SHARE:  
Website       About       Publications        Programs      Resources       What's New
IDEAS, NEWS AND RESOURCES  | April 2017   
We hope you enjoy receiving our newsletter which includes constructionist ideas and practices as well as news and resources from the Taos Institute.
Brief Encounters with The Taos Institute

April 2017

This month we welcome Dan Wulff, Taos Institute board member, as he reflects on ...

"Holding Tensions"
by Dan Wulff

One of the ideas I associate with social constructionism is that of holding tensions rather than necessarily resolving them (or trying to resolve them). Holding issues open for multiple and alternative viewpoints is a useful idea for me in my work as a family therapist and as a teacher. Inhibiting resolution or closure seems to keep open the possibilities for more voices and more diversity of ideas. But, at the same time, the drive for resolving tensions in order to achieve peace or closure is strongly with us and may be at times important to pursue. Being able to hold tensions to improve our lives and worlds and also being able to resolve tensions for the same reasons becomes a challenging and important skill to develop.   

Holding tensions between or within ideas helps me acknowledge and appreciate the multiple points-of-view held by various members of a family I work with in therapy. I do not need to boil their difficulties down into one primary or guiding viewpoint or strategy in order to be helpful. There is room for small voices or marginalized viewpoints. The points-of-view of the children or others who are problematized are legitimate and could hold generative potential. Oftentimes a minority viewpoint or opinion that initially may seem far "off the mark" can turn into important grounding for improvement.

In the classroom, developing and maintaining space for multiple competing viewpoints prevents a rallying to a conclusion which could mask the complexity and fluidity of the situation or idea we are discussing. A single correct or preferred notion or understanding could dominate and thus create limits. Allowing for other ideas or viewpoints to surface encourages broadened thinking that appreciates marginalized perspectives along with mainstream ones. There is no need to find a/the truth. This process is continuous-like playing chess when there is no checkmate.

Another arena where I notice the importance of maintaining tension is in ballroom dancing (the tension I am referring to here is not the stressful/irritating/frustrating interaction type). Establishing communication between partners requires a bodily tension or muscular tone between them through their frame together. The connection that is tensed/toned allows communication to flow between them. Without this, communication is extremely problematic. It is this tension that allows the leader to indicate a move to begin and allows the follower to respond in coordination or to signal something else. A weak or (non-tensed) connection prevents the transmission of information back-and-forth, inhibiting the coordination to produce the dance. That felt tension is ideally always present in order to communicate what is going on and what might happen next. Without it, there is no dance partnership.

This tension is elusive. When this tension is too strong, the relating can be become rigid and stiff and actually inhibits the flow of communication and understanding. When the tension is too loose, communication is lost. When the tension becomes useful and workable, the partners' abilities to give and receive produce an excellent joint performance and the ability to create. But this useful and workable tension is never static. It resembles the work of the tightrope walker who must constantly use adjustments and small amounts of imbalance to maintain him/herself on the tightrope. This tension is not to be taken-for-granted.

We know that a tent is held up by lines that depend upon tension. Violin strings produce music by being stretched to different tensions. A tow rope can pull a car if it is taut enough to pull the weight. Tension is useful to us in many ways. However, it is only fair to point out the tension between the "values of tension" and the "difficulties with tension." Tension can show up in "hypertension," "tension headaches," or stress/irritation. If tension works like this, we want that sort of tension removed or resolved.

Looking at the ways in which tension can be a friend or a muse invites us to embrace difference as not only desirable, but also generative in our lives. Tension as a "resistor of resolution" provides the interactive relational space for communication, initiative, and diversity of thought. Holding tension between viewpoints/perspectives (not to freeze it, but to make and keep room for it) can become a sort of crucible of thinking-a place and space for innovation and creativity.

Consider the aspects of your life where you maintain unresolvedness - places where the conversation/dialogue is allowed to continue and maybe even grow. Is it a place you protect and nurture? Or do you seek closure and resolution? How much tension can you tolerate and even appreciate? When is it better to bring tension to a close? I invite you to consider keeping this topic unresolved.
Taos Institute Events and Gatherings  - The Many Ways to Get Involved.....

  
Conferences

***************************************************************************************


Please make note: POSTPONED TO 2018.

Johannesburg, South Africa

Due to extenuating circumstances, this conference is being postponed until 2018. 
Look for updates in the near future. 

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Summer 2017!

Attractor/Taos Summer Institute 
Leadership in Turbulent Times

Location: Copenhagen, Denmark 
Dates: July 4-5 
Email Contact: lms@mannaz.com 

For information visit: 


****************************************************************************

SAVE THE DATE
 


        at University College Zaeland, Roskilde, Denmark   

                             Nov. 16-17, 2017

Sharing, exploring and creating new ideas and practices...
                     

