Rise like Lions after slumberIn unvanquishable number,

Shake your chains to earth like dewWhich in sleep had fallen on you

Ye are many—they are few.~ Shelley

Insanity in individuals is something rare — but in

groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule.

        ~Friedrich Nietsche

It's time to begin treating your world like you treat your toilet.

When your toilet is broken, you fix it. You don't pray that God fix it. You don't go to a protest against the injustice of its brokenness. You don't write a letter to your congressperson asking for action. You don't give to a charity for sick toilets. You don't read or write articles or books arguing that the socialist way to fix toilets is better than the capitalist way. Your toilet is important, so you don't piddle around. You JUST FIX IT.

If fixing the toilet requires more work than you can do alone, you get help fast.

If the break is complicated, you problem-solve and plan with practicality and effectiveness.

Today and every day, there are 50,000 people unnecessarily dying of poverty.

We are quickly destroying our Earth's species, forests, oceans, rivers, atmosphere and life

support systems. Economic inequality is worsening. Wars rage. By the evidence of human actions, it appears that our planet and its life forms are not as

important to us as our toilets.

We’re calling the circle now.

Next Step

Together

NST

The gift of common sense

governance

Just like three friendsdeciding which movie

to see.

Vision:

An interlinked world of organizations where the needs of individuals, groups of all kinds, and the environment are met. Everyone’s unique value and

capacity to contribute is honored and each person has a voice in the

decisions affecting them.

Mission:

To connect all groups and individuals who are in agreement with The Earth Charter into a massive, sociocratic,

decision-making structure, in order to plan and foster actions that meet our common goals efficiently, using only

peaceful, life-affirming means.

In or out?

Would you kill someonefor trying to create a

just, peaceful, sustainable world?

Yes

or

No?

Absolutely impractical!I couldn’t be

bothered!

If you would kill to maintainyour wealth or power,

you’re not in and you can’tspeak in this circle.

But

LISTEN!

Please…

don’t kill us.

We’re on your side!

We’re on your side,your deepest side.

If you could have all the

money in the worldOR

happiness, which would you choose?

How about if we give you so much love and happiness that you’ll want to give us

the army?

We love you.

Our fates are married.

We’ll make you a deal:

1. We will confer survival benefits upon you.2. You will not kill us for trying to make your life better!

Simple choice:

Kill me or

let me love you!

Deal?

Again, in or out?

I’m in!

Good…you’re like almost everybody.

“But what’s our next step together?”

Get into a group of no more than12.

Start one or join one.

12 is like a Good Friend group.

A friend helps you move.

A good friend helps you move a body.

Tell everyone you know.

Call those old friends.

Help them get into circles.

Link up.

If you don’t have much time,

don’t worry.

Someone in your groupwill have enough timeto connect you to a massive Love Army

of everyone who wantsa safe home for their

children.

Your group of 12 selects two

representatives.

Those two will represent your 12, forming a group of eight: 2 people from four

groups of 12.

Don’t worry about the overlap!

Just organize using the relationships you already

have.

The group of 8 will represent

4 groups of 12.

A maximum of 48 total.

Because of groups smaller than 12 and overlap, the average will probably be

about 36. A good number for

a weekend retreat…hint!

4 x 36 = 144The largest efficient sizefor a factory or a church.

Dunbar's number, 148, is the limit to the number of

individuals with whom any one person can maintain stable social relationships. Proponents assert that group sizes larger

than this generally require more restricted rules, laws, and enforced policies and regulations to maintain a stable

cohesion.

4 x 144 = 567A small town.

4 x 567 = about 2,400A big high school.

10,000 40,000

120,000500,000

2,000,0008,000,000

36,000,000150,00,000

.5 billion2 billion8 billion

(more than all of us)

You are a maximum of 16 circles from

the top circle.

In the Top Circle, and thenear top circles, are people

who are already there:Jimmy Carter, Nelson Mandela, Bishop Tutu,

Obama, Vaclav Havel, the World Future Council, and

the UN.

Nearly everyone who hasa clue, and is “in charge”

becomes a servant tothe one large, flat, circle

of almost all of us.

Everyone has 1/6.5 billionth of the power!

(always should have )

Probably, everyone shares the wealth equally:

$10,200 a year!

No more unnecessary death or

environmental destructionat all.

No terrorism.

No war.No healthcare crisis.

No inequity.No loneliness, because

we’ll all have to live, work,and celebrate

together!

Yummy!

Weave your life into a web of love. 

~Sark

Thrust your life into the

breach of history.

Start a huge, foolish project like Noah.  ~Rumi

We are calling the circle now.

in?

Sit down

in this circle

www.NextStepTogether.net

The three rules of epidemics

Gladwell describes the three rules of epidemics (or agents

of change) in The Tipping Point.

              

The Law of the Few: "The success of any kind of social epidemic is heavily dependent on the involvement of people with a particular and rare set of social skills." Gladwell describes these people in the following ways:         

Connectors are the people who link us up with the world... people with a special gift for bringing the world together.

