The aim and purpose of Discussion papers:

A discussion paper is just writing down your ideas which you have developed on your own, or after talking with people or doing some reading or other research. It is a way of introducing your ideas to Merri Cohousing and helps Merri Cohousing make decisions on important issues such as ownership, use of shared space etc. It is proposed that discussion papers, once considered and "voted in" by members of Merri Cohousing, will become the policies and by laws of Merri Cohousing.

Writing down your ideas and circulating them can be a much more effective way of communication than just talking about them. It has the potential to allow more people to have input on any particular issue. Individuals response to an issue may be more thoughtful and developed because the time for considering the ideas is much more flexible than with a spoken conversation Discussion papers also allow a group to see where they have been. Feedback on a discussion paper doesn't have to be in the written form. It can be as simple as making a phone call. It is not proposed that discussion papers take the place of conversation but that they happen as well as conversations.

It has been suggested that the process for a discussion paper should be:

1 Someone take responsibility for writing it.
2 This person does research and talks to as many people as possible to gather relevant information.
3 This person lets people in Merri cohousing know what issues they are working on.
4 Once the paper is written it is circulated to the relevant working group members for comment and revision.
5 The convener of the working group arranges a meeting of the working group and all other interested Merri cohousers to discuss the paper.
6 It is then "tabled" at a committee of management meeting (becomes a "proposal")
7 It is distributed to all Merri cohousing members
8 At the following committee of management meeting an author of the paper gives a five minute presentation and five minutes of discussion is allowed. This meeting is used to incorporate changes and ratify the proposal or return it to the working group.
9 If it is ratified it becomes a Merri cohousing procedure or "by law".
10 The "by law" is open to revision at any stage by repeating steps 1 to 9!

For those who are unsure about what format to use, the following is recommended:

11 Be as succinct as possible
12 Paragraphs should be numbered
13 A statements of aims and objectives of the proposals.
14 An evaluation of possible constraints ( ie what is stopping us from getting to where we want to be?)
15 Specific descriptions of suggested procedures and structures to be adopted.
16 A list of possible options and alternatives
17Advantages and Disadvantages of different alternatives (consequences / trade offs)
18 A recommendation from the authors as to which is the preferred option
19 A list of books and experts consulted.
20 A time line of review processes and expected implementation dates (and time constraints)

What do you think?
Please contact someone in the process working group to have your say.