Self-organizing: the co-creative Practice of Peace

[Tree Fitzpatrick]

In my humble opinion (IMHO), Open Space Technology is the Practice of Peace.
 IMHO, every time people gather in a circle, listen to the principles of
OST, contemplate a collective question and move into conversations with a
continued awareness, however faint, of the princples of OST, people are
practicing what humanity needs to do to manifest peace on earth.
 IMHO, any question is as good a place to start to practice peace as
anywhere else.
 Strategic planning, team building, personal development. . . any activity
undertaken in an OST consciousness is practicing peace and evolving the
human story.
 Thanks, Anne, for your PoP story.


 On 10/10/05, anne stadler <annestad at comcast.net> wrote:
>
> The co-creative Practice of Peace.
>
>
> Sept. 28th, 2005
>
>
>
> Anne Stadler
>
> annestad at comcast.net
>
>
>
> November, 2003:
>
> Imagine a large windowed room, open to the outdoors, with 150 people
> sitting in a circle. They are gathered here to practice peace. They have
> come from as far as Israel, Palestine, India, Haiti, Northern Ireland,
> Colombia, Mexico, Denmark, Canada, Bosnia, Nigeria, Burundi, Nepal, Taiwan,
> Washington, DC, and many other places in the United States, as well nearby
> in the Northwest. They've come to the Whidbey Institute on Whidbey Island,
> Washington, for three days of Self-organized activity: taking responsibility
> for their passions in the Practice of Peace. They are all ages, all skin
> colors, from many walks of life.
>
> They open their daily circle in silence. The ringing of a clear bell
> signals the beginning and end of their entry into silence. They organize
> themselves by using the simple tools of paper and felt pens to convene
> topics they care about. A long wall is titled Agenda Wall. When the
> marketplace for the day's offerings is opened, people who want to convene
> sessions, write the topic and their name on a piece of paper, stand up and
> announce what they are offering then tape the offering on that wall:
> declaring topic, name, time and place for meeting.
>
> Many of the invitations are provocative: "Healing a Wounded Country",
> "What are you willing to Die for?" "Watch a movie about the Wall going up in
> Israel and talk about the implications." "Compassionate listening to
> personal stories of war and violence." Others invite people to "Explore
> Playback Theater as a practice of peace", "Walk in the woods to contemplate
> the lessons of nature." "The inner practice of peace."
>
> By the end of three days, people have engaged deeply with each other, have
> listened to the call of spirit, have connected with the natural world. They
> have formed new bonds of friendship and collaboration. They have planted the
> seeds of new peacemaking initiatives: Global Citizens Journey travels to
> Nigeria to build a library in a riverine community in the Niger delta; young
> people are joining other young people in building homes in Burundi; opening
> space in Bogota Colombia with street children; opening space in Israel for
> the vision of Jerusalem 2020; a media project to spread stories of success
> and peaceful evolution… and more!
>
> This Practice of Peace was a practical experience of Open Space Technology
> married with Spirited Work. Spirited Work, a learning community of practice,
> was host and convenor. Spirited Workers had been coming together for six
> years, exploring on-going open space organization. For many, the practice of
> opening space had become a daily spiritual practice, as well as a way of
> conducting co-creative collective life.
>
>
>
> Open Space Technology:
>
> Life is a self-organizing system. Open Space Technology is a distillation
> of the essential features of human self-organizing. Using OST, people can
> self-organize their activities with ease, emergent leadership and
> appropriate form. The all-knowing, intelligent field (the whole) organizes
> itself via the actions of people who are opening space. This organizing
> process happens at a subconscious level for each individual, allowing people
> to participant in any way appropriate for them, welcoming all who are
> attracted.
>
>
>
> The necessary features are these:
>
> 1. Identify an intention or question for gathering.
>
> 2. Invite all people who have a stake in the situation or question
>
> 3. Seat everyone in a circle (or circles) to communicate that everyone
> present is essential to the whole.
>
> 4. Open a marketplace of individual offerings.
>
> 5. Participate according to one law and four principles, releasing the
> full potential of the group.
>
> The Law of Two Feet: Take responsibility for your passion. Show up for
> that. Let your two feet carry you to wherever you can act on that.
>
> Principles:
>
> (1) Whoever comes are the right people.
>
> (2) Whatever happens is the only thing that could've
>
> (3) Whenever it starts is the right time.
>
> (4) When it's over, it's over.
>
> 6. Use simple tools (paper, felt pens, and masking tape) to offer
>
> conversations or activities that have heart and meaning for the
>
> invitor.
>
> 7. Establish transparent communications.: Each small group
>
> appoints a reporter who take notes and enters them into a computer,
>
> creating a daily log available to everyone, including those
>
> participating via the Internet.
>
> 8. Share learning and insights: At the end of the day, the whole circle
> re-
>
> forms for a Quaker meeting-style exchange or passing the Talking Stick to
> reflect on and share learning..
>
>
>
> These are the essential elements of OST and the fundamentals of human
> self-organizing.
>
>
>
> Self-organizing:
>
> The Whidbey Island Practice of Peace was an exercise in Self-organizing--a
> co-creative Practice of Peace.
>
> A co-creative Practice of Peace is both a spiritual practice of opening
> inner space, and also a medium for opening space in groups to listen to
> inner guidance, discover and express healthy relationships.
>
> The use of "S" (in Self-organizing) signals the deliberate opening of
> inner space through silence to allow action to be guided by gnosis (or
> "divine essence"). In a group gathering, participants open each circle in
> silence, and speak from listening. The flow of self-organized creation
> happens in the context of Self-organized *co*-creation.
>
> Consciousness evolves as people are guided to participate in creation of
> practical activities and conversations. Through the medium of Open Space
> Technology, spirit manifests in practical action.
>
> The gifts of each person present, as each takes responsibility for what
> he/she truly loves, become a gift exchange, creating true community, however
> transitory. (The word "community" is from the Latin: "cum" meaning "with" or
> "together," "munus" meaning "gift.").
>
> As a group process, the spirited Practice of Peace
>
> integrates the evolution of planetary consciousness (Self-organizing) with
> the evolution of universal creation (self-organizing)—giving rise to
> practical activities and loving attention supporting the health and well
> being of all.
>
>
>
>
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--
Warmly,
Tree Fitzpatrick
"It is never too late to be what you might have been." George Elliot
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