Annual Board Meeting

The first annual board meeting of the Institute for 21st Century Agoras was held at Asilomar, California on November 2, 2002. Members present were: Aleco Christakis, David Loye, and Bela Antal Banathy. LaDonna Harris was absent. Also in attendance were Diane Conaway and Ken Bausch.

The board first amended the Bylaws with the wording urged by the IRS to wit:

Individuals on the governing body that are also employed by the Institute for 21st Century Agoras will:

· Be compensated in the capacity as a board member for justifiable expense related to meetings (mileage, etc.) only
· Remove himself/herself from the voting process when determining compensation, benefits, etc. in his or her capacity as an employee.
· Ensure that all compensation/salaries paid to any employee of the organization will be reasonable for the services rendered and comparable with other like exempt organizations

It voted Marie Kane onto the board and invited two other persons to join.
It approved our official gift policy statement.

The rest of the meeting was spent discussing our Corporate Records and our plans for the future.

ISI 2002

From November 1 - 6, members of the Institute and the Crete Coordinating Committee joined attendees at the annual conversations of the International Systems Institute. Working as Group F, they shared "stories from the arena" that exemplified active designing efforts, drawing from them inspiration and learning ways to improve our efforts. Of special interest to the Institute were the WebScope experiment that defined the purposes of Crete 2003. The whole process can be viewed on line at www.isss-conference.org under the Pre-Conference Dialogue heading on the menu. The second discussed the generic formats for co-laboratories that are planned in different parts of the world and at Crete 2003.

Crete 2003 Call for Papers

The call for papers for the 47th annual conference of the International Society for the Systems Sciences was prepared and sent out at the end of October. It is also available at www.isss-conference.org. The theme of the conference, "Constructing Agoras of the Global Village," is reflected in the agenda. Three co-laboratories are scheduled dealing with Indigenous, Latin American, and Greek issues. Among the other integration groups, one deals with "One year after Johannesburg" and ways to progress toward sustainable development; another deals with "Participatory design and planning: potential and pitfalls for ethical governance."

LaDonna Honored
LaDonna Harris, board member, founder and president of Americans for Indian Opportunity (AIO) for 33 years, stepped down as AIO Director in August triggering outbursts of appreciation and testimonials. She was given a special honoring ceremony at the grand powwow in Washington DC On Saturday, September 14, 2002 sponsored by the National Museum of the American Indian (NMAI). Four days later at a Generations of Leadership Gala at the Omni Shoreham Hotel, 300 of Harris's closest friends and supporters heard stories of her tireless commitment, energy and warmth. During this gala a slide presentation ran showing her life and her long involvement in Indian and human rights movements, including photos with every first family from the Kennedys to the Clintons.
A short bio of LaDonna can be found at www.isss-conference.org/committee.htm.

New AIO: Advancement of Indigenous Opportunity
As the torch was passed to LaDonna's youngest daughter, Laura, the AIO took a major step into the global arena. It joined with Advancement of Maori Opportunity (AMO) as the founding members of a new organization, the Advancement of Indigenous Opportunity, which retains the AIO monogram. Twelve Maori traveled from New Zealand to inaugurate this partnership. The Maori feted LaDonna at both the powwow and the gala. They are amazing dancers and singers and truly wonderful people. Later they were guests of AIO for a week in New Mexico.

Wisdom of the People Forum
AIO, AMO, and the Institute for 21st Century Agoras joined forces to conduct a Wisdom of the People Forum on September 15 - 19 to put the new AIO on a solid footing and set the stage for transnational Indigenous cooperation in the context of globalization. The forum was an immense success. [See the two press releases below for some details.] The influence pattern reproduced here depicts the 8 most important barriers to transnational Indigenous cooperation identified by the participants and the influence relations existing among them. The second diagram lists all the action options generated by the participants, and it designates by means of the Tie Line the actions they included in their action plan.

Alliances

The Institute has established an alliance with AIO and we plan to conduct many more Wisdom of the People Forums with them. Now in the planning stages are forums in El Salvador, Morocco, and at Crete 2003.

At the annual conversation of the International Systems Institute at Asilomar, Pacific Grove, California on November 1 - 6, we will join in discussions with the Agora Project, the Center for Conscious Evolution, and Saybrook Institute to discuss the founding of an Alliance to increase communication and coordination among movements dedicated to conscious evolution.

