Yup...extrememly practical. I'm saying the same thing.
It's an on the ground response to what is going on in a big way,
nothing
more grounded or practical than opening space when shit happens.
Chris
On 3/7/06, Harrison Owen <[email protected]> wrote:
I guess my thought was a bit more practical. These architects and
government
folks (and others) could use a lot of help doing what they say they
want to
do. Who knows if it will do any good, but it seemed that the least we
might
do is give them a hand. I confess that when I first heard the
presentation
mentioned, I along with everybody else in the room sat in stunned
silence.
Definitely an "Oh Shit" moment. Truthfully, the information provided
was not
essentially new to me -- albeit the immediacy was. As I recovered a
bit, it
occurred to me that there was an enormous opportunity here as well as
extreme danger. The scenario is so much bigger than any of us or our
"little" issues (peace, war, famine, plague -- to say nothing of the
"economy") that it might just serve to put all the rest in some sort
of
useful context. And, who knows it might just get some useful
conversations
started.
Harrison
Harrison Owen
7808 River Falls Drive
Potomac, Maryland 20854
Phone 301-365-2093
Skype hhowen
Open Space Training www.openspaceworld.com
Open Space Institute www.openspaceworld.org
Personal website www.ho-image.com
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-----Original Message-----
From: OSLIST [mailto: [email protected]] On Behalf Of
Michael
Herman
Sent: Tuesday, March 07, 2006 1:35 PM
To: [email protected]
Subject: Re: The End of Quiet Time
Here's another thought, not to oversimplify or otherwise diminish the
consequences of what is coming, but to offer a slightly different
view.
What if these changes made in the environment were already too big to
stop? What makes us think that we could coordinate control of
planetary weather in the first place? What if rather than stopping
the changes, we learned to *move* better? What if the buildings we
needed were not "green", but mobile, for instance? And work, what if
it was more mobile? But, of course, work already is getting more
mobile!
Chris suggests 'NOT being part of the problem.' This in itself is a
huge piece of work, possibly impossible. The systems we have are the
problem and we're inescapable part of most of those. Why not just
write off the losses of this real estate and move on? Because we all
hold currencies and other assets, and buy food and insurance and heat,
in markets that would go nuts if we did this all at once. The good
news, if there is such a thing, is that we don't have to do it all at
once. I would say that I'm looking for ways to be part of new ways of
living, and that new life seems to be all kinds of 'movement'.
The story Chris quotes in my weblog is amazing to me. It shows me
that Life can go on. Life keeps moving. This is what I try to
practice... movement. Flexible, lively, smart but porous, loosely
formed and constantly informed boundaries and bodies and plans. And I
try to do this as visibly as I can, as invitation, teaching, and
contribution. I think most of us are doing this on some level, and
this is what I think we might look for all kinds of large and small
ways to do more of. Make more moves, tell more stories, invite more
friends, support more connections.
Every movement, from deepest inner to broadest social, is practice
that matters, or so it seems to me just now.
Michael
On 3/7/06, Chris Corrigan < [email protected]> wrote:
Harrison:
Even in the vast Open Spaces within which we work, there is really a
tiny
closed space upon which we work. The earth is a closed system, for
the
most
part, and no amount of useful material or help from outside is
forthcoming
to save us from ourselves.
And so, the answers as always, are to open more space within, because
unless
we seek some radical transformation in our ways of doing things,
scenarios
like this may well come to pass. And if they do...
Some of us, including some of us here on the list like Ralph
Copleman,
Peggy
Holman and John Engle, have been talking about seeing Open Space and
other
dialogue and deliberation processes as essential tools for dealing
with
massive crises brought about by climate change or catastrophes. I
have
personally spoken with David Korten, the author of a several pieces
on "
The
Perfect Economic Storm" (collapse of the US$, climate change and
peak oil
happening at the same time) and he's a big supporter of much much
deeper
engagement of people in local communities in first preventing these
kinds
of
scenarios, and later on, dealing with them well. I've written more
about
this at my weblog.
I think, as Katrina and the Asian tsunami has taught us, dealing with
large
scale and sudden change demands wise action. In Sri Lanka, a group
called
Sarvodaya, who make community empowerment their spiritual practice,
were
first on the ground with support and logistics after the tsunami
because
they make a practice of doing this kind of work. Michael Herman's
recent
posting on his weblog points to a group of Nepalese leaders who are
doing
the same in the face of a civil war.
The world has much need of those who make engagement, collaboration,
empowerment and facilitation a regular practice. When the skills are
really
needed, there will be no time to learn them.
We could certainly raise the alarm, but my inclination is to work in
two
areas on activity: try my best NOT to be a part of the problem, and
keep
myself prepared for the problems that may find us nonetheless.
Chris
--
CHRIS CORRIGAN
Consultation - Facilitation
Open Space Technology
Weblog: http://www.chriscorrigan.com/parkinglot
Site: http://www.chriscorrigan.com * *
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Michael Herman
Michael Herman Associates
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[email protected]
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http://www.michaelherman.com
http://www.openspaceworld.org
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the most important things done in
the easiest possible ways.
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Consultation - Facilitation
Open Space Technology
Weblog: http://www.chriscorrigan.com/parkinglot
Site: http://www.chriscorrigan.com * *
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