Gracious Space in Georgia

The world can use more Gracious Space, and that is certainly true in the country of Georgia.  A visiting delegation of journalists, hosted by the World Affairs Council and the U.S. State Department, recently came to the Center for Ethical Leadership to learn about conflict resolution.  What timing as the Russian military had entered Georgia a few days earlier!

Although we didn’t discuss using Gracious Space as a method of stopping armed conflict, we had many questions to consider.  What does it take to work through ethnic tensions peacefully? How can we promote civic dialogue in the face of government intimidation?

Gracious Space always looks for a way to create an opening to a different relationship, to greater understanding, and to discovering a better way together.  In the case of the Georgian journalists, we talked about two ways to do this.

The first way we discussed, is finding the courage to let go of judgment and self-righteousness long enough to allow a different relationship to develop.  When neighbors divide along ethnic lines, it is easy to find just cause in how each side was wronged by the other.  Action often takes the form of retribution, retaliation, or revenge.  This is a self-defeating cycle.  Stopping this cycle by listening deeply with a clear intent toward understanding is a bold act.  It doesn’t guarantee a positive response, but issues a strong invitation.  Sometimes the small spaces we create are just enough for a larger shift to take hold.

The second way to create an opening is to ask compelling questions that invite people to higher behavior.  For the visitors from Georgia, this meant finding ways to cover news and tell stories without adding fuel to the fire.  How can journalists cover conflict without adding to the violence?  How can we tell the truth and invite those in power to be better?   Questions and truth telling can easily condemn others, and there are times when this is needed.  Asking compelling questions with an invitation to step up in new ways offers promising new possibilities in successfully working through conflict.

Creating Gracious Space in difficult settings is not for the faint of heart.  It requires great courage to let go of self-righteousness and to ask compelling questions in order to create openings for something different.  The visiting journalists were excited to bring Gracious Space back to their work at home in the country of Georgia.