Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: what is your vision of community participation?

[Neal Caidin (nealc]

Hi Stephanie,

My name is Neal Caidin. I am a member of Eno Commons Cohousing in Durham,
North Carolina. I have been a member for almost three years. Our community
is in the building phase with 14 of 22 houses completed and the Commons
House waiting to get started in the wings.

My recollection is that we set an expectation in our community that everyone
would put in a minimum of 10 hours per month contributing to community
development. Participating in business meetings counts towards the 10 hours
per month. We hold two business meetings a month at two hours a piece.

Not all the households that joined heard this expectation and there is some
resistance to it. My understanding of the basis of the resistance is that
some people just don't want to be told what to do. I heard one spouse say of
her husband that he will contribute a great deal if he is not required to,
but will contribute no time if the community sets rules. With the exception
of this guideline, which not everyone in the community accepts, all
participation is voluntary. 

The level of participation varies considerably among members. My personal
expectation is that different people will contribute at different levels at
different times in their lives based on a wide variety of factors: energy
level, work demands, child demands, emotional needs, and many more factors
than I am able to identify. I believe that setting a minimum expectation for
participation is reasonable. I also believe that letting each person
contribute to the level to which he is able and willing is the best way to
keep a community's energy level and excitement high.

We have recently started using committee structures more frequently to
reduce the load of issues that the group needs to directly address in
meetings. I am on the "Committee for Committees". Our committee is
developing a process for sanctioning committees from the group. Our process
starts at the point at which one or more members sees a need for a committee
and wants the group to approve its activities.

The member would draft a written document which includes :

1) The name of the committee.
2) Who is proposing this committee be incorporated
3) Date the committee is proposed to the group.
4) Date that the group sanctions the committee.
5) The "Statement of Issue and Merits of Project" which explains why the
committee is necessary in a paragraph or two.
6) The scope of the committee. This describes the issues or questions within
the bounds of this committee to answer or address.
7) Categorization of the committee as either one that will:
    a) Gather information and report back to the group
    b) Make a recommendation to the group on a course of action
    c) Make a decision and spend money
8) How much money is the committee authorized to spend
9) Who is on the committee
10) What other resources does the committee require
11) A time line to complete tasks, if applicable.

The whole group would then apply its consensus process to refine and accept
the proposal to form the committee, thus sanctioning the committee. 

The Committee on Committees has not proposed this process to the group yet,
but the Budget Committee Chair was gracious enough to cooperate in testing
this process for his committee and it seems to me to have worked well. 

I hope this is of some help.

In Community,
Neal Caidin
Eno Commons Cohousing


----------
>From: weigel <sweigel [at] lamar.ColoState.EDU>
>Subject: what is your vision of community participation?
>Date: Thu, Feb 25, 1999, 1:31 PM
>

>Greetings!  The River Rock Commons cohousing ad-hoc 
>committee on participation is gearing up and would
>like to hear from other cohousing groups and members
>on participation issues.
>Such topics as: Do you have committees?  Is membership
>mandatory?  How does participation work in your community?
>Do a small group end up doing most of the work?  What
>are ways to include everyone to their abilities?
>Thanks for any sharing of experiences, ideas and visions!
>
>What is your vision for community participation in cohousing?
>thanks much
>stephanie Weigel
>sweigel [at] lamar.colostate.edu