relationship-based funding

Fri Mar 10 16:16:54 PST 2006

Chris, thanks for the added description. I'll be interested to hear how 
this unfolds.
Diane

On Mar 10, 2006, at 1:56 PM, Chris Weaver wrote:

> Diane,
>
> I understand your questions.  No, to my knowledge our idea has not yet 
> been
> tried, and many of the technical & process details are yet to be 
> worked out.
>
> We intend to invite our wonderful regional community foundation to be a
> co-convenor of the experiment, and donor-advised funds are one good 
> starting
> place.  The idea is that there are some potential donors who would 
> value
> having a more active and direct role in the synergy and development of 
> local
> projects they support, and to develop an ongoing collaborative 
> relationship
> with the people "on the ground."  (These are the philanthropists who 
> may be
> weary of people being only interested in their money and not their 
> whole
> selves, their wisdom and vision and full presence).  The centerpiece 
> of the
> process will be a 2.5-day OST that brings together potential donors and
> project folks around a specific theme (in our case related to the 
> broad idea
> of sustainability).  There will be some pre-work done among both 
> "groups"
> prior to the event.  The drafting of State of Grace Documents among the
> collaborators on any specific project will take place at a follow-up 
> event
> designed for that purpose.  Then the State of Grace Documents will 
> become a
> vehicle for bringing folks together on a regular basis (perhaps 
> quarterly)
> to share progress, stories, & challenges, to renew commitments (or 
> not), and
> to continue to develop the project together.
>
> In the context of the dominant societal paradigm around money & power, 
> the
> intricacies of how philanthropy currently happens all have their proper
> place.  But as methodologies like open space and State of Grace 
> Documents
> continue to show us, where there is passion and common purpose, there 
> is
> always a simpler way.
>
> Chris
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: OSLIST [mailto:OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU]On Behalf Of Diane
> Brandon
> Sent: Thursday, March 09, 2006 6:54 AM
> To: OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU
> Subject: relationship-based funding
>
>
> Chris, can you give a real or imaginary example of how this (State of
> Grace Documents as relationship-based alternatives to grants & other
> traditional funding mechanisms.) might work? The non-profit work I'm
> part of receives grants from "Community Foundations", where "donor
> advised funds" are granted to projects. In the "relationship-based
> alternatives", would the donor have their funds in their own
> investments, and work on a State of Grace document as a sort of MOU
> (memorandum of understanding) between them and the project or program
> they are funding? How would they not have many organizations seeking to
> do this with them? The community foundations serve as intermediaries,
> to save the wealthy person with a mission in mind from having to
> organize those seeking funds, and from having to know all the
> investment/donor laws, etc.
>
> I like what you're suggesting, but I'd love to hear some further
> descriptions, pros and cons. Is anyone doing it yet?
>
> Diane Brandon (coordinator of a regional coalition that uses
> participatory methods like FS, WC, AI -- and OS soon)
>
> PS Melinda Salazar, who I mentioned some time back on this list, and
> who is now a member, is having Steve Cochran facilitate her OS on
> Teaching Peace at the high school in Durham NH on April 1.
>
>
> On Mar 9, 2006, at 6:29 AM, Chris Weaver wrote:
>
>> Thanks, Harrison & others, for the welcome when I posted a few weeks
>> ago.  It's lovely to be remembered after a couple of years off-list, &
>> delightful to see the online community thriving away in its inimitable
>> way.
>>  
>> A couple current highlights & interests:
>>  
>> I continue to work with youth, particularly teenagers.  I'm working
>> with some wonderful folks to develop a new form of "community-based
>> indigenous education."  I promote a return to the ancient idea that
>> the initiation from childhood to young-adulthood is a key moment for
>> the vast living intelligence of nature to re-enter the consciousness
>> of the human village.  Our youth can do this and are doing this for
>> those who notice.  Open space is a really good tool for
>> intergenerational, inclusive "culture creation," so that the youth can
>> be widely and deeply honored and supported in their role, and welcomed
>> back properly by the Elders and the village.  (Our project weblog will
>> soon be up ~ I'll let y'all know.)
>>  
>> Last week (thanks to Patricia Haines & the list) I attended the open
>> space convocation of the US Partnership for the UN Decade for
>> Education for Sustainable Development at the EPA campus near
>> Raleigh, North Carolina.  All I can say is that Steve Cochran has done
>> something extraordinary, the unfolding of which will make itself known
>> on this list and far beyond in the weeks & months to come.  Harrison's
>> post about the new climate change research brings the opportunities
>> around open space and the Partnership into an even sharper focus.
>>  
>> I am championing one initiative that came out of the convocation,
>> which I am excited to mention, although it's in early development. 
>> Inspired by my sketchy recollection of Michael Herman's "Giving
>> Conference" in Chicago a couple years back, I'm working with Maureen
>> and Zelle, Patricia, & others on a new way to bring potential donors
>> together with grassroots sustainability project leaders, using open
>> space, and resulting in State of Grace Documents as relationship-based
>> alternatives to grants & other traditional funding mechanisms.  If all
>> goes well we'll pilot this in North Carolina (probably here in
>> Asheville) by summer.
>>  
>> That's my news from the Northamerican southeast highlands, as the
>> birds call in the dawn from the Atlantic.  Enjoy your day, everyone.
>>  
>> Chris Weaver
>>  * * ==========================================================
>> OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU ------------------------------ To
>> subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of
>> oslist at listserv.boisestate.edu:
>> http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html To learn about
>> OpenSpaceEmailLists and OSLIST FAQs:
>> http://www.openspaceworld.org/oslist
> *
> *
> ==========================================================
> OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU
> ------------------------------
> To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options,
> view the archives of oslist at listserv.boisestate.edu:
> http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html
>
> To learn about OpenSpaceEmailLists and OSLIST FAQs:
> http://www.openspaceworld.org/oslist
>
> *
> *
> ==========================================================
> OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU
> ------------------------------
> To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options,
> view the archives of oslist at listserv.boisestate.edu:
> http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html
>
> To learn about OpenSpaceEmailLists and OSLIST FAQs:
> http://www.openspaceworld.org/oslist
>

