minutes: Members on the call: Laurence, John and Mirlande (who needed to sign-off around 11:30)
We had a free flowing discussion about purpose of Haiti Salon. Laurence and John discussed conditions that give way to people taking greater responsibility for their ideas and convictions. Open Space, especially in regular doses, seems to help with this. For some people, it may require several doses over a long period.
Something that can deter from it (people taking responsibility for acting on their ideas and convictions) is when people come to a meeting sponsored or organized by a large institution. Also, it's critical that the invitation people respond to make clear the intent and prefered outcomes of the meeting. Finally, more traditional facilitation methods where an "expert" is instructing people as to what to discuss, where and with whom to convene in small groups etc, can leave one with the expectation that "I will give them feedback and let them know my ideas and then wait and watch over time to see if they (the institution/group holding meeting) act on them."
John and Laurence also discussed the Philadelphia group that is exploring the possibility of holding an Open Space meeting with a similar purpose to Haiti Salon. The group which is made up of people from various groups and organizations supporting work in Haiti, has invited John to explore with them this possibility. John and Laurence discussed how Haiti Salon planning committee might view this Philadelphia initiative and if there is a role for us to play in supporting/encouraging them and people in other regions to hold such events. John shared how the work that people in a growing network called BALLE (Business Alliance for Local Living Economies) has helped him and his colleagues who are organizing a community wide open space event in Lynchburg, VA. Learn more about the principles that BALLE has developed at http://livingeconomies.org and how the Lynchburg open space initiative has used and benefitted by them in publicizing and promoting our event [Building a Living Economy Together]
Following this discussion, John suggested revisions (see below) for the text we use to describe who we are and what Haiti Salon is.
The agenda items below will be carried over to next conference call which is proposed for 7 PM on Friday March 24. Click here for proposed agenda: HaitiSalonMarch2406
Who we are and our role
Discuss this draft:
Haiti Salon, an initiative led by an eight member planning committee, is about convening people toward furthering justice, peace and democracy in Haiti.
Haiti Salon is founded on the value of open, inclusive and respectful participation … Its purpose is to play the role of facilitator …
The Haiti Salon planning committee also endorses the concepts presented in the “Principles of Healthy Democracy in Haiti” created by the Haitian-American Community Dialogue in February 2004.
Haiti Salon planning committee seeks to convene people in a way that reflects these values using methods that make them concrete.
John's suggested revisions:
Haiti Salon, an initiative developed by a seven member committee, is about convening people toward furthering justice, peace and democracy in Haiti.
Haiti Salon is founded on the value of open, inclusive and respectful participation. Its purpose is to play the role of facilitator in creating conditions that foster:
Haiti Salon endorses the concepts presented in the “Principles of Healthy Democracy in Haiti” created by the Haitian-American Community Dialogue in February 2004.
Haiti Salon convenes people using formats like Open Space, which reflect these values and make them concrete. ---
go back to HaitiSalonConferenceCalls
go to regular Haiti Salon site http://haitisalon.com