And Thank you Artur! Maybe now we can begin to see that Open Space is not at process, method, procedure – although it is certainly all of that. But fundamentally it is a reality we live. When the space is open and The Questions are multiple, deep and profound – creativity, innovation and new learnings abound. OST simply gives us a way of “fast tracking” all of that. Intentionally. Open Space – wherever, however, with whomsoever, about whatever, whenever. Go for it!
ho Harrison Owen 7808 River Falls Dr. Potomac, MD 20854 USA 189 Beaucaire Ave. (summer) Camden, Maine 04843 Phone 301-365-2093 (summer) 207-763-3261 www.openspaceworld.com www.ho-image.com (Personal Website) To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of OSLIST Go to: <http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org> http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Arturo Uscategui-Colaboremos Sent: Monday, September 02, 2013 6:16 PM To: [email protected] Subject: [OSList] Yes dear Harrison ! Yes, yes, yes and yes ! No matter if we live or not to tell the tale. We are fortunate to live it, to build it, to create it, you, we. And what a wonderful day is today with more and more open spaces towards increased openness, pushing forward the questions. Dear Harrison, thank you to be there where you are. Collaboratively, Arturo Uscátegui Restrepo www.colaboremos.com <x-msg://23/> +33 6 52 14 29 09 Skype: auscateguir Twitter: @icolaboremos <https://twitter.com/#%21/iCOLABOREMOS> Facebook Profile : arturo.colaboremos Facebook Page : colaboremos On Sep 2, 2013, at 10:05 PM, [email protected] wrote: Send OSList mailing list submissions to [email protected] To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to [email protected] You can reach the person managing the list at [email protected] When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific than "Re: Contents of OSList digest..." Today's Topics: 1. A Time for Questions (Harrison Owen) 2. Re: A Time for Questions (David Osborne) 3. Re: A Time for Questions (Suzanne Daigle) 4. Re: A Time for Questions...about Liminality, Ronin & Stigmergy (Daniel Mezick) ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Message: 1 Date: Sun, 01 Sep 2013 18:59:03 -0400 From: "Harrison Owen" <[email protected]> To: "'World wide Open Space Technology email list'" <[email protected]> Subject: [OSList] A Time for Questions Message-ID: <000001cea766$daf90a20$90eb1e60$@net> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii David Osborne's statement and Chris's question precipitated something in my head. Needless to say David can and should speak for himself. However from my relatively isolated corner of the universe (Maine) I have noticed a few interesting suggestions that something of a shift might be in the wind. Whether it will be sufficient to save Homo sapiens from ossification, only time will tell. One such suggestion in the increase of questioning. As a child of the 50's (and yes there really were human beings walking the earth in that primal time), my world was firmly described by answers. Everybody knew precisely how life should be lived. There were rules to be followed, and if followed success was assured. Of course there were deviants who were largely marginalized and suppressed, but WE knew the Answers... the right way. And then a funny thing called the '60s blew all that certainty away. It was at once terrifying, refreshing, and exhilarating. And one thing was for sure: The primacy of answers gave way to an avalanche of questions. It is in the nature of questions to open space. Answers close it. With all the fresh air of openness, the forces of creativity soared to the joy and terror of all involved. Space in all dimensions exploded, and the tight societies of Philadelphia and New York, in which I grew up, shattered to merge with insular rural communities, and make contact with strange creatures on The Other Coast. Strange new world! The 70's and early 80's possessed a rich nutrient openness. New stories, and the answers they purported to provide, popped up like mushrooms. Some were weird, some substantive, some technological and all of them creating as many new questions as the answers they supposedly offered. Thrilling! But as the 80's ended and the 90's arrived it seemed that the age of answers were settling more than a few of the questions. Author's could write knowingly about "New Rules"... and while there was a breath of novelty it seemed the rules (answers) were known. The 90's slid by with almost dream like certainty. At least that's how it seemed to me. The Markets were up, America ruled. Some were even suggesting that the Age of Aquarius had actually begun! I guess there were still some questions, but none that we couldn't handle with the right Process or Procedure. And if not today, then tomorrow. So ended the Millennium. The New Millennium rolled in as predicted. Surprise! But in a funny way it seemed pretty anti-climactic. To be sure there were lots of parties, fireworks, speeches, the usual turn of the Millennia Fantasies. But at the end of the day it was pretty much more of the same... Until a bright clear day in September. September 11th to be exact. Maybe this was just a turning point for those of us in the USA. But I do believe, as I listen to my friends and colleagues from around the world -- we were all