Re: Sociocracy (response to "blocking consensus" and long)
From: Kevin Wolf (kjwolfdcn.davis.ca.us)
Date: Tue, 5 Feb 2002 22:46:01 -0700 (MST)
At 08:03 PM 2/5/2002 -0700, you wrote:

My point of view, then, is that you're doing a form of voting
and not consensus.  In practicing consensus, the group is open
to whatever solution works for everyone.  Sometimes it does
take a long time.  That's the price we pay for using
consensus.

Michael
You don't use a process to craft proposals before they are considered at a full community meeting? Wow. How much time do you spend in meetings and has this time commitment and process prevented good people from joining the community? Has this affected your diversity? I suspect that this investment of time could be acceptable, maybe even preferred by like minded people. Do you think your community's spiritual focus is behind the acceptance of what must be time consuming meetings? (By the way, how often do you all meet together each month?)

In our community, we would have an even lower attendance at community meetings if they took a great deal more time. We have been very successful working out problems and proposals, especially ones that have emotions attached, before the big meeting. Most often the consensus is formed without additional meetings but through swirling intermixing of one on one and group discussion for the week or two before the decision making meeting.

There are some issues that benefit from the full community's involvement with brainstorming, evaluating, integrating and processing all the possible permutation and ramifications of differing options to an issue or problem. But this takes a lot of time. I personally like the process where everyone who cares about an issue come to a meeting on it alone and work out a proposal that could gain the community's consensus. (A key to the success of these proposal development meetings is to get opposite thinking people to attend and help work out the proposal together.)

This discussion on consensus and process has been valuable. Thanks to everyone participating in it.

Kevin
****************
Kevin Wolf
N Street Cohousing Community member
724 N St, Davis, CA  95616
530-758-4211
kjwolf [at] dcn.davis.ca.us

To download my facilitation manual or other material on
consensus decision making, visit http://www.dcn.davis.ca.us/go/kjwolf

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