Friends, Before starting on my recent book, I went on a visiting tour up the West Coast from San Francisco. That was a pivotal tour for me, learning important things from Tom Atlee, Rosa Zubizarreta, Tree Bresson, Jim Rough, and others. It was what I learned in those visits that provided the final inspiration for the book. Of all the places I visited, the one that fired me up the most was Ashland Oregon, where I stayed at David Wick's "Democracy House", and had the chance to meet David, Irene Kai, Joseph McCormick, Pat Spino, and Lance Bisaccia. Joseph and Pat were then organizing the first Democracy in America conference, which I featured in my book as the "Michigan Conference". Joseph and Pat are still at it, and now they've recently organized the second in the conference series. Once again we see a politically diverse group of people, and we see very promising outcome, as a result of harmonization- style dialog. Very interesting stuff. Comments welcome. rkm -------------------------------------------------------- http://democracycampaign.org/SecondConference.html excerpt: SECOND CONFERENCE ON DEMOCRACY IN AMERICA "A Trans-Partisan Leadership Retreat" Gold Lake Mountain Resort and Spa, Ward, Colorado December 1-4, 2005 DEFINING MOMENT - A Microcosm of America As the leaders of national membership organizations in the room reflected on our mutual concern for the magnitude of the issues facing America, there was a moment when the question was asked "who's in charge here anyhow?" It was then pointed out that there was a microcosm of America present representing in excess of 70 million people. As this weighty realization sunk in the meeting shifted into a subtle sense of wonder about the potential power of the whole (as distinct from the power of any part of the whole.) -------------------------------------------------------- FINAL REPORT [from a document sent by Joseph] _____________________________________ DEFINING MOMENT - A Microcosm of America As the leaders of national membership organizations in the room reflected on our mutual concern for the magnitude of the issues facing America, there was a moment when the question was asked "who's in charge here anyhow?" It was then pointed out that there was a microcosm of America present representing in excess of 70 million people. As this weighty realization sunk in the meeting shifted into a subtle sense of wonder about the potential power of the whole (as distinct from the power of any part of the whole.) RETREAT PURPOSE According to Alexis de Tocqueville, 1835 author of Democracy in America, political and civil associations are the guarantors of freedom in a democracy. The three day gathering December 1-4 among leaders of national political and civil associations -- approximately 1/3 generally perceived to be left of center, 1/3 generally perceived to be right of center, and 1/3 generally perceived to be unaligned -- was intended to build bridges of trust, respect and communication by engaging in facilitated dialogue about a) the values that unite us as Americans, b) ways to expand upon the success of recent trans-partisan political and civil initiatives, and c) other potential trans-partisan initiatives. CREATING A SAFE SPACE FOR AUTHENTIC CONVERSATION The retreat was held at Gold Lake Mountain Resort and Spa, Ward, Colorado - www.GoldLake.com. In the mid 1800s, Chief Niwot (or Lefthand) brought his tribe, the Southern Arapahos, each summer to the place now known as Gold Lake. Native lore tells of peaceful meetings concerning the past years' events and future plans between the warring Arapahos, Ute and other Native American tribes. The site is very remote, deep in the wilderness of the rocky mountains at 8500 ft. We had exclusive use of the lodge, cabins and spa facilities. It was cold, windy and snowy -- there was a clear sense of vulnerability to nature. There was a visible sense of relief on the faces of some participants at having arrived safely after driving snowy roads and being welcomed to a warm cabin and lodge. The feeling was something likeŠ"regardless of our differences, it's nice to be around other humans." The main lodge was the primary meeting place and was laid out in such a way as to create a sense of intimacy, a living room/family room type feeling, allowing for informal conversations near the fireplace as well as spaces for council dialogue. Many participants took advantage of morning and after lunch walks around the lake as well as the outdoor hot tubs, hot stone massages between sessions, and a morning yoga class. These methods of relaxation and re-connection with nature played an important role. Following the meeting, a core group of the facilitation/convening team discerned a number of principles that went into making the event work as