Deep Democracy..and concious social action

Harrison Owen hhowen at verizon.net
Thu Nov 10 04:28:14 PST 2005


Goodness Peggy -- enough good stuff here for several weeks' serious
thinking. But did you have to do it all at once? I felt pretty well stuffed,
but the meal is delicious. Thank you!

Harrison

NEW EMAIL ADDRESS!!!!
hhowen at verizon.net
Harrison Owen
7808 River Falls Drive
Potomac, Maryland   20845
Phone 301-365-2093
Skype hhowen
Open Space Training www.openspaceworld.com 
Open Space Institute www.openspaceworld.org
Personal website www.ho-image.com 
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-----Original Message-----
From: OSLIST [mailto:OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU] On Behalf Of Peggy
Holman
Sent: Thursday, November 10, 2005 3:44 AM
To: OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU
Subject: Re: Deep Democracy..and concious social action

Hi all.  I'm plugging back in on this thread after more than a month away...

It caught my eye because I am in the midst of witnessing remarkable post-OS 
follow up work from multiple gatherings.

It started with the International Practice of Peace conference in 
2003...what came out of that?
*  Global Citizen Journey, which is in the midst of building a library in 
the Niger Delta with a delegation of 20 US folks and 20 Nigerians.
*  Youth for a New World - a Burundi/US partnership that has launched 
multiple projects and raised a remarkable about of money in a short period 
of time
*  Practice of Peace in New Mexico
*  indirectly, the OS with 2,100 Colombian street kids
and I could go on...a group of us interviewed about 25 of the 130 
participants.  Many had projects that were either inspired or strengthened 
by being at PoP.   100% of those interviewed said they were changed by the 
experience.

Recently, I've been part of three long (3+ days) OS's -- the Evolutionary 
Salon, the Kaleidoscope Cafe (this was an intriguing hybrid, with an 
emergent OS core), and the biggest test -- an OS with 30 no-nonsense 
journalists.  Each left passionately engaged people and projects in their 
wake.

(An aside on the journalism OS...we convened a conference call 3 weeks after

the gathering.  Of the original 30, three-quarters of them were either on 
the call or let us know they definitely want to be on future calls.  About 
1/3 are actively engaged in preparing for two projects that grew out of the 
gathering.  Mind you, these are BUSY people, with full time jobs in a 
SERIOUS industry!  And still, they're staying involved.)

What's going on?  What is sparking all of this energy for action?

I think there are several things feeding this.  One is the times -- as with 
the journalists, the more things fall apart, the more urgency.  In other 
words, the context is changing.  I think that's why the journalists are so 
hungry for the connection to others.  More than any other group I've worked 
with, I get the feeling that these folks have no where to turn for a ray of 
hope.  Now they have each other and they're committed to maintaining the 
connections.

I also think there is a quality of how more and more of us are using OS that

makes a difference.  Three aspects I think are making a difference for me:

1.  Defining the Law of Two Feet as "taking responsibility for what you 
love".  I no longer talk about the Law of Two Feet as passion and 
responsibility.  While basically equivalent, there's something very powerful

about this framing -- it is highly actionable for both individuals and 
groups.  I have seen it literally change lives as people make it their 
mantra and follow it well beyond the event.  I had one participant tell me a

story of how it turned her from feeling like a helpless victim nursing her 
wounded ego in a corner to stepping in with full voice into the place she 
felt called to be.

2.  Using silence in the plenary.  Morning announcements, evening news, I 
always begin with silence.  This is really subtle and yet I know it matters.

It seems to connect people with themselves, each other, and the whole. 
Seeing 2,100 street kids, who were perceived as having virtually no 
discipline, be silent together was deeply profound.  From this small 
collective act, they seemed to gather strength.  I could sense them savoring

it.  I know it blew their teachers' minds!

3.  Time and diversity.  These old friends really matter.  Two and a half 
days or more.  Time to cook is so vital when dealing with complexity.  PLUS 
bringing together unlikely mixes of people -- the whole system -- prepares 
the soil for the unexpected.  The more creative the definition of the system

the better!  At the journalism OS, there were the usual suspects -- print, 
broadcast, new media, editors, writers, bloggers, publishers, media 
activists, educators. -- and others.  Perhaps the most important 
participants were the  wild cards -- a college senior majoring in 
journalism, a wall street analyst. They brought perspectives and ideas that 
aren't normally part of the conversation.

I think these three aspects bring qualities to the work of creating a 
fertile field that up the likelihood for good things to happen.  I'd say the

first two create a quality of consciousness that matters. A lot.

In my reading 300+ messages tonight, a favorite was this line from Raffi:

> ...OS is one of the greatest ways of
> tricking somebody into developing a spiritual practice. To do this work
> well there is no other way. And sometimes that's scary.
>
> Grounding. grounding. grounding.
>

I know that's true for me.  OS as a spiritual practice.  Harrison....did you

know right from the start?


As I've been working to understand the underlying patterns at play, my 
colleague, Tom Atlee, and I have put something together that I find useful.
Good process awakens consciousness -- individually and collectively.  It 
also activates systems -- affecting both individual and collective behaviour

and structures.  How? What Tom pointed out to me -- there are lots of people

working to awaken consciousness, with some effect.  And there are lots of 
people working to change systems, also with some impact.  Mostly, these 
folks don't interact; in fact they often don't get along!  What good process

(think OS) does is address both consciousness and systems -- the inner and 
outer for individuals and the collective.  By doing this, dramatically 
better outcomes in both consciousness and systems occur.  OS does it so 
elegantly that it happens without most of us even knowing that's what is 
happening.

