igniting fields of inspired connection
I just spent an amazing week here at MIT with a group of 30 young leaders from all sectors of Indonesian society: deputy ministers and top civil servants of several ministries, mayors, governors of small regions, CEOs of medium-sized companies, editors of major newspapers and TV news programs, deans of three major universities, members of the national and regional parliaments, leaders of environmental and human rights NGOs, and so on. An amazing group.
With 230 million people, Indonesia is the world’s fourth most populous country and has the world’s largest population of Muslims. Spread over 17,000 islands, it takes 10 hours of flying time to from one end of the country to the other. Indonesia is a bit like our whole planet wrapped into a single country: it has every type of conflict that you can imagine (religious, gender, class, ethnic, colonial –you name it). A real microcosm of our planet. Given this complexity, no wonder the leadership challenges are daunting. The challenge is to transform the relationships between the three sectors (government, business, civic sector) from mistrust to trust, from blaming and blocking to system-wide cooperation, innovation, and change.
What was so amazing about this week was watching how the group (and the relationships between sectors) progressed on that journey of transformation. This week was the beginning of a ten-month (U process) innovation journey with this group that will involve deep sensing, connecting to source (presencing), and exploring the future through prototyping new forms of collaboration.
I have guided two other tri-sector groups through a similar ten-month transformative leadership journey. What has struck me most is that, even years later, the inspired field of connection and collaboration among them is still as alive and vibrant as ever. We have seen some major innovations from these groups already. More innovations will follow. To me it feels as if we are touching the deeper power of human evolution and creativity. Once they touch that deeper place, there is NOTHING on earth that such a group can’t do. That’s how it feels, anyway. Since we are now in the process of co-creating similar platforms and programs for China, Brazil, and some other places, I wonder where all this will lead us. Will these new fields of connection be able to generate new forms of global collaboration and governance? Have you seen similar developments anywhere? Have you experienced fields of inspired connection that change how we relate to each other, to our context, and to ourselves?
10 Comments to igniting fields of inspired connection
Dear Otto, I just have a wish that I would see similar developments in Turkey one day. A super complex country which seems to be always balancing at the edge of a political breakdown. very similar to what you’re describing above – mistrust, corruption, polarization…I personally experience the inspired connections at a smaller scale either in network fields like Art of Hosting or in tribal fields with groups of people who are pulled together through some higher consciousness, in mind-heart-soul connection (and not necessarily in action, yet)
Very cool, Otto! I enjoyed walking this group around on our MIT Innovation Tour. And I especially connect several folks, each with fantastic curiosity combined with good humor and a real desire to make things better.
–Joost
March 29, 2010
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I am currently working with Sarvodaya in Sri Lanka. The past days we had a workshop for over 2000 people. We were in the former warzone where only half a year ago nobody could come. The challenges of this small country are enormous: overcoming the effects of 30 years of war, renewing democracy and building a new society.
I am very impressed by the work Sarvodaya (app. 1000 people) and its founder -dr. Ariyaratne- and son Vinya are doing. We’re not yet in a phase where we can work with the three sectors. The diversity and challenges between these groups are too much. At the same time wonderful work is being done on the ground:
Sarvodaya is the only organization that was allowed from the beginning to work for the IDP’s (Internally Displaced People) in the North. They organized that the staff of the 5 star hotels cooked for free in the camps, they build toilets, helped them to go back to their villages and now they are rebuilding those.
To rebuild the society they have been working already with 15.000 of the poorest villages and helped 3000 of them to establish a form of self-governancce in the past 50 years, including pre-schools and a microcredit bank.
Our meeting was held in Batticaloa. Only 25 years ago 100 youngsters were being killed and burned at the venue of our meeting. Since then they have transformed the place into an educational center that became a safe haven for the Tamils in the area. We were served by children that were only half a year ago child soldiers of the Tamil Tigers. Now they are in a reintegration program of Sarvodaya. You see the trauma in their eyes.
This is now the fourth time in a year that I am here and it’s wonderful to experience the progress we’re making. The meetings we’re organizing are called: Deshodaya, meaning ‘awakening of the country.’ I’ll publish more about the work we’re doing and upload some videos when I am back home next week.
‘The deeper power of human evolution and creativity’ is for sure at work over here and it’s based on Buddhist principles. I am going to discuss the U with Dr. Ari and will let you know what he thinks of it. For me it has tremendous value,
warmly, Hein Dijksterhuis
Within the Art of Hosting community there are a lot of people working on large scale projects, either city-wide, or the health care system in a province, bringing the Art of Participatory Leadership to big international institutions etc. yes, I hear stories of inspired connection, and actually I think that is the only thing that has the potential to change the system, large or small. Connecting with each other as fellow human beings, seeing ourselves as just another human being, and sharpen our subtle senses to know about right timing and right action.
I sense time has come that the streams are merging; both within society and within the area of social technologies. Very curious what is going to show itself in the next two years!
Hi Otto!
Very inspiring so I am rising up to the challenge you posed to me when we met in November. I have emailed you the concept paper of bringing ELIAS to the Philippines. A lot of people are already interested in participating. The ELIAS video helps explain the initiative. With all the ground breaking work of Nicky, it is the perfect time for the Philippines to move to the next level. Hope to hear from you soon.
April 3, 2010
Thanks Otto for reminding us that it’s that they touch the deeper place of inspiration that makes the connections and ‘intervention’ long lasting. Our local Presencing learning community is considering a project in a disaffected neighborhood. Our challenge will be to deeply engage people when they’re used to ‘public meetings’ where they go just for two hours to air grievances. We will need to do something quiet different logistically to signal that this is different.
Thanks Hein for your good work in this war-ravaged place. I am very interested to learn how you worked with 1000 and 2000 people. I am proposing a communications lab to 600 so I am eager to learn about what you did.
And, Ria, thanks for your deep presence that comes through so clearly on this and the presencing community e-forum as if you were here in the room.
Warm regards,
Patrick
Powerful! Thank you Otto.
Makes me think of the emergence in the Philippines around the campaign of Nicanor Perlas and his approach of COMPREHENSIVE Sustainable Development http://www.nicanor-perlas.com/ “We are called to have courage to take risks and to act to our highest ideals and deepest sources of conviction. Then the impossible can happen…”
I hear endless synergies of real global change.
April 21, 2010
As part of the 1st group of that journey (Ideas1.0), I did trully experienced the changes. The bond between the trisectors going stronger after going through the U theory, learning how to “open mind, open heart and open mind”, thank you Otto!
I am very impressed by the work Sarvodaya (app. 1000 people) and its founder -dr. Ariyaratne- and son Vinya are doing. We’re not yet in a phase where we can work with the three sectors. The diversity and challenges between these groups are too much. At the same time wonderful work is being done on the ground:Sarvodaya is the only organization that was allowed from the beginning to work for the IDP’s (Internally Displaced People) in the North. They organized that the staff of the 5 star hotels cooked for free in the camps, they build toilets, helped them to go back to their villages and now they are rebuilding those.To rebuild the society they have been working already with 15.000 of the poorest villages and helped 3000 of them to establish a form of self-governancce in the past 50 years, including pre-schools and a microcredit bank.
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March 29, 2010