NonDual Processing=True Collaboration

NonDual Processing = True Collaboration

Posted on July 30th, 2011 on my UBC course blog

The topic of collaboration is an interesting one. Howard Rheingold, once again, gets my attention with his concept on an anatomy of a collaboration using the communication tools of the Internet. His comparison of the social dilemma of collective action to the “Prisoner’s dilemma” helped me realize why collective sharing is so difficult for western cultures. He noted that human collective action has been evolving along with the tools that helped produce knowledge like the alphabet and the printing press and now the computer. The one tool that hasn’t evolved much to get us past the Prisoner’s dilemma is the operating system of the human brain. Our western society is hardwired into a binary operating system. It runs on “either/or”. It’s called the ego and  has been referred to by some as the “egoic operating system”. Near the end of Rhiengold’s pitch for network collaboration he remarks that understanding cooperation does not necessarily make us better people. I say it can not. We have to abandon our present “grammar of perception”. We have to upgrade our operating system because it divides our field of understanding into “all or nothing”. Virtual collaboration using the present day communication tools of the Internet may be the KERNAL that moves the evolution of the human operating system into the place where true collaboration is possible.


So, why make the effort that Rheingold is so anxious for the world to begin?

Pros and Cons of Collaboration—from module III
What is the value of collaboration for libraries and library professionals: collaboration can exponentially increase the available resources when projects are collectively shared across institutions and organizations.

What projects are suited for collaboration: Projects that impact the quality of an individual’s, group’s, community’s day to day life.
Examples: Philadelphia model for museum and library collaboration http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/philadelphia-model-for-museumlibrary-collaborations-grows-by-leaps-and-bounds-125590563.html
ischool Inclusion Institute of Information Science at the University of Pittsburgh http://www.ischool-inclusion.org/contact.html

What are the characteristics of a successful collaboration: A mature ego (Nondual thinking), mutual respect and a multicultural awareness and sensitivity.

How do we develop the skills needed for successful collaboration: The skills are developed by entering into collaborative efforts over and over and over again. Sir Ken Robinson noted that creativity and innovation that results in an idea of value is a process not a singular event.

How is success measured in collaboration: Does the collaboration answer the original question or solve the initial problem? Does the solution resolve the issue? It is not about how much money was spent or saved so much as did the solution create the possibility of future growth? Did the outcome allow for future positive change? It can not be a static solution or it will stagnate.

What are the barriers to a successful collaboration: Lack of mutural respect for all involved and lack of full and open communication among participants. It could also be the unequal access to the technology that makes virtual collaboration possible or the unequal or ill-matched technical abilities of the participants.

An operating system based on dual thinking can never achieve successful collaboration. We need to work on an upgrade.