*
*
==========================================================
OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU
------------------------------
To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options,
view the archives of oslist at listserv.boisestate.edu:
http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html

To learn about OpenSpaceEmailLists and OSLIST FAQs:
http://www.openspaceworld.org/oslist

>From  Sat Mar 11 12:00:03 2006
Message-Id: <SAT.11.MAR.2006.120003.0500.>
Date: Sat, 11 Mar 2006 12:00:03 -0500
Reply-To: hhowen at verizon.net
To: OSLIST <OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU>
From: Harrison Owen <hhowen at verizon.net>
Organization: HH Owen and Co.
Subject: Reflections on the Law of Two Feet (longish)
MIME-version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

As previously disclosed, I have made the fateful error of starting a new
book. Whether it actually sees the light of day with proper publication
remains to be seen, but I have been having some fun exploring some odd
places - the latest one being the Law of Two Feet. I have been trying to
apply what we have learned about systems and self-organization in our 20
year wanderings in Open Space to the real live organizational world, and
most particularly to facilitate our effort to find higher levels of
performance. If interested - read on.

Observe the Law of Two Feet

	The Law of Two Feet specifies that if at any time you are neither
learning nor contributing, you should use your two feet and move to a =
more
productive place. In Open Space this may first appear as a curious, =
possibly
quaint, affectation, but its application in the larger world of "real"
businesses and organizations seems something of a stretch. The immediate
assumption is that if everyone were to follow their own personal
predilections the resultant chaos would be disaster.
	Seen from the point of view of those who consider the formal,
organized system to be dominant and desirable, such a judgment is =
doubtless
correct.  On the other hand, when the mind shifts, and the ground =
reverses
with the figure, so that self-organization is understood to be the
fundamental reality (There is no such thing as a non-self-organizing
system!), chaos becomes an essential pre-condition of emergent order. No
chaos - no order, no life, no organization. More to the point, all =
attempts
to limit, or eliminate chaos are not only doomed to failure, but are
actually counter-productive. Chaos, we are learning, is the rich seed =
bed of
emergent order. Strange new world.
	It might also be remembered that The Law of Two Feet is descriptive,
although it is certainly phrased in a most prescriptive fashion. The =
truth
of the matter is that regardless of constraint or intention we all =
follow
the Law of Two Feet. When learning and contribution cease, interest
dissipates, and our capacity for caring finds a new locus. That locus =
may be
out the window with the birds, into the middle of next week for that
exciting conference we anticipate attending, or backwards in time to the
beach last summer. The fact is - we are no longer present, nor do we =
care to
be present.
	In the world of self-organizing systems, The Law of Two Feet is a
simple statement of fact - but remembering to observe that law will have =
a
more than salutary effect on the optimal function of human systems. The
reason is a simple one. When we become prisoner to the strictures of the
formal system (custom, regulation, procedures, ways of thinking about
things), all of which may have been very good ideas once upon a time, we =
are
effectively taken out of the ongoing search for fitness. As individuals =
we
will lose the opportunity to build new skills and new competencies. And =
the
organization of which we are a part will lose an effective agent (us) in =
the
ongoing pursuit of high performance. In a word, it is a lose/lose =
situation.
	Under optimal circumstances, when the Law of Two feet is fully
observed, we (that is all 6 =BD billion of us) become part of a milling =
crowd,
randomly searching to a better way to be (fit). From the point of view =
of
the conventional wisdom, being a part of the milling crowd appears as a
perfect prescription for ineffectiveness, the very antithesis of high
performance. And yet, as we may learn from our brother the ant - a =
random
search is the epitome of efficiency provided there are a lot of =
searchers
and an effective means of rapid communication.=20
	When morning comes, and the colony is in need of sustenance, the
ants stream out across the local real estate. What begins as an orderly
column quickly dissolves into a random search pattern as each individual =
ant
is guided in new and different directions by the local topography and =
their
own particular abilities and limitations. There is no formal grid =
search,
and each ant is on their own, doing their own thing - and collectively =
they
cover a lot of territory very effectively. Sooner or later they will
discover their objective: food. You might say they were following The =
