Category:Consensus Poll

Consensus Polling is about winning together or refusing to play the game. It is only really appropriate when a group of individuals desire to collectively solve a problem that affects them all. It seeks to avoid voting for candidate options when such a vote would generate winners and losers and thus divide the community that must support the result of the collective decision.

Rather than a menu of candidates to choose from, the entire process is controlled by an evolving YES/NOT YET barometer or acceptance meter. The acceptance meter reflects the suitability of a single community-owned community-developed collaborative solution. All participants are free to change their status at any time. A YES status says "I believe the current articulation of our solution is good enough." A NOT YET status says "I have concerns that haven't been adequately addressed by the current solution." Only when the YES number passes some high, pre-specified threshold (e.g., 90%) can the solution proposed be considered to reflect the consensus of the community.

[edit] The 4 Parts of a Consensus Poll

There are four parts of a Consensus Poll. Each part is critical. The following sections describe the mechanics of each of those parts and illustrate them using the following "Odor Mess" example:

Tillamook Oregon is a small dairy farming community on the Oregon Coast. Dairy and tourism are the main drivers of the local economy. The "mess" that the community cares about is this: An odor of cow manure hangs over the town year round.

Handy, the local owner of a hardware store decides to create a Consensus Poll around the "odor mess".

[edit] Part 1. Static Only If Contract

This part is created BEFORE the poll begins and describes exactly what levels of participation, commitment of resources, and consensus of those involved must be achieved in order for the "action plan" to become binding (also specifies any other preset conditions such as a cloture threshold that might be needed for larger scale polls). The only way to change the static "contract" is for the owner of the poll to cancel it and start an entirely new poll. This guarantees that the meaning of pledges and YES/NOT YET status never change: "I agree, but only if the minimums in the static contract are exceeded."

Often the language in a consensus poll will include a statement such as "This poll cannot make a negative statement. The results of this poll become meaningful only if the minimums in the static contract are met. Failure to reach the minimums should not be construed as making a statement of any kind."

Odor Mess Static Contract

Participation Threshold: At least 50 adult residents of Tillamook must participate
Consensus Threshold: 95%
"Go" Timer Threshold: 72 Hours
Closure Threshold: 80%

When I participate in this poll I am essentially saying "I'll agree that we as a community are 'done' and have reached a decision if the Consensus Poll as stated succeeds. If the Consensus Poll withers on the vine and nothing ever comes from it, it doesn't mean anything.

[edit] Part 2. YES/NOT YET Acceptance Meter

A "temperature" reading that allows everyone to see whose status is currently NOT YET and whose is YES, and to track progress toward the "go" thresholds. Any participant can change their status from YES to NOT YET or from NOT YET to YES at any time.

Odor Mess - YES/NOT YET Yes Meter

Yes 30% ... Not yet 70%

Handy Yes

Beatrice Yes

Ward Not yet

Bill No yet

Patricia Yes

. .

. .

. .

[edit] Part 3. Dynamic Action Plan

The group of participants/pledgers works on the ActionPlan together until it satisfies enough pledgers to pass the "go" thresholds that were laid out in the Static Contract.

Odor Mess - Dynamic Action Plan

Excavate the three acres that the Wilson farm is willing to donate to the project. Then use the nitrogen extraction process that the community in Denmark has used to extract the ...

[edit] Part 4. Public Forum

A place for members with NOT YET status to explain their concerns, and for members with YES status to listen to and address the concerns of those who are currently NOT YET.

Odor Mess - Public Forum

Beatrice: "I don't want any cows in the valley!"

Handy: "Is it fair to say that ..."
Beatrice: "No, the thing that really matters is ..."
Ward: "Okay, so is this a better restatement of your interests? You want for ..."
Beatrice: "No, I guess I don't really care about the cows, it's the smell and ..."

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.
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Ward: Is it a fair restatement of your interests to say that you "don't want the bad smell because it drives away tourism?"
Beatrice: Yes, thanks Ward. That is a fair restatement of my interests ...

[edit] Comments and Discussion

I've seen this work to end a 3 month deadlock on a contentious issue on OmidyarDotNet (giving money away by an open community). In four days we achieved near-unanimous (92.4% - 61 yes, 5 no) consensus on a group owned plan. BrandonCsSanders 16:44, 30 Nov 2005 (EST)