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<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 color=red face=Arial><span style='font-size:
12.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:red'>Brendan – having done a number of
Open Spaces in precisely the same circumstances you describe (or almost) I don’t
think there is a problem. Or as you might say – No Worries! For example,
I did an OS with 500 folks from the Young Women’s Christian Association
(YWCA) at a point where that organization was about ready to explode. There
were 500 women and me. And the YWCA is a VERY feminist organization! I have
also had the privilege of opening space with a number of Indigenous groups.
Again – no problems, no worries. I think the critical thing is your
authenticity – just fully being there. And Open Space (as usual) does the
rest.</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 color=red face=Arial><span style='font-size:
12.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:red'> </span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 color=red face=Arial><span style='font-size:
12.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:red'>I might take some small issue with Wendy’s
suggestion that you acknowledge your maleness and privilege up front. I would
not do that for several reasons. First of all it is really just a redundant
statement of the obvious – you are male and privileged. But most of all, such
a statement draws attention to you. What you want to do (or at least what I
would want to do) is to move as quickly as possible to that moment when the
group starts to do its thing and you leave center stage. Anything that slows
that movement or gets in the way, I try to eliminate. Think of one more thing
NOT to do. </span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 color=red face=Arial><span style='font-size:
12.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:red'> </span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 color=red face=Arial><span style='font-size:
12.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:red'>What saves the day in such situations is
the “fact” that OS operates “beneath Culture, Gender, privilege
(or lack of same), education, etc… -- I think. Doubtless awareness and
sensitivity to the issues involved is a plus, and we all have a lot to learn. But
when facilitating an Open Space, I am not sure that such awareness makes that
much difference, and indeed it may be a distraction in that you become so aware
of difference that you miss the commonality. I have always found that people
everywhere have more in common than they do in difference. In any event, I have
never found any difficulty in situations such as you describe PROVIDED I was authentically
present (as much as I could be) </span></font><font color=red face=Arial><span
style='font-family:Arial;color:red'>AND</span></font><font color=red
face=Arial><span style='font-family:Arial;color:red'> moved the opening along
as quickly as possible to the point where the folks got to work, and I got out
of the way. As we all know, it really isn’t about me/us.</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 color=red face=Arial><span style='font-size:
12.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:red'> </span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 color=red face=Arial><span style='font-size:
12.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:red'>Harrison</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 color=red face=Arial><span style='font-size:
12.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:red'> </span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 color=red face=Arial><span style='font-size:
12.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:red'> </span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 color=red face=Arial><span style='font-size:
12.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:red'> </span></font></p>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center'><font size=2
color=red face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:red'>Harrison Owen</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center'><font size=2
color=red face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:red'>7808 River Falls Drive</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center'><font size=2
color=red face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:red'>Potomac, Maryland 20845</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center'><font size=2
color=red face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:red'>Phone </span></font><font size=2 color=red face=Arial><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:red'>301-365-2093</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center'></X-SIGSEP><font
size=3 color=red face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
color:red'><!--StartFragment --><X-SIGSEP>Open Space Training <a
href="http://www.openspaceworld.com/" eudora=autourl>www.openspaceworld.com</a>
</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center'><font size=3
color=red face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:red'>Open
Space Institute <a href="http://www.openspaceworld.org" eudora=autourl>www.openspaceworld.org</a></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center'><font size=3
color=red face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:red'>Personal
website <a href="http://mywebpages.comcast.net/hhowen/index.htm"
eudora=autourl>http://mywebpages.comcast.net/hhowen/index.htm</a></span></font><font
color=blue><span style='color:blue'><br>
<a href="mailto:OSLIST@LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU">OSLIST@LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU</a></span></font><font
color=red><span style='color:red'> </span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal align=center style='margin-bottom:12.0pt;text-align:center'><font
size=3 color=red face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
color:red'>To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the
archives Visit: <a
href="http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html" eudora=autourl>http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html</a></span></font></p>
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<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=2 face=Tahoma><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Tahoma'>-----Original Message-----<br>
<b><span style='font-weight:bold'>From:</span></b> </span></font><font size=2
face=Tahoma><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Tahoma'>OSLIST</span></font><font
size=2 face=Tahoma><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Tahoma'> [mailto:</span></font><font
size=2 face=Tahoma><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Tahoma'>OSLIST</span></font><font
size=2 face=Tahoma><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Tahoma'>@LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU]
<b><span style='font-weight:bold'>On Behalf Of </span></b>Brendan McKeague<br>
<b><span style='font-weight:bold'>Sent:</span></b> Friday, </span></font><font size=2 face=Tahoma><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Tahoma'>September 30,
2005</span></font><font size=2 face=Tahoma><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Tahoma'> </span></font><font size=2 face=Tahoma><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Tahoma'>11:22 PM</span></font><font
size=2 face=Tahoma><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Tahoma'><br>
<b><span style='font-weight:bold'>To:</span></b> </span></font><font size=2
face=Tahoma><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Tahoma'>OSLIST</span></font><font
size=2 face=Tahoma><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Tahoma'>@LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU<br>
<b><span style='font-weight:bold'>Subject:</span></b> Cross Cultural
Facilitation</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt'> </span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt'>G'day folks in the OS global community<br>
A new client has asked me about facilitating a one-day OS for a group of
stakeholders and others about the creation of a refuge/hostel for indigenous
women - she has only minor concerns about using Open Space having recently
experienced her first event with me - her major concern is about using a
non-Aboriginal white male as the facilitator - see honest and forthright comments
below - and this event would be in a different part of the country from where I
live and where I'm not known locally in the indigenous community - any thoughts
on this query? Any stories of this sort of cross-cultural/gender scenario?<br>
Cheers<br>
Brendan </span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:1.0in'><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt'>We have an opportunity with the new site being built
in ----- to devote some of our resources to responding to the plight of
indigenous families. Having a different focus away from the mainstream
site gives our service an opportunity to explore, with the assistance of
indigenous stakeholders, a different way of responding to women and children
from indigenous families escaping violence. I don’t know what this
will look like and it will be difficult and we won’t always get it
right. It will be a process of learning and experimenting with new ways
of responding to families. </span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:1.0in'><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt'> </span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:1.0in'><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt'>This is like a leap into the unknown for us because it
will change our service. It has not been undertaken by any other service
to my knowledge, so there is no blue print to how we should proceed.
Having said this, I do think it is possible and I believe it will have a
positive impact on our service as a whole. </span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:1.0in'><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt'>There would be about 35-40 people invited to this
gathering which would represent all of the key groups that would have an
interest in a mainstream organisation taking on and providing a service to
Aboriginal women and children. </span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:1.0in'><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt'>There has been a positive reaction so far to the
proposal from Aboriginal organisations but I am sure we will face some
resistance/perhaps hostility? (I will probably know this before we enter an
open space) – and in a sense that is one of the reasons why I think an
Open Space forum will be good so that we can hear and respond to people’s
concerns. </span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:1.0in'><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt'>One of my concerns Brendan is how they will receive
you as a facilitator of this process. I am confident about you holding
the space for us to discuss these issues but I also don’t want to set you
up in the process either. I am worried that there might be some hostility
to a man facilitating the process and not a woman (you may be the only man
there). I would love your thoughts around this and whether you have done
anything similar before. Part of me says be courageous and go with what
you think will work and another part of me is scared stiff! </span></font></p>
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