Also at Asilomar, Team F will renew its recounting of "stories from the arena," which explore lessons learned in CogniScope/Co-Laboratory applications. This year, there will be a focus on how co-laboratories will work in next year's ISSS conference.

Shanghai 2002, A Major Success

The 46th Annual Conference of the International Society for the Systems Sciences (ISSS), held in Shanghai, China on August 2 - 6, 2002, was a big success. Approximately 400 people participated, 250 of whom were Chinese. This expansion of ISSS into the Far East is a major advance toward making ISSS truly international. Abstracts of the talks given in Shanghai can be viewed at www.ISSS.org.

At the general meeting of ISSS, which was conducted during the conference,Ken Bailey was selected as President-elect; Maurice Yolles was selected as VP for Research & Publications;
Carl Slawski was re-affirmed as Secretary & VP for Protocol; Larry Magliocca & Karen Sanders became our new VP pair for Membership & Conferences. In addition, Alexander N. Christakis, who is our Institute president, was inaugurated as ISSS president for 2002 - 2003.

New Members of Crete Coordinating Committee

At the close of Shanghai 2002, valuable members of its coordinating committee were freed to join the CCC. The new members of the CCC are: Michael Jackson, outgoing president of ISSS, Kenneth Bailey, president-elect ISSS, Jifa GU, president International Federation for Systems Research, Jennifer Wilby, Markus Schwaninger, John Kineman, and Marios Michaelides.

isss.conference.org

In August, the interactive website www.isss-conference.org for planning the ISSS conference July 7 - 11, 2003 in Crete became operational. Among other topics, it presents information on conference registration, lodging, the attractions of Crete, and resources such as the original proposal of the Club of Rome (1970). Under the heading "Pre-Conference Dialogue," it offers both unstructured and structured dialogue.

The unstructured dialogue is conducted on the WebBoard under topical headings that are posted by participants. The structured dialogue is conducted on the WebScope, which is an online adaptation of the CogniScope/Co-Laboratory methodology. In September, CCC members conducted a beta-test of the WebScope while defining the purposes of Crete 2003. They identified and clarified 48 likely purposes for the conference and voted for the ones they thought were most important. Then the Knowledge Management Team (KMT; Aleco, Larry Magliocca, Karen Sanders, Cesar D'Agord, Bob Reese, and Diane Conaway) performed the Problematique on those purposes that received two or more votes. The tree thus conststructed was interpreted by the CCC. The whole process with the influence trees can be viewed at www.isss-conference.org under the "Pre-Conference Dialogue" tab.

Press Release Sept. 11, 2002

NATIONAL AMERICAN INDIAN ORGANIZATION
TO CONVENE INTERNATIONAL LEADERS
TO ADDRESS GLOBALIZATION ISSUES

(Santa Ana Pueblo, NM / Los Angeles, CA) - Americans for Indian Opportunity (AIO) in collaboration with the Advancement of Maori Opportunity and the Institute for 21st Century Agoras will convene an international group of leaders this month in a Wisdom of the People Forum in Washington, D.C. The topic is Designing a Transnational Indigenous Leaders Interaction in the Context of Globalization. Funded by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, the forum will be held September 16 -18, 2002 at the Hotel Monaco (700 F Street, NW).
"Rapid and unchecked globalization is beginning to change our lives dramatically, says AIO Executive Director Laura Harris (Comanche). It is imperative that Indigenous communities create strategies to be active participants in the globalization process and help prevent a new form of colonization.

Americans for Indian Opportunity, Advancement of Maori Opportunity and the Institute for 21st Century Agoras are offering a new model of international Indigenous exchange, based on empowering young Indigenous leaders to be pro-active change agents within a cultural context. The resulting project will not represent a band-aid solution to fix the immediate needs of the Indigenous communities, but rather is aimed at empowering leadership and building community capacity to withstand the forces of globalization by maintaining cultural identity. The long-term impact of this leadership development will enhance and share best practices that will foster the development of sustainable and healthy societies. It is a model of value-based community building that can be adopted by Indigenous communities worldwide.

LaDonna Harris (Comanche) the Founder and President of AIO for the past thirty-two years adds, We must strengthen our cultural identity so that we can contribute our Indigeniety (Indigenous wisdom, values and worldview) to the new world order. This gathering will enable us to rekindle the philosophy and wisdom of our ancestors, as well as engage in a contemporary dialogue that will draw upon the collective knowledge of everyone involved.

