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Experiential Spirituality
Under the term experiential spirituality we describe a group of experience-based, non dogmatic practices that have emerged in the 20th century and continue to develop at present. Experiential Spirituality invites us to embrace a more encompassing perspective of the world, and encourages taking more responsibility for our lives. Altogether, these practices form something larger than the sum of the parts. They are one of the major contributions to the birth of a new culture.
We list here a series of approaches for transformational work at the individual, group and organizational levels. The last one could more properly be called ‘social technology.’
See Experiential Spirituality excerpt (from A Revolution of Hope) Excerpt >
Twelve Step
Twelve Step has had a great influence over modern culture for the last 70 years. This is a perfect example of a thoroughly modern way to promote individual growth and community-building. Twelve Step has offered a universal tool to overcome addiction and co-dependence, and pursue an individual understanding of morality. It is a springboard towards non-dogmatic spirituality, and it has contributed to the adoption of positive new societal values.
For information about a whole range of Twelve Step programs check:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_twelve-step_groups with an overall view of about 30 specific programs following the Twelve Step format.
See excerpt from A Revolution of Hope Excerpt >
Life Coaching, Individual Coaching, Business Coaching, …
For an orientation see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coaching
Coaching is a method of directing, instructing and training a person or group of people, with the aim to achieve some goal or develop specific skills. There are many ways to coach, types of coaching and methods to coaching (from the site).
For a foundational book on coaching check:
Destiny Learning
Destiny Learning is an anthroposophical approach to working on transforming our double (shadow) and tracing the deeper cause of our life-patterns in events of previous lives. http://www.nalm.net
See author’s article: Excerpt >
Family Constellations
Family Constellations consists in offering a visual representation in connection to events that have caused trauma in our lives with the help of representatives on a stage. It has recourse to minimal interpretation, and climaxes in the building of an image that has transformative power.
About the founder of Family Constellations, Bert Hellinger: An explanation of how it works at http://www.familyconstellations.com.au/fc_introduction.html OR http://www.hellingerlearningcenter.com/hellinger-learning-family-constellation.htm
See excerpt from A Revolution of Hope Excerpt >
Hospice International
For the work of Hospice all over the world see:
http://hospiceinternational.com/index.html with links to all affiliated hospices worldwide
See excerpt from A Revolution of Hope Excerpt >
Nonviolent Communication (NVC) is a versatile technique for empathic human connection and deeper communication. Over time it becomes a new consciousness for empathy, self-expression and self-connection. At a larger level NVC offers a tool to move beyond the right/wrong thinking of our culture that breeds global violence. It is a tool of choice for mediation.
Official NVC site: http://www.cnvc.org/
For books on NVC check http://www.nonviolentcommunication.com/index.htm
See excerpt from A Revolution of Hope Excerpt >
SOCIAL TECHNOLOGY
For an understanding of social technology, see excerpt from A Revolution of Hope Excerpt >
For a concise overview of many of the tools of social technology, their modalities, possibilities and constraints, range of application, etc, see http://www.thataway.org/exchange/files/docs/ddStreams1-08.pdf
For youtube clips of facilitation see Dialogue and Deliberation Videos:
http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=sheierbacher&view=playlists
Theory U
Theory U explores a whole new territory of scientific research and personal leadership. By moving through the "U" we learn to connect to our originating Self. We travel down the left side of the "U" to find ourselves in the realm of presencing, where we learn to sense the future that is seeking to emerge. At that level of operating, we experience the opening of our minds, our hearts and our wills. Yes, this is an intellectual journey, but it's one that is grounded in real life experience and shared practices. On this journey of sensing, presencing and realizing, we learn new ways of being—ways crucial for each of us at this chaotic time (from http://www.ottoscharmer.com).
See excerpt from a Revolution of Hope Excerpt >
See Blog Entry >
Appreciative Inquiry
Appreciative Inquiry is about the coevolutionary search for the best in people, their organizations, and the relevant world around them. In its broadest focus, it involves systematic discovery of what gives “life” to a living system when it is most alive, most effective, and most constructively capable in economic, ecological, and human terms. AI involves, in a central way, the art and practice of asking questions that strengthen a system’s capacity to apprehend, anticipate, and heighten positive potential. (from http://appreciativeinquiry.case.edu/intro/default.cfm)
See Blog Entry >
Future Search
Future search is a planning meeting that helps people transform their capability for action very quickly. The meeting is task-focused. It brings together 60 to 80 people in one room or hundreds in parallel rooms. Future search brings people from all walks of life into the same conversation - those with resources, expertise, formal authority and need. They meet for 16 hours spread across three days. People tell stories about their past, present and desired future. Through dialogue they discover their common ground. Only then do they make concrete action plans. (from http://www.futuresearch.net/index.cfm)
See Blog Entry >
World Café
World Café offers a very flexible format for engaging all stakeholders in a community or organization around an issue of common interest. It can be used for small up to very large groups, in anywhere from a few hours to two-three days formats.
As a conversational process, the World Café is an innovative yet simple methodology for hosting conversations about questions that matter. These conversations link and build on each other as people move between groups, cross-pollinate ideas, and discover new insights into the questions or issues that are most important in their life, work, or community. As a process, the World Café can evoke and make visible the collective intelligence of any group, thus increasing people’s capacity for effective action in pursuit of common aims. (See: http://www.theworldcafe.com)
See Blog Entry >
Peacemaking Circles
Peacemaking Circles is a multi-stakeholder approach originally introduced within restorative justice. Based on a continuum of circle practice, Peacemaking Circles addresses physical, emotional and spiritual components of peacemaking in an approach that respects any cultural, religious or spiritual traditions. The approach is based on multiple levels of circle integration from steps preceding, to all those following up a conflict resolution.
http://www.rocainc.org/programming_peacemaking.php
For book Peacemaking Circles: From Crime to Community see http://www.yukonbooks.com/shop/customer/home.php
See author’s article: Excerpt >
Dynamic Facilitation
Dynamic Facilitation is a way to assure that time-constrained managers, ordinary citizens in public meetings, conflicted employees in team meetings, or family members can speak their minds and hearts in a meeting, without being specially trained, and have it work out great. The dynamic facilitator structures the flow of conversation so each comment becomes an asset to the group, building shifts and breakthroughs. With Dynamic Facilitation skills you empower people to solve impossible-to-solve issues because you bring out a quality of thinking where they are creative and extraordinary. (from the site)
