World Cafe Community

Ubuntu

We received this email recently from Jennifer Goudemand in South Africa. It was so beautiful I had to share it with you all here:

"Thank you for this work – I stumbled upon this methodology very recently, and am awed by the power, relevance and willingness to share evident in The World Cafe.

In my country, we are undergoing many changes, and, as is the way with all humanity, we resist them largely as vexing and irrelevant to our selfish needs. The ethos of the Café system allows us an opportunity to connect with peoples of all political and religious shapes and sizes, to better understand what we all aspire to, in the proverbial Bigger Picture.

Remarkably, in my personal experience, most of Mankind has similar desires and goals – the safety of our families and loved ones, the education of our children, the right to pursue opportunities unfettered. Sadly, our dogma has created a gulf across which it is sometimes nigh impossible to traverse, but which is reachable via the bridges the Cafés create, pockets of safety in which to explore another’s point of view, unthreatened. And to learn, continually, the value of Oneness. 

I’ve had only warmth and ‘Ubuntu’ from your people: “...what is this thing we call Ubuntu? ... Ubuntu means each one of us can only effectively exist as fully functioning human beings when we acknowledge the roles that others play in our lives. Most Nguni languages in Southern Africa will say: “umuntu ngumuntu ngabantu [a person is a person through other persons, or I am because we are]”.

It is about accepting our inherent interconnectedness. This is the one missing piece of our current socio-political, leadership and business puzzle. At a glance, ubuntu seems idealistic. Yet, when understood, it is the foundation for social coherence. It engenders self-respect, whose current lack among individuals across all communities (rich and poor) breeds the levels of violence we experience.” (Dumisani Magadlela)

I look forward in great excitement to making World Cafés the adjunct to my work and life, to meeting the minds of others and understanding their stories, which must be one of the most enriching Learning Curves to which I’ve ever been led.

In great appreciation for your dedication, and the gifts bestowed.

Jennifer"

Appreciation

In the September issue of TableTalk, I spoke about the challenges & uncertainty of the times we're in now and how it's in these times that we become even more appreciative of things like the power of conversation and the blessings of community. In the spirit of harvest and thanksgiving, I invited us all to take a moment and think about the things we most appreciate about this work we're all engaged in.

Note: The remarkable photo above was shared freely under a Creative Commons license. It came from Gregory Smith's work on the CARF (Children at Risk Foundation) page on Flickr.

I've already started getting some wonderful responses by email and on the online community forum .

Alice McGillivray sent in two photos of a World Café on leadership within park and protected areas, wordlessly voicing what she appreciates, and our friend FireHawk Hulin from Resonance shares this video of David Cooperrider's thoughts, which he taped in a 1990 interview at his home in Illinois:

From Sharon Joy Kleisch, the World Café regional steward in Florida:

"The World Café opens a world of possibilities. Connecting is easy and leads to the most interesting people, passionate about doing important work in their communities and on this planet. Local cafes offer the gift of meaningful conversations that haven’t happened in quite this way before. Sometimes the local and the larger network interface, creating potentials for sharing and the delight of new insights.

As much as I appreciate these qualities, perhaps even greater is to experience a living system and to be part of a healthy example of how and why such a theory works."

From Juanita Brown, co-founder of the World Café:

"One of the things I’m most appreciative about in relation to the World Café is the truly amazing and beautiful community of heart and spirit that is stewarding this work forward into it’s next generation of life and creativity.  I am truly humbled and blessed to sense the love, commitment, creativity and capability with which so many around the world are co-evolving this beautiful “being” that is the World Café in service to life affirming futures in local communities and regions around the globe.

With my deep appreciation and respect."

You, too, are most warmly invited to use the comment function below to share your own thoughts on what you most appreciation about the World Café work. Thank you!