[OSList] OST and funding crisis
Allan Adams
allan at beyondiq.com.au
Fri Nov 25 14:37:40 PST 2011
Dear Harrison
I am new to OST and am yet to deliver an OST event and am excited at the
prospect. More exciting right now is being a part of the OST family of
facilitators and actually reading a response from you to one of the crew in
need of assistance. I feel priveledged to be a part of this incredible body
of people making a positive difference in the world.
Best regards to you all
Allan
On Nov 26, 2011 3:45 AM, "Harrison Owen" <hhowen at verizon.net> wrote:
> Lori – Try these. All from Liberia – where there are lots of tough rows to
> hoe and multiple NGOs.****
>
> ** **
>
> *From:* Susan Partnow <susan4ps at comcast.net>
> *To:* OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU
> *Sent:* Tue, March 29, 2011 1:34:58 AM
> *Subject:* OS and World Cafe at a Community Meeting in Monrovia, Liberia
>
>
> ****
>
> Last Saturday my partners and I hosted over 120 community leaders at an
> Open Space Community Meeting here in Monrovia, Liberia. My small non
> profit, Global Citizen Journey, in partnership with the Liberian
> organization, Population Caring Organization, are launching the Liberia
> Peacebuilder Initiative to help grow a network of leaders that cut across
> all of the many divides here: traditional, Christian, Muslim; 16+ ethnic
> groups; men/women; youth/elders; educated/illiterate; ex-combatants;
> returning refugees. We have recruited 35 leaders from the Interfaith
> Council of Churches, Tribal Elders Council, National Council of Tribal
> Governance, and several NGOs plus the Kofi Annan Graduate school of Peace
> Studies. These 35 received a 5 day training in Compassionate Listening,
> Restorative Circles, Trauma Healing, Forgiveness & Reconciliation – and I
> will return in 2 months to continue this train-the-trainer program. One of
> the components they will learn is how to facilitate Open Space and World
> Café, so they will have these powerful tools to share with their
> communities and bring their groups together in dialogue. To introduce them
> to this practice, they were invited to attend with their invited guests to
> a Community Meeting last Saturday with the convening question, ****
>
> “It’s up to us – you and me. We have challenges and opportunities.****
>
> *What can we do now to begin to create the Liberia that works for all of
> us”*****
>
> ****
>
> For this first week, I was accompanied by a group of students and two
> professors from Salem State University (in Massachusetts) – led by Dr. Greg
> Carroll, chair of the Intercultural and Peace studies program there – and
> we offered a 3 day training to the Salem students plus students from the
> Kofi Annan School of Peace Studies at the University of Liberia. ****
>
> For the community meeting, we started the morning with a World Café – to
> help connect everyone across the diverse groups present in the room – and
> to begin giving them the experience and skill of dialogue, i.e. each person
> having a turn to have their voice heard, each person listening to one
> another, weaving together thoughts into a dialogue – vs. their usual habit
> of orating, with each speaker giving their own little speech without
> connection to the speaker before or after. We had three rounds with these
> questions:****
>
> *Round 1)** What do you love about Liberia?*****
>
> *Round 2)** What keeps us from making Liberia what we want it to be?*****
>
> *Round 3)** How can we begin to work together to make these ‘better
> Liberia’ dreams come true?*****
>
> * *****
>
> Before we began the first round, we had everyone move around so they would
> be in a circle that included men and women and people they didn’t know.
> This took a while, but with help from the Salem students and PCO staff, we
> got them into the small groups of 4. I introduced and explained the use of
> a talking object (we had stones picked up at their beautiful beaches).
> After I explained in my US English, a local party translated into the local
> vernacular creole (“everybody talk small small time with ‘talking object-o’
> and listen each other-o”). Still, there was clear lack of understanding –
> this was out of everyone’s experience – so we went around to each group to
> help them get it: so someone would actually pick up their talking object
> and begin – and pass it around, no cross talk… It was fascinating to see
> how –by the third round—everyone in the room had caught on to the idea –
> and the groups were fully engaged, one round with the talking object, then
> really juicy and connected/coherent conversation… We had a great debrief
> and discussion… Then we moved into a large double circle and I introduced
> Open Space – so thrilled to tell them how it was really coming back home to
> them – since Harrison Owen learned so much from Liberia (where he was the
> head of Peace Corps) that he wove into the process…****
>
> They were very responsive to step right up and offer topics… After
> creating the market place, we had lunch with some fabulous Liberian
> drumming and dancing… and then moved into the first session. Again, it took
> a while for them to really understand how they could move from session to
> session – and how they could choose a session to attend – not just their
> own topic! But by ~15-20 minutes into it, everyone was fully engaged in a
> topic of their choice…****
>
> ****
>
> For the Open Space, 26 topics were generated:****
>
> 1. How can we bring fair justice in Liberia to make peace****
> 2. Living as an ambassador of genuine peace****
> 3. How to resolve land dispute****
> 4. Creating peace among learners****
> 5. Conflict Resolution****