there. Doubtless with different feelings and interpretations. But for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer... it was a very different world! How different, we are only just beginning to understand. And for the first time in some long time -- the Questions vastly outnumber the available answers. This is a Turning Point. And a wonderful one, I do believe. When we as a species are compelled to sit in that really uncomfortable and juicy moment created by truly profound questions, the Space is truly OPENED. I think that is where we are at, and best of all I see lots of new faces rising to the bait. Call them "Millennials" or whatever... but it is every bit as exciting as the "60's" and we may or may not survive to tell the tale. But that has always been true. Harrison Harrison Owen 7808 River Falls Dr. Potomac, MD 20854 USA 189 Beaucaire Ave. (summer) Camden, Maine 04843 Phone 301-365-2093 (summer) 207-763-3261 www.openspaceworld.com www.ho-image.com (Personal Website) To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of OSLIST Go to:http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org -----Original Message----- From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Chris Kloth Sent: Saturday, August 31, 2013 8:15 PM To: World wide Open Space Technology email list; David Osborne Subject: Re: [OSList] Federal Reserve Employees Survey David, I wonder if you could share a little more about what is going on already. I have had conversations with Fed officials in San Francisco and Cleveland and, while they are doing some things I am very interested in and impressed by, I have yet to see evidence of OST. -- Shalom, Chris Kloth ChangeWorks of the Heartland 254 South Merkle Road Bexley, OH 43209-1801 ph 614-239-1336 fax 614-237-2347 www.got2change.com Quoting David Osborne <[email protected]>: Yes Brett. Being Done. Consider looking beyond the reporting....to the fact that space has been opened for this to be shared and talked about. What is in the news is not always the best reflection of what is actually happening. -- David Osborne www.change-fusion.com | [email protected] | 703.939.1777 On Sat, Aug 31, 2013 at 12:35 PM, Brett Barndt <[email protected]>wrote: Can the OST community perhaps help here? It is a sad state of affairs in which we all have a stake. Even citizens of the world have a stake in this dysfunction owing to the interconnected nature of the global economies, our livelihoods, and well-being. The appointees, and congress by association, should not be permitted to let it go on this way any longer. People are dying out there with higher poverty, food insecurity, mortality, and suicide rates as a result of this situation. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/28/federal-reserve-employees-su rvey_n_3826165.html Discourse and dialogue are the last thing that should be stifled by culture or any other dysfunction in an institution like this one. OST and an open process of multi-stakeholder engagement is of course part of the solution. This seems like it should be well within our rights to insist upon at this moment in time. We are stakeholders. Albeit. we are non-consulted, unrepresented stakeholders in the current practice. _______________________________________________ OSList mailing list To post send emails to [email protected] To unsubscribe send an email to [email protected] To subscribe or manage your subscription click below: http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org ---------------------------------------------------------------- This message was sent using IMP, the Internet Messaging Program. _______________________________________________ OSList mailing list To post send emails to [email protected] To unsubscribe send an email to [email protected] To subscribe or manage your subscription click below: http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org ------------------------------ Message: 2 Date: Sun, 1 Sep 2013 20:04:15 -0400 From: David Osborne <[email protected]> To: World wide Open Space Technology email list <[email protected]> Subject: Re: [OSList] A Time for Questions Message-ID: <canqfh889cryy8x11sutabhef8hg3vaej-npqfbjzx+b7mx9...@mail.gmail.com> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" A wonderful description Harrison. Here's to the questions and the space they open. David -- David Osborne www.change-fusion.com | [email protected] | 703.939.1777 On Sun, Sep 1, 2013 at 6:59 PM, Harrison Owen <[email protected]> wrote: David Osborne's statement and Chris's question precipitated something in my head. Needless to say David can and should speak for himself. However from my relatively isolated corner of the universe (Maine) I have noticed a few interesting suggestions that something of a shift might be in the wind. Whether it will be sufficient to save Homo sapiens from ossification, only time will tell. One such suggestion in the increase of questioning. As a child of the 50's (and yes there really were human beings walking the earth in that primal time), my world was firmly described by answers. Everybody knew precisely how life should be lived. There were rules to be followed, and if followed success was assured. Of course there were deviants who were largely marginalized and suppressed, but WE knew the Answers... the right way. And then a funny thing called