***************************************************************************************

Workshops

Taos Institute Workshops
  • Relational Construction, Inquiry and the Art of Transformative Change  |  May 10 - 12, 2017, with Dian Marie Hosking and Sheila McNamee, in Herefordshire, England
  • Social Construction, Relational Theory and Transformative Change Practice  |  June 2-14, 2017, with Ken and Mary Gergen, in their home in Wallingford, PA
  • Summer Institute: An Experiential Learning Community in Postmodern / Social Construction Transforming Collaborative-Dialogic Practices across Cultures, Contexts & Disciplines, June 18 - 22, Cancun, Mexico, with Harlene Anderson
For details about these workshops and to register visit: www.taosinstitute.net/upcoming-workshops

Friends of the Taos Institute Workshops and Events
  • Discover Development NYC -  A symposium, workshop & exploration of New York City's Development Community with Lois Holzman,  May 19-21, 2017. 
  • H E A L I N G V O I C E S, New York City
    May 13, 2017, 3:00 PM
  • SOCIAL CONSTRUCTION: THEORY AND PRACTICE, with Sheila McNamee and Ottar Ness, Norway, Dragvoll Campus
    May 15-16, 2017
  • MAD IN AMERICA - New York City
    June 9, 2017, 7:00 PM - 8:30 PM
  • AN AI CELEBRATION OF APPRECIATIVE VOICES FOR OUR TIMES: An Annual Homecoming for the AI Community - AI is Made for These Challenging Times
    August 11-13, 2017, in Burlington, VT
     
********************* ******************************************************************
Other Learning Opportunities
     Looking for intellectual excitement    
...a way to do some serious reflection on your practice
        ...a period to prepare for possible PhD study
             ...support in doing research of your choice
  ...all with the guidance of a highly trained scholar
 
                                  then consider...
 
                 The Taos Institute Diploma
           in the Study of Professional Practice
 
A two-year program designed to allow seasoned professionals to work independently on a project related to their personal interests.

Advised by a Taos associate holding a PhD, participants create  a project and a program that fulfill their specific interests and needs.  Final projects, designed from a social constructionist perspective, can be a text, video, website, research report, or other creative form.  Participants work independently, but are encouraged to connect with other members of the Taos community.  Each semester they may attend a Taos Institute workshop or other offering free of registration fees.  
 
After receiving the diploma, participants are invited to become Taos Institute associates, with all the opportunities that are available to them. 
 
The first semester has just begun, and the application for the next semester ends July 1.  To learn more, check out the Taos Institute website www.taosinstitute.net/diploma-programs  or talk to a Taos representative.  Mary Gergen, ( gv4@psu.edu) is the director of the program. 

**************************************************************************

Award Given to Taos Institute Board Member 
Dr. Sally St. George

On March 23, Taos Institute board member, Dr. Sally St. George, was awarded a special honor for Full-Time Academic Staff (Professor) at The University of Calgary where she was recognized as one of the best and brightest teachers from across the institution.

The award is a special acknowledgement of her outstanding contribution to student learning. In the introduction to the event, Provost of the University of Calgary, Dru Marshall, PhD, said the awards reflected the winners "significant and sustained excellence, dedication and enthusiasm to the diverse aspects of post-secondary teaching."

Congratulations to Dr. Sally St. George.
International Relational Research Network Meeting and Global Dialogue

May 10, 2017   
10:00 AM - 12 noon PM US Eastern Time 
(Note the new time, and be sure to check your local time) 

Guest: Lenka Formankova, Czech Republic

What: We invite you to join with us in conversation to continue to create a space for an international network to develop and grow that focuses on relational, collaborative, dialogic research  practices, theory and connections.

Explore - Engage - Dialogue - Share - Create
  • What is relational research? 
  • What practices and methodologies lend themselves to relational research?
  • How can we conceptualize relational research so that we don't put a box around it? 
  • How might we think about it as a process and not a 'thing'? 
To register for this next meeting and dialogue - go to:  www.taosinstitute.net/relational-research-network 

See What's New and What's Happening
AI Celebration: An Annual Homecoming for Anyone Interested in Appreciative Inquiry - All are welcome!

August 11 -  13, 2017

Come to Burlington, VT for...

A CELEBRATION OF APPRECIATIVE VOICES FOR OUR TIMES!

AI was made for these challenging times. This year our theme is one that can't be ignored: voicing the appreciative -- in conversation, in media, in public forums, in organizational life, in community shaping. How do we create space and opportunity for conversations across divides, across borders, across values and visions that can help create a world we want to live in? How do we contribute?

$50 discount for the first 40 to register by May 15th. 