> 6. How can we reconcile?****
> 7. What is the future after 2011 elections?****
> 8. How can we build peace in Liberia?****
> 9. Peace begins with us****
> 10. Culture into education****
> 11. Improvement of education sector****
> 12. Good working relationship****
> 13. What you can do to bring above peace?****
> 14. What it takes to be a community leader?****
> 15. Peace brings unity****
> 16. National reconciliation****
> 17. Forgive one another****
> 18. How to avoid bad governance****
> 19. How can Salem State University help Liberia?****
> 20. Methods of building peace****
> 21. Promoting peacebuilding implementations @ workplaces/ schools &
> Universities/ communities/ churches/ government & institutions****
> 22. Democracy & good governance, leadership with integrity to have a
> peaceful environment in Liberia****
> 23. Peace in the family****
> 24. Peace in 16 counties****
> 25. How do we protect the peace we enjoy?****
> 26. What Liberians stand to benefit should the peace process become
> successful?****
>
> ****
>
> Since there were no computers available and many people do not write, we
> had a helper in each group help create a flipchart with key points
> discussed and any action steps identified. Our Liberian Partners will
> create a report that contains much of this information and will disseminate
> it to each of the key groups that sent participants. I’ll keep you posted
> on outcomes we hear of. Though already we heard there was quite a buzz
> about what a successful and engaging event it was – and how people are
> introducing the idea of circles and talking objects to their communities.*
> ***
>
> ****
>
> All for now,****
>
> Susan ****
>
> Susan Partnow****
>
> ** **
>
> And From Blake Mills – also from Liberia—****
>
> ** **
>
> Dear Harrison,****
>
> >** **
>
> > Just finished OS in an NGO office in Liberia that deals with malaria ***
> *
>
> > prevention, treatment and education. (25 people, 13 topics, 1 day) In **
> **
>
> > the closing circle, I wished you had been there and thought of you ****
>
> > everytime someone said "This is our heritage of how we use to do it ****
>
> > and it feels good." " This is the first time we sit together in 4 ****
>
> > years and it is because of our Liberian past ."" "It is how they do it *
> ***
>
> > in our villages and now it brings us closer together and we can be one *
> ***
>
> > team, one program." "This is the first time I have seen everyone smile *
> ***
>
> > in our office." "People were fully engaged in the room." Immense pride *
> ***
>
> > filled the room. (I was asked to go to this office to do some team ****
>
> > building. I think it worked, wouldn't you say?)****
>
> >** **
>
> > This team has gone through major transitions from working with ****
>
> > malarial concerns in an emergency situation, just after the war to ****
>
> > post emergency work; from one country director's style to an opposite **
> **
>
> > country director's style; and a total change of expat management; all **
> **
>
> > in the last 3 months. And, you know what the # 1 topic out of the 13, **
> **
>
> > after they prioritized? LOVE, plain and simple and powerful. A ****
>
> > committee is now in charge of finding ways to express it in the ****
>
> > office. I think the country director was shocked at that choice but ****
>
> > even more surprised that a quiet man who pushes the broom, convened the
> topic.****
>
> >** **
>
> > I was a bit worried for the first hour as it was very slow moving and **
> **
>
> > I thought I had made the wrong choice, so I left the room and worked ***
> *
>
> > on my laptop, to not control the group and close the space. Turns out, *
> ***
>
> > no one had ever asked them before for their opinions. That was the
> hesitancy.****
>
> > The ball started rolling after the first time period.****
>
> >** **
>
> > So, my dear, Harrison...it all comes around and back to Liberia, you ***
> *
>
> > and your brillance at capturing the essence of the African culture and *
> ***
>
> > bottling it up for the rest of the world to sip. You have touched ****
>
> > their hearts deeply. In the closing circle, they didn't thank me...at **
> **
>
> > first I was...gee, no praise for me bringing it to them...HA! "When ****
>
> > the best leader's work is done, the people say "We did it ourselves."
> Lao Tzu.****
>
> >** **
>
> ** **
>
> ** **
>
> Harrison Owen****
>
> 7808 River Falls Dr.****
>
> Potomac, MD 20854****
>
> USA****
>
> ** **
>
> 189 Beaucaire Ave. (summer)****
>
> Camden, Maine 20854****
>
> ** **
>
> Phone 301-365-2093****
>
> (summer) 207-763-3261****
>
> ** **
>
> www.openspaceworld.com****
>
> www.ho-image.com (Personal Website)****
>
> To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of
> OSLIST Go to:
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>
> ** **
>
> *From:* oslist-bounces at lists.openspacetech.org [mailto:
> oslist-bounces at lists.openspacetech.org] *On Behalf Of *Lori Palano
> *Sent:* Friday, November 25, 2011 2:01 PM
> *To:* Open Space Technology email list
> *Subject:* [OSList] OST and funding crisis****
>
> ** **
>
> Hello all****
>
> ** **
>
> I have been lurking on this list for quite some time. I'm finally writing
> to call upon your collective experience to find a couple of good stories
> for a potential client. ****
>
> ** **
>
> I am going to be discussing the possibility of using OST with an
> international solidarity NGO who is in the middle of a funding crisis. Does
> anyone have good success stories along this line that might inspire the
> client to make an OST invitation?****
>
> ** **
>
> Thank you!****
>
> ** **
>
> Lori ****
>
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