the '60s blew all that certainty away. It was at once terrifying, refreshing, and exhilarating. And one thing was for sure: The primacy of answers gave way to an avalanche of questions. It is in the nature of questions to open space. Answers close it. With all the fresh air of openness, the forces of creativity soared to the joy and terror of all involved. Space in all dimensions exploded, and the tight societies of Philadelphia and New York, in which I grew up, shattered to merge with insular rural communities, and make contact with strange creatures on The Other Coast. Strange new world! The 70's and early 80's possessed a rich nutrient openness. New stories, and the answers they purported to provide, popped up like mushrooms. Some were weird, some substantive, some technological and all of them creating as many new questions as the answers they supposedly offered. Thrilling! But as the 80's ended and the 90's arrived it seemed that the age of answers were settling more than a few of the questions. Author's could write knowingly about "New Rules"... and while there was a breath of novelty it seemed the rules (answers) were known. The 90's slid by with almost dream like certainty. At least that's how it seemed to me. The Markets were up, America ruled. Some were even suggesting that the Age of Aquarius had actually begun! I guess there were still some questions, but none that we couldn't handle with the right Process or Procedure. And if not today, then tomorrow. So ended the Millennium. The New Millennium rolled in as predicted. Surprise! But in a funny way it seemed pretty anti-climactic. To be sure there were lots of parties, fireworks, speeches, the usual turn of the Millennia Fantasies. But at the end of the day it was pretty much more of the same... Until a bright clear day in September. September 11th to be exact. Maybe this was just a turning point for those of us in the USA. But I do believe, as I listen to my friends and colleagues from around the world -- we were all there. Doubtless with different feelings and interpretations. But for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer... it was a very different world! How different, we are only just beginning to understand. And for the first time in some long time -- the Questions vastly outnumber the available answers. This is a Turning Point. And a wonderful one, I do believe. When we as a species are compelled to sit in that really uncomfortable and juicy moment created by truly profound questions, the Space is truly OPENED. I think that is where we are at, and best of all I see lots of new faces rising to the bait. Call them "Millennials" or whatever... but it is every bit as exciting as the "60's" and we may or may not survive to tell the tale. But that has always been true. Harrison Harrison Owen 7808 River Falls Dr. Potomac, MD 20854 USA 189 Beaucaire Ave. (summer) Camden, Maine 04843 Phone 301-365-2093 (summer) 207-763-3261 www.openspaceworld.com www.ho-image.com (Personal Website) To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of OSLIST Go to:http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org -----Original Message----- From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Chris Kloth Sent: Saturday, August 31, 2013 8:15 PM To: World wide Open Space Technology email list; David Osborne Subject: Re: [OSList] Federal Reserve Employees Survey David, I wonder if you could share a little more about what is going on already. I have had conversations with Fed officials in San Francisco and Cleveland and, while they are doing some things I am very interested in and impressed by, I have yet to see evidence of OST. -- Shalom, Chris Kloth ChangeWorks of the Heartland 254 South Merkle Road Bexley, OH 43209-1801 ph 614-239-1336 fax 614-237-2347 www.got2change.com Quoting David Osborne <[email protected]>: Yes Brett. Being Done. Consider looking beyond the reporting....to the fact that space has been opened for this to be shared and talked about. What is in the news is not always the best reflection of what is actually happening. -- David Osborne www.change-fusion.com | [email protected] | 703.939.1777 On Sat, Aug 31, 2013 at 12:35 PM, Brett Barndt <[email protected] wrote: Can the OST community perhaps help here? It is a sad state of affairs in which we all have a stake. Even citizens of the world have a stake in this dysfunction owing to the interconnected nature of the global economies, our livelihoods, and well-being. The appointees, and congress by association, should not be permitted to let it go on this way any longer. People are dying out there with higher poverty, food insecurity, mortality, and suicide rates as a result of this situation. