How to grow planetary community?
I believe we need to learn how to grow “planetary communites” that connect across the world to help regenerate the Earth. In my work with a variety of global networks over the past 15+ years, I’ve learned 10 key principles for how to do so. Most of these principles apply to any community but may be especially relevant when you interweave at a planetary level.
At the heart of any community are people. And it’s essential to have a shared sense of who you are and who you want to become together, especially when you connect at a planetary level. So take an honest look at who you truly are and who you want to grow into - knowing that whoevever is present at the beginning shapes the core DNA of your community.
Who are you and who do you want to become together? Who is missing to make it happen?
2) Initiate with care
“There is magic in every beginning” said Hermann Hesse. Whether it’s the foundation of your community or the initiation of new people, how you start sets the pattern for everything that follows. So pay attention to how you initiate (into) your community and think of ways to make it a powerful ritual that generates belonging.
How can you initiate your community in a way that embodies everything you want to become? How do you bring in new people?
3) Build a core
The quickest way to burn out is to try doing it all by yourself. A healthy community needs a core of stewards who are committed to nurturing the central fire. Think of them as firekeepers tending to the essential rituals and rhythms that make the community come alive.
What roles are needed to steward the core activities of your community? Who might be the right people to fill them?
4) Create a heartbeat
I’ve learned that the single most important element in keeping a community together is to have a simple rhythm that allows everyone to connect and share their gifts. Find out what kind of interaction patterns create real value for people and then repeat those patterns with a stable rhythm that feels healthy.
What interaction patterns create real value in your community? What’s a healthy rhythm to keep doing them?
5) Grow pockets of intimacy
One of the key challenges in growing a planetary community is how to nurture pockets of intimacy as you spread around the world. One way of meeting this challenge is to form smaller clusters that operate like fractals of the bigger whole. These could be regional clusters, thematic clusters or peer-to-peer pods that support each other with their own rhythm.
What are meaningful ways for people to come together in smaller pockets of intimacy? How can they be a fractal of the whole?
6) Weave in everyone’s gifts
Communities thrive when everyone can make a meaningful contribution. The biggest mistake a community leader can make is to try meeting everyone’s needs. This creates a consumer mindset and prevents people from bringing themselves in more fully. People support what they co-create, so offer pathways for doing so.
What are pathways for people to bring in their gifts? How can everyone become a co-creator?
7) Honor people’s contribution
There are always differences in how much people contribute and it’s important to recognize them. Trying to have everyone contribute the same only creates guilt and resentment. Rather, define various forms of engagement with distinct rights & responsibilities and find ways to honor those who bring themselves in more deeply.
What forms of engagement make sense in your community? How can everyone feel appreciated for what they bring in?
8) Talk about money
Money is often a taboo topic in communities. When most bring in their gifts voluntarily, it is a tricky line to navigate at which point someone should get paid to take care of core activities. And if so, where the money comes from. That’s why it’s healthy to start this conversation early and find ways to bring in resources to make the community sustainable.
Who needs to get paid for keeping the community running? Where does the money come from to do so?
9) Distribute power
I’ve seen many communities fall apart that didn’t pay attention to how power is organized. Many communities either pretend to be all equal or else embrace a traditional top-down structure. Neither is healthy in my experience. What I’ve seen work is to distribute power to fluid roles and operate with consent-driven decision making processes as a default.
How can you make collective decisions in a way that is simple, fluid and transparent? How do you deal with conflict?
10) Embrace emergence
Community is messy and doesn’t follow a linear arc of evolution. The key is to have a collective practice of listening deeply into what wants to emerge (creating coherence) and then empower everyone to bring in their gifts to make it happen (inviting diversity). This creates a culture of genuine co-creation and allows the community to evolve in a distributed way.
What’s your practice for listening deeply into how your community wants to evolve? How do you balance structure and flow?