​​What task might engage the D&D community?
​​Part of "DandDTrans," a community of inquiry and action regarding the role that dialogue and deliberation can play in addressing the mega-crises of our time
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​What task might engage the D&D community?

​​Posted by Ben Roberts on Feb 4, 2015
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​​Tension around "action" showed up as a theme throughout this engagement. I think it's fair to say that we all want to "do something" that can make a difference. At the same time, there is not broad alignment about a "something" (or set of "somethings") that a large number of us might coalesce around. Various people have advocated things they are passionate about and see as worthy of a large collective effort (Jim Rough's Wisdom Councils, ​+Ben Levi's "super-ordinate goal"​, and Laura Chasin's ​+Reviving Congress District by District​ come to mind as examples from this group). Yet no idea has gained a great deal of action-oriented traction over the course of our January inquiry.
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​​This might have to do with the limitations of the process that was hosted. But I believe it reflects the far deeper challenge inherent in the notion that we, as a community of practice, can actually come up with ideas that "make enough of a difference to make a difference." As Tom Atlee framed it in his background piece re the Strategic use of Conversation:
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  • ​​Since we are dealing with fundamental realities and interconnectedness, the correction of this flaw cannot be simply planned and ordered from the top or somewhere outside the transforming systems.  Our situation is far too complex and resistant for such linear approaches.  It will require a deep, complex, progressive and interacting set of shifts in the vast majority of people, systems, and cultures - and over a relatively short period of time measured in decades, not centuries - fueled by energies arising from our personal and group experience of the very dynamics that threaten us.  
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​​This task can easily seem overwhelming. The truth is, we don't know what might "work," and we also know that we need "the whole system in the room," and thus our CoP is incomplete. Plus, we're all busy and most of us need to make a living.
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​​Yet, I believe there ARE things we might do. And I think there is a Catch-22 in the sense that we won't come together powerfully without an aligning task, yet we need to come together in order to find that alignment. And there's the well-founded concern that whatever we come up with now, it almost certainly won't rise fully to the level of what's most needed, or even come close. 
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​​Nevertheless, I would like to suggest that if it is the right sort of fractal and/or prototype, it could galvanize a large group of us. We yearn for action, and I think there are things we might do that would be valuable and that would help us discern next steps beyond that. As this concept of "​+the adjacent possible​" suggests:
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  • ​​[B]oundaries grow as you explore them. Each new combination opens up the possibility of other new combinations. Think of it as a house that magically expands with each door you open. You begin in a room with four doors, each leading to a new room that you haven't visited yet. Once you open one of those doors and stroll into that room, three new doors appear, each leading to a brand-new room that you couldn't have reached from your original starting point. Keep opening new doors and eventually you'll have built a palace.
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​​What if, rather than seeking "immediate maximum systemic impact," we look for things that have some of the following qualities? They...
  • ​​are easy to do
  • ​​connect us with one another
  • ​​feed our life-energy
  • ​​connect us with the broader field of people, organizations, alliances, communities and networks that are working for systemic transformation
  • ​​provide an opportunity to learn something of value, at both content and a process levels.
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​​What are some possible action items that might fit this bill?
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​Thoughts and Comments?

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​Laura Chasin 2.4.15
​​Ben, your final paragraph above, especially the fourth bullet, (connect us with broader fields of people) sums up the impact of the experience on me. Since then, a colleague referred me to Thriving Resilient Communities, www.thrivingresilience.org, which even has a collaboratory. I was VERY impressed by the website and then thunderstuck when I saw that you are a member of  its inner circle. I hope you will share your story in relationship to this network which I think all of us should absorb before we write another work [you mean word?!] to one another!
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  • ​​Ben R., 2/6. Well, Laura, I appreciate your response, and your interest in TRCC. I've been involved with that initiative in various ways for over two years, including a year and a half as a "steward," so it's kind of a long story to tell!  We work with leaders of place-based initiatives, "trans-local" networks and alliances, thought leaders on the building of thriving, resilient community, "process artists" like those gathered here in DandDTrans, and funders of systemic transformation. We combine regular in-person gatherings (two or three times a year) with online processes to develop collaborative opportunities and to deepen the relationships amongst ourselves.
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  • ​​In terms of how this work connects to DandDTrans, one thing to note is that the way in which we used hackpad in conjunction with MaestroConference was prototyped in the Collaboratory, where we have had great success with this combination. It helps, in that context, that there is a group that is committed to working together over time, as there is a bit of a learning curve with these tools.
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  • ​​A possible point of connection in our current work involves the prototyping of "new paradigm philanthropy." We are bringing funders and fundees together into dialogue to co-develop proposals and make grant-making decisions collectively. This prototyping has led to a budding relationship with the Edge Funders Alliance and some other networks, that we hope will supplement the long-standing support we have received from the Threshold Foundation. We're also looking for additional funders that want to support this experiment.
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