Synergistic convergence

Synergistic Convergence is a vital tool for synergistic democracy. It is a conferencing participatory process specifically designed for long-range futures work. People from every field, function and background meet in wheel shaped environments that are divided into sectors to seek common goals and match needs and resources in the light of the growing new potentials of the whole system. It is a social model that generates social synergy. Called SYNCON for Synergetic Convergence, the Committee for the Future addressed the general future of civilization on live television with some focused issues, such as the future of the space program, technology and society, the future of energy, as well as more geographically focused and specific issues like youth, ethnic conflict and national planning. SYNCON is the most future-oriented and holistic of the participatory processes. It was originally designed to answer the questions. The inner sections of the SYNCON wheel represent the different orientations or major elements of our fragmented societies. The outer sections represent growing potentials of civilization. People meet in groups to explore the future and then merge with other groups to build a composite future that integrates these different orientations. The process begins with small groups, merges to larger composite groups, and finally becomes one group. Removable walls between groups are spokes of the wheel. The inner section of the wheel-spokes represent needs, technology, environment, government, production, and other regions represent functional areas of any culture, nation, or community. The outer sections represent the “growing edge” of future potentials in biology, physics, information, extraterrestrial, political/economic theory, human nature, the arts, and unexplained phenomena. This three-and-one half-day process is usually on live television with computer communications to link those unable to be present at the Syncon location. Each section has: a) a discussion guide, b) a coordinator, c) several leading experts and d) interactive television to coordinate the hub with the other sections; the hub in turn, communicates with the external community by live television. It was invented by Barbara Hubbard and John Whiteside in the United States.