Dear Friends and Colleagues, It was never my intention to get into the "Peace Business." Nor was it my intention to write another book. But in the course of my life my intentions are often overlooked, and happenstance rules. So much for a life plan. And now, the book - The Practice of Peace - is available in a 2nd edition.
Happenstance, in this case was a fortuitous journey to The Middle East several years ago. I went to that troubled part of the world lacking any clear understanding of what I might usefully contribute. To say that I was confused would be gross understatement. But confusion, as I have learned, is often (always?) an essential precondition to deeper insight. Confusion rids the mind of all you thought you knew, and thereby opens some space for new ideas. The new ideas, in my case, were perhaps closer to a blinding flash of the obvious. Twenty years' experience with Open Space Technology, over 40,000 iterations in 83 countries had demonstrated to myself and thousands of colleagues, that every time space was opened, a most remarkable and unexpected result occurred. I called it Genuine Community, the sort where differences (of opinion, ethnicity, economics, politics etc.) were if anything amplified AND those involved found it possible to treat each other with respect, often coming close to real affection. It seemed to me that another word for this phenomenon is Peace. Further more, the deeper the original conflicts the more intense was the sense of community. Why all this should be happening and what might be done with it remained hidden in my cloud of confusion. Hence the book, which began life as a set of confused notes to myself in search of clarity and understanding. Anybody who says that they write a book does not fully understand the process, I think. And certainly in my case, the book wrote me. As those of you who have shared in this little odyssey will know, confused notes eventually yielded to some form of connected text, which in turn was shared with some 180 colleagues for their critique. And critique in full measure was given and gratefully received - yielding a book which was published collaboratively by the several Open Space Institutes around the world with the title, The Practice of Peace. In the intervening period since publication, there have been multiple workshops and conferences around the world, each contributing to a deeper understanding of Open Space and the possibilities of Peace. Now, I am pleased to announce that a 2nd Edition has been published by The Human Dynamics Institute. In substance, the 2nd Edition is not radically different from the 1st, but countless hours of concerned conversation with colleagues and friends around the world have tightened the focus, enhanced the flow, and brought to mind a number of facets that had been neglected in the first attempt. In short it is a much better book. As an author, I have always found it difficult, not to say embarrassing, to recommend my own books. However, in the case of this book, The Practice of Peace 2nd Edition, I have no such qualms. This is not theory in search of a practice, but just the reverse. The practice required the theory simply because the practice works. Every time Space opens, Peace seems to break out. And the application is not only in the global arena of conflicted people, but also in the multiple areas of human life were Peace appears in jeopardy, including families, community organizations, and businesses. Such qualms as I may have about apparent self-serving advertising are also mitigated by the fact that even though my name appears on the book (and I take full responsibility for all errors and omissions), this book is in truth a communal production. Literally thousands of people all over the world have contributed great thoughts and ideas. So this is not so much an advertisement for my book, but our book. To receive a copy for yourself or to pass along to a friend, you may contact the good folks at the Institute -- www.hsdinstitute.org/dept_press.asp. Also the several Open Space Institutes can provide copies. Click on http://openspaceworld.com/intro%20to%20pop.htm for the details. Last, but not least, I believe that www.amazon.com will be carrying this book as they have also carried my others. Thanks for bearing with me. I hope you will read and enjoy, but most of all use -- The Practice of Peace. Harrison Harrison Owen 7808 River Falls Drive Potomac, Maryland 20845 Phone 301-365-2093 Open Space Training www.openspaceworld.com <http://www.openspaceworld.com/> Open Space Institute www.openspaceworld.org Personal website http://mywebpages.comcast.net/hhowen/index.htm [email protected] To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives Visit: http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html * * ========================================================== [email protected] ------------------------------ To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of [email protected]: http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html To learn about OpenSpaceEmailLists and OSLIST FAQs: http://www.openspaceworld.org/oslist
