| De: |
aash@worldbank.org |
| Sujet: |
Re: [wbyoh] Week Three Discussion: Achieving a consensus on common goals
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| Envoyé: |
Jul 18th, 2007 - 13:24:27 |
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The challenge of reaching a consensus is an interesting one, as it is confronted
at every level of organization, from grassroots movements to government
bureaucracies. A complete, simple solution does not exist, and thus any answer
could grow uselessly complex. The question raises not only the practical
problem of establishing common goals, but also the issue of priorities, or which
common goals are more important than other common goals, assuming common goals
exist in the first place.
In view of the potential complexity of this issue, I offer a simple observation.
In establishing common goals, the most important tool available to all
participants is communication. All participants must communicate their own
goals and priorities to the group, or else they will not have an active role in
the compromise that must follow. Additionally, the group must listen to the
reasoning behind the priorities of others; through listening to the reasoning
that led to a particular participant?s agenda, a better understanding of
motivations can be acquired and incorporated into further discussion. This
understanding further allows all members of the group to recognize which
individual priorities are mutually exclusive to others, and which can be
incorporated into a list of common goals.
As this is not a discussion of common goals for a future YDP North America, but
rather a discussion on consensus building, many of the suggestions must
naturally be theoretical. I know the idea of ?communication? seems overly basic
and cliché, but, as the open spaces forum proved, discussion is a crucial first
step to spanning gaps in understanding and knowledge. Perhaps shared knowledge
and understanding can be one of the first common goals we can all agree on :)
-Alexia
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