The love factor in a world fractured by conflict

A simple exercise called “sharing the love” or as I like to call it “the love factor” has inspired my work and been consistently setting the right tone in workshops and learning spaces all over South Africa in 2011. Working together with my trusted friends and colleagues within the Young&Able network and consortium of trainers, we have seen firsthand how an experiential learning warm up exercise brings the right “flavour to savour” into our training, workshop and consulting spaces.

In the South African landscape 17 years into our democracy conflict has continued to plague our social circles, in and amongst the expansive cultural diversity of our land. Everyday learning, working, playing, and living spaces are filled with social crashes having the potential to lead to volcanic social eruptions.

In many cases the conflict that underpins people’s everyday existence has lead to actions which result in a culture of greater conflict. Economic challenges on the work front have brought about increased stress, and conflict on the home front and vice versa. In the professional working places mismanagement of conflict and the rage or conflicted-ness of people has lead to actions of violence, and in the worst case scenario even death. In the political arena South African’s have seen a rise in national and local political disputes that have brought about criticism, demise and intense feelings of discontentment with the state of our nation. Conflict is all around us.

Slaikeu and Hasson (1998) explain, “One corporate attorney told us that he viewed the dollars spent on litigation as the clearest waste of money that his organization ever encountered. These expenditures served only to “resolve” matters that usually did not stay resolved, and the money spent was irretrievable- it did not accrue to the bottom line, and it did not help the business grow”(1998, pg. 14).
Conflict management systems, and people who can facilitate dialogue and discussion to curb the need for litigation and disciplinary hearings is most strategic in a context where conflict is rife. Conflict engagement and management must become a skill and at best a craft to ensure that our social spaces are reformed and transformed for the health, wealth and sanity of our people.

“The love factor”, has been an amazing exercise to set the tone for truthful, transparent and deep dialogue. What intervention can we think through or be inspired to test in narrowing the gaps, or degrees of separation that exist between people, based on their differences, disputes and conflict? What can you and I do to bring understanding and sober reflection of conflict within our community, and family spaces? What preconceived ideas will I hold lightly to reduce the stereotyping and demising of people in my every world? How can I share and spread the love?
Inspiring and motivating social interventions must be considered to mobilize a movement of value based learning e.g. respect, dignity, honesty, and courtesy etc., values that bring change and propel change in our social, work, play , and community spaces of life. Conflict need not be the end of us, we can forge new beginnings and realize inspired resolve in the midst of our ruckus, conflict and chaos!


Reference: Slaikeu, K. A. and Hasson, R. H. (1998) Controlling the costs of conflict: How to design a system for your organization. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Seth Naicker
seth@indiAfrique.co.za/
seth@youngable.com

Reconciliation and Social or Community Change

In the journey of bringing change, for people who maybe change agents and consider ourselves to be movers and shakers in the world of social justice and reconciliation, do we have methodology or approaches, tools, techniques and tricks of the trade to bring about the change we desire in our world's arrange?

Do we influence and advocate? Are we creative in our advocacy? Is our conscience and consciousness clear, or have we sold out to a system that is designed to keep the status quo? Are we creative in our social imagination and pursuit of change? Are we staying connected with people and a community who truly seek to inspire our world through the social interventions, innovations and knowledge they create?

We must continue to dream the dream and envisage the future, for without a prophetic dream and vision our social justice and reconciliation intentions will perish!

its RECONCILIATION day - and don't forget it

Today is our national day of reconciliation. A day that is dedicated for our country to behold the beauty of our transition from an oppressive apartheid regime to the glorious landing of democracy.

People should rejoice and really blow the vuvuselas on this day. There should be a national celebration on this day. We should commemorate it with passionate and creative concepts that could turn into national events all across South Africa.

We should have people meeting in public spaces around braais,bryani and boerewors rolls. There should be community parties where neighbours and community residents take time to celebrate at their community park or at the local swimming pool.

It would be amazing to have a movie launch on this day, with young people flocking to their local cinemas to get a piece of the action. The movie could be premised with a motivational speaker inspiring our youth about reconciliation ideals. All across the nation reconciliation engagement through the mediums of movies, wow it would be powerful.

I could imagine religious leaders all across the land, holding special services for people to come together to pray, make petition, and chorus in praise for this blessed day of reconciliation.

But the reality is that all the verbage just penned above, are just words of wishful dreaming and imagination. It could become reality, but the foundation of our democracy would have to be refined. The state of the nation is not at place to celebrate this day, because there are many who have grown sceptic and hopeless. People feel the doom and gloom of a democracy that has left millions of our people to the depressing reality of political freedom without economic enfranchisement.

May we, those who believe in reconciliation rise with righteous anger, and with faith, hope and love, propel this wonderful value, ethic and inspired "highest agenda" of God- Reconciliation. The hope for our beloved South Africa lies in the everyday actions of those of us who have the means to throw a pebble into a pond, and watch it spiral into a movement for reconciliation action and reconciliation ideals. May our means bring aid to a reconciliation end.

May reconciliation reign from Cape town to Soweto, from the mountain tops to valleys so low. May reconciliation reign from suburbs to townships, may it reign from parliament to pretoria, may it reign from rolling hills of Kwazulu-Natal to the peaks of the Drakensberg. Let reconciliation fill our land and establish for our people a present reality of tangible change that will secure a future where South Africa truly belongs to us all.

Let reconciliation reign in our helping of the poor, let it reign in our work place and unions, let it reign for the domestic and casual labourers, and in the board rooms of the corporate gurus and their boards.
Let RECONCILIATION reign in your heart and mine.

A blessed and consciousness rising RECONCILIATION day to us all!!

Seth Naicker!