strength based, large scale grief work

[Chris Corrigan]

Yup...I remember Michael's post well.  It is a great design.  

Chris
----
Chris Corrigan
chris at chriscorrigan.com
http://www.chriscorrigan.com


On 2010-05-02, at 6:17 PM, Michael Herman wrote:

> christine, 
> 
> i did a world cafe program about a year ago where a group of 100 or 120 students met in a world cafe way heavily informed by open space principles -- where they got to create their own questions in the first round and then address them in the four later rounds.
> 
> one of the points of this model was that these students were being considered for scholarships at a couple of major universities.  but some of them would be cut.  the moment of being together was short and then the decisions came out.  regardless of who won and who lost, we wanted to create an agenda that worked for the day, but also could travel easily back to all the high schools these folks came from and then on to college with them.  or we wanted to create an agenda that at least had that potential for travelling.
> 
> so the first question we asked was something like "what questions do young people who aspire to be leaders need to be asking and answering for themselves?"  in that first round, each table made lists of questions.  one person stayed to explain, and the others moved on at the end of that round.  
> 
> then in later rounds, those gathered at each table chose a question.  or the person who stayed could pick the question, allowing folks to select a table based on the question to be discussed.  hints of os.  just barely.  there was also the option to cluster questions or have sequel conversations or add new questions to the list.   
> 
> this is how i remember it anyway.  but a blog post at the time has more and better details.
> http://www.michaelherman.com/wordpress/archives/2009/04/02/leadership-cafe/
> 
> to me, the main benefit is that we were able to identify and validate (in a sense) piles of questions that could then be raised in all kinds of downstream/elsewhere conversations.  this part of it seems like it might be helpful in arizona now.  hope so.  and good luck!
> 
> m
> 
> 
> 
> 
> --
> 
> Michael Herman
> Michael Herman Associates
> 
> http://www.michaelherman.com
> http://www.ronanparktrail.com
> http://www.chicagoconservationcorps.org
> http://www.openspaceworld.org
> 
> 312-280-7838 (mobile)
> 
> 
> On Sun, May 2, 2010 at 5:47 PM, Christine Whitney Sanchez <cwhitneysanchez at gmail.com> wrote:
> Cross-posted on the AI & NCDD lists...
> 
> Dear Open Space Friends,
> 
> There are many opportunities for generative, strength-based citizen conversations popping up in Arizona due to the law that was signed last week by our governor, making it a crime to be an illegal immigrant in Arizona and mandating police to stop anyone they suspect of being "illegal".  One third of our population in Arizona is Hispanic.  You can imagine the tensions and the grief.  
> 
> I'm working with a local group that would like to host a large-scale conversation on May 26, working title:  Transformation Talks: Our Voices - Arizona's Future.  We are designing a 2 hour event in Phoenix that can accommodate up to 1,000  The reason for the large number is that the governor and many others constantly refer to a (poorly designed) poll with a sample of 500 that claims that 70% of Arizonans favor such a law. 
> 
> We will likely use a World Cafe format, use appreciative questions and create the conditions so that people can self-organize for collaborative action.  The team I'm working with feels strongly that people in Arizona need a chance to talk about their pain, fear and anger first before they will be able to move into thinking about the future.  I agree.  
> 
> When my twenty year old son first heard the concept, he said, "Who will pick the questions?"  Not long ago, someone (was it you, Chris Corrigan?) mentioned a process where the questions emerged at tables.
> 
> I would be grateful for any stories about working with grief on a large scale and your thoughts/suggestions on event design and questions that will encourage deep conversations and move into action.
> 
> Warm wishes on a windy Phoenix day,
> 
> 
> 
> Christine
> 
> Christine Whitney Sanchez
> Collaborative Wisdom & Strategy
> +1.480.759.0262  
> www.christinewhitneysanchez.com 
> www.promiseusa.com
> Skype: christinewhitneysanchez
> http://www.facebook.com/ChristineWhitneySanchez
> http://www.linkedin.com/in/christinewhitneysanchez
> 
> 
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