[OSList] Bi-lingual open space

Catherine Pfaehler c.pfaehler at bluewin.ch
Sun Mar 4 09:32:02 PST 2012


Dear Lisa, this is excellent and thoughtful, attentive to minorities as
always – typically you. Thank you very much! I’ve printed it and put it into
my manual-folder. It’s an honor to know you! :-) 

 

Much love from Switzerland, Catherine

 

Catherine Pfaehler

Burckhardtstrasse 2

CH - 3008 Bern

+41-(0)31-536 05 31

 

  _____  

Von: Lisa Heft [mailto:lisaheft at openingspace.net] 
Gesendet: Samstag, 3. März 2012 05:08
An: World wide Open Space Technology email list
Betreff: Re: [OSList] Bi-lingual open space

 

Hi, Chuni - 

 

I have done a lot of multi-lingual (and also bi-lingual) Open Space events. 

I am guessing that others who have done this have other 'lessons learned' to
add to your thinking - this is what I have learned.

 

Get some tea everybody - it is a long message.

 

To me:  It starts from the design of registration and invitation materials,
the information you ask in registration to assess your language needs /
resources / capacities, and also assess your documentation capacity,
language-wise.

 

It continues with ongoing relationship-building for invitation and
invitation strategy - in the language, settings and cultural ways
different-language cultures communicate. Multiple ways and messages for
different kinds of participants, if you can. 

 

It continues with a thorough analysis of what the sound, visuals, signage
and dynamics specific to Open Space are like - and then designing language
access specifically to that:

 

Opening Circle / Agenda Co-Creation: 

- everybody in a circle, all listening quietly - if only 2 languages are
your main languages you have options to give the second-language speakers
headsets and a simultaneous translator for this section

- if you do decide to use headsets - make sure they all come from the same
provider. Mixing kinds often does not work.

- or someone who is out there in front of the group with the facilitator can
translate after the facilitator speaks each line slowly - and expressively -
pausing in between - into the second language used

 

Participants coming to the center, making signs, announcing topics:

- you have the option to have each participant come instead to one or more
sign-making tables at which there sit two helpers - each helper is fully
bilingual - one native speaker for each language used. 

- if the participant can write, they write their own topic sign in their own
language on the top have of (for example) an 11"x17" piece of paper (you
could fold all papers in 1/2 to show top and bottom).

- the helper who speaks the *other* language writes the translation of that
topic *in another color marker". This creates a bilingual sign quickly that
people can see their preferred language on fairly easily.

- If the participant cannot write, they simply tell their topic to the
helper at the sign-making table who writes it for them in both languages / 2
colors.

 

Then the participant walks up to the microphone in the center. There can be
two fully bilingual helpers sitting by the microphone, there in the center
(or outside ring or wherever people are announcing from).

- Participant says their topic in their home language. Helper who speaks the
other of the 2 languages takes the mic and says the translation. And off the
participant goes to post their topic sign on the wall.

Principles, Law, Notes-Taker Forms, Participant Sign-in Sheets for
discussion areas, everything: In the 2 languages.

 

Then everyone is talking at once all around the room for the sessions.

- In your registration, you have asked participants to indicate their first
and second language, fluency, etc. So you know your language needs from
that.

- Their badges come pre-marked with a color dot - for example: green for
Spanish speakers, Red for English speakers, a green and a red dot for
bilingual speakers

- Even with roving translators this dot system usually helps people help
each other with 'whisper translation'.

- If you have capacity you can also have roving translators - identify them
with the same color scheme, clearly visible (like a piece of fabric around
their neck / arm-band / etc.) - Green and Red

The participants may use them, or they may wave them away, doing fine for
themselves.

 

Then there is notes-taking.

- In your registration materials you can also ask who has a laptop to bring
for mutual use, who can help by taking notes when they can, and so on. In
the text that says this you explain that bilingual notes-takers will be a
welcome support to increase knowledge-sharing across culture and language.

You don't formally give people these roles - you are just 'seeding' the
field and inviting this capacity.

At the Newsroom you can ask everyone who can to transcribe their final notes
in (let us say) English. For your English version of the Book of
Proceedings. Even if not everyone can do that, you will have less to
translate post-event because some of them will be able to do this.

 

You will want to pre-think whether the client has the capacity to translate
the full Book of Proceedings into Spanish. And if not - how the
Spanish-speakers who do not read English can receive the information
post-event.

On your registration materials you can include questions for them to mark
such as 'can you receive a pdf file' or some other language to see who has
access to an electronic version, and who needs hard-copy.

 

I have had clients make sure (all of this - all of the above - is discussed
and worked out in the pre-work phase) - that there are pre-set times and
locations where some of their participants who cannot read or speak the main
languages can come together again in small groups - with a representative
who is bilingual who can read and talk through the Book of Proceedings with
them in a talking circle, over several meetings, for group discussion. Or
match them with an advocate in their region who can sit with them to read
together as a duo. Again: assessing capacity and providing for universal
access.

 

Closing Circle: 

- Again this is everyone sitting quietly so you can do what you did in
Opening Circle: either headsets, or a bilingual translator. It will take
double the time if you have to repeat everything everyone says all around
the circle in 2 languages. But by this time often people are sitting with
each other and can do 'whisper translation' for each other - and you can ask
them to sit in the Closing Circle this way if you need to. To scribe these
closing comments - to add this reflection to the Book of Proceedings - you
will also need a fully bilingual helper or two.

 

There are also cultural elements of food, music, welcoming, access to
transport, child care, use of universal / non-academic language, and many
other things which can further equalize access to information and inclusion
in a mixed-language setting. If you have people on your core planning team
who are of these mixed cultures, classes and languages, you will have some
passionate people who can help think through and strategize this as you
explain to them the Open Space dynamics, actions and needs they are not yet
familiar with.

 

A deep bow to Heifer International's National Immigrant Refugee Farmers
Initiative - who worked tirelessly with me through the challenging design
and pre-work for a many-language, most-amazing immigrant and refugee farming
conference that I facilitated in Open Space. 

 

Lisa

 

PS I will be showing some photos of this conference plus their Book of
Proceedings at my upcoming Open Space Learning Workshop - May 16-18 in San
Francisco. Maybe you can join us... !

 

Lisa Heft

Consultant, Facilitator, Educator

President Emerita, Open Space Institute US

Fellow, Columbia University Center for International Conflict Resolution

Opening Space

lisaheft at openingspace.net

 

 

On Fri, Mar 2, 2012 at 9:29 PM, <chunili2000 at yahoo.com> wrote:



Hello All,

 

I am working on a state-wide initiative to bring people together to address
"How Can Creativity and Innovation Revitalize New Jersey." 

One of the communities we are planning an open space for has a large Spanish
speaking population. To host an inclusive event, we very much want to
include these people who don't speak English.

Does anyone have experience organizing a bi-lingual open space?

Did you use a translator? Did you repeat everything in both languages? How
did you handle the break-out discussions?

 

Thank you so much for sharing!

 

Chuni Li

New Jersey

 

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