-Doc 6 " Input on social forum practice " contribution to network debate by Pierre

( quickly presented during Saturday afternoon meeting in London ESF 2004  as a contribution to debate - not revised nor approved of course there)

As stated in the consensus text Our network scope can be defined as

build up memories, exchange experiences on operating practices and processes, and on activities taking place in local social forums

In full coherence with this perspective of experience interchange, I presented quickly on Saturday afternoon open space this input on Guidelines for social forum practice as a a contribution to debate on some questions raised but not adressed directly in the seminar and in our activities

how do we apply and practice charter of principles ? – decision taking process -

are LSF and this LSF network an " open space " or just " one more group "

campaigns and successful actions - can a LSF call for action make proposals  and be considered as a social movement

?

– are local social forum only space or are they active bodies like any standard organization - calling for action and behaving as a social movement ? – this question was one of the points highlighted during the seminar

• These 7 inputs on social forum practice guidelines clearly stand for an explicit application of " WSF Charter of principles " principles and try to explain why, these principles are good to follow in order to have inclusiveness and social change efficiency in the middle and long term–
• This document is drafted on the basis of a one year intensive experience in the forum process : in Paris ESF2003 and in the International council ( IC ) of World Social Forum and methodology and content commission of this IC and on observations made in several big forum ( Porto Alegre Paris Mumbai Quito Londres in two years 2003 2004
• The input proposed here for my contribution in under the form of " internal guidelines collectively drafted by an hypothethical local social forum seed group / facilitation group " ( who then stands behind the " we " that is extensively used in the text – this is to illustrate guideline # 2)
• – this contribution is not meant as a " piece of law " but as a text to react on during debates on social forum experience interchange –
• I hope this written input will contribute to our debate within the network between " space forum  fostering movements crossbreeding " conception and " movement forum " conceptions which are present in the network Comments are welcome

 

Pierre

Guideline #1 About forum inclusiveness

" We want our local social forum space to be INCLUSIVE – we don’t want it to be another (cosy) activist group "

We Make sure that anybody stepping in the LSF space feels comfortable in it and feels certain about the fact that in this space nobody will speak in somebody else’s name

So we intend to respect World Social Forum Charter of principle effectively

– NO COLLECTIVE REPRESENTATION AND ACTIVITIES OF POLITICAL PARTIES

– DECISIONS IN FACILITATION/ORGANISATION ACTIVITIES MADE BY CONSENSUS

– sticking to these basic rules his will bring in the forum space - not once but durably - many people different from us - it will bring in inclusiveness

when somebody in the forum space says "  we " - it is always useful to wonder: WHO IS " WE " ? who is ready to sign with this person the statement he/she makes ?

 

Guideline #2 hints about " inclusiveness " of forum language

when somebody in the forum space says "  we " - it is always useful to wonder: WHO IS " WE " ? who is ready to sign with this person the statement he/she makes ?– It is also useful to check sentence and verbs in written texte where  the word " forum " appear - is the The forum considered semantically as a space where participants act, or as active body like any standard organisation

one useful guideline is to scan text and look for sentences where the forum is named as the subject of the sentence – What is the structure of the sentence ? passive active impersonnal ? what are the verbs used ? – are we personifying the forum making it an active body ? :

"  the forum will do this , will do that  " -

One can try to reformulate those sentences in an accurate way "  participants in the forum will do this and that " and see which representativenes problems arise -

 

Guideline #3 about social inclusiveness : who is coming speaking and performing in the forum ?

All participants are using the forum in principle on an equitative mode but there is not an equitative social distribution of oral or written speech ability training

On important task of the organisation/facilitation forum process is then

Grant local population access to the innovative " social forum experience " in an equitative mode, correcting socially created distorsions as much as possible

which means for facilitating workgroups

>>> fostering participatory techniques – foster participatory aspect of activities – give equitative opportunity to speak out –and be recorded through oral visual or written transcription of speech

>>> alloting a solidarity fund to correct economic distorsions ( transportation – lodging – food)

>> developping solidarity in forum practices and usages to counter prejudices in behaviour

 

Guideline #4 About forum political efficiency

" we want efficient broad based creative motivating democratic transformative social and political actions of various kinds  ( not just taking to the streets) - we do not want boring dividing political proselytism or expert lecturing  " 

We Identify and prepare actions together with others inside the forum space, – We are careful to implement them outside the forum space

INSIDE THE FORUM SPACE WE ARE A PARTICIPANT AS ANY OTHER ONE - exchanging contents : ideas practices dreams – identifying problematics – reasons objectives for cooperative action , exploring modes of cooperative action – preparing plans for cooperative action

OUTSIDE THE FORUM SPACE , WE MAY BE ACTIVISTS getting together with other fellow activists that we have met in the forum, trying to mobilize other people on a common goal that we have identified in the forum - creating for that purpose an efficient broad based creative democratic COLLECTIVE CAMPAIGN involving persons , organisations , parties with a specific scope and mode of action

WE REMEMBER THAT OUR NEIGHBOUR PARTICIPANT IN THE FORUM IS NOT SUPPOSED TO SHARE GOALS ACTIONS AND ACTION MODES OF OUR COLLECTIVE/CAMPAIGN –

 

Guideline #5 Dealing with political parties  ( always a touchy point to be worked on)

Parties members

are welcome in the space as persons with a political affiliation, expressing their personnal opinion , listening to other participants rather than feeling compelled to deliver a formated party speech

are not welcome as political body representatives competing for the control of the space, and " killing the golden eggs hen " by trying to instrumentalize the forum space in their political agenda

Parties as organisations

cannot organize directly activities in the forum space

can - and do - set up  " study center associations " with a milder non proselyt approach - that organize activities in forums

can be partiicipants and active members of " action collectives " emerging from the forum outside the forum space

Forum space and radicality

person and organisations advocating radical views can use the space and organize their radical activities in it – should they dont want to be " unreformed reformers "  they will ponder effective attractivity of these activities and can ask participants about coherence betwen mode of performance used ( participatory or not ?) and advocated contents

Guideline #6 Creating maintaining developing the forum space : everyone can contribute ! facilitation tasks

we want to CONTRIBUTE TO THE FORUM SPACE to the creation, maintenance, development of our local forum space ? we do not want just to USE it 

Being a participant-facilitator, we bring service to others participants by organizing the space for them – we know that this role gives us no legitimacy and permission to speak in their name –

We should always be clear about when We act as PARTICIPANT-FACILITATOR of the space and when we act as PARTICIPANT-USER of the space -

As participant- user we step in the space that is there, and use it as we wish, respecting its rules of use ( charter of principles – no activities by parties or organization promoting violence)

Guideline #7 facilitation :" what can we do for our forum " ?

We want to TRANSFORM the world , make it a better possible other world

let us start with the forum space, and help making it a TERRITORY OF HIGH QUALITY ALTERNATIVE SOCIAL PRATICES

Contribute to making the forum space a better space , more participatory, mode inclusive , producing a higher quality of contents and developing innovative modes of interaction

The space and method of the forum is a tool for social transformation , where people can feel think and speak differently – and ACCUMULATE COLLECTIVE STRENGTH TO ACT TOGETHER

So listen , observe, interact, respect, ponder, propose, invent, experiment

What kind of knowledge, ability, idea can we bring in this space, as user or as facilitator, to make it better ?

Participate in FACILITATION TASK GROUPS set up within the forum facilitation process to enhance participatory – propositional inclusive capacity of the forum