{"id":570,"date":"2007-12-19T20:40:50","date_gmt":"2007-12-19T20:40:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.theworldcafe.com\/why-contribute-to-the-wor"},"modified":"2015-07-20T23:17:55","modified_gmt":"2015-07-20T23:17:55","slug":"why-contribute-to-the-wor","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/theworldcafe.com\/why-contribute-to-the-wor\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Contribute to the World Caf\u00e9?"},"content":{"rendered":"

We asked some of
\nthe key stewards of the World Caf\u00e9 to talk about why they continue to
\ninvest their time, money and care in this work. Here is what they said:<\/em><\/p>\n

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Ana Cristina Maldonado, Florida:<\/em>
\n"World Caf\u00e9 came into my life serendipitously, and found in me an instant convert to the World Caf\u00e9 gospel of good conversation as a love-force that is capable of changing the world. The Caf\u00e9 idea spreads easily from person to person because it speaks some essential truth about the how and why of human connectedness. So, it’s not a surprise to me when someone to whom I mentioned Caf\u00e9 in passing writes me and tells me of a fabulous 60 person conversation on military they just up and decided to organize."<\/p>\n

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Maria de los Angeles Cinta, California and Mexico:<\/em>
"My experience with the people who make The World Caf\u00e9 Foundation is of a continuous expansion\u2014whether it is in the form of ideas, connections to people and resources, good conversations, human accompaniment, or many others.  It is a gift to be affiliated to such a rich community. I have never hesitated to make a contribution back to the WC Foundation whether financial or in kind as I believe the gifts we all bring to the community of \u201ccafeistas\u201d go to the right people, the right endeavor, and the right place– I know it by experience." <\/p>\n

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Sharon Joy Kleitsch, Florida:<\/em>
"Mentioning World Caf\u00e9 is a conversation starter. It never fails to open people\u2019s eyes and imagination. Just talking about the idea is energizing, so they are ripe for the next invitation. These caf\u00e9s bridge differences and continents, as it seems everyone today is hungry for conversations that are truly engaging and give them something to savor afterwards. <\/p>\n

The setting of the caf\u00e9s creates complex levels of welcome and feelings of safety, so guests are more trusting of what\u2019s next. It gives those who are shy the opportunity to offer their views, so all voices are part of the mix. This, I believe, is one of the secret ingredients to success.<\/p>\n

One of the best parts is that World Caf\u00e9s were actually designed by chance, people doing what they love and hosts being open to innovation. The reality is that they could not have been designed strategically to be more successful, as they have all the qualities that scientifically make a difference in bringing about coherence. This is a model of living systems working.<\/p>\n

I am fascinated to experience and watch the emerging fields of cohesiveness. Nothing else quite compares with the energetic feelings of a group that has completed a round of caf\u00e9s. If we are looking for collective wisdom, this is the place. Since my work is around cultivating collective intelligence, World Caf\u00e9s are an essential part of the process.<\/p>\n

Why do I spend my time, energy and money as part of the World Caf\u00e9 network? It\u2019s an investment in our common future. Besides, it\u2019s too much fun to miss."<\/p>\n

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Chris Chopyak, London:<\/em>
"Personal and deep satisfaction \u2013 creative dissonance \u2013 knowing through contribution I am making a difference<\/em>. These are the reasons that I contribute to the World Caf\u00e9 Community. Personal and deep satisfactions are achieved through the learning that occurs with others as we wrestle with tough questions. As we search for those sweet questions that allow other things to be revealed, I personally experience a connection to and with others that is gratifying and tangible. I feel better after the work!<\/p>\n

Creative dissonance for me is learning how to be in conversation and not in agreement with others. This is powerful and hard! As media focuses our thinking on fear, unrest and global insecurity, it is courageous to have conversations that are creative and lack harmony. When I allow new perspectives in, my view of the world shifts. The practice of caf\u00e9 conversations and the World Caf\u00e9 Community move me toward collaboration, common ground and shared understanding and away from isolation, anonymity and fear.<\/p>\n

Making a difference \u2013 isn\u2019t this what many of us want? To contribute to making the world a better place as we pass through? My work with the World Caf\u00e9 and its many faces, users, conversationalists and experimenters provides a generous, expansive and welcoming platform to do so. Ideas are heard and people are empowered to both share and act upon their insights. I have been witness to so many people leaving a caf\u00e9, standing tall, with a smile on their face, laughter in their eyes, and, for that moment, a belief that we can do things differently. Through regular caf\u00e9 work I know that I am \u201cdoing things\u201d in a way that resonates and inspires others."<\/p>\n

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Carlos Mota, Mexico<\/em>
"One of the fundamental paradoxes of our time is to live in an era of wonderful technological instruments of on-line, real time, world wide communication and yet an era of increasing difficulty in reaching agreements to resolve our mundane day to day interactions as well as our most relevant issues as communities and countries. More importantly an era of cold, superficial, utilitarian and transaction-based communications among human beings.<\/p>\n

I have found that the World Caf\u00e9 can play a very useful role in creating the space and the enabling conditions for warm, meaningful and inspirited communication with other human beings. To me this is the essence of a culture of dialogue that I found urgent to promote and that I put as one of my priorities in life.<\/p>\n

This is the reason I want to be a steward of the World Caf\u00e9, devoting time an energy to help it evolve in Latin America and other parts of the world."<\/em><\/p>\n

