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We the People: Consenting to a Deeper Democracy
A Guide to Sociocratic Principies and Methods
By John Buck and Sharon Villines
Sociocracy.info, Washington D.C., 2007
'm excited about the message We the t People can mean for communitarians and members of other cooperative groups. As a consensus trainer and facilitator, longtime student of decision-making in communities, and community member myself, I believe using Sociocracy, or even just parts of it, could make community governance and decision-making much more effective and fulfilling. (See "Sociocracy: A Permaculture Approach to Community Evolution, " about the Lost Valley community in Oregon, Communities #153, pp. 20-23.)
Sociocracy, also called "Dynamic Governance" or "Dynamic Self-Governance," is both a self-governance and decision-making method. Its decision-making process is similar to consensus in that everyone has a voice in modifying and approving proposals, and it doesn't use majority-rule or supermajority voting like 75 percent or 80 percent voting. And, as with consensus, it will work well only for groups that have a common purpose or aim, and who are trained in the method before they use it.
Sociocracy was developed in the Netherlands in the 1970s by Gerard Endenburg, an engineer who owned an electronics company. He saw that traditional business management methods did not create a harmonious, productive workplace. As an experiment, Endenburg applied the principles of cybernetics - the science of steering and control - to manage his company. The new method did in fact foster a more harmonious, productive workplace. Sociocracy is now used in businesses and nonprofits worldwide. For example, the national Center for Nonviolent Communication uses Sociocracy. Many local and regional chapters of the National Green Building Council use it. The folks protesting in the "Occupy Asheville" movement near where I live use it.
And Sociocracy is now used by a few intentional communities worldwide, including Lost Valley Educational Center in Oregon, as noted above; Champlain Valley Cohousing, Vermont; Legacy Farm Cohousing, New York; Ecovillage at Loudon County, Virginia; Cohabitat Quebec, Canada; and Sydney Coastal Ecovillage, Australia.
The governance aspect of Sociocracy includes an interconnecting stack of...