Mavens are information specialists, or people we rely upon to connect us with new information.  They accumulate knowledge, and know how to share it with others.

Salesmen are persuaders, charismatic people with powerful negotiation skills. They tend to have an indefinable trait that goes beyond what they say, that makes others want to agree with them.

The Stickiness Factor: the specific content of a message that makes it memorable and have impact.

The children's television programs Sesame Street and Blue's Clues

are specific instances of enhancing stickiness and

systematically engineering stickiness into a message.

The Power of Context: Human behavior is sensitive to and strongly influenced by its environment. As Gladwell says, "Epidemics are sensitive to the conditions and circumstances of the times and places in which they occur."  For example, "zero tolerance" efforts to combat minor crimes such as fare-beating and vandalism on the New York subway led to a decline in more violent crimes city-wide

NST Essential Understandings

We need a mass movement:

We will use our great numbers.

How many people really will still want to kill us after we offer them utopia and happiness?

The numbers are on our side.

We simply need to connect and work TOGETHER.

Critical mass: Before acting on a specific project we will build our numbers until we have enough people organized to complete that project efficiently.

Barn-building: Quickly and in a practical sequence, we will

combine our energies and act on as many groups’ projects as

possible. I build your barn, you build mine.

Everyone's invited and expected to share an equal role: We assume that almost everyone on Earth is in the circle and

nearly ready to participate in the process of

determining and taking next steps together.

We'll stay focused on the root causes of problems: This is about actually fixing

the problems. We'll use whatever strategies we all

consent to, in order to effect big, lasting change.

We'll plan: We'll be PROactive, not reactive. Experience has

taught us that we are likely to lose battles fought on ground our

opponent chooses. Our "opponent" is the status quo system of governance in our world, in which "might makes

right", and which disregards the needs and potential contributions

of many.

We'll use only non-violent methods: The evidence of

centuries is very clear on this —violence begets violence. Hostile domination of others invites hostile retaliation and perpetuates long-term cycles of violence. We're done with

that.

Our essential strategy, Love more than anything, changes things for the better. Love is the offer no one can refuse. Love force was Ghandi’s tool, called satyagraha, "the Force which is born of Truth and Love or non-violence". Loving everyone means working for a world in which everyone thrives.

We'll start where we are:

We'll build from the relationships that already exist, connecting groups, individuals and leaders.

We'll seek the highest common denominator: We'll only act in the areas upon which a critical mass already agrees. We will deal with divisive problems like abortion only after the biosphere is safe, slavery and poverty are ended, and preventable diseases are no longer

killing masses of people.

This is simple:

We'll use common sense ideas that spread quickly.

We'll avoid artifice. This is noninvasive, natural, organic, elegant.

This is Powerful and Fast.

Things are in a dire state.We've no time for failure or fiddling around.

We'll incorporate fun:

People go in directions where they see joy, hope and pleasure.

We'll foster a culture that gives everyone a rich and wholesome life.

What is easy, usual, comfortable, fun will work

the best.

Sociocracy is key, and will guide our self-

governance:

This advanced form of democracy provides a new structure for

decision-making that can work in any group, and which assures that every person has an equal voice in

all decisions affecting them. It is fair and fast.

Boeke’s sociocracy was based on three fundamental rules:

"First, the interests of all members must be considered, the individual bowing to the

interests of the whole.Second, no action can be taken if there are

no solutions found that everyone can accept.

Third, all members must be ready to act according to these unanimous decisions."

The Four Sociocratic Principles

1. Circle organization structure

A circle is semi-autonomous, making policy decisions within its domain.

Circles have their own aims and designate functions to their own members.

Hierarchy in Sociocracy reflects different levels of work…not control

• Consent governs policy decision-making

Consent means there are no argued and paramount objections to a proposed policy decision

If the objection can’t be resolved the proposal doesn’t go forward

Not every decision requires consent

• Double Linking/Representation

The connection between two circles

A dynamic process by design

Organizations must be able to adapt appropriately to changes

Double linking allows for heterarchies

• Selection of People in open discussion to roles & responsibilities

Circles select people for roles and responsibilities in open discussion by consent

The process is highly affirming

Eliminates leadership by someone who is not trusted

No winners or losers

Cybernetics

The study of steering, based on lessons from living nervous

systems.Feedback

Decisions don't have to be perfect.

They can always be changed.

Is this proposal within your range of tolerance?

The Bush administration runs Iraq, mechanics run machines,

managers run machines.  They don't listen to the people

they run.Living organisms run

themselves.

The brain in a human has 100 billion nerve cells. 

There are only 6.5 billion people on earth. Each of us is much smarter than a nerve

cell.If we LISTEN to each person like the body

listens to each cell, we can run the world so we don't  kill off a third of it, and impoverish

another third.

No more throw away people.

We must cherish everyone. ~Alice Walker

We are the real countries,not the boundaries drawn on mapswith the names of powerful men.~ Michael Ondaatje, The English

Patient