Revision of CIPI - The Collective Intelligence Practitioners Initiative from June 26, 2006 - 22:10

What it is and why

10-15 people out of an email based invitation list of 20 people meet regularly each 4-6 weeks for one day's continued inquiry into collective intelligence – a CIPI Salon.

The idea is to support the emergence of a field of collective intelligence amongst us - a field where practices, insights, principles, etc. of collective intelligence can be evolved in ways that have not happened so far.

We use the field of collective intelligence engaged amongst us to inquire into the nature of collective intelligence it self.

Each of us have to put ourselves in service of that inquiry and (ideally) let go of any personal agendas for engaging the work.

The format of the meetings has for the last 4 times settled into this:

9-10 meditation for those who want to and come early
10 breakfast and check-in (not formal)
lunchbreak at some point
18 close; some stay and hang out

So far the form has mostly been dialogue in the circle, applying sensing into the middle or inquiring from the middle in an informal, selfguided way.

So far nothing has been done to record and harvest insights and learnings from the meetings, apart from some individual reflections shared by email. It may change for the coming meetings.


Who

The people on the invitation list are mostly situated in or around Aarhus, Denmark. There is no special professional profile, although in early incarnations of the initiative it was thought to be for people in the field of process consulting and related professional fields.

A practioner in this context is one who engages any specific area of skill or competence and while doing that holds the perspective of the entire social field that is impacted by the specific activity.

For instance a DJ, doing what a DJ is doing, and at the same time holding the perspective of the entire dancefloor of people as one field, is understood to be a practioner in the field of collective intelligence.

Likewise, a chef, cooking for a wedding party, and while working in the kitchen holding the perspective of the quality and energy of the entire social field of the party (including the chef herself), is in this context understood to be a practioner in the field of collective intelligence.

Principally the invitation list is open for anyone, but we have agreed to only add names to the list after one has attended at a CIPI Salon, invited by someone on the list. In this way everyone is  responsible towards the whole for only bringing in new people who has been briefed well, and who wants to participate on an ongoing basis.

We see the initiative as not single events but as a continued inquiry, and it reguires commitment to participate and willingness to contribute for the sake of the overall purpose of the initiative rather than for individual purposes. The nature of the inquiry is sensitive to people showing up just to check out what is happening.


History

The initiative was called by Finn Voldtofte in april 2005 to a broad invitationlist. In its first 9 months two CIPI Weekends and two CIPI Cafees were held. The experiences from these activities led in february 2006 to a focusing of the invitation list to those committed to the ongoing inquiry. The format of CIPI Salons held on Saturdays in Aarhus was also decided.

Prior to CIPI was a yearlong inquiry into practices around engaging collective intelligence. It took place under the name ”The Flag Ship” and was called by Peter Kahr Greve and Finn Voldtofte in an effort to find new ways for leadershiptraining.

A vision seen in august 2005 of a First International Collective Intelligence Practitioners Adventure (FICIPA) transformed some months later into the extension of an invitation for the gathering Moving The Edge, held in March 2006. Most of the people now on the CIPI invitation list participated in Moving The Edge.