I think the more we as practitioners work with this underlying dynamic --  
through continually inviting people to take responsibility for what they 
love, using silence, inviting diversity and making time for the work, we 
increase the likelihood for radically improved results.  We literally 
liberate the human spirit!  And the connections people make with each other 
and their ideas create a field that sparks amazing energy and action.

So, Chris, while 100% won't be changed, with a little mindful practice, we 
are in the midst of a fomenting revolution.

from somewhat overcast (but too dark for it to matter at the moment) 
Seattle,
Peggy

________________________________
Peggy Holman
The Open Circle Company
15347 SE 49th Place
Bellevue, WA  98006
(425) 746-6274

www.opencirclecompany.com



----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Harrison Owen" <hhowen at verizon.net>
To: <OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU>
Sent: Wednesday, November 09, 2005 1:30 PM
Subject: [OSLIST] The Sales Person's Holy Grail


> Chris wrote: "Nothing de-energises my 16 hour days as an open networker 
> more
> than to spend my time connecting someone who appeared to come out of an 
> open
> space saying the number 1 humanitarian change that matters to them is X
> ....only to find later that the open space person is no longer that
> interested in the cause."
>
> Chris my friend -- if you ever manage to find, or better yet invent, the
> answer to your prayers -- you will instantaneously become a
> multi-billionaire. For you will have unearthed the Holy Grail of every
> Salesperson on the planet: identifying and holding dedicated, committed
> customers at close to the 100% level. Sure you can raise your chances and
> narrow the odds, but as all sales people know, lots of shoe leather on the
> pavement comes with the territory. Sorry for the 16 hour days!
>
> Actually, I think OS does quite a bit to advance your interest and narrow
> the odds. At the very least you can be reasonably well assured that 
> anybody
> who cares enough to come presumably cares something about the issue at 
> hand
> (whatever that might be). And of that total group, some smaller subset 
> will
> care enough to raise some aspect of the issue at hand -- and if they raise
> it with passion, focus, logic, and commitment, you may well have your
> man/woman. And you haven't done a thing but watch. I'd call that pretty
> energy efficient! -- But of course, that person may turn out to be a 
> fraud.
> You just can't tell, but the odds are tilting more in your favor. :-)
>
> Sorry to go on so -- but the focusing/narrowing that occurs naturally in 
> any
> OS is something I find that many people miss. Amidst all the effusion of
> ideas, energy -- to say nothing of chaos -- a rather precise process of
> self-selection and identification is going on. For a client interested in
> identifying potential leadership, taking note of who steps forward to 
> claim
> their passion with responsibility will produce a short list of likely
> candidates. It may not be perfect, but it is surely a good place to start.
>
> Harrison
>
> NEW EMAIL ADDRESS!!!!
> hhowen at verizon.net
> Harrison Owen
> 7808 River Falls Drive
> Potomac, Maryland 20845
> Phone 301-365-2093
> Skype hhowen
> Open Space Training www.openspaceworld.com
> Open Space Institute www.openspaceworld.org
> Personal website www.ho-image.com
> OSLIST: To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the
> archives Visit: www.listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: OSLIST [mailto:OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU] On Behalf Of Chris
> Macrae
> Sent: Wednesday, November 09, 2005 2:00 PM
> To: OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU
> Subject: Re: deep democracy
>
>  Harrison -regarding missed points love all
>
> REphrasing my question : what more could be done at the space or while
> people
> are in its vicinty to work out how deep each person's deepest cause is? On
> globalsiation causes such as here
> http://www.valuetrue.com/home/community.cfm?
> startrow=4&intClassID=-1
>
> I don't ask because I am capable of following up each cause but because I
> have
> over 12 years logged up many people across world networks who are. Nothing
> de-
> energises my 16 hour days as an open networker more than to spend my time
> connecting someone who appeared to come out of an open space saying the
> number
> 1 humanitarian chnage that matters to them is X with the person amongst 
> the
> 2000 I know from conversastions over a decade to be most committed to that
> cause only to find later that the open space person is no longer that
> interested in the cause. I agree people may good naturedly over-commit to
> all
> sorts of good stuff when with kindred spirits without fully reckoning how
> much
> time it will take. But I would like  some way whilst we are all there in
> real
> time and real space of working out who is most deeply committed. Suppose
> there
> are 100 activists there, I would rather have left the open space finding 
> 10
> that really had mentioned their number 1 cause for life than 50 great 
> causes
>
> but not knowing who will be a cause holder for what. It's like some 
> gigantic
>
> game of snap, where OS seems to me to miss a trick!
>
> ------------
> Chris, I think you still are missing the point, at least my point. The 
> core
> issue, as I see it, is not OS as a method, but rather the passion of the
> people involved which might lead them to follow through on their
> commitments,
> or at least apparent commitments. People make choices with their time and
> their lives. What may seem critical at the moment will often become a 
> minor
> concern when seen in the larger scheme of things. And maybe more to the
> point,
> what you may deem to be critical, may not appear in the same light to
> others.
> And by the same token, your schedule for follow through may not be theirs.
> Of
> course we could, can and do extend the possibility for action 
> electronically
>
> and with follow on gatherings. In effect we can and must make every effort
> to
> keep the space open. But at the end of the day, and indeed on every day --
> it
> is the peoples' choice.
>
>
> ---------------------------------------------------
> This mail sent through http://www.easynetdial.co.uk
>
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