well as it did: * Intention - in planning and in purpose * The presence of "the whole" * A container of safety allowing for authentic conversation * A nourishing meeting atmosphere with owners/staff connected to the meeting purpose * Invocations of silence * Numerous blessings / connection to higher guidance * Co-facilitation - "Third Side" available of at least two people * Ground rules agreed upon * Every person's voice was heard, valued * Empowerment of the group to modify schedule, ground rules, outcomes * Respectful conversation * Intentional closure FACILITATION Lead facilitators -- Mark Gerzon, President, Mediators Foundation; William Ury, Director, Global Negotiation Project, Harvard Law School Convening team -- Joseph McCormick, Co-founder, Democracy in America Project; Pat Spino, Co-founder, Democracy in America Project; Susan Hackley, Managing Director, Program on Negotiation, Harvard Law School; Robert Fersh, Executive Director, Search for Common Ground USA; Michael Ostrolenk, Founder, Liberty Coalition CONTENT Conversation on Values The conversation began with each participant choosing a value which they held as most important. Were they reflected on our current political system/government? On a scale of 1 to 10, how are they fairing today? Even though the general assessment was that our current political system/government does not reflect our values, most all participants considered themselves to be optimists. Issues of Concern (Open space) Four initial topics were agreed upon for break out sessions and participants chose two sessions each to attend: Responsibility of the Media/Advertising Large scale citizen dialogue that creates citizen empowerment Patriotism and terrorism Voting and Election fairness, integrity After the initial topics were agreed upon participants then brainstormed other topics of concern and were asked to place a dot next to the topics which they wanted to explore further: Vision for growth / Local Economics 9 dots New social contract 8 dots Role of Religion in Democracy 8 dots Corporate/Government State 6 dots Complexity of Laws: Election, Tax, Insurance 6 dots Energy / Climate change 4 dots Definition of American identity 4 dots Role of US in the world 2 dots Health 2 dots Police state vs. Individuals 1 dot Privilege and Preference 1 dot Entitlement and Tax Policy 1 dot The war on drug users 1 dot Create conditions which encourage good people to run for office Benefits for the elderly What's next after Katrina Marginalization/Exploitation of children No child left behind Mapping the political field - Beyond left and right Participants counted off and formed three diverse groups to talk about the political map. Groups reported out on how they would map the current political landscape: Group One - Balance of paradoxes Individual Freedom vs. Community, Social responsibility, the state Private actions vs. Role for gov. ensuring safety and well-being Freedom vs. Rules Open vs. Closed Engaged/Care vs. Don't care/not engaged Non coercive vs.Threat of violence Hierarchy, Top down, father knows best vs. co-parenting, small 'd' democracy, participatory, we don't have the answers, admit mistakes Self-centered/childlike vs. Socio-centered/focus on family, immediate issues, nationalism vs. World centered/concerned for the whole/empathy with non-Americans * Politicians actually act more on the left/right model. * For all the diversity that we have, our representatives end up on one side of the other. * Until we change the coalitions around the representatives, then nothing will change. Group Two - Balance of values Mommy values Daddy values ^^^^^^^^^^^^ ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ People are good People are flawed Cooperation Competition Hope Fear Compassion Tough Love Community Individual Fairness Accountability Pluralism Unity Quality of Life Economic Growth Equality Freedom * Next step would be values that bridge * We need Mommy and Daddy / Family model * Can we create some common terminology? * We are trying our best to support both, within a system that has said you have to be one or the other Group Three - A compass, not a map * Maps are flat and one dimensional, no smell, taste, boring. * We have a moral compass - Joy, Purpose, Honor, Integrity * The "me" is in the center, with my own decision points. Around "me" are the circles of family, community, country, etc. * A compass floatsŠWe each float within our frameworks, we then maneuver within our days, and challenges from our floating center allowing us to be non-stuck, as we see others as non-stuck. Session Closing Comments * In the "red team, blue team" model, we need rules, officials, and guidelines. * In the "left and right" map 80% of us are spectators. How do we engage the rest? The apathy has