Chapter
Thirteen – Evolving the Laceweb Social
Movement
ORIENTING
This chapter continues
research on the Laceweb and its role in Neville’s
exploring of epochal transition. It commences with a sociogram-based
discussion on actions among natural nurturers for evolving, enabling, and
supporting Laceweb networks, and the passing on of
nurturing ways. Neville’s own writings about his macro-framework for the next 250
plus years are discussed and analysed. The chapter concludes with evolving
action and future possibilities for the Laceweb
Social Movement.
EVOLVING
THE LACEWEB AS A SOCIAL MOVEMENT
Turner and Killian define a social movement as:
A collectivity acting
with some continuity to promote or resist change in the society or group of
which it is a part. As a collectivity, a movement is
a group with indefinite or shifting membership and with leadership whose
position is determined more by the informal response of adherents than by
formal procedures for legitimating authority (1972).
Laceweb is a social movement within the terms of that
definition, though within the Laceweb as I
understand, nothing is resisted or confronted.
I have traced the Laceweb origins in
Through Psychnet
(an as a person linked to UN-Inma- refer Appendix 30)
I carried out a series of action research visits during July 2003 to October
2004 relating to finding and linking up natural nurturers among indigenous and
grassroots people. These visits were to
Through the Psychnet Secretariat in Manilla I
attended a five day action research gathering attended by 37 of the people I
had linked with in my above travels from seven countries (East Timor, West
Papua,
The participants were
given the following identifiers of natural nurturers by Elizabeth, Ernie and myself and they were asked whether such people existed in
their respective cultures:
- They support and nurture people psychosocially in
everyday life contexts
- They typically act voluntarily
- They have no formal preparation for the role;
rather they are naturally very good at it through life experience
- They typically network with and support other
natural nurturers
- They use culturally appropriate ways to support
community, family and individual wellbeing
- The locals know who they are and seek them out at
relevant times
While there were cultural
differences, every grassroots person at the Gathering agreed that such people
were present in their cultures. They were readily able to describe who they
were, their values and typical ways they support people. Also, attendees from
within the same cultures at the Gathering had consensus about characteristics,
values and ways of natural nurturers in their area. Below are two photos of
artistic representations of natural nurturers made by the participants from two
of the regions at the Gathering:
Photo 1 Photo I took at Tagaytay in Aug 2004 -
the natural nurturer wise old person from
Photo 2 Photo I took at Tagaytay in Aug 2004 -
natural nurturers symbolised as a coconut tree from
Photo 3 Photo I took at Tagaytay in Aug 2004 - A
Cultural Healing Action based mandala
I took photo 57 showing the Cultural
Healing Action based mandala we created on the final
day of the Philippines Gathering. It contains clay and paper sculptures of
natural nurturers from the eleven counties, flowers, the healing stones we
used, as well as paper models depicting the significance of our names. These
surround a clay model depicting the three landforms, Keypoints
and Keyline (modelling/sculpture as aspects of
Cultural Healing Action). Ceremony and ritual were regularly used throughout
the Gathering.
At Tagaytay
I again introduced Cultural Keyline to similar
effect. The term ‘connexity’ (and its connotations)
was greeted with great enthusiasm by the people from
EVOLVING
NATURAL NURTURER NETWORKS
What follows is a sociogram-based analysis of the processes Neville used in
networking with natural nurturers in evolving the Laceweb.
Neville repeatedly emphasized to me that in any engagement he had as an enabler
nothing happened unless local grassroots people wanted it to happen.
Locals would take what they wanted from him – again if they wanted it. This is
the frame in which the following analysis is to be read. The above is why
tentative language is used below.
The following sociogram material was well received in Tagaytay
in October 2004 by the grassroots people. The black disk symbol (Sociogram 1) is used to depict a local Indigenous, small
minority or intercultural wellbeing nurturer.
Sociogram 1
These nurturers are
living among other locals depicted as in sociogram 2.
Sociogram 2
The crosshatched disk
symbol (Sociogram 3) is used to depict a non-local Laceweb enabler. Enablers, as their name implies, enable
others to help themselves towards wellbeing. Enablers may share
micro-experiences of healing ways and ways that heal towards peace (what
Neville termed ‘peacehealing’). Neville defined ‘micro-experiences’ as
personally sensing some behaviour and noticing the resultant change in our body
- such that we have embodied understanding of new ways of behaving and
responding and change towards wellness.
Learning is typically by personally experiencing using the healing way
on self and others.
Sociogram 3
The darker crosshatched
disk symbol (Sociogram.4) is used to depict a local Laceweb
enabler.
Sociogram 4
Typically, co-learning
takes place. That is, as a person shares healing ways for others to experience
and embody, the sharer also receives insights and understandings back
from these recipients; hence, lines in the sociograms
represent a two-way flow of healing sharings.
Typically what flows between people are rumours – rumours of what works.