The forum will employ the unique Indigenous Leadership Interactive System (ILIS)TM that affirms the value of diverse opinions, clarifies a group vision, and fosters ownership in the collective outcome. Before European contact, Native Americans utilized traditional democratic processes, orders of protocols, social structures, and value systems that were very effective in consensus oriented decision-making. AIO has recaptured those processes and has successfully incorporated those traditions into the ILIS TM decision-making methodology. Using ILIS TM, the forum will engage in a visioning and strategic planning session that will focus on the question: "How can we work together across national barriers?

The assembled group will include representatives from AIO, Advancement of Maori Opportunity, and the philanthropic community who bring with them expertise in a wide range of areas including community development, children and youth issues, education, economic development, Indigenous cultural revitalization, and tribal spirituality. Of particular note are the advisors, designers and alumni of the AIO American Indian Ambassadors Program. Also involved are government officials, representatives of non-governmental organizations, and individuals involved in other forms of international exchange. The design group will be culturally diverse, consisting of Indigenous peoples, foreign nationals, and non-Indigenous people from the United States, New Zealand, and Latin America.

AMO representatives Bentham Ohia and Kate Cherrington say, "As Indigenous people we must validate our values, culture and social structures in order to fully participate in and contribute to the globalization process. From this basis we can create strategies that advance, educate and empower communities without compromising the very fabric of community identity. AMO is thankful for the opportunity to share in this exciting forum and looks forward to nurturing relationships that support and validate identity, celebrate culture and promote peace."

AMERICANS FOR INDIAN OPPORTUNITY

Americans for Indian Opportunity (AIO) is a national non-profit advocacy organization headquartered on the Santa Ana Pueblo reservation in New Mexico. The organization draws upon traditional tribal values in its efforts to promote innovative problem solving, develop leadership, and create contemporary institutions that can face the challenges of the 21st century. For further information, please visit the website at www.aio.org .

ADVANCEMENT OF MAORI OPPORTUNITY

Advancement of Maori Opportunity (AMO) is a non profit advocacy organization www.amo.co.nz that promotes the following: to take an active stand for Universal Peace, Harmony and Empowerment through influencing the world by sharing our fundamental values and practices as Maori together with all Indigenous peoples of the world; to promote and develop educational cultural exchanges with other Indigenous cultures nationally and internationally; to promote and build leadership amongst Mäori people by the establishment of an "Maori Ambassadors Programme;" to advance Te Reo (the language)and tikanga Mäori (Mäori customs); to initiate projects deemed by AMO to benefit the practice and objectives of the movement including leadership, culture, sports, education, health, environment, economic development and other related areas.

INSTITUTE FOR 21ST CENTURY AGORAS

The agoras were the vital centers of the Greek city-states, their outdoor markets and convention halls where gossip mixed with politics. The agora of Athens was the birthplace of democracy. Here the town's citizens discussed pressing issues and made decisions on the basis of popular vote. The Institute for 21st Century Agoras is a volunteer-driven organization dedicated to vigorous democracy on the model that was practiced in the agoras of ancient Greece. It employs Co-Laboratories of Democracy that enable civil dialogue in complex situations. Visit the website at www.globalagoras.org to learn more.

W. K. KELLOGG FOUNDATION

The W.K. Kellogg Foundation www.wkkf.org was established in 1930 to help people help themselves through the practical application of knowledge and resources to improve their quality of life and that of future generations." Its programming activities center around the common vision of a world in which each person has a sense of worth; accepts responsibility for self, family, community, and societal well-being; and has the capacity to be productive and to help create nurturing families, responsive institutions, and healthy communities.

Incorporation

With the able assistance of Gary Kemper, the Institute drafted its articles for incorporation in the State of California. Diane Conaway arranged the FedEx circuit that sent those articles for signatures to the founding board members: Aleco Christakis in Paoli, PA, LaDonna Harris in Bernalillo, NM, David Loye in Carmel, CA, and Bela Antal Banathy in Salinas, CA.  The signed articles were then sent on to Sacramento for approval. On June 19th, 2002, the California Secretary of State certified the Institute for 21st Century Agoras as a public benefit corporation organized under the Nonprofit Public Benefit Corporation Law for charitable purposes. The specific purposes for which this corporation is organized are to:

1. Promote democratic processes for addressing the problems and opportunities associated with global economic and political integration ("globalization")
2. Promote the idea of human connectedness and interdepedence (the "global village)
3. Promote the establishment of co-laboratories of democracy (a.k.a. 21st Century Agoras).