gotten so bad, that we need to discover how to re-engage the masses. * American people are disengaged spectators, just watching the game, but with no power. * We are simpler beings, we just want to go with the good people and go against the bad people. OUTCOMES -- Next Time and Next Steps What worked? * Diversity * Civility * Courtesy * Small groups * Unstructured time * Group size of the whole * No cell phones * Phenomenal facilitation * Individuals that were invited * Opportunity to meet * Physical layout of the meeting place (Gold Lake lodge) * Exclusive use of the space * The space itself and the setting (Gold Lake), and the 'family' that runs it * Dialogues * Hot tubs Considerations for next timeŠ * Altitude * More early playfulness for connecting * Bring in the initiatives we had asked for (follow through with our plan) * Possibly find a facilitator with a different political persuasion * Too much crunchy snack food * Hold the meeting earlier in the year (for weather/holiday reasons) * Hold the meeting after the elections as a healing space * Bring into the room African-American men * Topical areas represented, for example children, or hunger * Offer more information to inform dialogues * Do we expand this group or create new groups? * Do we preplan what issues are on the table? * Could hold smaller issue-oriented meetings, and bring what is gathered and learned to the larger meeting * Have a bi-monthly newsletter Next steps - Planned actions agreed upon by participants (not named) * Plan large scale citizen dialogues o Monthly "American Pizza Parties" o Launch a "Democracy Campaign" in 2006 - a trans-partisan nation field campaign that a) convenes a series of issue dialogues among experts and average citizens, b) convenes monthly citizen dialogues and c) convenes a We the People National Convention by 2008 * Monthly trans-partisan salons or dinners in DC * Continuing conversation on election laws * Reaching out to women on equal rights * Move forward trans-partisan dialogue on terrorism * Articles for the American Legion Magazine * Third Conference on Democracy in America CLOSING CIRCLE Though we planned the last dialogue to be about 'Next Steps', when Sunday morning arrived, we realized that this work had already largely taken place and simply allowed 30 minutes for "5 Minute Presentations" of projects already underway that are examples of trans-partisan work. It was evident that as yet unidentified collaborations would spring from the personal relationship that had begun. The remainder of the morning was devoted to bringing closure to an event that in many ways could be described as a political healing - enemies had met, looked each other in the eye and were in some way transformed. Following a round of heartfelt sharing about the personal impact of the gathering, we closed with a standing circle in which prayers and blessings were offered from the Islamic, Judaic, Protestant, and Catholic traditions. Appendix I PARTICIPANTS (Note: 11 women, 14 men -- gender balance played a role) John Rother, Director of Policy and Strategy, AARP Robert Spanogle, National Adjutant, American Legion Grover Norquist, President, Americans for Tax Reform Betsy Taylor, President, Center for a New American Dream Roberta Combs, President, Christian Coalition Ana Micka, President, Citizens for Health Dave Keating, Executive Director, Club for Growth Chellie Pingree, President, Common Cause Joseph McCormick, Co-founder, Democracy in America Project Pat Spino, Co-founder, Democracy in America Project Irma Herrera, Executive Director, Equal Rights Advocates Tom Beech, President, Fetzer Institute William Ury, Director, Global Negotiation Project, Harvard Law School Cheryl Graeve, Senior Director, Membership, League of Woman Voters Michael Ostrolenk, Founder, Liberty Coalition Mark Gerzon, President, Mediators Foundation Scott Heiferman, Co-Founder, Meetup.com Joan Blades, Co-Founder, MoveOn.org Ahmed Younis, Director, Muslim Public Affairs Council Brenda Girton-Mitchell, Assoc. General Secretary, National Council of Churches USA Susan Hackley, Managing Director, Program on Negotiation, Harvard Law School Robert Fersh, Executive Director, Search for Common Ground USA Maggie Fox, Deputy Executive Director, Sierra Club Drew Bond, President, Townhall.com John Steiner, Transpartisan networker -- -------------------------------------------------------- http://cyberjournal.org "Escaping the Matrix: how We the People can change the world" now available on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0977098303 on Amazon.UK http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0977098303 Posting archives: http://cyberjournal.org/cj/show_archives/?date=01Jan2007&batch=25&lists=newslog Subscribe to low-traffic list: •••@••.•••
