Jan+12+Convening+-+Nework+Weaving

>>>
 * Background on Maine Network Partners (MNP) network weaving
 * Initially, __Maine Network Partners (MNP)__ trained potential weavers by inviting them to guest speaker events, panel discussions, workshops, etc. However, these convenings did not result in more / better weaving for the network.
 * A couple of years ago MNP decided to design a training program that would build/promote these skills sets in the form of peer-learning groups (vs. expert learning). The driving principle behind this approach was that **the network has the answers** (and can bring in outside expertise in areas where there are knowledge gaps)
 * MNP undertook a rigorous process to identify individuals who are weavers within their networks.
 * MNP also put together a design group that included consultants, funders, and practitioners.
 * The design group put together a curriculum based on input from weavers, and would continue to refine the curriculum based on their input.
 * There are several models for weaving a network:
 * **Insider (individual) as a weaver **: Barr hired Chris Lynch, who was formerly involved in several after school programs in Boston, to help connect after school sports programs.
 * **Outsider (individual) as a weaver **: Packard hired an outside consultant to play a facilitative role in weaving together NGOs working with sustainable sourcing of seafood.
 * **Organization as a weaver **: Barr worked with Boston-based South Africa Partners to weave different communities/organizations for Boston World Cup.
 * **Foundation **: e.g., Jacobs Family Foundation
 * There are different types of actors in a network:
 * **<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">Pushers/Drivers **<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">: motivate participants to act
 * **<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">Actors **<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">: participate in the network to take advantage
 * **<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">Operations **<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">: manage the logistics of network activities
 * **<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">Weavers **<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">: foster connection between network members, and identify and match excess capacity & need
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">We use the term network weaving to refer to a universal activity, but weaving often constitutes different roles. In fact, a weaver who is really good at gathering (i.e., bringing people together and engaging them) may not be equally as talented at doing (i.e., producing results or implementing programs with wide impact).
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">In such cases, it may be beneficial to find a **“doer” (pusher/drivers)**, someone who would drive the network by pulling on the weaver’s network.
 * **<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">Champions/Guardians **<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">: committed to preserving the network. These are the people who reminds the group that everyone is there in service of something for someone
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">The may have more moral authority or more influence based on his or her external role
 * There is a diverse set of characteristics that define successful / less successful weavers
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">June Holly has compiled a __Weavers’ Checklist__
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">According to __Bill Traynor__, weavers need to nurture trusting relationships and reciprocity
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">Weavers need to be able to cross-pollinate. They also need to be constitutionally social and curious
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">There is significant overlap between good old-fashion community organizing / community development and the skills and mental models that people use in weaving a network; that is what those fields are all about.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">Important considerations for network weavers:
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">Power: //Who holds it? Is it shared? How does it relate to money? How accessible is it?// Too often, weavers do not address the power factor, which is a fundamental issue when weaving the network. You have to name the beast, so to speak, even if it may not be possible to tackle it
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">The network model often fails because it does not call out imbalances in power.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">Sometimes, the network model is chosen because its members refuse to give power to anyone else, i.e., they choose a network model that is powerless at its center.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">There might also be **power in the powerlessness**, e.g., a community in Cambodia would always find ways to organize itself. This kind of power is never organized in the hands of one person…
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">Any time when there is excess power in any individual unit, there is potential for networking. This is similar to distributed computing, in which programs run on the excess capacity of many computers across the network.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">The weaver’s role may comprise multiple roles, some of which are informal, and which require a certain degree of saaviness. A weaver needs to assess whether he or she is ready for that type of ambiguous, multi-faceted work.