In April of 2010 a group of 25 people met at MIG in Berkeley to begin a collaborative discussion about the Regenerative Landscape.
These meetings came about because of a general concern about how the world was not working. I had been feeling a lot of stress. Everything around me seemed to be changing in ways I did not quite understand. Then I began to notice a lot of people were feeling the same way. New demands were being placed on the way we worked, and expectations and outcomes were not clear. Everyone was talking ‘Green’ policy, and mandates were being passed, but very few had any reliable technical information that gave clear direction. Change and new ways of working were in the air. Because of the economic downturn we were all trying to do more with less. That was causing part of the stress but it was much more profound than that. It seems we are in a transition time where the old ways are not working but the new way is not sure. It was time to talk about what this meant – not only for the way we were working but how we were living – a comprehensive overall BIG re-understanding of just about everything!
Through preliminary discussions with our working group we began to explore the concept of Regeneration. Regeneration is a process that occurs naturally in nature, if it is in balance. It became clear that Regeneration could be the metaphor for the transition time the world seems to be experiencing. This regenerative shift takes on multiple meanings depending on what you are thinking about. People shift from knowers to learners. Thinking goes from linear to dynamic, controlled to diverse, sterile to alive. Systems go from polluting to cleaning, and material things are not evaluated on cost, but on the value they provide. This could be liberating….
The format for the discussion was a World Café. A World Café is a technique that uses small groups to discuss big questions. The same question is asked to groups of 3 or 4 people. They discuss and brainstorm for 15-20 minutes and write down the big ideas. Then one person stays at the table and the others go to different tables with new people and they discuss the same question, building on what was previously discussed. This process is repeated a few times, each time generating new ideas or deeper insights. At the end a list of ideas are harvested.
The Big Question we asked was “What would your community look like if it had a fully integrated systematic approach to healthy human and ecosystem development?”
To find out what was discussed come back soon…
Post by Susan Goltsman
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