Do we need a longer conversation?
I really enjoyed the Zoom yesterday with Adah Parris. I found her way of looking at technology very human and accessible and I found I was hearing a few of the themes that have come up on Loomio and in other calls being voiced...
Trust - she spoke about how having 'a common enemy' has made us see more clearly what needs to be done for 'the greater good' and that within tech communities, this has meant more willingness to share ideas and work together towards a common goal.
Basic human needs - I really liked the way she spoke of tech as a tool to solve problems or meet needs and the encouragement to emphasize the needs as a motivation for technological innovation rather than devices being a motivation in themselves, no matter the consequences.
The importance of story telling
The importance of acknowledging that we are all just a piece of the puzzle and no one has all the answers.
And the big question that seems to be the focus of every conversation at the moment was of course, how can we use this opportunity to make systemic change possible?
It was exciting and felt like the beginning of a great conversation, which made me wonder whether a longer conversation might be possible? A conversation in which we don't stop until we have decided on a couple of collective actions (however small). A sort of scaled down version of 'The Elephant' project in which the focus is on the next small step we can take now.
I would be really interested to know if others felt this.
Naomi Orbegozo Wed 22 Apr 2020 9:24AM
Oh great! Yes, that seems like the perfect opportunity. I will try to post some questions/ideas in here before then to get the 'cognitive cogs' moving and invite others to do the same. Thanks Indra!
Louise Livingstone Thu 23 Apr 2020 1:21PM
Sorry for my delayed reply here. I wasn't able to attend the meeting on Sunday, but I will be there this coming Sunday. Thank you Naomi for sharing the common themes from Adah's session - very helpful. I'd be very interested in a longer conversation :)
Naomi Orbegozo Thu 23 Apr 2020 6:20PM
I have been thinking today about what we may need to consider when coming up with a collective action and came up with a couple of things that seem important to me:
Clear purpose/message
In line with A/UK values
Needs to accommodate differing time commitments
Room for creativity
Speaks to different perspectives
Uses the opportunity we have been given in this moment
Any agreement/disagreement/additions?
I hope you are all enjoying this glorious evening!
Louise Livingstone Fri 24 Apr 2020 8:45AM
Yes Naomi, this looks very comprehensive. Looking forward to discussing further. Warm wishes, Louise (another glorious day here!) :)
Maria Tue 28 Apr 2020 9:28AM
A video of the Adah event is up now for anyone who'd like to watch https://www.thealternative.org.uk/dailyalternative/2020/4/27/heres-the-recording-of-our-the-elephant-meets-event-with-cyborg-shamanist-adah-parris. We've used your great write-up Naomi to inspire people to watch 🙂
Maria Tue 28 Apr 2020 9:49AM
Love the points Naomi, I also think it is important that we are conscious of those things, especially how other people, and different kinds of people, can engage with our ideas/projects. I would perhaps add the A/UK 'I - We - World' framework to the list, which for me gives great context. This means (to me) thinking about how an idea is engaged with on these three levels and also the story it tells about the individual, 'us' and 'our world'. Does that make sense?
Perhaps we should think about setting up smaller, more action-focused, Zoom calls for each the different sub-groups or conversations? And we could then introduce these points?
Naomi Orbegozo Wed 29 Apr 2020 8:57AM
Including the 'I-We-World' framework sounds like a great idea Maria. An important lens to look at any action through I think.
Smaller action-focused groups could work I think. My only reservation is that the impact of an action often depends on numbers. This is what Ben and I are finding with our 'Presenting the Counter Narrative' action. But I suppose that could depend on the nature of the action and the impact we are aiming to make. If we were in small groups, we would just need to take this into consideration I suppose...
Maria Mon 4 May 2020 3:10PM
Yes definitely strength in numbers! But perhaps sometimes easier to move forward with some action points when it's a smaller group making decisions? Would perhaps be worth considering how actions/ideas moves from this space, to a wider 'audience' as well as different levels of participation/engagement.
Naomi Orbegozo Sun 10 May 2020 12:25PM
Your comment once again reflects our experience in the Counter Narratives group :) We are currently 4 who are meeting regularly on zoom and I can see that as numbers grow, decision making is a longer, if not unpleasant, process. We are talking about ways in which we can escalate support and participation, as well as, when is the right moment to 'go public'...
Inez and Ben are working really hard to complete a really clear document to present our purpose and messages. Once this has been published, would you be willing to take a look then perhaps we could organise a (slightly) larger group call to fill out the details and invite input on ideas for actions and ways to move forward?
I hope you're staying well and sane! :)
Indra Adnan · Wed 22 Apr 2020 8:47AM
That's a great write up Naomi. Agree we need longer and love that idea of not stopping till we have some actions agreed / committed to. The next co-creators call is scheduled for this Sunday - shall we use that? Maybe you could open a conversation there?