Cross-posted on the AI & NCDD lists... Dear Open Space Friends,
There are many opportunities for generative, strength-based citizen conversations popping up in Arizona due to the law that was signed last week by our governor, making it a crime to be an illegal immigrant in Arizona and mandating police to stop anyone they suspect of being "illegal". One third of our population in Arizona is Hispanic. You can imagine the tensions and the grief.
I'm working with a local group that would like to host a large-scale conversation on May 26, working title: Transformation Talks: Our Voices - Arizona's Future. We are designing a 2 hour event in Phoenix that can accommodate up to 1,000 The reason for the large number is that the governor and many others constantly refer to a (poorly designed) poll with a sample of 500 that claims that 70% of Arizonans favor such a law.
We will likely use a World Cafe format, use appreciative questions and create the conditions so that people can self-organize for collaborative action. The team I'm working with feels strongly that people in Arizona need a chance to talk about their pain, fear and anger first before they will be able to move into thinking about the future. I agree.
When my twenty year old son first heard the concept, he said, "Who will pick the questions?" Not long ago, someone (was it you, Chris Corrigan?) mentioned a process where the questions emerged at tables.
I would be grateful for any stories about working with grief on a large scale and your thoughts/suggestions on event design and questions that will encourage deep conversations and move into action.
Warm wishes on a windy Phoenix day, Christine Christine Whitney Sanchez Collaborative Wisdom & Strategy +1.480.759.0262 www.christinewhitneysanchez.com www.promiseusa.com Skype: christinewhitneysanchez http://www.facebook.com/ChristineWhitneySanchez http://www.linkedin.com/in/christinewhitneysanchez * * ========================================================== osl...@listserv.boisestate.edu ------------------------------ To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of osl...@listserv.boisestate.edu: http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html To learn about OpenSpaceEmailLists and OSLIST FAQs: http://www.openspaceworld.org/oslist
