I love this photo of another way to create an OS market place.
From Nancy White on the OS List.
Call to Civility and Community
An initiative in Utah through the Salt Lake Center for Engaging Community. An invitation from Executive Director, John Kesler, as well as the text that has been broadly endorsed in the state. What I appreciate in this is the dedication it takes to create a document and invite support for it. Where I have most interest is now in the “how” of this happening. Bringing the guidelines to life in real-time practice and conversation.
Dear supporters of the Civility and Community Initiative,
If you were not able to make it to the Dialogue on Democracy gathering a couple of weeks ago, we were able to announce endorsement of the statement by the executive and judicial leadership of the State as well as the Utah State Bar and the Salt Lake Interfaith Roundtable.
We are hoping to obtain a joint resolution of support from the Utah State Legislature when the Legislature convenes in January, and in the mean time will be going after endorsement by the editorial boards of the major media in Utah.
The goal is then to pursue a handful of demonstration projects during 2009, and find ways to make a real impact after that. Future convening includes monthly meetings.
A Call to Civility and Community
An initiative taking place in Utah through the Salt Lake Center for Engaging Community. The invitation from John Kesler, the center’s Executive Director, and the text of the Call to Civility.
Dear supporters of the Civility and Community Initiative,
If you were not able to make it to the Dialogue on Democracy gathering a couple of weeks ago, we were able to announce endorsement of the statement by the executive and judicial leadership of the State as well as the Utah State Bar and the Salt Lake Interfaith Roundtable.
We are hoping to obtain a joint resolution of support from the Utah State Legislature when the Legislature convenes in January, and in the mean time will be going after endorsement by the editorial boards of the major media in Utah.
The goal is then to pursue a handful of demonstration projects during 2009, and find ways to make a real impact after that. Those involved will meet monthly to further this effort.
Download Document Here
A CALL TO CIVILITY AND COMMUNITY
Ground Rules for Respectful Public Discourse and Behavior
“Frequent recurrence to fundamental principles is essential to the security of individual rights
and perpetuity of free government.” Constitution of Utah Article I Section 27
Being concerned about growing incivility in our civic and public settings we call upon the people of Utah to return to fundamental principles that will lead to greater civility and a new spirit of community.Among our “inherent and inalienable” Constitutional rights is the fundamental right “to communicate freely about our thoughts and opinions”, and yet we are also ”responsible for the abuse of that right” Constitution of Utah Article I Section 1.In that context we believe that there must be a renewal of respectful discourse and behavior in civic and public settings in Utah.
This is not an appeal for us all simply to get along. We recognize that there are profound differences among us and that spirited debate is a vital part of American democracy. Participation in American civic and public life does not require us to sacrifice our deepest convictions; rather we best protect our own rights by protecting the rights of others and adhering to high ethical standards.
With that in mind we propose the following ground rules of civic and public engagement that recognize the important place of the rights, responsibilities and respect inherent in our civic and constitutional compact.
1.Remember the Importance of Rights and the Dignity of Each Individual.Our society is founded upon the proposition that that all people are born free and equal in dignity and rights, and that freedom of conscience and expression are at the foundation of our rights.
2.Responsibly Exercise your Rights While Protecting the Rights of Others.Each of us should be responsible both in the exercise or our rights and in protecting the rights of others. Especially on matters of personal faith, claims of conscience, and human rights, public policy should seek solutions that are fair to all.
3.Respect Others.All people – especially our leaders and the media – should demonstrate a commitment to be respectful in discourse and behavior, particularly in civic and public forums. Respect should also be shown by being honest and as inclusive as possible, by mindfully listening to and attempting to understand the concerns of others, by valuing their opinions even when there is disagreement, and by addressing their concerns when possible.
4.Refrain from Incivility.Public discourse can be passionate while maintaining mutual respect that reaches beyond differing opinions. Intimidation, ridicule, personal attacks, mean spiritedness, reprisals against those who disagree, and other disrespectful or unethical behaviors destroy the fabric of our society and can no longer be tolerated. Those who engage in such behavior should be brought to light, held accountable and should no longer enjoy the public’s trust.
5. Rekindle Building Community.Our social compact “of the people” and “by the people” is“for the people.”Each one of us has a responsibility to build community. On divisive issues, areas of common ground should first be explored. Effort should be given to building broad-based agreement, giving due regard to the concerns ofminority points of view.
We invite all Utahns to join us in affirming these ground rules and putting them into action.
The time has come for us to work together.
A Story of Place
I am drawn to the importance of place. With several colleagues I have been in many juicy discussions, and rituals to help feel more present and in rhythm with the land on which we meet and live. From ancient stories carried through thousands of years, like the one below, to a simple attention to what my local surroundings smell and sound like, to a sensing of a place’s energetic history. To be present and available with each other, I am finding this attention to place deeply enriching. To invite place as participant — this opens me and others to much more than would otherwise be so.
With thanks to Lauri Prest, a friend and colleague in Ontario, as well as her colleague, Michael Jones. Together, they recently hosted a cafe for the Canadian Index for Well Being. The day was spent in conversation with 100 others sharing stories about what we care about in our communities and how it affects our health and hearts. It began with a native story teller.
As you mentioned – Sherry was our opening native speaker and story teller. I wanted to share a few words about how the sense of place is held among Sherry’s people – in their story all place is meeting – it is carried in the mythology of Minjikaming, the home of the Chippewa First Nations and the land where the conference was held and Sherry calls home.
Minjikaming means “ keepers of the fish fence” The fence is located in the Narrows a small channel that links two large lakes just a mile or two down the shore from our conference site. For 5000 years the tribes came from long distances every winter to live on the fish that were caught in the fish weirs there . It is where they met the first European settlers many of whom were suffering from physical emotional and spiritual impoverishment and helped restore them to health – over centuries the story of meeting was carried not only as a bridge to unite the diversity of tribes and cultures – this story was also carried in the gentleness of the soil, the wind, the water, the light and the sky.
Their land is also a meeting place – an ‘ecotone’ that marks the edge of the limestone plain and warm shallow lakes to the south with the hard granite cold trout lakes of the precambrian shield to the north. Sherry’s people learned to be masters of two worlds- to learn to hunt and fish and know intimately the complex ecology of each with its distinct fish, fauna, vegetation, and animal life.
– So when Sherry introduced her story with the words “Welcome ! you are now on indian land and need to do things in indian ways ” – it is this 5000 year story of meeting together that holds the ground of being of which she speaks. As you were invited to step outside for a time – to find a space that attracted you and let it speak to you – much as Sherry let her ancestors speak to her through the gravestone – it may have been this ancient story of meeting that spoke to you as well… carried in the fresh warm breezes and waters of Lake Couchiching that November afternoon. (Couchiching itself in Minjikaming is The Lake of Many Winds)
For the communities that make up North Simcoe Muskoka the regional launch of the National Index for Community for Well Being it is also an invitation to let the Minjikaming timeless story of the ‘meetings among the many’ serve as our new ground of being as well.