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/28/federal-reserve-employees-su rvey_n_3826165.html Discourse and dialogue are the last thing that should be stifled by culture or any other dysfunction in an institution like this one. OST and an open process of multi-stakeholder engagement is of course part of the solution. This seems like it should be well within our rights to insist upon at this moment in time. We are stakeholders. Albeit. we are non-consulted, unrepresented stakeholders in the current practice. _______________________________________________ OSList mailing list To post send emails to [email protected] To unsubscribe send an email to [email protected] To subscribe or manage your subscription click below: http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org ---------------------------------------------------------------- This message was sent using IMP, the Internet Messaging Program. _______________________________________________ OSList mailing list To post send emails to [email protected] To unsubscribe send an email to [email protected] To subscribe or manage your subscription click below: http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org _______________________________________________ OSList mailing list To post send emails to [email protected] To unsubscribe send an email to [email protected] To subscribe or manage your subscription click below: http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: <http://lists.openspacetech.org/pipermail/oslist-openspacetech.org/attachments/20130901/cf8711b1/attachment.html> ------------------------------ Message: 3 Date: Sun, 1 Sep 2013 23:31:17 -0400 From: Suzanne Daigle <[email protected]> To: World wide Open Space Technology email list <[email protected]> Subject: Re: [OSList] A Time for Questions Message-ID: <cajh+fldddowy0zf_fptl4xipfexkfvbrue+zadezvs3daef...@mail.gmail.com> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" This is Labor Day weekend - a period of pause and reflection as the summer comes to an end, busy work resumes, the new school year begins. So fitting this journey down memory lane and the important work ahead. Our theme at WOSonOS was the World is Waiting... Are we Ready? The Millennials asserted loud and clear: "We are ready!"... ready to partner with us, to step into their leadership and to jump into the fullness of life in ways that may be unlike anything we have lived and experienced before. Reading what Harrison wrote reminded me of a poem by Rainer Maria Rilke. I had been so moved by it that I transposed it on a beautiful Florida beach photo and sent it to dozen friends in August 2008. It was a pre-Open Space era for me; guess the soil was being tilled for what would come later in my life as I was very drawn to its message. Now I understand more what questions and opening space mean to the vibrancy of life. So this evening, I went fishing for it and buried in the hard drives of an old computer that contain many treasures, I found it and it gives me joy to share it with all of you in this wonderful world-wide community-- a reminder of the privileged work we each love and do! https://www.dropbox.com/s/9btt1cthfsmyi71/Seeking%20our%20path.pdf Suzanne On Sun, Sep 1, 2013 at 8:04 PM, David Osborne <[email protected]>wrote: A wonderful description Harrison. Here's to the questions and the space they open. David -- David Osborne www.change-fusion.com | [email protected] | 703.939.1777 On Sun, Sep 1, 2013 at 6:59 PM, Harrison Owen <[email protected]>wrote: David Osborne's statement and Chris's question precipitated something in my head. Needless to say David can and should speak for himself. However from my relatively isolated corner of the universe (Maine) I have noticed a few interesting suggestions that something of a shift might be in the wind. Whether it will be sufficient to save Homo sapiens from ossification, only time will tell. One such suggestion in the increase of questioning. As a child of the 50's (and yes there really were human beings walking the earth in that primal time), my world was firmly described by answers. Everybody knew precisely how life should be lived. There were rules to be followed, and if followed success was assured. Of course there were deviants who were largely marginalized and suppressed, but WE knew the Answers... the right way. And then a funny thing called the '60s blew all that certainty away. It was at once terrifying, refreshing, and exhilarating. And one thing was for sure: The primacy of answers gave way to an avalanche of questions. It is in the nature of questions to open space. Answers close it. With all the fresh air of openness, the forces of creativity soared to the joy and terror of all involved. Space in all dimensions exploded, and the tight societies of Philadelphia and New York, in which I grew up, shattered to merge with insular rural communities, and make contact with strange creatures on The Other Coast. Strange new world! The 70's and early 80's possessed a rich nutrient openness. New stories, and the answers they purported to provide, popped up like mushrooms. Some were weird, some substantive, some technological and all of them creating as many new questions as the answers they supposedly offered. Thrilling! But as the 80's ended and the 90's arrived it seemed that the age of answers were settling more than a few of the questions. Author's could write knowingly about "New Rules"... and while there was a breath of novelty it seemed the rules (answers) were known. The 90's slid by with almost dream like certainty. At least that's how it seemed to me. The Markets were up, America ruled. Some were even suggesting that the Age of Aquarius had actually begun! I guess there were still some questions, but none that we couldn't handle with the right Process or Procedure. And if not today, then tomorrow. So ended the Millennium. The New Millennium rolled in as predicted. Surprise! But in a funny way it seemed pretty anti-climactic. To