About Earthsong

Group Process

The committment to develop and manage housing together requires a culture of co-operation. We see that fundamental to what we are doing is the importance of process—that how we go about something is at least as important as what we do. Good group process maximises empowerment and harmonises contributions from those involved. Learning to work together in this way and make decisions as a group is not easy, but fortunately experience and good tools are at our disposal.

We have developed a very clear meeting procedure, which begins with 'checking in' on a personal level, before relating on a business level. We are committed to the practice of ‘consensus seeking’ decision making.

One process we use for facilitating meeting discussion is the 'coloured cards' method. It has been evolved and used successfully by several community groups world-wide, and we have added some refinements of our own. Additionally, we have established a set of communication agreements and these are fundamental to our way of working and living together.

We also recognise most importantly the need for personal and group 'sustainability'—if we don't sustain ourselves, how can we sustain the environment, or development of the project. So we preserve and expand our capacity by attending to praise and acknowledgement, suitable rest, ritual and a big dose of passion for the project!

The Coloured Cards

DISCUSSION

Each person taking part in the discussion has six coloured cards which are raised at any time during the discussion to indicate a wish to speak.

Black	I have an interpersonal difficulty that is preventing my full participation
Red	I have a process observation, eg. the discussion is off the subject
Orange	I wish to acknowledge someone or something
Yellow	I have a question, or need clarification
Green	I can provide clarification
Blue	I have a comment or opinion

Cards are accorded differing priority and are heard in the order listed above. Black cards have first priority. The facilitator first calls on the person with the black card to state their difficulty and to say how they would like the matter dealt with. The group can then decide whether this should be processed within the group or between the individuals concerned. The red card, the "stop the process" card, has the next priority. It is used to point out a breach in the agreed-upon procedure, such as an item has exceeded time limits. Next, people holding up orange cards are called upon to deliver their acknowledgment/s.

People raising yellow cards to indicate questions have the next priority. After a question has been asked, people holding green cards are called on to provide clarification to that question. After all questions have been answered, the facilitator calls on participants holding blue cards. At this time, comments regarding the topic of discussion can be put forth.

DECISION MAKING

Each person, including the facilitator, taking part in the decision making has five coloured cards. When deciding on an issue, each person must raise one of the coloured cards, which now have the following meanings :

Green	I agree with the proposal at hand
Blue	I am neutral or basically for it, with some slight reservation
Yellow	I have a question to be answered before I can make a decision
Orange	I have a serious reservation, but I am not willing to block consensus
Red	I am entirely against the proposal and will block consensus

If any orange or red cards are raised, those people with reds or oranges get to voice their concerns, if they have not already done so. At this point, an amendment to the current motion could be made which may address concerns raised. Another show of cards can then follow. It should be noted that at this point a motion can be passed unless there are still red cards being shown. If consensus is still not reached after a further meeting on the topic, the decision can be made by a three quarters majority of people eligible to take part in the decision making. This process requires every person in the room to participate in decision making. Dominant personalities will find it harder to push their ideas through at the expense of less vocal members, and softer-spoken members find it easier to voice their concerns.