Process minutes: 2009-09-02

Agenda:

9/2/2009
Process/Infoco joint meeting

7-8:15pm, CH sitting room

Present: Amy, Alicia, Mary, Patti, Elph, Catherine, Sarah (until 7:30),
Gail, Jillian

Minutes:

AGENDA

Fall facilitation and minute taking dates
Fall Infoco meeting dates
Fall skills and thrills event
Process budget
Process next meeting

---------------------


Facilitation dates

Sept 3, Sarah Alt meeting leader, Facil Patti
Sept 21: Facils Sarah and Alicia, Minutes Amy
Oct 7: Facils Elph and Patti, Minutes Jillian
Oct 19: Facil Jillian and Mary, Minutes Catherine
Nov 4: Facil Elph, Alicia, minutes Patti
Nov 16: Facil Amy, Mary, Minutes Catherine
Dec 2: Alt meeting leader Megan, Facil Jillian, Minutes Amy
Dec 14: Facil: Amy, Elph, Minutes Patti



Infoco meeting time: 1st Tuesdays

October 6 6:15-8
November 3 6:15-8
December 1 6:15-8



SKILLS AND THRILLS EVENT NEXT STEPS


Gail had the handout from the meeting. Learning was the top category chosen
at the community meeting, and within that the dot storm prioritized
"Sustainability" and "Back to basics: what is community". Third in line was
"kids growing up in community."

Set the date firmly is a first step - seems likely to be the second weekend
in november - Jillian will email this out.

We did not get into detailed discussion of these broad topics.
Sustainability is a big topic as is back to basics. We have to delve into
what does sustainability mean? Sustaining the communit?y The environment?
What we can do personally? Politically?

The upcoming community meeting agendas are pretty full though.

I don't think we should just throw it back to the community again as a wide
open discussion. I think we should do some work to hone in on a topic that
would fall within an area and present it and get feedback. Can also be
thining/working on who we could find to help us - a professional we could
hire.

The numbers of votes are low and the numbers are so close - we should talk
amongst ourselves about what we think might benefit the community. I think
back to basics could help us a lot more than a more traditional
sustainability discussion about food growing or water catchment.

I think we have so many new residents that we could focus on back to basics
- reviewing how we make decisions and why, together with getting to know
eachother. Need to be careful though - this has to be of interest to
everyone, not just mew folks.

Could be shining light on issues that are chronic issues - like people not
following agreements - not that we are creating agreements about issues, but
more to look at, how is the reality of working on dealing with issues - hows
that like, what do you do. It would cover basics, like what is the process
of our biz meetings. If I want to bring something foreword for discussion
how do I do that. Even a roleplay or skit will get to things like, who is
infoco, who is vetting things, why do we have facils at the front of the
room. But also people who have lived here for years can talk about how its
been using the systems or agreements, remind ourselves of why we have them.

"Great Oak - how's it going!"

Its been six years - community vs indiviudal interests is one of the issues
I've been thinking about. That would get at consensus process, at keeping
agreements, at what is the process of making an agreement.

It would be intesting to talk about real situations after 6 years of real
situations! It would be helpful to choose some specific directions we could
go among topics that would seem to have interest. Do some deciding ourselves
so its not 40 people trying to figure it out. We present something and get
reactions.

When I was thinking about back to basics, I was thinking, what the heck are
we doing here anyway - its been 6 years somep people may have forgotten what
the draw was - if you've opted out of meetings this is what it means, this
is the effect it has. If you're not in the work program this is the impact -
might re-energize people, and educate new folks.

So we're talking about the ties that bind and the nature of long term living
here and the nature of committment here - the small group work - the framing
could be done with sustainability issues as examples - for instance if you
wanted to talk about how we make decisions and deal with indiv vs group
needs we could talk about putting small windmills on buildings and how would
we go about dealing with indiv issues about view related to that. Use an
example that touches on a hot area. Or could be children, etc

Where is something my problem and where is it your problem - that whole
boundary issue. At the last infoco meeting we were talking about boundaries
but have not had a community discussion.

I keep thinking about something I read about communities where there's a
point after you move in that you realize that your hopes aren't all going to
be met - your expectations - it would be interesting to frame it in terms of
why did you move in, what did you get what did you not get. The
sustainability piece seems to me like, buy in, some people did move in with
the hope that there would be these great projects about sustainability. So
what would make you reinvest now in a more exciting way, what would energize
you.

