Digital Connections Spaces in ASPF process "open space"
Main connection spaces in the APSF open space are currently along thematic dimensions (see below) . Other such spaces can be created by facilitating committee, along sectoral or geographic dimensions.
Participant organizations from all over the continent , and beyond, present in a connection space, can share announcements, invitations , express interests for those, and start self organized dialogues towards case by case cooperations , through preparing or attending activities of intercommunication and promoting or supporting initiatives of action
TCSs : Thematic Connections Spaces in ASPF process
Each Activity and Action can be declared related to some of the following broad Thematic connection space TCS
( fields to be added in Activity and Action update form)
note : these themes are aligned with the themes of WSF2021
TCS1 Peace & War & security
TCS2 Economic Justice
TCS3 Communication Education Culture
TCS4 Society Diversity ( women and youth empowerment and fight against discriminations)
TCS5 Democracy & People movements
TCS6 Social Justice
TCS7 Climate & Ecology & Transition
TCS8 Future of Social movements of WSF & civil society organizing
TCS9 Agrarian Struggles
Choose your thematic connection spaces / groups 1/ through the online form link in the invitation page - or through direct following of links to whatsapp groups shared in the Asia WSF mobilizing group
A Thematic Connections Space (TCS) in APSF process is conceived as an “open space “and not as an organic body (so no expression in the name of a TCS)
It is not a requisite to join thematic connections spaces to take part in the APSF process and event, while it is probably informative and useful
Image below : a proposed generic description of thematic connections Spaces
In a TCS, participants can start to self organize : see point 1 2 3 4 in the image below
This starts through :
- Expressing willingess for being present in the connection space ( 1)
- PROACTIVELY Sharing relevantly intentions, proposals and invitations clearly linked to social forum process -around possible activities or initiatives ( 2) , These invitations can be sent through a message in the TCS directed to all or to specific organizations identified using the information i the presence in TCS page, or through contact info found in the organiztion pages
- REACTIVELY Answering some of those invitations sent by others and exploring common intentions in separate groups (3)
- Consolidating some of those groups into co organizig dialogue activities, or co-formulating and promoting initiatives of action ( struggles , campaigns, transfrmative porcesses, agendas, declaration) , co drafting news news from the forum (4)
There can be a team frm the Faciltation committe, appointed “in the TCS”, to care about the quality of its use : see the left side text in the image with the moderation /facilitation tasks F1 to F5
in APSF process TCSs have been used in the preparation of Feb22 event - now they can be used in perspective of AP/WSF event
4 Explored Functions for each TCS space during build up of February 2022 event
1/ EXCHANGES LEADING TO IDENTIFYING PROXIMITIES AND POSSIBLE JOINT SELF ORGANIZED ACTIVITIES AND ACTIONS
Based on these intercommunication sessions, TCS participants can decide to engage, or not, with other specific participants of their choice, with whom they have identified proximities and common intentions, in building some self-organized activity or public action date, included in mid term lines of action, that one of them will be entrusted to register in the ASF website for the january event. (maybe they can be creating specific smaller groups indepently of the TFG for those exchanges)
2/ PREPARING a preliminary workshop ( as was done on 21st January)
The workshop is a participatory round of discusion where proactive participating organizations state some views and their intention of preparing activities/workshops for the February events and of announcing actions for 2022
3/ PREPARING A PANEL ( as was done on DAY 1 (18th) or 2 (19th ) of February APSF event )
Each thematic focus group is proposed to define an inclusive facilitating group for preparing, as a self organized activity (in the name of wide array of organizations present in the TCS but not in representation of the TCS), a “thematic panel” with duration 1h30 during the event ( 9 such panels), where to invite panelists and invite them to describe their views on issues and challenges. This panel is didactic and mediatic and is not programatic, as TCS are spaces and not organic groups
4/ PREPARING A NEXT STEPS SHARING ASSEMBLIES ( NSA) (as was done on DAY 3 (20th February) of february event)
Next steps can be suggestions for the continuity of the APSF process or announcement or announce some actions taken up by some organizations described in the action pages
Participants in some thematic Contact Space can define an inclusive NSA facilitating group for preparing, as a self organized activity,(in the name of wide array of organizations present in the TCS, but not in representation of the TCS);
The actions shared or proposed by participants in this Next Step Assembly are expected to be registered and made visible as Action by their initiators in Action page
.