be sure there were lots of parties, fireworks, speeches, the usual turn of the Millennia Fantasies. But at the end of the day it was pretty much more of the same... Until a bright clear day in September. September 11th to be exact. Maybe this was just a turning point for those of us in the USA. But I do believe, as I listen to my friends and colleagues from around the world -- we were all there. Doubtless with different feelings and interpretations. But for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer... it was a very different world! How different, we are only just beginning to understand. And for the first time in some long time -- the Questions vastly outnumber the available answers. This is a Turning Point. And a wonderful one, I do believe. When we as a species are compelled to sit in that really uncomfortable and juicy moment created by truly profound questions, the Space is truly OPENED. I think that is where we are at, and best of all I see lots of new faces rising to the bait. Call them "Millennials" or whatever... but it is every bit as exciting as the "60's" and we may or may not survive to tell the tale. But that has always been true. Harrison Harrison Owen 7808 River Falls Dr. Potomac, MD 20854 USA 189 Beaucaire Ave. (summer) Camden, Maine 04843 Phone 301-365-2093 (summer) 207-763-3261 www.openspaceworld.com www.ho-image.com (Personal Website) To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of OSLIST Go to: http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org -----Original Message----- From: [email protected] [mailto: [email protected]] On Behalf Of Chris Kloth Sent: Saturday, August 31, 2013 8:15 PM To: World wide Open Space Technology email list; David Osborne Subject: Re: [OSList] Federal Reserve Employees Survey David, I wonder if you could share a little more about what is going on already. I have had conversations with Fed officials in San Francisco and Cleveland and, while they are doing some things I am very interested in and impressed by, I have yet to see evidence of OST. -- Shalom, Chris Kloth ChangeWorks of the Heartland 254 South Merkle Road Bexley, OH 43209-1801 ph 614-239-1336 fax 614-237-2347 www.got2change.com Quoting David Osborne < [email protected]>: Yes Brett. Being Done. Consider looking beyond the reporting....to the fact that space has been opened for this to be shared and talked about. What is in the news is not always the best reflection of what is actually happening. -- David Osborne www.change-fusion.com | [email protected] | 703.939.1777 On Sat, Aug 31, 2013 at 12:35 PM, Brett Barndt < [email protected] <mailto:[email protected]%3ewrote> >wrote: Can the OST community perhaps help here? It is a sad state of affairs in which we all have a stake. Even citizens of the world have a stake in this dysfunction owing to the interconnected nature of the global economies, our livelihoods, and well-being. The appointees, and congress by association, should not be permitted to let it go on this way any longer. People are dying out there with higher poverty, food insecurity, mortality, and suicide rates as a result of this situation. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/28/federal-reserve-employees-su rvey_n_3826165.html Discourse and dialogue are the last thing that should be stifled by culture or any other dysfunction in an institution like this one. OST and an open process of multi-stakeholder engagement is of course part of the solution. This seems like it should be well within our rights to insist upon at this moment in time. We are stakeholders. Albeit. we are non-consulted, unrepresented stakeholders in the current practice. _______________________________________________ OSList mailing list To post send emails to [email protected] To unsubscribe send an email to [email protected] To subscribe or manage your subscription click below: http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org ---------------------------------------------------------------- This message was sent using IMP, the Internet Messaging Program. _______________________________________________ OSList mailing list To post send emails to [email protected] To unsubscribe send an email to [email protected] To subscribe or manage your subscription click below: http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org _______________________________________________ OSList mailing list To post send emails to [email protected] To unsubscribe send an email to [email protected] To subscribe or manage your subscription click below: http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org _______________________________________________ OSList mailing list To post send emails to [email protected] To unsubscribe send an email to [email protected] To subscribe or manage your subscription click below: http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org -- Suzanne Daigle NuFocus Strategic Group 7159 Victoria Circle University Park, FL 34201 FL 941-359-8877; CT 203-722-2009 www.nufocusgroup.com [email protected] twitter @suzannedaigle -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: <http://lists.openspacetech.org/pipermail/oslist-openspacetech.org/attachments/20130901/7325c954/attachment-0001.htm> ------------------------------ Message: 4 Date: Mon, 02 Sep 2013 09:45:16 -0400 From: Daniel Mezick <[email protected]> To: [email protected] Subject: Re: [OSList] A Time for Questions...about Liminality, Ronin & Stigmergy Message-ID: <[email protected]> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"; Format="flowed" What a fascinating thread! "..the forces of creativity soared to the joy and terror of all involved." Two things are clear: the old rules no longer apply, and individuals are reacting WAY faster than institutions. We are liminal. We are no longer where we were, and not yet where we are going. We are in transition. The Individuals, the whole...the whole ball of wax is going liminal in a huge way... Is everyone more liminal than ever before? