Overview
Our co-creative framework is adapted from Open Space Technology (OST). The basic structure includes multiple sessions throughout the day when anyone in the community is free to make an offering. Here are some examples of possible offerings:
- An invitation to conversation about a specific topic;
- A game or other group activity;
- A workshop or talk to convey knowledge or skill; or
- Anything at all!
Purpose
This framework is designed to cultivate an understanding of interdependence as the dance of freedom of choice and self-responsibility. Together we inquire into our individual and shared experiences in three ways:
- Exploring the freedom to select among several options of how to spend my time: How free are my choices, really? What factors influence them?
- Developing curiosity about the impacts of my choices: I can only be responsible for the quality of my own experience. I can notice and care about the experience and well-being of others, without taking responsibility for it.
- Noticing the dance between these two qualities: Together we learn to recognize that everything we do (or don’t do) impacts ourselves, our environment and our community. The co-creative framework makes this dance visible and provides a basis for shared reflection and dialogue about our interdependence.
Freedom of Choice
Our framework operates under one “law” and five principles, describing the fluidity and choice offered by this structure:
- The Law of Personal Mobility (AKA “The Law of Two Feet”): During each session, you are free to follow your joy to whatever session appeals to you. You may leave a session to try out another one, should you choose. Your freedom of choice may also take you to your own activity that is not a formally offered session.
- It Starts When it Starts: While all sessions have associated starting times, we are not slaves to the clock. We begin the session when we are ready to begin!
- It Ends When it Ends: As with the previous principle, we end the session when we are ready to end.
- It Happens Where It Happens: While all sessions typically have an associated location or program space, they might also occur in other places.
- Whoever Comes is Just Right: We trust people to come to whatever session most appeals to them, without asking anyone to sign up for a particular session.
- Whatever Happens, Happens: Prepare to be surprised! Even if we think we know what is going to happen in a session, we might find that something else arises!
Interdependence and Self-Responsibility
Because we are all interdependent, freedom of choice is always accompanied by self-responsibility. This manifests in our framework in three ways:
- Might Miss Something (MMS) / Fear of Missing Out (FOMO): If I find more than one session really appealing, I might be torn about which one to attend. Whatever choice I make, then I will have a particular experience.
- Quality of Experience: Whatever experience I have, I can take responsibility for it without praising or blaming outside factors or other people.
- The Impacts of my Choice: I can be curious about how my choices impact the quality of experience for other people. For example, my leaving a session in the middle might impact the experience of the other participants.
- Making Offers and Requests: If I am worried about missing out, or want to have more influence over the quality of my experience, these are the two main strategies to bring self-responsibility to life. I can offer a session myself or make a request to the community for something to be offered.