PREVIEW & ORDER MORE BOOKS BY CLICKING HERE

Check out our Newest Books: 
Paths to Positive Aging: Dog Days with a Bone and Other Essays
by Ken and Mary Gergen

Mary and Ken Gergen are devoted to the cause of reinventing aging. To focus on the gains of aging is to realize that the later years are among the richest and most rewarding of one's life. In their dedication to this reconstruction, the Gergens publish the Positive Aging Newsletter, an electronic newsletter, available in seven languages ( www.positiveaging.net). 
In this book, the Gergens share ideas and experiences designed to inspire others as they age. 
70Candles! Women Thriving in their 8th Decade

Recently featured in the 
New York Times and the 
by Jane Giddan and Ellen Cole

As they turned 70, the authors of 70Candles! Women Thriving in Their 8th Decade set out to investigate how women their age and older were living their lives. They sought role models for themselves and messages for the droves of baby boomers on their heels. They were curious about the challenges and joys of their age-mates, their work and retirement status, living arrangements, family and social connections, and more. These septuagenarians knew they were not like their own grandmothers who sat in rocking chairs knitting. But what is the new normal?
The Magic of Organizational Life
by Mette Vinther Larsen

The Magic of Organisational Life
 is  a story that invites you to look at your everyday work life through new eyes. It allows you to reflect upon well-known organisational, strategic and managerial challenges from a magical perspective. This perspective emphasizes what our imagination can do, if only we set it free. The Magic of Organisational Life
gently reminds us of our capacity to create flourishing ways of being at work.

For more information

Sign up for this free newsletter in the following languages:
  • English
  • Spanish
  • Danish
  • German
  • French
  • Chinese
  • Portuguese


By focusing on the positive aspects of aging, and the availability of resources, skills, and resiliencies, research not only brings useful insights into the realm of practice but creates hope and empowers action among older people. By moving beyond practices of repair and prevention, to emphasize growth-enhancing activities, practitioners also contribute more effectively to the societal reconstruction of aging. 
Join the Taos Institute NING Online Community website
Participate in online conversations, share resources, ask questions, connect with others doing similar work. Also, we feature special events on this community website.

Join in many different forums, groups and conversations:

1. Taos Institute Europe
2. Collaborative Governance
3. Relational Learning
4. Relational Research
5. Taos Latin America
6. Intergenerativity and Innovation

and many more at:

http://taoslearning.ning.com/

 

 
IntJournalCollab
Welcome (Bienvenidos) to the International Journal of Collaborative Practices. The Journal brings together members of a growing international community of practitioners, scholars, educators, researchers, and consultants interested in postmodern collaborative practices.

Sponsored by Taos Institute and Houston Galveston Institute

I ssue 7- Available Now in English and Spanish - 
WORLDSHARE BOOKS

FREE Downloadable Books 
 
CHECK IT OUT AT:
 
We are thrilled to bring you all the WorldShare Books and we hope you will  take a few minutes to download your free copies today.  

Newest Book: 
Donate to the Peggy Penn WorldShare Books Fund 
This fund helps to cover the expenses of offering these online books free of charge to anyone in the world. 

Are you a reader of AI Practitioner? AI-P is a platform where practitioners and researchers meet by sharing articles about the impact of strength-based, collaborative approaches to positive change. In a time when it's not trendy to be appreciative or curious, we want to use this platform as a place for appreciative ambassadors and activists. We invite you to:
  • subscribe to AI Practitioner, and ask your friends, colleagues, and organizations to do the same
  • send us your articles about your work or research for your colleagues to review. We are looking for robust and relevant articles
  • act as a guest editor or reviewer.
AI Practitioner is co-published by the David Cooperrider Center for Appreciative Inquiry and the Instituut voor Interventiekunde.
 
Interested? Send a mail to: instituut@instituutvoorinterventiekunde.nl 
You can make a difference...

These are challenging times, and you can make a difference by supporting the Taos Institute's efforts to bring about more promising futures.

Help us to continue our work in:
  • Creating and Expanding Collaborative Practices Globally
  • Promoting Dialogic Means for Reducing Conflict 
  • Providing Degree Opportunities for Practitioners
  • Offering Cutting Edge Publications in Multiple Languages: Free or at Low Cost
  • Generating Resources for Positive Aging
  • Creating Global Forms and Conferences for Constructing New Futures
     

Given the perilous global context into which we are moving, we feel the work in which we are engaged is more important than ever. We hope you can join with us as we continue to develop resources to aid the global community in co-creating more viable futures.


To make your donation, large or small, go to: www.taosinstitute.net/donate-to-the-taos-institute.

The Taos Institute is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, and all donations are tax deductible in the US.
The John Shotter Memorial Fund

John Shotter's death on December 8th was a profound loss for the scholarly world, for the Taos Institute, and for many of us personally. To honor him, to insure the continued availability of his writings, and to sustain his legacy, the Taos Institute is establishing a memorial fund. These funds will be used primarily to support scholars and practitioners whose work applies and/or extends the rich body of ideas with which we have been blessed. We invite you to join this effort. We may have lost John's presence, but his ideas remain vital in their potential.

To make a contribution to the John Shotter Memorial Fund, please go to: 

For more about John Shotter, his writings, books, articles, and videos, see:  www.johnshotter.com/ 
The Taos Institute's mission is to bring together scholars and practitioners concerned with the social processes essential for the construction of reason, knowledge, and human value.

We are committed to exploring, developing and disseminating ideas and practices that promote creative, appreciative and collaborative processes in families, communities and organizations around the world through a social constructionist lens.

We look forward to your participation in the dialogue.  Keep up with our updates!

Dawn Dole, Executive Director
The Taos Institute
Like us on Facebook  Follow us on Twitter View our profile on LinkedIn