Tax Exemption

Tax exemption applications were sent out in the first week of July to the State of California and to the IRS. Official California tax-exempt status for the Institute is expected in mid-July. Status as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization is expected by October. In the meantime, contributions to the Institute are tax-deductible with one proviso--the Institute must eventually gain 501(c)(3) status. In the most unlikely event that this status would be refused, the Institute would be obliged to offer money back to its contributors.

Inauguration

On the final day, August 6, of the 2002 conference in Shanghai of the International Society for the Systems Sciences (ISSS), Aleco Christakis will be inaugurated as ISSS president and chair of the 2003 ISSS conference in Crete. Larry Magliocca and Karen Sanders are his VPs and Ken Bausch is co-chair of Crete 2003.

That date will mark the official year-long campaign to transform Crete 2003 into an intensely interactive planning sessions, called Co-Laboratories of Democracy. The Institute is committed to making this conference a world-class event and to leveraging its momentum into creating agoras all over the world.

Chronology

1996 - 2000	The idea of contemporary agoras was much discussed in conversations of the International Systems Institute (ISI).
2000	Precursors: Chapter on the Agora Project in Bela H. Banathy's book, Guided Evolution of Society: A Systems Perspective. Agora Project established with website www.21stcenturyagora.org.
2001	Aleco Christakis elected president of ISSS for 2002 - 2003 in July. Larry Magliocca and Aleco publish "Creating Transforming Leadership for Organizational Change: the CogniScope System Approach" in Systems Research and Behavioral Science. Magliocca and Giovanni Minati deliver "Transforming leadership through coalitions: building the ethics of sustainable development in globalization" to the second conference of the Italian Systems Society.
Late 2001	Aleco recruits Crete Coordinating Committee. Aleco sets Crete as site of ISSS 2003 Aleco generates theme of conference Aleco asks Ken Bausch to Co-Chair Crete 2003. Aleco asks Larry Magliocca and Karen Sanders to be his Vice-Presidents.
Early 2002	Aleco and Ken toss around the idea of matching the challenge of creating global agoras with a program that can accomplish it. They decide to make Crete 2003 a major event that could realistically influence history. They draft ideas and budget for transforming Crete 2003 into an integrated Co-Laboratory of Democracy. They seek outside organizations that might administer the finances for the conference to no avail. They realize that their efforts need to extend beyond a one-time conference if the co-laboratories are to realistically shape conscious evolution in the era of globalization.
April 2002	Aleco and Ken decide to incorporate and pick the name "Institute for 21st Century Agoras." They compose a Sponsorship Opportunity for explaining and funding the Institute's work of Crete 2003 and creating global agoras. They begin to selectively distribute this proposal. Aleco, LaDonna Harris, David Loye, and Bela Antal Banathy agree to be on the founding Board of Directors. David Loye edits a special issue of World Futures entitled "The Third Venture: Toward a Humanistic Theory of Evolution.
May-June 2002	Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws are drafted and applications for state certification are sent. Institute is certified as California not-for-profit corporation.
July 2002	Applications for state and federal tax-exemption are sent. Website is published. Plans are laid for official launch of Crete 2003 and the Institute in the 2nd week of August. Proposals are drafted to foundations. July 31st is the end of the Institute's first fiscal year. August 1st will begin a new fiscal year.

Past Events

On August 4, Ken delivers "Brittle Hegemony" at the annual conference of the Society for Chaos Theory in Psychology and the Life Sciences.

On August 5 and 6, during a remote session of the Shanghai conference, which will take place in Columbus, Ohio, the conferees will take time to plan the conference for 2003.

On August 8, the interactive website for planning Crete 2003 www.leadingdesign.org will go public.

In the fall, World Futures will carry a 3-page promotion for Crete 2003.

In October, an article by Aleco and Ken, "Technologue: Technology-Supported Disciplined Dialogue," will be published in Susan Robert's The Transformative Power of Dialogue (Elsevier).

Later this year, Ken and Aleco's "Technology to Liberate rather than Imprison Consciousness" will be published in David Loye's The Great Adventure.

A special conversation at the International Systems Institute will focus on training teams to conduct co-laboratories in Crete.

Bela H. Banathy will edit an issue of Systems Research and Behavioral Science concerning conscious evolution and Crete 2003 containing an article by Aleco and Sabrina Brahms entitled, "Boundary-Spanning Dialogue for the 21st Century Agoras."