Re: ecovillage and sustainability

It is difficult in community to deal with polar positions. If concensus is
the decision making process of choice, it can get jammed by one person
taking an opposite view. Some communities use a hybrid decision making
system where concensus is used for a certain range of concerns and a
democratic majority vote for others AND for jammed concensus decisions that
have remained stuck past a mutually decided period of time.

What actually happens a good deal in our community is that people agree to
a concensus measure and then just ignore it. Example: we all agree to leave
no unwashed dishes in the kitchen between meals. Some consistently ignore
the decision. Resentment builds in those most attached to the decision. The
issue is revisited. Finally, unless the group decides to rescind the
decision, some consequence or remedy has to be found and applied. For
instance, those most concerned decide that if there are dirty dishes in the
sink when it is their turn to cook, they won't cook! That gets everyone's
attention pretty quick.

Group process can help in these matters. Here at EarthSea we have all done
a lot of personal work with Sandy Levy-Lunden. One of Sandy's favorite
questions is "would you rather be right than happy?" Many community
disputes have this issue at the core-somebody feels the need to be right.
As per above, someone decides not to cook because there is a spoon and an
unwashed cup in the sink. Technically they are right, but now everyone is
very unhappy and hungry.

Now finding a process that all will happily attend to is a huge challenge.
Someone had a bad experience with X therapy, someone else hates group work,
someone else only likes a suggested path if they thought of it first....

Luckily for us we decided right off that some meetings and processes would
not be optional. If you want to be here you will attend 2 meetings a week.
One of them will be governed by the talking stick. You will also attend
sweats and other shamanic activities, practice non-violent communication
and learn a "clearing" process.

These arbitrary rules have certainly kept some people from being attracted
to or joining EarthSea. Fair enough. Having a shared deep spiritual
practice and not spending so much time & energy bickering and being
constantly at odds with others is reward enough.

cheers,
DavidC



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