Typically the ‘author’ of the rumour is not disclosed. It does not matter.
Recall that Neville associated increases in uncertainty and rumour as a feature
of cultures in decline (Yeomans, N. 1971c).
Sociogram 5
The dark line between
two locals in Sociogram 5 represents a two-way
flow of healing sharings and that these sharings have been adapted to local healing ways. That
is, non-local enablers may share with locals many of the micro-experiences that
they have received from other places and cultures. The local(s) may adapt these
micro-experiences to the local healing ways. They may then pass these
‘localized’ healings on to other locals.
Sociogram 6
Sociogram 6 depicts an enabler interacting with three
locals and one of these three has links to a chain of four, and one other link.
Experiences passed from the enabler may flow through this network system.
In Sociograms
7 and 8 the local who commenced the chain makes links firstly with the second,
and then the fourth person in the chain. This may have the effect of enriching
the speed, flow and feedback of healing ways micro-experiences. In Sociogram 7 a link has also been made between one of the
original three locals and the new local not in the chain. The healing network
is beginning to expand in mutual support.
Sociogram 7
Sociogram 8
Further links have been
made in Sociogram 9 so that now, the local that
started the chain is directly linked to every member of the chain. The chain is
also linked into the original three via the other new member. Notice that the
enabler’s links to the three continue with the lighter links signifying that
the micro-experiences the enabler is sharing originate outside the local
culture. The enabler is in a two-way co-mentoring/co-learning flow and is
receiving feedback from the three locals about how the healing ways they are
receiving from the enabler are being adapted locally.
Sociogram 9
Sociogram 10
In Sociogram
10, the fourth person in the chain has linked with the first and second person
in the chain.
These further links may
have the potential to:
·
increase
and strengthen the diversity in healing ways in use as people share their
differing experience
·
increase
the intrinsic bonding within the network
·
increase
the availability of potential support
·
increase
the store of micro-experience in the network and relational communicating about
embodied experience
·
increase
the potential for self-organizing in the network
·
increase
the potential for emergence in the network
·
increase
the embodied unconscious use of Cultural Keyline
In Sociogram 11 the local natural
nurturer who has been evolving the network is depicted as evolving into a local
enabler. This enabler role emerges over time. Further linkings
have been made. The expanding network has potential for both unifying
experience and enrichment through diversity.
Sociogram 11
Now the ‘web’ like
structure of the linking is emerging.
When Neville got started
in each of Mackay, Townsville,
It will be noted that by
Sociogram 11, the outside enabler may have become a
relatively invisible figure. I am told by my overseas links that this is the
experience in East Asia and
In the contexts that
Neville energized in the Australian Far North, most of the natural nurturers
had a close connexion to Neville.
Healing
micro-experiences may be combined and adapted as appropriate to people, place
and context. Over 30 years of experience has demonstrated that:
- these processes may be self-enriching
- people may be intuitively innovative
- micro-experiences may be readily and easily passed
between cultures
To go back in time,
while the local network depicted in the preceding series of sociograms
has been emerging, the enabler may have been enabling, supporting,
mentoring/co-mentoring and linking with one or more other enablers who are in
turn linking with other locals not known to the local network mentioned above.
Sociogram 12 depicts such a linking. While this second enabler
is also linking with three locals, it may be any small number. Typically, these
linkings start out small.
Sociogram 12
Sociograms 12 to 17 depict the evolving of this second
network. The sequence may differ, though many of the characteristics of the
first network emerge. Linked chains of people may emerge. Further linking
strengthens the number of people available to each other for mutual sharing and
support.
Sociogram 13
Sociogram 14
Sociogram 15
Sociogram 16
Sociogram 17
Sociogram 18
Sociogram 19 depicts later links being made between the
two local networks and the local enabler in the first network links the two
local networks. As these links are extended, the two networks may merge to be
one expanded network.
Sociogram 19
There is always the
possibility that local healers may position themselves such that they generate
links to other local healers without linking the locals to each other. In this
way any local doing this may become the one all the others rely on.
Sociogram 20 shows the original network of eight locals
and underneath, another eight locals where seven locals only have one link and
that link is with the local in the centre. There are differences in the
structure and dynamic between the original network and this later form of
linking - what has been described as integrated and dispersed networks (Cutler 1984, p. 253-266).
Sociogram 20 - Integrated network
(above) Dispersed network (below)
This second pattern (the
dispersed network with a nodal person in the middle linking rumour lines is
prevalent throughout the Laceweb in SE Asia where the
safety and integrity of the natural nurturers is under threat. This is
discussed later. The August 2004 gathering in the
Experience has shown
that the integrated network with the multiple cross linkings
has many advantages such as:
·
Members
have multiple people to call on for support
·
The
flow of information tends to be fast and rich
·
The
diversity enriches the micro-experiences being shared
·
It
is possible to get cross-checks on others’ outcomes
Networks
in the Atherton Tablelands in the