Large-scale community project

[Lisa Heft]

Hi, Liz - how exciting!

I am one of those who has done quite a few OSs for 1500 and 2000 and  
more.

One of my recommendations is to keep in mind that while the form of OS  
stays the same (and scales up to those overall group sizes) your pre- 
work shall probably include lots of thought about what makes the site  
intuitively easy to navigate / find a session they are interested in  
way across the site without folks getting lost, ability to hear and to  
see and access Agenda Wall, facilitator, session convenors announcing  
their sessions, other access issue such as wheelchair/crutch/weaker  
legs issues and so on.  All true of smaller events too - but in my  
experience, crucial in the larger ones.  Also watching traffic pattens  
not just for ease of navigating but for safety issues as well (should  
there be a fire or other emergency, where are the clear routes of  
access and exit).

So as a 'Devils Advocate' question - the theatre is the only big space  
you can use? rather than an auditorium or conference hall with  
completely clear (for discussion area set-up) floor space?
I'm guessing you went through all that investigation and the theatre  
space is what you have.

Wall space: I have used and heard of sticky walls (parachute-like  
material with spray-adhesive where the topic signs just stick - but of  
course you have to affix that fabric and its weight of signage onto  
the wall as well), exhibit walls such as in trade shows (often cost a  
lot to rent), fold-out cardboard walls such as Neuland products offer  
(perhaps a bit expensive as well), 'Canadian tables' (tables leaned  
upright so their faces become the 'wall' surface), sides of busses,  
clotheslines with clothes pins (again, plan for sag and weight of  
signs), curtains and straight pins...
...I am curious why you need walls when it is a theatre...perhaps you  
can explain the space more - thanks.

Signing up: Many of my dear colleagues who I respect deeply feel the  
signing up on the topic signs is essential for setting intention and  
furthering the self-organization. I experimented with dropping that as  
'one less thing' and I found it improved upon the situation. The  
'situation' I refer to is not just about traffic jams at the wall  
(which was my initial reason for trying this one less thing) but also  
I noted that some session convenors saw nobody signing up for their  
sessions so assumed nobody would come and removed their signs (when in  
actuality through the course of the day folks are drawn to more or  
different sessions than they signed their names on to / thought they  
might be interested in at the beginning of the day) - others said 'oh  
my - this is a big group coming - I must go find a big room ' and when  
it actually happened maybe 10 people came - because again - their  
interests and energies changed throughout the day.  So to me, the not  
signing names on topic signs (except of course for the convenor  
placing her/his name on their own sign) seems to be an improvement.   
However I do invite my great colleagues - especially those who have  
done larger events who do still include the signing-up element - to  
share what works, why they retain it and so on - many diverse  
experiences lead to several options and styles.

Video screen: I have had several large events where this has been part  
of the design - and in each one found that the client worked hard on  
this (such as transcribing what is going up on the wall immediately so  
they can throw it on a screen / multiple screens) but the participants  
have ignored the screen and instead go up to the wall with the papers  
on it - whether that Agenda Wall is in the main room where most  
sessions are convening (with some breakout spaces down the hall) or  
whether the Agenda Wall is moved to the hallway or something specific  
to that site.  What are other folks' experiences, especially in these  
larger group sizes / events?

Convergence: For that I would have to ask you what is your objective  
for that convergence. If you mean Closing Circle comments and  
reflections as your convergence, I just use multiple microphone  
locations and invite folks to come up to share their reflections,  
discoveries, breakthrough conversations, exciting stories and rich  
learnings of the day. And I have those scribed to include in the Book  
of Proceedings. Not going around in a circle but offering time for  
folks to come up to the mic. Is that what you mean?

And: are you doing documentation / having participants take their  
notes to co-create a Book of Proceedings?  I've done that as well for  
these large events and I am sure my colleagues who do larger OS events  
have done this as well - ask away.

