Democracy Talk
Watch Frances' Talk on "The Real Crisis"
Watch
Frances' Speech at Porter Square Books, Cambridge, MA
Read 'E' editor on Frances' recent award
Read ‘Planet Earth Reviews’ review of Democracy’s Edge
Watch
Frances present at the Uplift Academy, Wellesley, MA
For a complete list of upcoming appearances please visit the
Small Planet Institute events page
Democracy Makers
Tools for Learning and Action
Check out The Future of
Food, Deborah Koons Garcia's in-depth documentary about the
controversy over genetically modified food.
Anthony Lappé's and Stephen Marshall's award-winning Iraq documentary
Battleground
is now available on DVD.
Buyer,
Be Fair:The Promise of Product Certification will be shown at
the Environmental
Film Festival in Washington, DC on March 16th, 2006.
Recommended E-Newsletters
Center for Informed Food Choices
Links to Democracy Makers
Bioneers
American Independent Business Alliance (AMIBA)
Business Alliance for Local Living Economies (BALLE)
Stories from the Edge
Caffeinated Community Comeback: Small Ohio Town Discovers Power of Networking
An “Interpretation of Life” – The View from Emilia Romagna, Italy
Village Women Become their Own Bankers, Wowing the World of Finance
Citizens Play Key Role in Historic Health Care Reform Law
Breakthrough Concept "Responsibility" -- Imagine That!-- Becomes Law in Maine
The Sweet Taste
of Success: former Trade Center workers start employee-owned restuarant.
Education is
"A Process of Living and Not a Preparation for Future Living."
From Grief and Anger
to Food Power.
Citizens Speak Out
for Democracy in Media.
Living Democracy
10 Practical, Everyday Arts
This 40-page guide is a companion to Democracy's Edge: Choosing to Save Our Country by Bringing Democracy to Life. It is designed for educators, group leaders, and any citizen who wants to become more powerful. Originally, it appeared in my book, The Quickening of America (Jossey-Bass, 1994).
We humans may be born innately social creatures but to be effective in creating societies that reflect our values and work for all of us it helps to approach democracy-making as a learned art. As in learning any art - from ballet to basketball - it helps to break the process down to its core elements.
So we've chosen ten arts of democracy, a nice round number - not with any pretense of creating an exhaustive guide. Rather, these practices seem a great place to start. They contribute to enhanced decision-making, mutual regard, and to group learning and staying-power.
We're convinced that the better we become in practicing such arts, the more satisfying our public lives become. Moreover, our improved public practice canât help but enhance our private lives as well.
We welcome you to send us your ideas for additional arts to include in this guide as well as examples from your own experience. Please offer critical feedback for making this guide more useful.
The ten arts of democracy explored in this handbook are…
Art One: Active Listening – encouraging the speaker and searching
for
meaning
Art Two: Creative Conflict – confronting others in ways that produce growth
Art Three: Mediation – facilitating interaction to help people
in conflict
hear each other
Art Four: Negotiation – problem solving that meets some key interests
of all
involved
Art Five: Political Imagination – reimaging our futures according
to our
values
Art Six: Public Dialogue – public talk on matters that concern us all
Art Seven: Public Judgement – public decision making that allows
citizens to
make choices they are willing to help implement
Art Eight: Celebration and Appreciation – expressing joy and appreciation
for what we learn as well as what we achieve
Art Nine: Evaluation and Reflection – assessing and incorporating
the
lessons we learn through action
Art Ten: Mentoring – supportively guiding others in learning these
arts of
public life
-Greg Palast
Author, The Best Democracy Money Can Buy
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