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<DIV>I like World Cafe. For my purposes, 3-hour evening gatherings of local residents for conversation about local issues, it is a useful alternative to Open Space with different dynamics.</DIV>
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<DIV>The dynamics of group "breathing" are different. By this I mean the movement from large group to small groups and back to large group. In Open Space, I plan for two 45-minute small group sessions, with people responsible to use their two feet to get from one to the next; and then a closing circle for learnings and moving the learnings out of the room.</DIV>
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<DIV>In World Cafe, I plan for three 25-minute small group sessions, with 10-15 minutes between each that can be used for work as a large group (typically, I invite comments and reflections that can be captured on flipcharts, and then people move to new small groups with a new question to consider.) I then have a closing circle for learnings and moving the learnings out of the room. For some World Cafes I have invited local musicians to play during the break periods, rather than capturing learnings on the flipcharts.</DIV>
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<DIV>As Harrison says in another context, with World Cafe I can only take a few 20-minute naps, but in Open Space I can nap for over an hour! World Cafe is definitely more work for the facilitator.</DIV>
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<DIV>The Open Space generally feels more lively and chaotic; the World Cafe feels more deliberate and, yes, controlled. With Open Space there is more chance that a small group will become an ongoing working group around their issue; it's the kind of self-organizing that I love to witness.</DIV>
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<DIV>A few people like the fact that the small groups in World Cafe are limited to 4-5 people; they feel frustrated when an Open Space small group gets larger and they have trouble hearing or being heard.</DIV>
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<DIV>Blessings</DIV>
<DIV>Jeff</DIV>
<DIV>Petaluma, California<BR><BR>-----Original Message----- <BR>From: Chris Corrigan <CHRIS.CORRIGAN@GMAIL.COM><BR>Sent: May 3, 2005 10:07 AM <BR>To: OSLIST@LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU <BR>Subject: Re: The World Cafe <BR><BR>The short answer to that question for me is this: I like it for more structured conversations, where we don't perhaps have all of the juicy pre-conditions for an OST meeting. It can also happen in a very short period of time, getting participants into deep dialogue. It's useful for "consultation" meetings, where we expect little follow up responsibility from the participants and it works beautifully for doing "keynote facilitation" in a conference where a sponsor is looking for dialogue and engagement but can't remove the tables or give themselves enough time and space for OST.<BR><BR>The book, by all accounts, is a great addition to the field. I haven't got my copy yet, but will soon. <BR><BR>Looking for Alan Stewart and Peggy Holman and Toke Moeller and other OST/WC practitioners to weigh in here...<BR><BR>Chris<BR><BR></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=gmail_quote>On 5/3/05, <B class=gmail_sendername>Dave Cox</B> <<A href="mailto:dwcox@astate.edu">dwcox@astate.edu</A>> wrote:</SPAN>
<BLOCKQUOTE class=gmail_quote style="PADDING-LEFT: 1ex; MARGIN: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.8ex; BORDER-LEFT: rgb(204,204,204) 1px solid">A new book just came out. The World Cafe: Shaping Our Futures Through<BR>Conversations That Matter by Juanita Brown with David Isaacs. It describes<BR>a group process where participants move (through several rounds) from<BR>table to table making connections among conversations devoted to a guiding<BR>question. A host remains at each table to welcome the new group. The<BR>process seems very compatible with Open Space. I was wondering what<BR>experienced Open Spacers think of The World Cafe process and how you would<BR>differentiate between their use?<BR><BR>*<BR>*<BR>==========================================================<BR><A href="mailto:OSLIST@LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU">OSLIST@LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU</A><BR>------------------------------<BR>To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options,<BR>view the archives of <A href="mailto:oslist@listserv.boisestate.edu">oslist@listserv.boisestate.edu </A>:<BR><A href="http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html">http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html</A><BR><BR>To learn about OpenSpaceEmailLists and OSLIST FAQs:<BR><A href="http://www.openspaceworld.org/oslist">http://www.openspaceworld.org/oslist</A><BR></BLOCKQUOTE></DIV>
<DIV><BR><BR><BR>-- <BR><BR>CHRIS CORRIGAN<BR>Consultation - Facilitation<BR>Open Space Technology<BR><BR>Weblog: <A href="http://www.chriscorrigan.com/parkinglot">http://www.chriscorrigan.com/parkinglot</A><BR>Site: <A href="http://www.chriscorrigan.com">http://www.chriscorrigan.com</A> * * ========================================================== OSLIST@LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU ------------------------------ To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of oslist@listserv.boisestate.edu: http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html To learn about OpenSpaceEmailLists and OSLIST FAQs: http://www.openspaceworld.org/oslist </DIV></DIV></DIV></DIV></BODY>
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