I look forward to hearing my colleagues similar and different  
experiences for these larger groups,

Lisa


Lisa Heft
Consultant, Facilitator, Educator
Opening Space
lisaheft at openingspace.net
www.openingspace.net

Ask me about the The Power of Pre-Work workshop for facilitators - 
August 18-20, 2010 - San Francisco
and the Open Space Learning Workshops - October 15-18, 2010 -  
Medellin, Colombia and December 15-17, 2010 - San Francisco





On Jul 21, 2010, at 8:00 AM, Liz Martins wrote:

> Dear all
>
> I’m involved in a large-scale community project in Bristol, UK,  
> based on OS. As well as local OS events across the city, it  
> culminates in large (1500 people) OS event in February. I’ll put  
> information about the project below, if you’re interested.
>
> No doubt I’ll be coming to the list quite a few times over the next  
> months, but just now I’d really appreciate some help about…
>
> ·         Whether anyone has a large event coming up (in the UK or  
> Europe) that might be possible for some of our project team to attend
> ·         Whether anyone has done something like our project and is  
> willing to share any learning
>
> And, starting to think about the process detail for the big event  
> (which is in a big theatre with additional breakout space in a large  
> modern extension so has limitations on flexibility)
>
> ·       We know we’re going to need masses of additional wall space  
> and wondering how best to achieve this - we’ve seen/heard of people  
> using portable stands, cardboard walls etc – what’s out there?
> ·       What about people signing up or not signing up – what’s lost  
> if they don’t do this and just go to the conversations? The  
> ‘traffic’ is going to be a challenge, and this would be one less  
> thing to do.
> ·       Our plan is to have separate sections of wall for the  
> different session times – but within this, any thoughts about  
> whether, given the large numbers of people, it’s best to use a grid  
> or free-form posting using post-its?
> ·       Experience of using large video screen(s) so people can see  
> what’s going on the wall?
> ·       Thoughts about convergence in very large events?
> ·       Anything else that you think of that might be helpful….!
>
> With many thanks in anticipation of help
>
> Liz
>
> Liz Martins
> lizmartins2 at gmail.com
> +44 (0)7977 932066
>
> Bristol Open Space Project - Part of EY2010: European Year for  
> Combating  Poverty and Social Exclusion.
> A Better Bristol For All
>
> The Open Space project is part of a larger European project  
> (EY2010). Key aims are to give voice to those experiencing poverty  
> and social exclusion and also to raise awareness of how we need to  
> work together as a society towards equality and inclusion. Bristol’s  
> response to EY2010 is a series of events and projects around the  
> whole city under the heading of “Working Together for Positive  
> Change”.
>
> The Open Space project,  A Better Bristol For All, aims to support  
> better contact and flow of creativity between local grassroots  
> social and community action groups within the context of the whole  
> of Bristol.  Each neighbourhood is being invited to put on an Open  
> Space event to look at local connections and creativity and then  
> culminate in coming together in February 2011 in one mass open space  
> event. This will bring together the ideas, creativity and  
> inspiration that has been sparked locally, so that Bristol comes  
> together, to be more in contact, more creative, and move to a Better  
> Bristol for All.
>
> The project starts with forming a project team of about 16 people  
> keen to learn about facilitating OS meetings and using it in their  
> future work in communities. The aim is to grow ‘OS’ facilitation as  
> a resource for the city. Most of these people are already signed up.  
> There’s a one-day training in OS for them in September with more  
> during the project.
>
> The flow of the project is to start with a central focus involving  
> key people, then out to local communities, and then back to the  
> major event in February. In October there’s an OS day with about 100  
> people from the council and Bristol city neighbourhood partnerships,  
> grassroots community groups, service users etc. This event will  
> provide the impetus for taking the project out to the local areas.  
> In Nov/Dec/Jan there will be 12 local neighbourhood OS events across  
> the city, funded by the project and facilitated by people from the  
> project team, working with local organisers. Then, in February there  
> will be the final big OS event bringing together people from across  
> the city who have been involved in the neighbourhood events, and  
> others, including from European cities twinned with Bristol.  The  
> key themes that come out of the project will be taken forward and  
> presented to local and national government.
>
> I’m holding responsibility for the OS process, with my colleague  
> Vivian Broughton who had the vision for the project initially. We  
> will be training and supporting the project team and facilitating  
> events ourselves or supporting project team members to do so. The  
> logistics, budget, PR etc and everything else are being held  
> elsewhere, though we will be involved where it impacts on the OS  
> process. Vivian and I both have experience of facilitating OS, and  
> Vivian was at the big 2000+ event in Germany facilitated by HO and  
> Michael P, but we haven’t done it like this before, at such scale.  
> We expect to be very surprised!
>

*
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