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Ulrich Soeder, Dresden, Germany.
\n<\/em>"Why am I contributing to the World Caf\u00e9 Community?<\/p>\n

Dynamic and complex life conditions make lifelong learning on the levels of individuals, teams, organizations and societies a number one strategic priority. If we want to create a global civilization, we need as many sources of wisdom and intelligence as possible. And we need to create some form of coherence between the different actors to preserve the world of today and create a bright tomorrow for our children and grandchildren. <\/p>\n

A key concept for me is accountability. As humans we have the freedom of choosing our answers to the life conditions we have to deal with. Freedom is closely connected to creativity: We are bringing something new into the world. And, both freedom and creativity are the other side of accountability. Without the freedom to decide where to go next, we do not feel accountable for where we are going and what we are doing. How can we foster accountability in our lives, our teams and organizations?<\/p>\n

In that process communication and dialogue are crucial elements. We need a culture of dialogue that interconnects and aligns the different perspectives of religion, culture, politics and economy. World Caf\u00e9 is one of the processes that can contribute to such a culture of dialogue. Everyone in a World Caf\u00e9 is gifting and receiving his or her own experience and meaning, everyone is contributing and listening. The World Caf\u00e9 in itself is a gift economy where the currency is meaning.  <\/p>\n

In \u201cThe way of man\u201d, the philosopher Martin Buber describes a particular path that begins with oneself and honors the individual contribution of everyone, but in the end one should forget oneself and have the world in mind. World Caf\u00e9 is a wonder-full process that incorporates this philosophy and puts the beauty of transformation into practice, fostering the meeting of people to create collective meaning and coherent action. <\/p>\n

That is why I contribute to the World Caf\u00e9 Community and integrate the World Caf\u00e9 process in my work as consultant and coach. I am part of World Caf\u00e9 Europe where our purpose is to foster dialogue in European Cities. A video documentation of our first European Gathering in Dresden<\/a> 2007 will be available for download soon."<\/p>\n

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Laura Peck, California<\/em>
\n"The world caf\u00e9 community invites my full hearted participation, welcomes me to the table, and engages my desire to encourage and host and be in powerful conversations about possibility. From the first summoning to the Stewards\u2019 Gathering, I have responded with YES! I met Andrea Dyer at the Marconi Center Conference and from the beginning it was was easy to say, \u201cWe\u201d will care for the the nascent Bay Area contingent. We were invited to think about the role of regional steward and then to make it real with a convening of 25 hosts\/conversationalists from all around the bay and beyond the bridges.  Inquiries through the website have generated consulting work with a mountain resort town government looking for a fresh approach to civic engagement and a professional association of meeting planners looking to reach out to their younger members. <\/p>\n

Each new opportunity to contribute starts with an invitation to think together about a provocative question. A few of us wondered, \u201cwhat might conversational leadership be\u201d and hosted over 40 co-inquirers at a caf\u00e9 co-sponsored with bay area SOL and held at Saybrook in San Francisco. Others met to explore dialogue across generations and their enthusiasm was so contagious that now we are hosting a multi-generational caf\u00e9 in Half Moon Bay.<\/p>\n

The practitioners in this network of learners and hosts are generous with ideas, experience, and materials and that, in turn, makes me more committed to \u201cgiving it away\u201d — both the methodology and the spirit of the world caf\u00e9.<\/p>\n

Last week, I picked up a caf\u00e9-to-go kit at David and Juanita\u2019s house \u2014 5 tables, red-checkered tablecloths, two inch vases, pens, lovingly packed up by Barbara and left outside the garage for me.  I hosted 3 cafes in 2 weeks: physicians in Calistoga, museum educators in the Marin Headlands, evaluation consultants serving the social profit sector. I arrive and unpack and every time, the magic happens. The Question is posed, people lean in, listening intently, faces softening, the room buzzing as the collective (re)discovers their own wisdom and sufficiency. Without fail, participants recognize that the caf\u00e9 would enhance a conversation they are planning … and that they could host it! I always encourage people to experiment, offering my support and pointing them to the website and the book. <\/p>\n

A genuine invitation, a warm welcome, joyful collaboration and generous recognition–this has been my consistent experience and one which I feel en-couraged to provide for\/with others."<\/p>\n

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Sheila Damodaran, Singapore:<\/em>
"In a world of incessant movement of life, sound and light, perhaps it is a way of helping to connect thoughts that can otherwise remain broken forever. These broken lines typically fuel fears within us
that rifts apart life-forms (humans, plants and animals) potentially losing systemic interconnectedness of most issues over space and time. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n

They produce unwarranted complexities and broken shared aspirations that we face inevitably in our realities today and come back to sap the scant resources of our world. The scars that man and the environment leave on the earth is obvious; the scars that they and we leave in our hearts less obvious. The ravages of earth are just a mirror of those already in our hearts. The World Cafe in its unique way connects our thoughts (and our hearts) in a way that is at once divergent and convergent allowing all of us over time to "see more of the whole (world)" in safe and yet simple ways. The process could, if we allow it, eventually mend the scars within us that may help bring our minds and hands together in creating systemic healing and creation of life in our world. Seeing that happening is what keeps me going."<\/p>\n

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Nancy White, Seattle, Washington:<\/em>
"Why do I contribute my time and energy to the World Cafe Community?
That’s easy: <\/p>\n