Madison Integral Thinkers Community

Introduction to Integral Theory: Operating with All Windows Open to be Offered this Fall

2010-07-28T11:58:00.002-05:00

The Madison Integrals are truly excited that one of our founding members, Tom Christenen, has taken on the task of designing and offering an exciting new course this fall. "Introduction to Integral Theory: Operating with All Windows Open," will be a 12-week course, offered Tuesdays, 3:30-5:30pm, starting Sept 7th (location still TBD). The course will be offered through OHRD, but also has a 2 credit option, Biology 675, offered through one of our members, Prof. Teri Balser.

Check out the complete course description and registration information, and sign up!
See a note from Tom below

Harry
_____________________________________________________________________________

Dear Friends,

Yours truly is teaching the following course this Fall at UW-Madison: Introduction To Integral Theory – Operating with all windows open. The class is topped out at 40 seats, and I’d love to have it full of those eager to stretch, discover and create. If you have interest it can either be taken for 2 credits, if you are enrolled at UW, or you can take it for no credit, in which case the class is free.

Who should consider this course? This course will provide all the elementary and introduction distinctions, so it’s ideal for those curious about Integral and its applications. This material will be provided from a perspective I have not offered before, nor have I seen it done this way in any other context. So, those with any level of sophistication in Integral will find the course eye opening and useful also. Seasoned Integrals who join the class will be asked to do some coaching with the newer initiates from time to time.

What is Integral? If you need a quick peek at what Integral is, consider these terms: Multi-dimensional thinking, multi-perspectival, integrating complementary points of view. Additional intro links can be found here www.tomcintegral.tumblr.com .

What areas can Integral be applied in? This class is ideal for adding perspective in almost any area, and certainly the following: Interdisciplinary studies, ecology, political science, international relations, human resources, management, sales and marketing, parenting, human development, cultural development, educational policy, neurological development, hospice care, nursing, medical practice, urban planning, governmental policy making, and the fine arts.

Here are more details, and where you can find new information as I post it. This is also where you will find a link to register for the course. I hope I see you there. http://www.tomcintegral.tumblr.com/

BTW, it’s a lot of ideas, always directed to application.

There are many who merit this: Thanks for the help getting here.

Be well – Tom C.

Santa Cruz Seminar in August Provides Unique Learning Opportunity

2010-05-18T10:23:00.001-05:00

Hi Madison Integrals:
Darin Harris and I received this note from our friend Ian Wight, an academic integral from Canada who has done much to promote our considerations of integral thinking in a variety of settings...
--Harry

"Not exactly sure if this would be your 'cup-of- tea', but I can tell you that it embodies integral facilitation to a tee... and if you are not interested personally I'm sure there could be folks in your networks who would find this very congenial.

It's a very neat seminar, scheduled for early August in the Santa Cruz CA area (just after ITC 2010). It is hosted by Next Step Integral, a group of very fine folks who have staged a truly excellent integral education seminar each year for the past three. I have been fortunate to attend all three and can vouch for the quality of the design and facilitation, and of the attendees they attract.

This year the seminar will embrace both integral education and integral ecology. I will be participating, in part as a guest presenter exploring applied integral ecology in a professional education programming context.
I have attached more information on the Seminar, and would encourage you to consider participating, and/or encouraging others to do so. I sense that your interests would find a very good fit with the program, and I am sure you will be stimulated - with lots of good ideas to take back into your own teaching, service and practice.

Please let me know if you are interested, and I'd be pleased to connect you personally with one of the organizers. Hoping this finds you well, and hoping too that we might be able to spend some quality time together in August at this Seminar. Best wishes with your own integral facilitation work

- it is great to see it continuing so well.

Cheerrrrrs! Ian Wight.

October 13th Meeting Planned - Focus on "My Aging" from an Integral Perspective

2009-09-09T08:37:00.003-05:00

Yesterday's Madison Integrals meeting was a great success, with solid attendence (17 members) and excellent ideas generated... thanks to Tom C for framing the issues and provoking the conversation! Tom has also reported (through the list-serv) that the group agreed to a focus for next month's meeting. That communication is reproduced below:

End of session discussion, yesterday, left us with a project, for the OCT meeting, to ground Integal Theory in application to our own lives. We looked for a topic all had experience with and ended up with “aging”. No one protested that they were being left out. I will offer a format to prepare for the next session. Feel free, its early, to recommend modifications to my draft below.

