5. World café

A short explanation of the proposed method.

The World coffee is a simple, effective, and flexible format for hosting small to large group dialogues It is a creative process for sharing knowledge and creating possibilities for action in groups of all sizes, building on the notion of group intelligence World coffee is an excellent tool to encourage participant interaction, it can foster deeper engagement with complex or challenging issues.

The facilitator usually starts with setting an overall topic: within that topic, 3 – 5 key questions are formulated for discussion; and each question is assigned to a specific table host (an expert or someone with a strong interest in the question)

The format in different contexts has been named in many ways to meet specific goals, for example, “Creative Cafés”, “Strategy Cafés”, “Leadership Cafés”, and “Community Cafés” World Caffee conversations are based on the principles and format developed by World Caffee, a global movement to support conversations that matter in corporate, government, and community settings all over the world.

Advantages of this method in connection with the Social Model for Online Learning.

The method consists in having a conversation through dialogue and engagement Each meeting and conversation focus on a specific issue (problem) Here the participants and topics are new each time, which is different from a social learning group The focus is not on the learning process but on the outcomes of the ongoing discussion.

Methodology explained and practical details.

The World Coffee format is flexible and adapts to many different circumstances World Coffee Conversations:

● Sit four (max five) people at small Café-style tables or in conversation clusters.

● Set up progressive (at least three) rounds of conversation, approximately 20 minutes each.

● Engage questions or issues that genuinely matter to your life, work, or community. Encourage participants to write, doodle and draw key ideas on their tablecloths (and/ or note key ideas on large index cards or placemats in the centre of the table)

● Upon completing the initial round of conversation, you may ask one person to remain at the table as a “table host” for the next round, while the others serve as travellers or “ambassadors of meaning.” The travellers carry key ideas, themes and questions into their new conversations, while the table host welcomes the new set of travellers.

● By providing opportunities for people to participate in several rounds of conversation, ideas, questions, and themes begin to link and connect At the end of the second or third round, all of the tables or conversation clusters in the room will be cross-pollinated with insights from prior conversations

● In the last round of conversation, people can return to their first table to synthesize their discoveries, or they may continue moving to new tables.

● You may use the same question for one or more rounds of conversation, or you may pose different questions in each round to build on and help deepen the exploration. After at least three rounds of conversation, initiate a period of sharing discoveries & insights in a whole group conversation It is in these town meeting-style conversations that patterns can be identified, collective knowledge grows, and possibilities for action emerge

How learning is happening in a social context

World Coffee is built on the assumption that people already have within them the wisdom and creativity to confront even the most difficult challenges; that the answers we need are available to us; and that we are Wiser Together than we are alone.

By using guidelines in planning meetings and gatherings, the facilitator can create a unique environment where surprising and useful outcomes are likely to occur A World Caffee is always intimate, even when it scales to very large numbers.

Implications for Moocster facilitation practice

We can adapt the 7 design principles of World coffee to facilitate social learning groups

When these design principles are used together, they foster collaborative dialogue, active engagement, and constructive possibilities for action.

I. Set the Context

Pay attention to the reason you are bringing people together, and what you want to achieve. Knowing the purpose and parameters of your meeting enables you to consider and choose the most important elements to realize your goals: e g who should be part of the conversation, what themes or questions will be most pertinent, what sorts of the harvest will be more useful, etc

II. Create Hospitable Space

Coffee hosts around the world emphasize the power and importance of creating a hospitable space - one that feels safe and inviting. When people feel comfortable being themselves, they do their most creative thinking, speaking, and listening. In particular, consider how your invitation and your physical set-up contribute to creating a welcoming atmosphere

III. Explore Questions that Matter

Knowledge emerges in response to compelling questions. Find questions that are relevant to the real-life concerns of the group. Powerful questions that “travel well” help attract collective energy, insight, and action as they move throughout a system. Depending on the timeframe available and your objectives, your Coffee may explore a single question or use a progressively deeper line of inquiry through several conversational rounds.

IV. Encourage Everyone’s Contribution

As leaders, we are increasingly aware of the importance of participation, but most people don’t only want to participate, they want to actively contribute to making a difference It is important to encourage everyone in your meeting to contribute their ideas and perspectives while allowing anyone who wants to participate by simply listen.

V. Connect Diverse Perspectives

The opportunity to move between tables, meet new people, actively contribute your thinking, and link the essence of your discoveries to ever-widening circles of thought is one of the distinguishing characteristics of Coffee As participants carry key ideas or themes to new tables, they exchange perspectives, greatly enriching the possibility for new insights

VI. Listen Together for Patterns & Insights

Listening is a gift we give to one another. The quality of our listening is perhaps the most important factor determining the success of a Coffee. Through practising shared listening and paying attention to themes, patterns and insights, we begin to sense a connection to the larger whole. Encourage people to listen for what is not being spoken along with what is being shared

VII. Share Collective Discoveries

Conversations at one table reflect a pattern of wholeness that connects with the conversations at the other The last phase of World Coffee often called the “harvest”, involves making this pattern of wholeness visible to everyone in a large group conversation Invite a few minutes of silent reflection on the patterns, themes and deeper questions experienced in the small group conversations and call them out to share with the large group.

World coffee in the virtual space?

In a virtual World Coffee, more detailed preparation and also trained moderators are very important A virtual event depends a lot on the energy of the participants Through trained moderators who know the method and understand the importance of a high-energy level in the virtual space for creating a meaningful conversation, the virtual World Coffee is going to be a success.

Virtual World Coffes have the potential to be game-changing experiences for live online learning, taking people away from the feeling of Zoom fatigue. To succeed and make this possible the facilitators should:

- Beta test everything

- Provide crystal-clear guidance nothing ruins a great session more than getting lost in the tech.

- Build a powerful debrief in plenary what’s a good World Coffee without a good wrap up There are platforms such as Remo that provide almost the perfect surroundings to create a virtual World Coffee, but it might not always be the perfect option for some purpose Although using platforms such as Zoom, and/or Webex with breakout room functions is slightly more challenging and requires a bit more creativity, with the support of a Miro (or Mural) wall, there will be really excellent experiences in facilitating a virtual World Cafe.

The latest version of ZOOM allows the hosts to set up the option where all participants are able to freely move between rooms, without needing any host help. The ability to name rooms or topics per room makes it a perfect World Coffee solution.

To increase deep listening, have the leader pass off their role to another learner who takes up the new leader mantle, with the old leader joining the existing group as they rotate around