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liminality The primary way to make sense of a near-chaos situation (like the one we are in) is to inspect everything much more frequently. We know this from Agile software methods. When the situation gets really messy, the answer is empiricism...iteration...frequent inspection...and frequent adjustment. This last part is tricky because it requires a very open mind, and more than a little alacrity. In Japanese, the word 'ronin sums up this idea. It means 'wave man' or 'wave rider'. Is everyone a ronin because of what feels like s state of constant change.....aka "permanent Liminality?" Are OST Facilitators actually playing a Ronin role, serving for a time and moving on? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R%C5%8Dnin http://books.google.com/books/about/The_Way_of_the_Ronin.html?id=G2g5KsKEOfoC One of the things that seems to be the new normal is 'stigmergy', the form of self-organization that depends on one-way announcements and unilateral broadcasts. The basic idea is a "send/receive" protocol where anyone can "send" a message, and the "receive" is 100% optional. It's a kind of invitation to listen. And optionally respond. Sound familiar? Is stigmergy the new normal? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stigmergy Everywhere, I see stigmergy, everywhere I see wave-people, everywhere I see liminality. Various groups in various places are hosting conversations and events, and making plans, and announcing them, and going from there. No one group is "in charge" in any sense of that term. It's futile to try. Any and all alignments by and between groups are based on shared values and relative urgency, in the now. The most effective people (both as individuals and in groups) are iterating and inspecting VERY frequently now. I wonder if Open Space is about to emerge one of the most useful if not THE most useful piece of social technology for making sense of reality in groups when everything is changing. The rise of stigmergy as a way of organizing naturally favors the use of Open Space, for brewing new things... by and between groups that find each other. Is everyone more liminal than ever before? Are OST Facilitators actually ronin? Is stigmergy the new normal? On 9/1/13 6:59 PM, Harrison Owen wrote: David Osborne's statement and Chris's question precipitated something in my head. Needless to say David can and should speak for himself. However from my relatively isolated corner of the universe (Maine) I have noticed a few interesting suggestions that something of a shift might be in the wind. Whether it will be sufficient to save Homo sapiens from ossification, only time will tell. One such suggestion in the increase of questioning. As a child of the 50's (and yes there really were human beings walking the earth in that primal time), my world was firmly described by answers. Everybody knew precisely how life should be lived. There were rules to be followed, and if followed success was assured. Of course there were deviants who were largely marginalized and suppressed, but WE knew the Answers... the right way. And then a funny thing called the '60s blew all that certainty away. It was at once terrifying, refreshing, and exhilarating. And one thing was for sure: The primacy of answers gave way to an avalanche of questions. It is in the nature of questions to open space. Answers close it. With all the fresh air of openness, the forces of creativity soared to the joy and terror of all involved. Space in all dimensions exploded, and the tight societies of Philadelphia and New York, in which I grew up, shattered to merge with insular rural communities, and make contact with strange creatures on The Other Coast. Strange new world! The 70's and early 80's possessed a rich nutrient openness. New stories, and the answers they purported to provide, popped up like mushrooms. Some were weird, some substantive, some technological and all of them creating as many new questions as the answers they supposedly offered. Thrilling! But as the 80's ended and the 90's arrived it seemed that the age of answers were settling more than a few of the questions. Author's could write knowingly about "New Rules"... and while there was a breath of novelty it seemed the rules (answers) were known. The 90's slid by with almost dream like certainty. At least that's how it seemed to me. The Markets were up, America ruled. Some were even suggesting that the Age of Aquarius had actually begun! I guess there were still some questions, but none that we couldn't handle with the right Process or Procedure. And if not today, then tomorrow. So ended the Millennium. The New Millennium