Dialogue Culture, Evolution, Fire and Consciousness
A photograph of the experiencie of the latin palomilla, april 2008
by Fernanda Ibarra

Howard Bloom says ‘There is nothing, absolutely nothing individual about the universe ‘ and as he says so he evokes our social essence, the form in which we stretch from the individual to the collective. From the protons which in their desire for an electron formed a circle that produced something never imagined; the atom. We have 14 billion years of surprises, much has happened since the atom, living processes continued their journey, evolution continued to discover how to organize cooperative groups every time more complex. We can all recognize what it means to have the capacity for experience, sensing, environment stimulation, correspondence, attraction and repulsion which are essential qualities which contribute to the organization, to the cooperation in between simple unities (quarks and molecules) up to the most complex (human beings) that conform our universe. Its manifestation in society was our capacity to move from the clan to tribes to villages to nation-states and from there to the possibility of expansion in a global scale, or is it universal?

In the heart of evolution we find communion, movement to more interdependence and cooperation. Human beings, conscious of consciousness search for quality in experience, rhythm, creative action, synergy, flow. We long for it to be in groups, in collectives where we can ‘operate’ from source, in favor of the discovery of our highest potential.

World Café contributes to this goal. Within the discovery of a new story, in the support of a transition that threats life to one that is life-affirming. World Café helps us to elevate the perception of ourselves and our sense of purpose. Same that builds to the intention for organizing an event for the ‘Latin Palomilla’ of World Café in April 2008. Its virtue is the exploration of ‘how to create a culture of dialogue in Latin America’. A noble and necessary effort in this crucial time in human history where we are searching for global sustainability within this evolutionary spiral that leads towards more cooperation and unity.

Carlos Morán from the Mexican academy of engineering tells us "Interdialogue is the key in between couples, families, industries, society, parties. In between children, parents and the educators. In between all instances of human interaction. Quality in dialogue makes a huge difference. In order to face our current global problems it is a priority to build a society which honors a culture of dialogue". Let’s make a first pause, what does it mean, quality in dialogue?

The voices of the Palomilla give us several components like: define spaces of listening (safe containers), the capacity to integrate perspectives, beliefs, forms of being/doing. The skills to hold difficulty in a moment and transcend it. Conscious communication that emerges from ways of listening which are creative instead of reactive. An AHA! moment was to talk about agreements, and how the goal of a dialogue shouldn’t necessarily be to reach an agreement but the opportunity for a larger understanding of the perspective and truth of the other as a way of respect to his/her freedom and expression. The questions which emerge in me are, which of the named capacities are collective? which ones begin in the individual?. If we don´t seek agreement then, how can we hold the creative tension in favor of the emergence of something new?

The limitations are sometimes invisible to the non-trained eyes. Invisible architectures like language, mental models, world views and the function of the mind/brain itself. Let me give you an example. In the most recent report of the Institute of Noetic Sciences called ‘Changing the Story of our Future’, which thoroughly explores our capacities for change, I read about a group of scientists which presented to a sample of republicans and democrats a series of contradictory statements made by both John Kerry and George Bush and asked each group to rate how contradictory those statements were. Scientist were measuring the participants brain activity while this occurred. In the results they didn’t see any increased activation of the parts of the brain normally engaged during reasoning. What they saw is a network of emotional circuits lighting up! It seems that the brain can learn very little from new data when beliefs are challenged. The participants were literally censoring their cognitive dissonance. This findings tell us a lot about the need for skills in conscious communication to benefit any collective we as individuals which to contribute to. Carlos Mota names something vital "There are inner walls we need to break. They are not easy to see. They hurt more".

Let’s continue with our exploration of the event and listen to the voice of Guadalupe Martinez de León from the University of Monterrey and member of the Latin Palomilla which makes a powerful description "Quality in dialogue allows for the magic of collectivity, which is aligned to human will, to emerge". This experience was widely expressed during our time together.

When we asked Juanita Brown about the unique contribution of Latin America to the Global World Café she answered "What Mexico and Latin America can give is that this Latin cultures really understand what magic is, magic in conversation, with truth, authenticity; like the one we have when we take coffee with our families. This kind of authenticity, intimacy, human warmth can be a large contribution to other cultures which are colder. In Latin America we dialogue with pleasure, joy and sense of human warmth. The Latins can offer this soul, heart, joy and expression so unique of Latin cultures.

There was fullness and exceptional moments within the fire of divergence, where the presence was profound, the voices said "this is real", this is what we have to hold and transcend. We are a microcosm of what we see outside. Carlos Mota speaks about two possibilities in the face of disagreements; either to collapse the process or right in the boundary generate creativity. He reminds us that this is the moment to create those capacities that will help us in facing any possible scenarios. He gives us the question "Do I have what I want to give?"

There are many moments to relate. One day and a half expanded showing us the relativeness of time. When we focus, the possibilities to generate open and time contributes with a slow step. This event was a deep breath in the history of World Café. A door for Latin America.

There is enough evidence to say that a transformation in global scale is on its way. Our future awaits us. Let’s hold the lessons of evolution where communion, cooperation and diversity have been leading the creation of new forms impossible to imagine. Let’s favor dialogue and conscious communication as a process for our creative explosion in favor of human potential and a glorious future for generations to come.

Fernanda Ibarra
Collective intelligence agent
Catalyst of evolutionary projects