The Practice of Peace
A Program
for Peacemakers
Overview
In a world splintered by deep and destructive divisions the
search for wholeness, health, and harmony – Peace – approaches desperation. Deep
fissures have appeared across the mosaic of humanity, and while the press may
fixate on the larger divisions between nations, religions, and cultures, the
story elsewhere is no less troublesome. Families, communities, businesses and
organizations of all sorts and sizes display the destructive pathology of
fragmentation, disease, and discord.
Our efforts in search of peace, although well
intentioned and energetically pursued, appear destined to the fate of Sisyphus
who was condemned to roll a boulder up a steep hill, only to have it roll back
over him as he reached the top. It is not for lack of trying, but the Peace we
seek always seems beyond our grasp.
Perhaps we are working too hard in the pursuit
of something that will arrive all by itself, given sufficient space and time?
Fond hope? Dangerous delusion? Outrageous possibility? Or – a workable reality
requiring only that we give up our eternal (and illusory) quest for control?
Based upon the serendipitous and remarkable
discovery of twenty years’ experience with Open Space Technology, the outrageous
possibility comes tantalizingly close to being an established fact. Through
thousands of applications in 107 countries, groups of all sorts and sizes (up to
2000 people) have discovered that hugely complex and conflicted issues can be
dealt with productively in an environment of respect, hope, trust – and even a
degree of intimacy and affection amongst prior sworn enemies. Even more
remarkably, all of this occurred without prior training in conflict resolution
or the intervention of an army of facilitators and mediators. Observably, it
seems to happen all by itself. The people do it themselves with minimal to
no assistance. Some have called it magic.
It has become apparent that the “magic” in this
situation has virtually nothing to do with the technique of Open Space. It has
everything to do with the fundamental power of self-organization which underlies
Open Space, as indeed everything else. If we are to believe the growing
conviction of the scientific community, it is the power of self-organization
which accounts for the organization of the Cosmos and all its creatures, great
and small. In a word, it nothing new. In fact it has been there from the very
beginning at the moment of The Big Bang, and ever since for the past
14,000,000,000 years.
The Practice of Peace Program
In this program we will experience and learn to
apply the powers of this age old force in our search for Peace. It would not be
inaccurate to say that the elemental tools for effective peacemaking are already
in our hands. We need only to use them.
The Program: The program will take place over 2 ½
days. Each day will begin with a brief presentation by Harrison Owen designed to
stir the pot and get things moving. This will be followed by a full day in Open
Space, where the real work will be done as all participants share their
questions, insights and inspirations, building their own Practice of Peace. The
focus for each day is as follows:
Peace and Peacemaking in Pieces
Peace considered and defined along with a sympathetic, though critical look at
our present activities of Peacemaking. Conclusion: We’ll never get there going
the way we are going.
Muddling Through A brief
consideration of the remarkable fact that after 14 billion years and multiple
disasters we are all still here to complain about how badly things are going.
All of which is to say that things have been working rather well under the
circumstances, at least sufficiently well to enable countless generations to
come to fruition and pass their wisdom and skills on to the succeeding
generations. Simple Question – How come? Proposed answer – Self-Organization
rules! And if we can only learn to leverage the power that has brought us this
far, we might make it all the way! It could also be that engaging in an
effective Practice of Peace is less about doing something new and different –
but rather simply doing consciously and intentionally what we have been doing
all the time.
The Practice of Peace Lastly – to the heart of the
matter with the description of a Practice of Peace that has worked for many and
will work for you.
Who Should Come? If you live on a planet, reside in
a nation, domicile in a community or work in an organization where
fragmentation, dis-ease, and discord have reached levels toxic to your soul –
and want to do something about it – this program is for you. Peace and
peacemaking is often thought to be the special preserve of diplomats and
professional negotiators, but Peace is too important to leave to the
professionals. It is everybody’s business. Further more, when we have to call in
the professionals, that is clear and certain evidence that we (all of us) have
not been doing our job. Peacemaking is an everywhere, everyday, every person
job.
Note: Although Open Space Technology and the
global experience with Open Space is very central to this program, this is not
(strictly speaking) an Open Space training program. Nor is prior experience with
Open Space as participant or a facilitator an essential prerequisite – however
it will definitely help. If you are new to Open Space you will find it very
useful to have read (or at least skimmed, Open Space Technology: A User’s
Guide (Harrison Owen / Berrett Koehler – available at
www.amazon.com ). Or read The Practice of Peace (Harrison Owen / Human
Systems Dynamics Institute available at
sales@openspaceworld.org)