Activities

• Activities for the Social Design: Examples from Module 2 - Communication Skills, Decision Making & Facilitation

• Activities for the Economic Design: Examples from Module 1 - Shifting the Global Economy Towards Sustainability

• Activities for the Ecological Design

• Activities for the Worldview

2. Communication Skills, Decision Making & Facilitation

• Activity 1 - Questions to work on content
• Activity 2 - Individual Work
• Activity 3 - Small groups Work
• Activity 4 - Case Study
• Activity 5 - Reflection

Activity 1 - Questions to work on content

Description
Answer these questions after reading the texts they refer to and from your experience in groups.

1. Read the texts under the heading "Active and deep listening" and reflect on the meaning of these sentences: "Honour people’s boundaries" and "See your teacher in every person, in every situation”. Do you feel identified with these attitudes? Is it easy or difficult for you to maintain this kind of approach in your daily life? In what situations or with what people is it more difficult for you? Reflect on why this is so.
   
2. After reading the material on Critical Feedback, provide assertive answers to the following situations:
1. The boss says: "Why do you always arrive late at work meetings? I expected more from you and thought you could be an example for the rest of the group. "
2. At home, your partner tells you, shouting: “I'm tired of you always leaving everything thrown around the place!
3. One of your workmates makes a comment like: I can’t do anything with you. You do everything wrong!
   
   
3. Once you've read what facilitation is and have learned some of the skills and tools you must have to be a good facilitator, in what situations do you think may it be useful for a group to have a facilitator (someone of the same group, rotating role, or someone from outside)? Why do you think so? What do you think should be the function of the facilitator in each case? Have you ever played any of these roles in the groups you are part of? How did you feel? Which skills and tools were available to you? Which ones did you really need, miss or think you should know for the future? Write a little plan of how you might get or develop them.
   
4. See the table about "Attitudes toward conflict." Is there anyone you feel more identified with? Why do you think so? Try to remember and describe different situations in which you reacted in each of these ways. Think about your reaction. Could you change it? How and why?

Objectives
The aim of these questions is to foster a thoughtful reading of the material and to promote the assimilation of concepts, looking for connections with the student’s personal experience.

Resources
Documentation pages

Assessment
To be considered: the adequate use of theoretical concepts in the answers, the depth of the thinking, and the descriptive richness of the real-life cases used to illustrate the answers.

Activity 2 – Individual Work

A/ Activity about automatic responses

Description
Fill in the table below – how often do you find yourself responding in any of the ways listed on the sheet? 

Choose 3 “frequently” of the previous table and remember for each a real situation where you behaved in that way. Think of one personal reason why you would behave in each of those ways. Write down the different “why’s” you have found for each situation.
Now consider how each of these behaviours would be expressed – what you would say, how you would say it, and how you would express it physically. Write down your responses.
Share with your classmates the different “why’s” and “how’s”. Compare them with somebody who chose the same behaviour. Are your answers similar or different?
Reflect together upon what signs can help us to recognise and even predict other’s behaviours, what signs we can learn to recognise in ourselves which warn us that we are embarking on an unassertive approach, how we can alter our pattern of reacting and begin to learn a new response, etc.

Objectives
To gain an understanding of what unassertive behaviour is, to become aware of our automatic responses and learn from them.

Resources
Notes about Critical Feedback and Compassionate Communication

Assessment
After their participation in the common reflection held in the virtual classroom, students will individually submit a report (one page maximum) about their impressions of the activity, and their personal reflections about what they have learned.

B/ Activity to observe what happens in a group meeting

To do this activity, you will have to participate in a group meeting where you can just be an observer. Choose a group you are part of or try to get an invitation to join a group you know.

Description
Sit in a group meeting observing what happens at all levels (relationships, process and results), and take notes of your observations. Try to notice the different aspects of the group culture – atmosphere, roles, power and rank, and so on. Pay attention to the following questions: Is the meeting well conducted? Is it effective? Dies it have an agenda? Is there clear information for everybody? Are there any difficult issues that generate tension? Are there relationship issues? Are there rank issues that create power abuses? Which are the main roles played by the participants?
It may useful to use the table "What to observe in a group" as a guide.
Describe your impressions, what you have learned, what would you change, etc.