When I use this technique, I call it generating a “tetraglyph”. Imagine there is a circle at the center of the AQAL axis. This is the focus of inquiry. Put the words “my aging” in the circle. Then review each Q in an inquiry re what exists in this Q that elucidates what “my aging” is to me. Make a short list of distinctions that emerge with some sense of significance, maybe even a sense of insight. To get a larger picture of this topic, do this exercise two more times: What was “my aging” about 10 years ago? What will my aging be about 10 years from now? Make separate distinction lists for all three time periods, now, past, future. Three distinctions in each Q could be sufficient here.

We have a month, so let’s make this a little bit bigger project. Look at your distinction lists. Do the items, concerns, for the 3 time periods collectively suggest what Memetic level you have generated this list out of? Make at least a tentative decision on what Memetic level this list of distinctions probably came from. Now, imagine you are one Memetic level earlier. Fill your imagination with distinctions that can generate their own links in your neural nets, e.g.
What is your sense of time?
What is your attitude towards death?
Why do you bother to stay alive?
What upsets you?
Where are you living?
What conditions do you live in?
What are your three strongest desires? I really want….
What do you eat?
Where do you eat?
Who are your friends?
What are your friends up to?
Once you have imagined, in some detail, what this prior Memetic level is like, and are centered in this imagination as best you can, from this center, do the tetraglyph again, three times, past, present, future.

(For those attending yesterday’s session, what we are doing above is generating/conjuring a State of Consciousness, and indwelling it, for the purpose of discovering what this SOC generates in our mentation.)

Now go thru this exercise again, but pretend (suspend disbelief J ), imagine, you are one Memetic level higher than your original tetraglyph was generated from. Generate the neural net that you imagine would be present if you were one level higher. Once ensconsed securely in this imagined future, this newly generated neural net, do the final tetraglyph, again 3 times, past, present, future.

Now you have 9 lists of distinctions: Past, present, future, for current, past, and future Memetic levels. Its likely we will all have more to offer at the next meeting if we do this complete exercise this week, and then have the rest of the intervening time to assess the impact and usefulness, or not, of the exercise. I suggest that each person send a note to this list serve when they have their 9 lists completed. The design here is to generate some group momentum, motivate those who might otherwise put this off, and perhaps with comments that might be added prime the conversation pump for next meeting.

I suggest we start the OCT meeting with a round robin, each person giving a short report on any discoveries, or insights, that this self inquiry has generated. I trust the group conversation will unfold from here affirming, or not, that the models are useful for self guidance….and by extension useful in guiding others.

Again, feel free to modify this suggestion. We have a place to start from here.

Be well – Tom C.

Madison Integrals Set Fall Schedule

2009-08-27T16:21:00.002-05:00

Madison Integrals will now meet on the "2nd Tuesday" of the month, starting on September 8th, with our gatherings at the Union from 3:00 -- 4:30pm on each occasion. So mark your calendars!

Tom C. has offered to lead the first discussion, "Quadrant Analysis," as described on the Integrals Blog earlier this week. It is based upon an article by Thomas McFarlane on Integral World. I encourage you to review the article, join the discussion, and come to our meetings!

Harry

Midwest Slow Money Institute - an Integral Approach?

2009-06-17T12:58:00.002-05:00

I want to encourage readers of this Integrals blog to take a look at today's posting on the UW-MANIAC blog by Erin Schneider: http://uwmaniac.blogspot.com/

Perhaps, within this space, we can discuss some of the integral aspects of this great idea?

Harry

Integral Ecology Case Studies to be Focus of April 20th Discussion

2009-04-15T15:59:00.001-05:00

The following is posted by Alberto...

Hello everybody,

Below are the links to the case studies that Marian proposed for our discussion next Monday, April 20 at 2:30 pm. Check TITU for the room.

