No. 18

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Open space method The open space method as a working method of the Riigikogu’s Green Party faction

  • Mikk Sarv

    spokesperson, Estonian Green Party

Open Space, a method articulated and implemented by the US management consultant Harrison Owen, is modelled on the spontaneous coffee breaks that take place at conferences, where anyone can join or leave a discussion, based on their interest.

The Estonian Green Party has used Open Space since the very first meetings held to establish the party. A confer-ence devoted to the first anniversary of the party, held on 1 December 2007, was also held using this method and was the origin of the idea to support the activity of the Riigikogu’s Green Party faction with different open spaces regularly held on a variety of topics. Open Space discussion starts with a topic that concerns all the people involved in the discussion. The discussions have been held in a number of places over Estonia, the range of topics has extended from ecotourism to the issues facing energy conservation to direct democracy and the future of education. To sum up, we find that the meeting with people monthly in an open and constructive atmosphere helps maintain the party’s reputation and base and attracts new members.

Full article in Estonian

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