I have also led a number of Open Space events at conferences where there has been some drop-off by closure, and some who chose not to attend. I think this is normal for conferences anyway. The stakes are very different, individual learning rather than organizational performance. People at conferences have tended to use the Law of Two Feet and just skip sessions to go shopping or skiing. Many come just to hear the "famous" speakers, to be entertained. Open Space is not that kind of entertainment.
However, there have been a few OS events that began small and grew in participation by the time of closure like the one mentioned by Audrey. I recently led an Open Space in Baker Lake, Nunavut, with a largely Inuit participation. We had more at closure than we started with. When dealing with issues of real importance to an organization, I have only seen limited drop-off, usually due to other commitments that could not be changed (like any meeting). Larry Larry Peterson Associates in Transformation 41 Appleton Ave., Toronto, ON, Canada, M6E 3A4 Tel:/Fax: 416-653-4829 lpa...@inforamp.net http://www.inforamp.net/~lpasoc
