What was Conversation Week 2007 Like?
by Vicki Robin, co-founder of Conversation Cafés
"There's something so different about this," one Conversation Week participant mused after her group's exploration of CW Question: How can we heal the wounds of violence and war? "It's not just friendship. It's not just conversation. It feels like love."
Another participant a thousand or more miles away said:
"We loved hearing each other share deeply, and we loved being listened to with such attention. We agreed that this is a unique experience in today's world. We were impressed with each other and with the synergy. I [got] in touch with my aliveness... more than in years! Thank you."
At Todd Beamer High School in Federal Way, WA , some 300 students chose to wear Orange Bands and to plaster the halls of the school with their "most important questions in the world." The T-shirts - white with a big orange question mark - sold out. One class trained as hosts. Another did all logistics and coordinating. A third marketed the CW event, an event which magnetized the whole school. Students and teachers alike loved being part of something larger and talking about what matters most. One teacher wrote, "I've had other students (juniors) asking how to get an "orange band". Apparently it is now "cool" to be interested in global issues."
Other participants around the world said:
- "People are beautiful when their hearts and minds join with others."
- "It's amazing how enjoyable and stimulating it is. It has to be experienced to be believed."
- "Amazing and wonderful, that people with different perspectives, backgrounds and ideas, who wouldn't normally or naturally come together, can talk with each other about these "big" topics."
- "Creating a just and sustainable world can be fun" Amen to that!
The first global Conversation Week...a success!
Our Conversation Week 2007 team wanted to give thousands of people the experience of making sense of our world through intimate face-to-face conversations, interconnected via the web, about the questions that mattered most. Dialogue, we believe, is essential to community, democracy, clear thinking, friendship, wisdom and more - and it's different from the debates and diatribes that pass for communication in our contentious culture. We also wanted to celebrate 5 years of Conversation Cafés spreading "big talk" around the world. The specific experiences reported above mirror what surveys from 87 participants reported - that our first experiment was a significant step towards a global capacity for being in one conversation together.
It not only provided occasions for neighbors, friends and strangers to explore potent questions using the Conversation Café way, but it gave participants an experience of hope for the future.
Over 1000 people - that we know of - participated in Conversation Week conversations. 130 hosts signed up and nearly half reported on their conversations. Documented conversations happened from North Pole, Alaska to Sydney, Australia to Utrecht in the Netherlands to Tokyo, Japan as well as across the US and Canada - and likely another 50-100 conversations happened that never reported in. Here's what we learned from them.
Conversations happened in city offices, virtually by phone, in churches, .jpg)
hostels, bookstores, community rooms, board rooms, living rooms and more.
We learned a great deal from this pilot project that will help make Conversation Weeks in the future major global events.
The most important question in the world is...
* We discovered that the most provocative and popular question was the one we posed, as we sought the best set of topics to dialogue and sustainability experts around the world: "What do you think is the most important question in the world now?" Questions direct our attention and creativity in ways answers or opinions cannot. One report said:
Surprisingly we came to consensus when we looked at the commonalities of our individual questions. Together we word-smithed the final burning question for our time:
"What will I do to help the people of the world accept the challenges of saving things in and on the planet?"
It is interesting that in the week that followed - although it might not have been the café that caused it, but it also may have been - one member of the group bought a new hybrid car, another promised to stop using the dryer, another bought an earth flag and hung it up with the words: "The more we get together, the happier we'll be!"
As with all the other cafés we've done, action seems to follow conversation. Conversation is indeed action.
Tied for the second most popular questions were;
(Click the links to read a few of the blog posts.)
"When do you feel most alive?" and "What is freedom for?"
Being part of a global conversation.
* When asked what drew them to participate, most people said: "I was attracted to being part of a global conversation and sharing what we learned." This confirmed our inkling as we planned for Conversation Week - that people are longing to be part of a larger conversation. People are longing to be heard in the big conversations of our times, to feel that their voices matter somehow. People are longing to hear what others around the world actually think, unmediated by how the press frames things. People trust people.
Other comments about what people liked:
"The way we talked, everyone having two chances to speak before the open conversation," tied with "Knowing groups around the world were doing it as well."
Then: "The stimulation - new insights, different perspectives."
People like to be invited by people they know.
* The second biggest reason for attending: "I know the host." This is a big clue about how a "culture of conversation" might come into being: most people attended because they had a prior connection to the host or other guests. Personal relationship allows people to overcome their skepticism or fear enough to attend an open public conversation among strangers. Of course, people go to public hearings to spout off. They go to meetings on issues they care about. But if it's "just" for conversation, they can't quite imagine how valuable it will be.
Of course, good publicity gives people a sense of personal connection. A newspaper article or an email letter or appealing flyers attract people to new and potentially fun experiences. And such publicity allows Conversation Café groups to break out of becoming a small club of friends. The stranger is often the spark that takes conversations higher so long-time hosts need to keep expanding the circle of invitation.
When asked what they would do differently next time, many survey respondents noted more and sooner marketing, advertising, inviting (especially to increase diversity) and picking a more convenient and conducive environment. This pilot, it seems, inspired hosts and guests to want to expand the opportunity. It's like being invited out on a second date!
Next year for Conversation Week we have the opportunity to master the art of inviting friends and strangers to our tables, through networking and newspapers and flyers and emails and blogs and "my space" and listservs and every way that people find people they care to spend more time with.
Diversity is the spice of Conversation Cafés.
Attracting diversity is definitely an issue. One person said, "Too much of like mind: similar backgrounds, interests, ages. I hope for much more diversity next time." When asked who they would like to come next time, people said they wanted more:
à Youth! Youth! Youth! à People of color à Ethnic variety à Perspectives
This is clearly another important focus for the next Conversation Week. How can we attract more diversity to our tables? What do you think? Tell [email protected] .
People love the CC Process!
The Conversation Café process was a big hit. Among the enthusiastic kudos were:
- It is a process I need to use in every moment of my life! - absolutely a fantastic method. The talking object protects you from so many things, especially drawing out quiet people and closing up dominators. It creates a safe, open environment for each person to have a say. - It can really open your eyes to new ways of conversing - It is enlightening and thought provoking. It makes you think and rethink, consider and reconsider. And that spells growth.
Other interesting survey results:
- 94% said they'd attend again.
- 70% said they'd like to host
- Over 90% gave their hosts high marks.
In final comments one person summed it up as "a wonderful manifestation of an idea whose time has come. Thank you!"
What's next - for you?