Objectives
To develop the capacity of observation - one of the first skills a facilitator should develop.

Resources
Material about facilitation (see Documentation)

Evaluation criteria
The student will submit a report (maximum two pages) summarizing and analyzing their observations.

Activity 3 - Small Groups Work: Activity to learn to suspend our thoughts

Divide the virtual classroom in groups of two. Once the dynamic is done, reflect on the results.

Description
Try to find two or three themes or issues where you have a strong opinion. For each of them, answer the following questions:

• Why am I so sure of my opinion?
• What makes me hold on to this idea in such a strong a way? Does it benefit me in some way? What would happen if I stopped thinking or believing so? What could I lose?
• What frightens me?

Share with your partner your feelings doing the activity, if you have experienced any block or change on the perception of yourself, if it has been difficult for you, and so on.

Objectives
To detach ourselves of the image we have build of ourselves. Practice suspension of our thoughts and feelings, trying to see them as "things" that are there, something with which we do not have to identify ourselves.

Resources
Notes on Suspension (see Documentation)

Assessment
The student will submit a report (maximum one page) about how the dynamic has gone, along with their personal reflections on what s/he has learned.

Activity 4 - Case Study

Each student will work on a real project, brought by himself or by other students, in collaboration with other students in the virtual classroom. You will work in groups of 3-4 persons.

Description
In your working group, create a booklet containing several documents related to the governance of your case study, including:

1. A membership protocol
2. A decision-making procedure, based on the following questions:
1. Are all decisions equal in importance, scope ...?
2. Who should decide what decisions?
3. What decision-making method must be used for each type of decision?
4. How often do we want to gather to make decisions? For how long do we want to meet?
5. What are our basic agreements for meetings?
6. How will we ensure that our decision-making process is truly participatory, inclusive and fair?
7. How will we solve conflicts arising in decision-making?
8. How will we communicate the decisions to the group?
3. A procedure for the prevention and management of conflicts in the daily activity of the group.

Objectives
To learn to design and develop useful documents for the governance of a group.

Resources
Information on the case study
Use the glossary for a definition of the word "governance"
Material on facilitation skills, decision making and conflict resolution
Internet

Evaluation criteria
To consider: the completion of the work and the internal consistency of the document. Each student will also have to indicate their personal contribution to the document.

Activity 5 - Reflection

Description
Write an essay (no more than 3 pages) reflecting upon what you think are the main axis of the module (for example: compassion, trust, etc.) Connect this reflection with what you have learned about deep democracy.
Try to integrate all this with the fundaments of the decision-making by consensus - "the best decision everybody can accept".
Think of a possible way for a community to deeply learn and internalize what making decisions by consensus really means and how to ensure that it becomes a solid and well-founded practice.
Develop your own reflection upon consensus: strengths, weaknesses, etc.

Objectives
To reflect upon consensus and how to implement it in our local groups and communities.

Evaluation criteria
To consider: the ability to collect ideas, establish connections, etc.

1. Shifting the Global Economy Towards Sustainability

Overall objectives:

To develop an understanding of:

• the way in which the global economy currently works
• the consequences of the way in which the global economy works for people, society, and ecosystems
• why the global economy has developed the way it has
• how the global economy could work in ways that are more just, resilient and sustainable
• the kinds of changes required for this to happen

• Activity 1 - Questions to work on content
• Activity 2 - Individual Work
• Activity 3 - Small groups Work
• Activity 4 - Case Study
• Activity 5 - Reflection

Activity 1 – Questionnaire

Answer the following questions after reading through the text and watching the film The Story of Stuff: http://www.storyofstuff.com/

1. Trace the connections between consumption of any one specific product in one part of the world and adverse social, economic and ecological consequences in another (other than the example of palm oil provided in the text).
2. Describe the role of externalities in making industrial-scale mass production systems cheaper than small-scale locally-based systems, with specific reference to one sector or product.
3. Describe the role of subsidies in distorting markets, with specific reference to one sector or product.
4. What would be the effect of shifting tax away from people and onto resource use?
5. Which of the mechanisms described in the text for turning the global economy towards sustainability do you think has most chance of working – and why?