Integral Ecology Applied to Small Scale Community Woodlands by Chris Preist http://www.coventry.ac.uk/researchnet/external/content/1/c4/32/44/v1193045750/user/Integral%20Ecology.pdf

Evolving Approaches to Conservation: Integral Ecology and Canada's Great Bear Rainforest by Darcy Riddell http://www.ohrd.wisc.edu/home/Portals/0/DarcyRiddell.pdf

Integral Ecology: A Perspectival, Developmental, and Coordinating Approach to Environmental Problems by Michael Zimmerman http://www.colorado.edu/ArtsSciences/CHA/profiles/zimmpdf/world_fut.pdf

Also, please note that I am pasting here a message that Sean Esbjorn- Hargens sent regarding the launching of the integral ecology web site:

Dear Colleagues,

I'm pleased to inform you about the new Integral Ecology Center I and Michael Zimmerman recently launched:

www.integralecology.org

Be sure to roll over the 4Quadrant frog on the landing page! And to watch the cool slide show on the Open page. We are still in the process of adding content, tracking down references for various documents etc, but you can get a good feel for the direction we are going and the kinds of activities and information that will be showcased here.

This center is part of the Integral Institute and will be the Institute's primary vehicle for supporting integral applications to planetary issues (sustainability, ecology, environmental). It will do this through supporting the development of the field of integral ecology. We define integral ecology as the mixed methods (i.e., qualitative and quantitative) study of the /subjective/ and /objective/ aspects of organisms in relationship to their /intersubjective/ and /interobjective/ environments at multiple levels of depth and complexity.

Thus, the Integral Ecology Center...

Is OPEN to all perspectives on the natural world and builds a VISION out of the integration of those multiple viewpoints.

Is supporting the ACTION being taken by integral practitioners around the globe through community networking.

Is providing these practitioners access to the SOURCE of integral ecological thought so they can EXPLORE in detail its many possibilities.

Is a place to CONNECT with us about your own ecological passions and commitments.

So come check out the site and contribute to its unfolding. We'd love to
hear your recommendations and have you help us fill in the details...

Warmly,

Sean

-Alberto

Madison Integrals Focus on Integral Ecology and Engagement this Spring

2009-03-05T08:25:00.002-06:00

Hi Madison Integrals:

After a dormant few months, the Integrals group is gearing up for an exciting spring! We now have two meetings planned, the previously announced gathering on March 23rd, coupled with a second session on April 27th. Each meeting is scheduled to run 2:30 – 4:30 PM at Memorial Union (check TITU for exact room).

The focus on March 23rd will be “A Brighter Shade of Green,” facilitated by Doug Reinemann. Here’s a statement for Doug to help us frame the discussion:

“I'm interested in the practice of Integral Engagement. I would like to use the tools that I have learned at Integral Leadership in Action seminars and Andrew Cohen's EnlightenNext Retreat to attempt a process of integral engagement on environmental issues using the "Bright Green" article as a focal piece. My perspective is also informed by my professional interest in energy and environmental issues and my study of Christian, Native American and other esoteric traditions, thought and philosophy. If this process is successful, it will easily consume the entire two hours. (If not, we can go home early.)

I've been thinking of developing a graduate seminar series on this topic and this would give me an opportunity to try this.” - Doug Reinemann

Links to the “Bright Green” article have been previously sent out, but here it is for your convenience:
http://www.enlightennext.org/magazine/j38/bright-green.asp

This discussion will flow well into the April 27th meeting, at which Marian Farriar will help us focus on Integral Ecology through a couple of case studies she will bring to us.

We originally had hoped to accomplish BOTH discussions this month, but it became clear that there is too much here for one meeting!
-Harry

Integral Thinkers Meeting to Focus on Integral Ecology - March 23rd

2009-02-18T14:45:00.003-06:00

Hi Madison Integrals:

Our next meeting will be on Monday afternoon, March 23rd, 2:30 - 4:30 PM at Memorial Union. The focus will be "Integral Ecology," led by Marian Farrior (with inspired contributions from Kathryn Gonzalez). Marian will present a couple of case studies from this area. We are also hoping that either Mary Kay or Alberto can also lead a discussion regarding "A Brighter Shade of Green" as an important element of this meeting.

Stay tuned for more details...