Law of
Six Feet.
	Food may come in the form of some unfortunate worm, or perhaps our
picnic lunch, but once the discovery has been made, the randomness of =
the
crowd quickly transforms into the ordered progression of worker ants
bringing home the bacon. And the key to the transformation is effective =
and
rapid communication, which in the case of the ants seems to be =
chemically
based, but it surely works.
	To say that the ant behavior is random is by no means the same as
saying it is aimless. Each ant knows perfectly well what they are =
looking
for: dinner. In our own situation, as we wander amongst the milling =
crowd,
the randomness of our search is focused by what we care about. And =
conscious
attention to The Law of two Feet insures that we keep that focus. =
Sometimes,
to be sure, the Law operates in an apparently negative fashion by =
allowing
us to leave what we don't care about, but this process of elimination =
may be
the only way when life becomes confusing and overburdened. And of =
course, if
we do not care about anything, life quickly loses its meaning and often, =
its
duration.=20
	In sum, the law of Two Feet keeps our attention on what we really
care about, what has genuine heart and meaning for us. When we lose =
sight of
what we care about, we lose our compass, and of course, if we care about =
too
many things, the effect is essentially the same. At such a time, being =
clear
about what we don't care for can be clarifying.
	The image of 6.5 billion people randomly seeking what they care for
through out, not only physical space, but also what I might call
"possibility space" (much of what we seek will never be found at a =
physical
time/space coordinate) - is awesome indeed, and maybe even terrifying. =
Given
an infinite number of random possibilities, how on earth could anything
approaching an orderly, purposeful life - individually or collectively -
ever emerge?  Stated more practically, how could we ever get organized =
in
order to conduct the business of living, when the mode of operation =
appears
as massive hedonistic anarchy?=20
	The secret, I believe, is caring, or what I have previously called
the nexus of caring. As people search for what has heart and meaning, =
some
number of these searchers will discover that they are looking for the =
same
thing. While they may care in multiple and different ways, the object of
their affection is identical. This commonality of caring draws them =
together
in much the same way that the Strange Attractors of Chaos Theory draw
together the oddments of the physical world, and with a similar result -
emergent order. The nature and structure of that order is never =
predictable,
and even less may it be established in advance for the simple reason =
that it
(the organization) is the product of the people, the task, and the
environment - all of which are constantly in flux.=20
	The fact that each individual cares in some different fashion is by
no means a liability, rather a source of enormous strength, for the
diversity of approaches creates the possibility of robust, adaptive
solutions. It is common knowledge that organizations with a single, or
restricted, response pattern may do quite well in a stable environment, =
but
when the environment itself is in constant flux, diversity of potential
responses is a major key to longevity.
	If ever there were a situation to totally boggle the rational mind
it is the situation described above. Starting with 6.5 billion potential
participants, any or all of which may be linked in an infinite number of
ways - the possibilities are absolutely infinite. The thought that one =
might
put it all together in a rational, linear way in order to create even a
simple organization is perhaps thinkable, but only briefly, resulting =
(at
least in my case) in a severe headache. And yet this is precisely what =
the
power of self-organization does on a daily basis, even as it has done =
for 14
billion years. Self-organization is quite capable of taking care of the
business all by itself with, or without, our assistance. However, we may
enhance the possibility of successful outcomes (a truly functional
organization) if we make sure to provide the maximum space/time free =
from
encumbrance (Open Space) in which all participants may move at will as =
they
observe the Law of Two Feet.

Harrison Owen
7808 River Falls Drive
Potomac, Maryland   20854
Phone 301-365-2093
Skype hhowen
Open Space Training www.openspaceworld.com =
<http://www.openspaceworld.com/>

Open Space Institute www.openspaceworld.org
Personal website www.ho-image.com=20
OSLIST: To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the =
archives
Visit: www.listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html
<http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html>=20

*
*
=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,
view the archives of oslist at listserv.boisestate.edu:
http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html

To learn about OpenSpaceEmailLists and OSLIST FAQs:
http://www.openspaceworld.org/oslist