in an iterative
relationship with the definition of the problem itself.  Second,
the pattern is "opportunity-driven" meaning that exposure to new =
ideas
at any point in the process can contribute to breakthroughs.  <br>
<br>
This chaotic strategy is exactly the argument for Open Space
Technology.  We need people working in these ways to solve these
problems,  OST provides the space in a very short period of time
to exercise the strategies that contribute to solving wicked
problems.  In fact, the time constraints in Open Space (1.5 hour
conversations over a day or two) mean that there ISN'T time to engage
in linear thinking, and this may be why OST creates the conditions for
people to access the depth and resourcefulness that is needed to move
forward on this tough issues.<br>
<br>Chris<br>-- <br><br>CHRIS CORRIGAN<br>Consultation - Facilitation<br>Op=
en Space Technology<br><br>Weblog: <a href=3D"http://www.chriscorrigan.com/=
parkinglot">http://www.chriscorrigan.com/parkinglot</a><br>Site: <a href=3D=
"http://www.chriscorrigan.com">
http://www.chriscorrigan.com</a>
*
*
=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D
OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU
------------------------------
To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options,
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