How could we incorporate new people in that discussion. We could ask them
why they moved in - hear their hopes. Might be refreshing for us to hear. We
all sound so battleworn! Show our scars from the scooters we've tripped
over. :-)

Who would be good to work with as an outside facilitator?

The cycle we are in the middle of is probably pretty typical - 7 year itch
etc - and new folks coming in, and old expetations not met. I'd like someone
with deep experience in long-term intentional communities - the lifecycle of
community. Would be fun to have someone from outside. Rob Sandelin lives in
one of the oldest cohousing communities in the country. Tree Bressen? Shari
Leach?

I don't feel like we're in a classic group dynamics major group dynamic
shift - I feel like we could shine some light on stuff but I don't feel like
we're doing crazy things - I dont think we're in the "storming" phase, of
Forming, norming, storming, renorming. At storming you need to look at what
are the creative parts in the storming phase and use that in reinventing the
community, in renorming - it doesn't feel like we're in that crazed storming
phase. Am not sure we need that high-power help- I don't feel like we're in
a renorming stormy phase.

I feel more like we're in a lull, I'm not so into it, need to re-energize.

I think its just us re-evaluating what's important and putting more into it.


In a lull, indentify the areas that are important to you as a group, that
you know are important - and look at them, talk about them. I don't think we
need a new structure, but lets just talk about the major things that are
important to us as a community - how we make deicions, how we work. I don't
think we need a different system completely.

My concern about us doing it without an outside professional, is if we are
going to do anything meaninful it will require a lot of prep time, need
activities, product, process - can't do it half-ass. I know I do not have
the time to plan this well (and other around the room all agreed). Process
has I think $1000 for potentially using as a professional fee. Not a ton but
better than nothing.

Do we know examples of who other communities have worked with? Communities
our age?

Shari Leach did a training for us about consensus, and she led us through a
process to create our vision and our committees. I feel like we accomplished
more with Shari than with many others. There was good product, and a good
combo of kinesthetic stuff as well as cerebral, I'm a fan of her.

Shari withdrew from this work though, not sure if she's back in it or not.

MONKEY: Jillian will email Wonderland Hill Cohousing cmty to find out if
Shari Leach is doing any work any more. And ask Tree if she has ideas for
people closer to us.

Amy H remembered meeting Rob Sandelin and liked him, from cohousing in
Seattle.

MONKEY: Elph will email Rob Sandelin.

Seems like some of the sustainability items could be chunked out to
alternative meetings (food storage, water catchment, etc)

Sept agenda - 10 minute convesation to talk about this idea. So we need to
articulate something! Gail and Jillian will both be away, and that is
Andrew's birthday so Catherine is likely not availble.

Could call it something like Great Oak, anticipating the 7 year itch."
"Great Oak, how's it going." Or "Great Oak - what the hell were we
thinking?

September 21 - Mary King will present with support. Patti can help, and
others from Process and Infoco if available. How much time? 10 minutes.
Getting reactions - this is what we're thinking - should we move forward?
Yes some interest? Or if the group is not excited then should we postpone
until next year.

I feel like we should put some energy into finding a professinal trainer who
has been doing trainings recently and who have a focus relevant to us.

Need to be careful to not do something generic. Need someone who knows about
the cycles of cohousing.

MONKEY: Jillian will remind "talk" of the likely dates this would be -
weekend of Nov 14-15, 2009



INFOCO HEADED OUT, PROCESS CONTINUED

PROCESS BUDGET PROPOSAL for 2010

We haven't spent much yet this year! Our big ticket item of training is
often near the end of the year.

For supplies we don't always know what year we'll need to replace an easel
for example, but good to have the money in there for when we do. One of the
two easels has some issues, may not last all of 2010. Are spending less on
flip chart paper now.

Member resources - have not put a lot of work into reminding people about
it, but its nice to have, someone could use it toward the cohousing conf
fees for example, or toward workshop fees that have been mentioned on talk
from time to time. But if the community wants to cut it we could so so.

Process Budget

Archives
100

Training/facilitation
1800

Display materials
100

Meetngsupplies
300

Member resources
300

total: 2600

MONKEY: Jillian will email the budget to catherine with comments and
catherine will find someone to present it if she can't.


NEXT MEETING:

We changed our meeting dates to second Wednesdays (other than Sept). So
that's October 14th.



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