<div dir="auto">Since this problem has presented itself to IGC s well, there may be interest in this project.<div dir="auto">Deirdre<br><div class="gmail_quote" dir="auto"><div dir="ltr" class="gmail_attr">--------- Forwarded message ---------<br></div><div style="word-wrap:break-word;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-size:14px;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><div><br></div><span id="m_-3355145502308338501OLK_SRC_BODY_SECTION"><div style="font-family:Calibri;font-size:11pt;text-align:left;color:black;BORDER-BOTTOM:medium none;BORDER-LEFT:medium none;PADDING-BOTTOM:0in;PADDING-LEFT:0in;PADDING-RIGHT:0in;BORDER-TOP:#b5c4df 1pt solid;BORDER-RIGHT:medium none;PADDING-TOP:3pt"><span style="font-weight:bold">Da: </span> Great Transition Network <<a href="mailto:gtnetwork@greattransition.org" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer">gtnetwork@greattransition.org</a>><br><span style="font-weight:bold">Risposta: </span> <<a href="mailto:gtnetwork@greattransition.org" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer">gtnetwork@greattransition.org</a>><br><span style="font-weight:bold">Data: </span> martedì 3 settembre 2019 17:44<br><span style="font-weight:bold">A: </span> Roberto Savio <<a href="mailto:utopia@robertosavio.info" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer">utopia@robertosavio.info</a>><br><span style="font-weight:bold">Oggetto: </span> Farewell to the WSF? (GTN Discussions)<br></div><div><br></div><div>
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<p>From Paul Raskin [<a href="mailto:praskin@tellus.org" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer">praskin@tellus.org</a>]</p>
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[<i>Note that this is being resent due to a glitch in the first email.]</i><br><br>
Dear GTN,<br><br>
Since 2001, the World Social Forum has served as civil society’s answer to the World Economic Forum, the annual powwow in Davos of the masters of the neoliberal universe. Over the years, the WSF has brought together hundreds of thousands of activists to meet, network, and reenergize commitments. It has stood as a tangible expression of the diffuse but vibrant “alter globalization” community, and a source of hope for the emergence of a systemic global movement.<br><br>
At the same time, the WSF has mirrored the movement’s immaturity. Most significantly, the disabling fragmentation within civil society has been reflected in the forest of separate tents that spring up at Forums, each devoted to specific issues and grievances, with little exploration of common visions, positions, and coordination mechanisms. More prosaically, the logistical chaos that has plagued Forums and frustrated attendees symbolizes the underdeveloped organizational capacity of the “movement of movements.”<br><br>
Now, as these deficits take their toll and the times change, the WSF seems to be losing momentum and relevance. So it’s timely to critically reflect on its achievements and whether the WSF, itself, needs a Great Transition.<br><br>
Our September GTN Discussion—<b>FAREWELL TO THE WORLD SOCIAL FORUM?</b>—takes up the challenge.<br>
(Please organize your comments as responses to one or more of the following topics.) <br><br><b>Looking Back</b><br><i>What has been the historic significance of the WSF? In what ways has its strategy of providing a neutral gathering space advanced (or curtailed) the “movement of movements”? </i><br><br><b>At a Crossroads</b><br><i>Does the WSF retain its vitality as a beacon of “another world,” or is it losing momentum? Has its unbending commitment to radical pluralism sacrificed movement unity? </i><br><br><b>Looking Ahead</b><br><i>Should the WSF continue to operate as an open space? Seek to reinvent itself as a collective force for political action? Or should attention shift to fresh initiatives for building a coherent global movement?<br></i><br>
Roberto Savio, founder of Inter Press Service (IPS) and longtime member of the WSF International Council, opens the debate. His essay, soon to arrive by email, can be found <a href="https://greattransition.org/images/Savio-Farewell-WSF.pdf" class="m_-3355145502308338501bbcode_url" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer">
here</a>
. I look forward to your comments, whether brief or extended (but less than 1,200 words).<br><br>
The discussion will go through Wednesday, October 2, when Roberto will have an opportunity to respond. Per usual, we will then create a public GTI Forum that samples a range of perspectives raised in the internal GTN discussion.<br>
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Over to you,<br>
Paul
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