iForum™ - The Inspiration

I have had more than fifteen years’ experience as participant, host, speaker and observer with community and organisational meetings involving large numbers of people.

A frequent and intriguing observation that I made was that as soon as the ‘cup of tea’ break was announced, the room would break into lively conversation which would often continue when it was officially ‘all over’.

As we switched between the various animated groups, I was often struck by the quality of the information exchanged, the ‘real’ issues canvassed and the imaginative ideas suggested.

I wondered how this ‘cup of tea’ conversation could be captured more effectively.

This question was always uppermost in my mind as my work took me on journeys through Australia, New Zealand, Canada and the United States, finding different ways for people to meet.

Some meeting formats like ‘World Café’, ‘Open Space Technology’ and ‘Open House’ captured part of what I was seeking.

What I wanted to add to these approaches was a meeting format that could be readily adapted for use within existing legal parameters and constraints (e.g. legislative requirements), where the outcomes could be easily documented and which could inform planning, strategies and decision-making.

After some experimentation, the ‘ iForum™ ’ emerged: the formalised ‘cup of tea’ where there are productive exchanges of information, issues and ideas, and which provides sufficient flexibility for the chemistry to happen through innovative and imaginative thinking.

Carla Rogers 2005

Click here to find out about The Community