Posted in Networks

December 5, 2012

The Turn Towards Affection

affection

|Photo by Patrizio Cuscito|http://http://www.flickr.com/photos/kirtaph/2282499034/sizes/m/in/photostream|

I think it could be said that so much of what ails us in this day and age stems from a severe case of fragmentation.  The combination of silos, specialization, segregation, industrialization, derivation (think processed food and “derivative” investment instruments), and abstraction has rendered us strangers and adversaries to one another, the larger systems that sustain us, and perhaps even to ourselves.  Hence the call that you see often in this blog for a more holistic view and picture, one rooted in an understanding of the systemic nature of reality.  It is also what drives our approach at IISC in terms of being more network-centric in bringing about progressive social change for healthy whole people, communities, and ecosystems.  This is fundamentally about work that reconnects us to what matters most.  And to be clear, this is not simply heady work, which keeps our minds separate from our bodies and emotional selves.  Perhaps no one says it better than farmer, poet, and land activist Wendell Berry, who in his recent Jefferson Lecture framed the solution to our current situation with the title – “It Turns on Affection.”  Below you will find an excerpt, that I shared this very morning with the Food Systems New England Network Design Team: Read More

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December 3, 2012

All our Grievances are Connected

Thanks to Beth Tener for pointing me in the direction of this graphic from Occupy NYC. The headline reads: “Let’s acknowledge the reality: The future of the human race requires the cooperation of its members. Our increasingly interconnected world obscures the underlying truth that all of our grievances are connected.” What connections do you see between economic inequality, ecological irresponsibility, concentrations of political and economic power, racism, sexism, and more? How are you making those connections real in your life and your work? (P.S. Click on this hyperlink if you want to see the article that follows the graphic).

 

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October 16, 2012

More Resonance than Persuasion

I came up as an organizer.  I approached that work by working hard to persuade others that change was possible.  I then proceeded to illustrate the type of change that we could work on.  It is important and dignified work.

But as I came to understand networks I found myself doing a lot less persuading.  I’m not just seeking to build a critical mass.  I’m seeking to make critical connections.  Emergence bursts forth from these connections.

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October 11, 2012

Networks Simplified

Having spent significant time on this blog and in the field focusing on the complexity of network building, I thought I might bring it back to something much more basic and intuitive.  Fundamentally, building networks is about building relationships.  I am reminded of Nicholas Christakis’ research on the spread of physical and mental health in social networks.  Here is something he found – if we are happy, those one step removed tend to be 15% happier.  Those two steps removed are likely to be 10% happier.  And those three steps removed are about 6% happier.  Beyond that, there is much less impact.  But the point is clear, how we are matters, not just for ourselves, but for others.  To whom and how we are connected also matters.

Be the change you want to see.  Connect for that change to go beyond “me.”

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October 10, 2012

Network Tipping Points

Image from |Isaac Mao||http://www.flickr.com/photos/isaacmao/78734579|

A couple of weeks ago I put the following question out into the Twittersphere – “What leads to tipping points in networks for social change?” While I did not get any direct responses, I had a number of people say they were curious to hear what answers came back, and then my own brain was activated to look for movement towards greater impact in the networks with which I am involved in various ways.  I also have been in touch with other network capacity builders about their observations.  Clearly there is no silver bullet for rendering networks more effective, but there are some key ingredients and rites of passage that seem to come up in most.  Here is what I’ve seen and heard:

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October 3, 2012

Network “Doing”

“It’s about redefining ‘doing.'”

Carole Martin

A question that has come up across a lot of the network building and advancement work with which I’ve been involved lately is one form of “What constitutes ‘doing’?”  I would say that it is a fairly predictable pattern that people come together to launch the network, eager to take action to increase local food production and/or food access, to restructure the education system for more equitable outcomes, etc., and they pretty quickly discover that there is some foundation building they need to do first.  This work includes building trust and relationships and establishing some common expectations, goals, processes, and indicators for their collaborative efforts.  After a while, another pretty predictable dynamic occurs when people who often identify themselves as “activists” and “doers” start to ask, “When are we actually going to DO something?!”  And then we see the classic tension emerge between what often gets labelled as “talking vs. doing” or process vs. action.

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October 3, 2012

Network "Doing"

“It’s about redefining ‘doing.'”

Carole Martin

A question that has come up across a lot of the network building and advancement work with which I’ve been involved lately is one form of “What constitutes ‘doing’?”  I would say that it is a fairly predictable pattern that people come together to launch the network, eager to take action to increase local food production and/or food access, to restructure the education system for more equitable outcomes, etc., and they pretty quickly discover that there is some foundation building they need to do first.  This work includes building trust and relationships and establishing some common expectations, goals, processes, and indicators for their collaborative efforts.  After a while, another pretty predictable dynamic occurs when people who often identify themselves as “activists” and “doers” start to ask, “When are we actually going to DO something?!”  And then we see the classic tension emerge between what often gets labelled as “talking vs. doing” or process vs. action.

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September 28, 2012

The Ego and the Hub

I’m into networks.  It takes a significant shift in perspective to get into networks.  We develop aptitudes and ways of being-with that allow us to contend with grater complexity.

I’m so into networks that I had the privilege of participating in a community of practice on networks and decentralized organizing.  Networks thrive on trust and relationship and it was with this knowledge that we dove in.  We became friends, we grew to love, appreciate and trust each other.

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September 17, 2012

Change your map, change your world?

Beth O’Neill, of Interaction Associates recently led a session on Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP). It’s the only thing she has seen in her many years as a coach and consultant that actually helps people change beliefs. NLP gets at the deep structure of what we’re trying to communicate, rather than focusing on what comes out at surface structure of our communication. It explores how our thoughts, actions and feelings work together right now to produce our experience. It’s a practical way to get at the unconscious, looking at what’s running our patterns, and creating opportunities for us to make conscious changes that bring forth the outcomes we seek.

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August 29, 2012

Encouraging Breakthrough Interactions

During a recent planning session for an upcoming conference on community food security, we had a rich discussion about ensuring that the gathering embody some of the future we are trying to realize.  This included breaking down silos and encouraging boundary crossing of different kinds.  To punctuate the value of this, Rachel Greenberger of Food Sol invoked the words of Cheryl Kiser  – “It’s not about breakthrough ideas, it’s about breakthrough interactions.” Read More

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