Journey of Facilitation and Collaboration - Jan 2009

2009-01-14T21:58:00.002-06:00

We are currently participating in another Journey course this week, as 25 participants have joined Darin Harris, Steve Davis and me in the 3rd incarnation of the course. JOFC attempts to apply Integral principles and frameworks to the practice of facilitation, both as formal role and as a leadership presence within groups. We use a set of 20 archetypes to depict facilitator competencies that are addressed to varying degrees through the five days.

Members of the JOFC are invited to share tools and processes that they have found helpful, and to also identify ways these may be viewed through an Integral lens.

Thanks!
Harry

Integral Facilitation Resources

2008-12-23T13:51:00.002-06:00

Hi Madison Integrals:

The next installment of "Journey of Facilitation and Collaboration" training will be offered January 12-16th -- and the class is (once again) full! The next session will be offered June 8-12 and I'd like to strongly encourage your participation. This is a great application of Integral concepts to the challenge of effective group facilitation, taught by Darin Harris, Steve Davis, and myself. Additional information about the course may be found at:
http://www.journeyofcollaboration.com/

In response to a query from one of our participants, Darin has also identified a multilingual facilitation resource. We have two versions, in English and in French; if you are interested, please let Darin or me know and we'll get a copy to you.

-Harry

Integral Politics - Follow-up Discussion

2008-12-01T13:19:00.002-06:00

Hey Madison Integrals! Thanks for the great discussion on November 20th regarding Integral Politics. For those who missed the discussion, as well as for those with a greater desire to continue the conversation, here are a few 'notes', as well as the initial links to Don Beck's radio interview and the integral politics video clips that we used to spark our interactions.

Here are the initial resources:

Take a look at this set of 4 videos:
http://integrallife.com/apply/politics-civics/integral-politics-change-you-can-breathe
The interview with Don Beck post election:
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/sustainableleadership

So, what did people discuss? A few highlights:
*The typology is quite useful for analyzing the messages of each candidate
*Is there a bias in the language of the analysis? Only is one views emergent complexity as a hierarchy, rather than a holarchy
*Obama appears to embody a higher consciousness of the US -- an aspirational identity that reflects who we are as a People and who we may become as a Community
*When you release massive energy, as in this case, there will be a need to channel it spiritually, positively, building upon the Network and Community --> This is a historic moment
*There is an immense sense of Euphoria and Hope... but it has a Shadow side that we must be wary of... it is imperative that we keep Barack and his family safe, and be aware of the Fear that exists side-by-side with the Euphoria
*The econokmic collapse may well be the result of a conspiracy intended to see the demise of the US and the rise of a global dictatorship. It will take profound energy and a capacity for a larger level of thinking to develop creative solutions to this impending Depression.
*How much change can this culture handle? The environment in Chicago was Humble, Subdued, and Realistically Embracing the Challenge...
*Inpisred by the 'Course in Miracles,' the comment: Love is too transcendent a force to be defined or explained - we can understand its building blocks, but not the full conccept. Love is letting go of Fear.
*Be aware that the seeds of Obama's demise are being sewn -- the Euphoria masks the Fatal Flaws in the system: Only people closer to Tier 2 thinking have an awareness of the Spiral - people on the other end think of us as Elites. This can be addressed by compassionate communication (a la Rosenberg) to build bridges across these divides
*Perhaps we don't really know how to Engage in these ways that are truly inclusive, non-judgmental and embracing across levels and in different languages. Therefore, we must find the strengths and contribute the resources that all can off.
*Keep Dignity as the standard to manage the shadow of rank and privilege differences.
*The Shadow can be a gift to understanding the blind aspects of our journeys and reveal a greater truth to one another -- we can only do it in Relationship, Dialogue, and Community... it cannot be done alone.

Welcome to the Madison Integrals Blog!

2008-11-26T13:00:00.000-06:00

Welcome! We are a group primarily based in Madison, Wisconsin, that has been studying and working with concepts of integral thinking and spiral dynamics for the past few years. We include staff and faculty from UW-Madison, educators, consultants, realtors, physicians, and others from the community, as well as dozens of members who participate virtually across the physical boundaries of our planet. If you have an interest in integral thinking and a passion for learning about how we might utilize its insights in a variety of practices, then you are welcome to join us here and engage in the conversation!

Harry WB