The Need. People are yearning for opportunities to make a real difference. More and more of us are waking up to the realization that things are badly off track. We see that there is a need for transformational action at all scales, from local to national to global, and across all sectors, from government to business to community.
This knowledge often overwhelms us. We feel helpless in the face of the massive forces that have created a world that works well for too few at great cost to so many and with devastating consequences for the planet as a whole. Many who work tirelessly to address some broken aspect of our systems burn out and succumb to cynicism and despair. And it is far too hard to make a living doing this healing work, so too few of us can afford to devote the time we would like to being"part of the solution."
The Opportunity. Our ability to collaborate and to make a real difference is surging along with the need for effective action. We have only just begun to explore what is now possible with the combination of our interconnectivity, our rising sense of urgency and the many brilliant social and technological innovations that have recently been developed. By tapping into the power of large groups in this newly hyper-networked age, we can make a significant collective impact without it being a full-time job. And we can also create entirely new ways to make a living in service to this transformational work.
The“Glocal" Action Hook. We want to support powerful action on the ground, especially locally(in the most general sense of something specific and tangible, which is often--but not necessarily-- place-based). And we also want to make use of our new virtual tools to go beyond merely thinking globally. Indeed, we sense that it is now possible to"act glocally,” by identifying some particular piece of local action that needs our support and gathering people globally to move it forward.
Crowdfunding is one manifestation of this energy, but in that model, the donor is passive. What if you could be actively engaged in the work in some fashion, or at least in connecting with those who are doing it and with others who wish to support and celebrate it? Rick Ingrasci suggests that“if you want to change the culture, throw a better party.” A“collaborative action festival” is a better party for the purpose of engaging in a targeted piece of“glocal action.”
The Vision. In a“collaborative action festival,” a core group of about one hundred people gather both virtually and in person around the purpose of moving a piece of"the systemic transformation puzzle" forward in a tangible way. Together, we catalyze measurable action by tapping into our own resources and those of our networks. We also experiment with a"New Economy" model to support the effort involved and we create a temporary space in which to practice“being the change.” All while having a great time! It’s sort of like“Burning Man with a mission”(and a major virtual component).
How does it work?
Producers. A small team--typically three to six people-- takes bottom line responsibility for designing, convening and hosting the festival. While not necessarily a full time commitment, it will become a major piece of their working lives during the course of the festival and in the months immediately preceding it.
Design Circle. This diverse group of approximately twelve people, representing the"whole system" context in which the collaborative action will occur, works with the producers to design and convene(i.e. invite participants into) the engagement.
Core Participants. Members of a core group of about one hundred participants commit an average of five to ten hours per week over a six-to-eight week period to co-creating and participating in the festival.
"Venues." The gathering takes place via an online“home base” and a series of interactive large group conference calls(perhaps supplemented by self-organized Google hangouts and the like). Multiple locally based in-person gatherings(no major travel required) might also be a component. There may also be one or more"summits" at which a percentage of the participants convene for a central gathering in-person, while others join in live using virtual platforms.
Processes. Plenary content presentations(live and online) will provide essential background and inspiration. Processes inspired by social technologies like World Café, Open Space and Theory U will enable participants think deeply together about what they might do and how they might do it. For each festival, the Producers and Design Circle will work together to select(and perhaps innovate) a set of processes to accomplish the particular task at hand and to support the general building of relationships and community among all the participants.
Central Role of the Arts. As Rachel Bagby put it at the 2013 Bioneers conference,“we need new work songs for the new work!” Musicians, poets, artists and story tellers are invited to participate and to facilitate co-creative processes. The Arts serve to ground this work in our hearts, allowing us to tap into a deep sense of our interconnectedness. They also offer a means for breaking through much of our denial and resignation, and for speaking truth to power.
Inviting the rest of the world to play. Ways to bring a much larger number of participants into the festival can also be developed by the producers and the core participants. As a result, people who want to support the action that is being moved forward without committing a large amount of time to doing so(or without following the specific processes of the core group) can still participate and help to create collective impact.
A New Economy-inspired wealth ecosystem will encourage producers and participants to offer whatever they are willing to gift in support of the collective endeavor, and to make requests for financial and non-financial gifts from those who have gathered. Some amount of seed funding might be collected in advance, or the festival could be convened on a purely"gift economy" basis, with everyone trusting that what they offer into the circle will be abundantly rewarded in the end.
The inclusion of an in-person element. The collaborative action festival model is built on our new ability to connect virtually, and it could be held as a purely virtual affair. That said, the energy generated by connecting in the flesh can be brought into the mix through multiple distributed gatherings of Core Participants, art-based events and perhaps also direct actions. These can be linked together(live or“asynchronously”) using online tools. If we are supporting an action hook that is based on work in a specific(and broadly accessible) location, there might also be a larger central gathering there. Still, full participation would always be possible without the need to travel.
