Community Development Society

Cascadia/New Frontier Chapter (formative):

Notes from the second organizational meeting

Athens, Georgia
July, 1997

We began the meeting with a welcome and brief introductions because new people joined the group since the first organizational meeting on the previous day. Bob Howell then presented a brief overview of the chapter interest assessment survey. The remainder of the meeting was devoted to a conversation about the purposes of the new chapter and how it could be organized. The following is a list of the items mentioned by members of the group and, in some cases, discussed during the conversation. The new chapter could provide an opportunity for networking and sharing electronically with each other.

By getting to know one another, either through electronic communications or face-to-face meetings, we would be able to expand the resource base available to any one of us.

Regional activities could provide members with an opportunity to look at Regional CD work that we could all embrace. We could also attract new members to our chapter and the society.

By organizing as a chapter members would be able to help in local arrangement activities for the 1999 meetings and have input to the program theme and design.

It was noted that Ron Hustedde will be president of the CDS at that time and he is very interested in working with us on the theme and design of the conference.

A question was raised regarding how we can work together as a group to have input into the conference so that it is just not people in Spokane who are doing the work. It was proposed that we could function through electronic communications and organizational meetings.

We need to manage ways of bringing people together.

We talked about looking at how the Kansas City meetings will work. There is a local arrangements committee and a separate program committee, with the latter being widespread and representative of the entire society. The program committee communicates by conference calls, snail mail, and e-mail. We should be able to do the same.

A question was raised about whether we can set up a listserve? The answer was yes.

Regarding the listserve, it was proposed that we could possibly connect through the CDS listserve with one option being Cascadia chapter and another being the 1999 conference.

The instructions for electronic communication were recommended as follows:

1. Sign up for the CDS listserve.

2. Send the message in.

3. Put Cascadia/New Frontier in as the subject

4. Hit "reply to sender" or "Cascadia/New Frontier" only.

Jerry Endres expressed a willingness to put his notes taken at the first Cascadia/New Frontier Chapter organizational meeting on the e-mail. These were misplaced or lost.

We need to circulate the articles and bylaws of the proposed chapter as soon as possible.

Carla Main and Alan Kirk volunteered to work on the articles and bylaws.

A high level of enthusiasm was expressed for the diversity of our chapter and the potential for exchange.

We talked about the proposed name of the Chapter. There was not much objection to the name "Cascadia," although there were a few votes for "Wild West Chapter."

It was proposed that we hold a face-to-face meeting of the chapter in November 1997.

It was proposed that at the November meeting we brainstorm on fund raising strategies and ways of raising scholarships for needy persons who should come to the 1999 meetings.

Marilyn Trail agreed to send out the findings of the CDS member chapter interest assessment survey.

Bruce Boggs expressed that he is not wanting to have the annual meeting organizational business drive the chapter. We should organize around our own interests and this will lead to long term sustainability of the chapter.

If we convene in October or November more should happen that just conversations about planning for the 1999 conference. We talked more about how to communicate. It was proposed that we communicate by e-mail and conference calls.

It was proposed that we expand the chapter to include Saskatchewan, Colorado and Arizona.

Organization of the Chapter

It was proposed that we set up a collaborative structure by bioregions. We could also set up communities of like-minded persons.

We need to organize around functions, e.g. setting up practicums.

Regarding the interest assessment study, it was proposed that we categorize interests and then report on the interests/issues within each category.

As a group we need to figure out the professional support and networking things that we can do as a chapter and let the broader CDS do what it is best suited to do.

Encouragement was made to "break all the rules" in ways of working together and networking together.

There is a need to have an open-ended questioning system about what members would like to have the Chapter doing.

A person on the program development committee could send out some focused questions to get input concerning the priorities about what to emphasize in specific workshops.

Additional Notes of Relevance from CDS Chapter Related Discussion at a Saturday Morning Round Table Discussion

Several of us who had been in the Chapter organization meetings ended up at the same breakfast round table that was to focus on conflict resolution strategies. The discussion leader did not show up so we used our time for a conversation about personal interests, with the discussion focused on personal care of CD practitioners working in the area of conflict resolution. Part of the conversation focused on the use of transcendental meditation and its efficacy for stress reduction and other aspects of personal health care.

Our conversation also focused on the Cascadia Chapter. We talked about the importance of being highly creative and applying our best professional resources to thinking through the organization of the Chapter and its purposes. It was proposed that at the first meeting of the Chapter we begin by conceptualizing what the Chapter should do for its members. Next we could operationalize an organizational structure for assuring that the conceptual ideas are realized successfully. We could then go through the implementation steps to include the identification of members who would be responsible for various operational areas.

Robert E. Howell
Recorder