How can we work together to create a change movement? 

What is the secret of moving from idea to action to result? 

So often we try to bring about change, either on our own or more likely in a group, but after some initial energy and effort the momentum dies. Then there are the exceptions, when the right mix of ingredients produce astonishing results.

The upper room at Dock's provided an intimate, social setting for about 20 people who came to tackle this challenge. We had a diverse crowd, including mayoral and council candidates, retirees, scientists, non-profit sector folk and more. This event, held the evening of July 29 was the first follow-up to the inaugural ChangeCamp.

At this smaller event we used World Café, "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."

This was my first experience with World Café, so as a facilitator I didn't know what to expect. We had 3 rounds of talks, 20 minutes each. For fun, we decided to use real table cloths for people to doodle on while brainstorming ideas. At the end of each round, each table jotted down their most pertinent points on stickies which were posted and grouped on the wall. 

We the ChangeCamp organizing team also took 30 minutes to demo the toolset and share the process we used which enabled us to kick ass in preparing for the one day ChangeCamp Sault event. We feel we've found a sweet spot that other groups can benefit from. Details to come in another post.

The format was a huge hit. Everyone had a lot of fun, made new connections, and generated hope and ideas for overcoming the obstacles to lasting change. See the photos to see what took place, and the results posted on the wall.

This is just the beginning. There is much more work to do. Change will not happen overnight, but the necessary work of growing community has begun.

In my next post, I'll share more where all this is headed (hint: think election, engaging the public and politicians in transformative dialogue). These are exciting times. I truly believe something magical is underway. Now is the time to get involved. 

If you have a connection to the Sault, come join this community of Change Agents and together we shall move mountains.