Social distancing is important now but we can still feel deeply connected thanks to virtual technology.
Have a look at this live call with Thomas Huebl and Scharmer (TheoryU) livestream at 15h00 CEST.
This discussion was going to be part of a 2 day event in Germany today now they are having their discussion online for a wider audience free instead.
Isn’t that great!
Time: 3 pm Berlin / 9 am News York / 6 am San Francisco
Duration: approx. 90 minutes
The livestream will air on this Youtube channel: IFGIC – Global Social Witnessing
IfGIC on Youtube (Institute for Global Integral Competence)
(Note: The livestream window will only appear shortly before the event starts!)
It is free of charge and accessible to everyone
A recording will be available at the link after the event
Background
Global social witnessing (GSW) – What is it and and how can it help us call up a higher future for humanity and Earth.
To explore and co- create tools and strategies to help us become mature global citizens in our times of disruption and transformation.
If you have time before the call, watch this video by the hosting group
Summary notes I made and screenshots of Lucas Herrman’s slides follow in case you have no time for the video.
Witnessing is a leadership capacity
How do we shape the future we want to create?
It’s not enough to put actionable steps in place
We need to be aware how we are creating the problem.
we need to make the system see itself – work of Otto Scharmer TheoryU (Book reference) (see resources notes 1 below)
Each individual counts/is important for shaping global topics….
how aware am I of myself, of others and larger social and environmental system I’m embedded in?
GSW to find the sweet spot of response-ability, a way of relating to the weight of the world, is our collective responsibility.
Neurobiology discussed 20 min 45 in
Understanding what’s going on in another human. Empathy vd Empathic
Empathy – basic capacity to resonate with another and also to the world at large.
Empathic – we can feel so much that we feel overwhelmed. We can move to empathic distress. I feel the pain of the other is attacking me.
Levels of social connectedness
From Peter Senge and .?….Ladder of connectedness
We move from Objectification (emotional disconnect)
to Empathic distress
to Ingroup empathy (our ingroup is usually very small. 150 people we can relate to. Beyond that it becomes difficult. I belong to them and they belong to me.
There are social technologies to expand that to a nation. In group is good but limited. )
to
Cognitive Perspective-Taking – (we can expand Ingroup empathy to cognitive perspective taking – the capacity to think oneself into another. to put myself into another’s shoes even if I don’t have an initial resonance. Hold space for another as in therapy.
to
Compassion (a deeper way of connecting because . You can practice to include a wider and wider circle of care. This is a practice in many traditions such as Buddhism, to cultivate the heart.
to
Neutral Awareness (the next level below compassion is witnessing. Capacity to acknowledge that this is what is happening. Or what happened. An intelligence arises that wouldn’t be there normally .
to
Profound interconnectedness/Agape (an arising experience all that is interconnected)
Resources and notes
Notes 1: Otto Scharmer TheoryU book
Notes 2. Coronavirus resources and support from Thomas Huebl Access here