How I stumbled into the visionary beauty of citizen consensus councils

I’ve stumbled on a 23-year-old video where I tell the story of how a vision I loved – about what citizen consensus councils could offer the world – emerged in my life through a series of accidental exemplary discoveries of such activities already happening. It ends with a wise insight I too often lose sight of when contemplating the metacrisis…

As my final post of the year I want to share with you this remarkable video that my friend Tirrania Suhood in Australia alerted me to just this afternoon.

In this video Jim Rough – founder of Dynamic Facilitation and the Wisdom Council Process – interviews me on March 7, 2000.

Despite the fact that this interview happened two decades ago !! it is anything but dated! It so clearly and compellingly communicates some very important and inspiring aspects of what I’ve come to call “wise democracy”. And my final statement contains long-forgotten clarifying words I really need to take to heart right now, in this strange period we’re in the midst of. I think you just might find them as meaningful as I did.

So: If you want an enjoyable way to spend a half hour as we move into the New Year together, I can’t offer you a better gift.

… Of course, I’ve cut my beard and hair considerably since that time – and my cap is now dark blue instead of white, but otherwise it is me and I like the idea of sharing with you the thoughts, visions and curious evolutions I sometimes find the right words for, especially when they are as fresh as this!

May our shared New Year’s journey be more generative than any of us can yet imagine!

Coheartedly,

Tom

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Tom Atlee, The Co-Intelligence Institute, POB 493, Eugene, OR 97440

Appreciating, evoking and engaging the wisdom and resourcefulness of the whole on behalf of the whole

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4 Responses to "How I stumbled into the visionary beauty of citizen consensus councils"

Chris Corrigan says:

December 31, 2023 at 11:03 pm

It was cool to watch this again! Yep…something timeless. And I heard reference to “experts on tap” which of course is one of the patterns in the GroupWorks deck, and now I know it’s provenance!

Reply
1. Tom Atlee says:
  
  January 1, 2024 at 9:51 am
  
  Nice to hear from you Chris. I may be the source for the reference in the GroupWorks Deck, but I got it from Frances Moore Lappe and, if I recall correctly, she ascribed it to Churchill. Curious, I researched further and found this: https://quoteinvestigator.com/2019/01/26/expert/
  
  Reply
Keely Maitland says:

December 31, 2023 at 11:48 pm

Deliberative processes have now been used globally for years. Have any studies shown that these deliberations have led to actual problems being solved? After studying wise democracy, sociocracy etc. and working as a facilitator helping groups solve problems and make decisions for 20 years, I’ve concluded that consensus processes are not robust problem-solving processes. I’d be interested to see if there is any data on this.

Reply
1. Tom Atlee says:
  
  January 1, 2024 at 10:22 am
  
  Thanks, Keely. I don’t know of any “robust” research, although I expect some attempts exists. However, I expect research that was truly “robust” would need to involve followup to ensure the consensus “solution” was implemented and what the outcomes were (both of which are fraught with complexity, since we’re working with complex systems). Even if a good version of that were possible, it would undoubtedly be very expensive, so who would fund it? I suspect the best one could do would be to do satisfaction surveys on the users and stakeholders (including those impacted), though even that would be challenging (e.g., what are the criteria for “success”, how long after the solution was found/implemented do you survey, and who would be included?).
  
  My opinions on consensus process (of which there are many variations, as you probably know are based on my own experience (in Quaker meetings, activist groups and intentional communities which I’ve been part of) and what I’ve read (for example, about the Danish Consensus Conferences, about which there is much information online). My own favorite approach focuses on collectively addressing everyone’s concerns https://www.wd-pl.com/patterns/pattern-list-v2/1-all-concerns-addressed-v2/.
  
  My observation is that the success of consensus depends largely on the method used (and the facilitator), the nature of the group, and the situational context – all factors that would be challenging to control for rigorous research. Also, most of my personal experience is with the use of consensus in decision-making, which is very akin to problem-solving, but not quite the same thing. The Danish approach, though, is problem-solving.
  
  Finally, although I spoke with Jim in terms of “consensus”, Dynamic Facilitation’s “choice-creating process” is radically different from usual consensus processes, having a much higher level of “emergence” dynamics – more of what US Indigenous leader Oren Lyons spoke of when he said, “In our councils we just keep talking until there’s nothing left but the obvious truth.” You may find my article “How to Make a Decision Without Making a Decision” of interest https://www.co-intelligence.org/I-decisionmakingwithout.html. Jim and I coined the term “co-sensing” to describe this = collectively sensing into the nature of the challenge and what might work to address it. A lot of people using it are fascinated by its power, but that’s not rigorous research, that usually involves problematic quantification as evidence. I, for one, don’t need that. My and others’ experience – to the extent it is consistent – works for me.
  
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