rolled in as predicted. Surprise! But in a funny way it seemed pretty anti-climactic. To be sure there were lots of parties, fireworks, speeches, the usual turn of the Millennia Fantasies. But at the end of the day it was pretty much more of the same... Until a bright clear day in September. September 11th to be exact. Maybe this was just a turning point for those of us in the USA. But I do believe, as I listen to my friends and colleagues from around the world -- we were all there. Doubtless with different feelings and interpretations. But for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer... it was a very different world! How different, we are only just beginning to understand. And for the first time in some long time -- the Questions vastly outnumber the available answers. This is a Turning Point. And a wonderful one, I do believe. When we as a species are compelled to sit in that really uncomfortable and juicy moment created by truly profound questions, the Space is truly OPENED. I think that is where we are at, and best of all I see lots of new faces rising to the bait. Call them "Millennials" or whatever... but it is every bit as exciting as the "60's" and we may or may not survive to tell the tale. But that has always been true. Harrison Harrison Owen 7808 River Falls Dr. Potomac, MD 20854 USA 189 Beaucaire Ave. (summer) Camden, Maine 04843 Phone 301-365-2093 (summer) 207-763-3261 www.openspaceworld.com www.ho-image.com (Personal Website) To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of OSLIST Go to:http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org -----Original Message----- From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Chris Kloth Sent: Saturday, August 31, 2013 8:15 PM To: World wide Open Space Technology email list; David Osborne Subject: Re: [OSList] Federal Reserve Employees Survey David, I wonder if you could share a little more about what is going on already. I have had conversations with Fed officials in San Francisco and Cleveland and, while they are doing some things I am very interested in and impressed by, I have yet to see evidence of OST. -- Shalom, Chris Kloth ChangeWorks of the Heartland 254 South Merkle Road Bexley, OH 43209-1801 ph 614-239-1336 fax 614-237-2347 www.got2change.com Quoting David Osborne <[email protected]>: Yes Brett. Being Done. Consider looking beyond the reporting....to the fact that space has been opened for this to be shared and talked about. What is in the news is not always the best reflection of what is actually happening. -- David Osborne www.change-fusion.com | [email protected] | 703.939.1777 On Sat, Aug 31, 2013 at 12:35 PM, Brett Barndt <[email protected]>wrote: Can the OST community perhaps help here? It is a sad state of affairs in which we all have a stake. Even citizens of the world have a stake in this dysfunction owing to the interconnected nature of the global economies, our livelihoods, and well-being. The appointees, and congress by association, should not be permitted to let it go on this way any longer. People are dying out there with higher poverty, food insecurity, mortality, and suicide rates as a result of this situation. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/28/federal-reserve-employees-su rvey_n_3826165.html Discourse and dialogue are the last thing that should be stifled by culture or any other dysfunction in an institution like this one. OST and an open process of multi-stakeholder engagement is of course part of the solution. This seems like it should be well within our rights to insist upon at this moment in time. We are stakeholders. Albeit. we are non-consulted, unrepresented stakeholders in the current practice. _______________________________________________ OSList mailing list To post send emails to [email protected] To unsubscribe send an email to [email protected] To subscribe or manage your subscription click below: http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org ---------------------------------------------------------------- This message was sent using IMP, the Internet Messaging Program. _______________________________________________ OSList mailing list To post send emails to [email protected] To unsubscribe send an email to [email protected] To subscribe or manage your subscription click below: http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org _______________________________________________ OSList mailing list To post send emails to [email protected] To unsubscribe send an email to [email protected] To subscribe or manage your subscription click below: http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org -- Daniel Mezick, President New Technology Solutions Inc. (203) 915 7248 (cell) Bio <http://newtechusa.net/dan-mezick/>. Blog <http://newtechusa.net/blog/>. Twitter <http://twitter.com/#%21/danmezick/>. Examine my new book:The Culture Game <http://newtechusa.net/about/the-culture-game-book/>: Tools for the Agile Manager. Explore Agile Team Training <http://newtechusa.net/services/agile-scrum-training/> and Coaching. <http://newtechusa.net/services/agile-scrum-coaching/> Explore the Agile Boston <http://newtechusa.net//user-groups/ma/ <http://newtechusa.net/user-groups/ma/> >Community. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... 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