EcoForum is just that!
It is very interesting that the organisers have managed to make this much more of an interactive forum than most conferences I have been to previously. My personal feeling is that the methods they are using of having short content rich talks on a topic with no immediate questions, then a much longer forum for the last third of the session in some cases; in another case – a full session of forum; and yet another a café style interaction; is very much more respectful of a room full of additional minds that can be brought to problems rather than needing to be passively lectured to be an “expert”. It allows the expert and the audience opportunities to take topics further and gain more insights.
The café style interaction is very interesting and would be a very useful tool for community consultation and it is no coincidence it is being used in the 2-day stream on communication risk. The first session, which I had the honour of chairing, was more conventional with 5 x15 minute speakers followed by an interactive forum but it has been followed by sessions with 1 speaker then a question put to the session to be discussed in groups of 4 around small tables. One person at each table is the host and makes sure the group is recorded. Everyone is encouraged to write or draw their concepts on the A3 page, then all except the host move and go on considering the same question with a new group. At the end, the table host briefly summarises the discussion for the entire group and the pages are handed in.
This is a really interesting tool for public consultation. People do hear each other and be heard in a much less threatening environment than in a public meeting where the two extreme ends of the opinion bell curve try hard to influence the silent majority in the middle. People hear other views and a mind stretched never returns fully to where it was.
The last session tonight included food and drinks so the atmosphere was most enjoyable and made a very long day into a pleasant atmosphere to keep working