Objective
To help you process and integrate the issues discussed in the text.  To encourage you to do independent research and to develop your own new knowledge and insights.

Resources
Text provided, the Internet and other reading.

Assessment
The exercise will be assessed on your understanding of the key issues and dynamics described in the text and your ability to apply those principles to other cases and examples.

Activity 2 – Sector-level distortions

Identify one sector or product (e.g. fisheries, wood, steel, coffee, clothing…...) of which your country is an important producer or consumer.  Explore (making good use of the Internet) how goods in this sector are produced and traded at present.  Map as many of the social, economic and ecological consequences as you can.  (‘Mind-mapping’ is strongly encouraged as a tool to help you think in holistic ways.  It will be very useful for this and for many other exercises you will be requested to do in the Economics module.) 

Objective
To develop critical thinking and develop your skills as independent researchers.  To become more aware of the various consequences of current economic practices. To apply the principles and models elaborated in this module to contexts prevailing in your countries.

Resources
Text, the Internet and other reading.

Assessment
Draw a mind-map and/or write some text describing the various consequences (social, economic and ecological) of current economic practice in the selected sector. 

The exercise will be assessed on i) your understanding of the key issues and dynamics described in the text and your ability to apply those principles to other cases and examples; and ii) your ability to trace the various consequences of current economic practice.

Activity 3 – Turning one sector towards sustainability

This exercise follows on from Exercise 2, enabling a sharing of perspectives and lessons learned. 

Self-organise yourself into in groups of three.  Agree on one sector in which people in your country are either producers or consumers.  (It may be helpful – though not necessary – if each group of three contains students from both producer and consumer countries.  You may either stay with the sector you explored in Activity 2 or choose a new one.)  Explore in detail the various social, economic and ecological consequences – both positive and negative – of how products in this sector are produced and traded at present.

Using the materials, ideas and models provided in the text, discuss how the products could be produced and traded in more favourable, just and sustainable ways.  What changes/reforms would need to be introduced to make this possible?

Objective
To develop critical thinking.  To become more aware of the various consequences of current economic practices.  To learn to see and experience the world through other eyes.  To apply the principles and models elaborated in this module to contexts prevailing in your countries.

Resources
Text, the Internet and other reading.

Assessment
The exercise will be assessed on i) your understanding of the key issues and dynamics described in the text and your ability to apply those principles to other cases and examples; ii) your ability to trace the various consequences of current economic practice; iii) your success in understanding the perspectives of both producer and consumer countries; and iv) the creativity exhibited in your proposed reforms.

Activity 4 – Case study

Explore which of the issues covered in this module have greatest impact on your case study project.  This may be the potential for lobbying and engagement in the political process.  It may be social, economic or ecological problems generated by current global economic practices that have a direct impact upon your project.  It may be something else entirely.

Describe your next steps in engaging with the issue in question.  What are you able to do – in a small or large way – to contribute to the transition towards a more just, resilient and sustainable economy?  Describe three specific actions you can take.

Objective
To help you apply new learnings and insights to the specific context of your case study.  To help you identify the points at which you can be most effective as change agents.

Resources
Group intelligence and cooperation. 

Assessment
This activity will be assessed on the appropriateness of the points of intervention that you identify and the chances of the defined strategy to achieve the desired goal.

Activity 5 – Reflection

Write a short paper (no more than 500 words) on what have been your principal new learnings and insights during this module.

Objective
To help you process and integrate new insights.

Resources
Your reflective imagination and intelligence.

Assessment
The aim is NOT to repeat all the things you know on the issues covered in the module.  Rather, it provides you with an opportunity to explore new ideas, where your way of seeing and understanding the world have been changed over the course of studying for the module.  Focus on your new learning ‘edges’, where you are moving into new, previously unexplored territory.