I am writing this newsletter sitting in my sister Arnina's living room in Ramat Gan, Israel. Prior to being here, I was in Seattle for four days as part of a group called the Integration Council, finalizing a plan to completely revamp the global NVC community and organization.

 

The Integration Council in Seattle

For many months, about 45 of us have been working on this plan. Nine working groups have grappled with everything from the largest vision to the specifics of how we will attempt to transcend separation based on power and privilege in the new version of our global we. 

Last week, for the first time, I shared the story and the outcome with a small group of people here in Israel with no prior connection to the Center for Nonviolent Communication (CNVC), the worldwide organization founded by Marshall Rosenberg in 1984. The level of joy and almost shock that I witnessed was my biggest affirmation so far that we are on the verge of creating something extraordinary: a global, multi-lingual, flexible, passionate, visionary, and fully self-managing organization.

 

Yes, this is a template for a global organization that has no command and control - instead relying on clear agreements with built-in mechanisms for change, adaptation, and feedback for learning. The template also focuses on how to apply all that's known throughout the global NVC network about efficient collaboration, so that meetings don't turn into endless discussion or personal growth events.

 

Along the way, we wrestled with how to collaborate ourselves. This was not a conflict-free process by any means. For months we had ongoing challenge about whether operational agreements are actually consistent with self-management, and if so, how many make sense. In the end, we were able to reach the finish line with all of our major tasks finished (a few items are still being completed) because we stayed united and committed even when serious dissent arose, repeatedly.

 

I am planning a videoconference in June about this process and its results (details to come in a future newsletter). Until then, if you want to see what we've done, you can look at the table of contents of the draft plan, or go directly to the folder  that has it.

 

In December, I wrote about the financial challenges that the Fearless Heart team is experiencing. In response, there was a surge of people joining the Circle of Support that almost made up for the loss of the previous few months. Since then, the small trickle of people joining and people exiting has been almost stable, with a tiny decline again.

 

Meanwhile, as the year is progressing, it is becoming clearer and clearer that I have been offering more of my time in gifted calls and workshops than I can sustain without growing the Circle further. The imbalance is partly by design; every year I commit to give away more than I receive in order to prime the pump and encourage a free flow of generosity. At the same time, The Fearless Heart still faces a budget gap, and our team is mobilizing to seek out more paid work - especially with organizations, through the Center for Efficient Collaboration  - while also continuing to support the free offerings.

 

It's demanding on all of us, and my time in particular is a bottleneck. Still, I just can't see myself offering fewer gifted events, because making the work so accessible to people is one of the most reliable sources of joy in my life. So I fall back on wanting to find a way to widen the Circle, alongside all our other efforts. I continue to hope that more and more people will be moved by this vision of having so much of my work available to all regardless of means and will want to support it.

 

It's not only this work that I am giving away. My entire involvement with the CNVC New Future Process (including the Integration Council work described above) was done as a volunteer. It's been about 10 months of many hours every week fueled only by my passion to see a different world. It continues to be challenging on many levels that not enough is coming towards us to make all this possible. I know myself well enough to know that I cannot stop, because the vision is too powerful, and the mysterious energy that calls me to give is strong. I am still hoping for more support in making it easier on all of us to give so much away. As always, if you're moved to contribute, you can join the Circle of Support here, or point others to it.

 

Click here to read about recent celebrations and mournings - including partnering with other organizations and sharing Convergent Facilitation in Israel.

 

As I close this letter, I am noticing the exquisite experience of sitting here in Arnina's apartment in Israel. I am soaking in a lovely bath of belonging and home. Inbal, our third sister, has now been gone for 19 months, and her absence isn't getting easier at all. Our mother is aging, and the finitude and mystery of life are palpable in this context. I am immensely grateful for the circle of friends that sustains me through thick and thin.

 

In hope and peace,

Miki Kashtan