Re: the importance of clearly defined process & power--consensus recommendations | <– Date –> <– Thread –> |
From: Tree Bressen (treeic.org) | |
Date: Sun, 3 Feb 2002 03:44:01 -0700 (MST) |
Dear Maggi, >Do you, or anyone else, have suggestions regarding resources for helping a >new group come up with a fair, simple decision-making process? Examples >would be helpful -- is there a good handbook? Would you recommend having >a professional come in at the beginning and doing a workshop with all >participants? I have *lots* of resources to suggest, a bunch of which will soon be posted on my website. However, since my site won't be ready for at least a few weeks, here is an initial response. I'd say there are two handbooks in widest use at communities. Here is a description of each that i wrote for Communities magazine a while back: ----------------- For basic information on how to do consensus, the book many facilitators recommend first is Building United Judgment: A Handbook for Consensus Decision Making, originally published by the Center for Conflict Resolution (CCR) in Madison, Wisconsin. Sample chapters include "Structuring Your Meeting," "Working With Emotions," "Communication Skills," and "Common Problems: What To Do About Them." Chock-full of useful knowledge presented in an accessible manner, Building United Judgment also includes fascinating insights and opinions by individual authors and commentators, set off in boxes next to the text. For example, on paraphrasing: "This technique is tricky and often mis-used. . . . Gotta be tuned in to the speaker emotionally for this to work." The chapter on blocking includes an engaging description of the actual process the authors went through when they couldn't agree on what to write about the topic! Overall this book has a very down-to-earth feel; while the extra bits give it the sense of being a work-in-progress, it's clear that the information has been "field-tested" through real experiences. The other consensus manual in use by many communities is On Conflict and Consensus, by C.T. Butler. This booklet is simple and clear, providing a step-by-step procedure for using consensus decision making complete with flow chart. There is a section on how to evaluate meetings (something many groups overlook), and descriptions of possible roles (such as Agenda Planner, Advocate and Doorkeeper). Criticisms of the "Formal Consensus" approach that some communities have voiced are first, that it expects all issues to be raised in the form of a proposal, instead of allowing for raising of a question or situation followed by collective development of a proposal, and second, that it focuses a lot on concerns, which can lead to a negative atmosphere in meetings. However, communities can choose to tweak the Formal Consensus guidelines to allow for more flexibility in these areas. --------------------- Building United Judgment is available through Fellowship for Intentional Community at store.ic.org, or call 800-462-8240. The full text of the Formal Consensus booklet is available for free over the web, author CT Butler's site is www.consensus.net. In response to your second question, about whether or not to have a professional come in early, i think the answer is a strong yes. Of course i may be quite biased since i am one of those professionals! However, i heard many comments at the North American Cohousing Conference last summer about how important it is for new groups to get focused training in group process and decision-making, and how overlooking that while focusing on site planning leads to lots of regrets and problems later. I'm confident there are folks on this list who could speak to that from personal experience. . . . Cheers, --Tree ----------------------------------------------- Tree Bressen 1680 Walnut St. Eugene, OR 97403 (541) 484-1156 tree [at] ic.org _______________________________________________ Cohousing-L mailing list Cohousing-L [at] cohousing.org Unsubscribe and other info: http://www.communityforum.net/mailman/listinfo/cohousing-l
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the importance of clearly defined process & power (was Re: Handling disputes in cohousing) Ed Stauff, February 1 2002
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Re: the importance of clearly defined process & power (was Re: Handling disputes in cohousing) Maggi Rohde, February 1 2002
- RE: the importance of clearly defined process & power (wasRe: Handling disputes in cohousing) Rob Sandelin, February 3 2002
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- Re: the importance of clearly defined process & power--consensus recommendations Tree Bressen, February 3 2002
- Using Professionals to Help Define Decision-Making Processes Sharon Villines, February 3 2002
- Re: Using Professionals to Help Define Decision-Making Processes Maggi Rohde, February 3 2002
- Re: Using Professionals to Help Define Decision-Making Processes Robert P. Arjet, February 3 2002
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Re: the importance of clearly defined process & power (was Re: Handling disputes in cohousing) Maggi Rohde, February 1 2002
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