HARVEST
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WHAT IS HARVESTING?
If the work of the facilitator or host is to engage everyone to speak “their truth”, listen openly, trying to understand differing views and to bring their best to the table and work at hand; the “harvesters´” focus is on capturing the wisdom, remembering, seeing patterns and making meaning – and then making this meaning ‘visible’ and available. The first may be predominantly divergent in nature – teasing out the different strands; the second convergent – weaving different strands together, although neither is solely one or the other. It is as if the hosting is animating the discovery and learning process – whereas harvesting is trying to embed the insights and learning - to make them as relevant and useful in our own context as possible.
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Harvest has a cyclical nature
Winter - Rest, reflection and renewal – some things need time to ripen - the new impulse is born
Spring - planning, preparing, sowing, inviting, convening
Summer - working the field, weeding, tending, engaging, acting – immerse in the process
Autumn - harvest and process the fruits, chose the seeds to be planted the following spring. Then Winter comes again with time to rest – reflect – renew…
The idea of converging or harvesting is to conclude – get a grip of what we understand at this moment – and then introduce that insight or understanding “back into the system” – so that we can start the next conversation – on the same level of understanding as we left the previous conversation. … so that our exploration can spiral instead of going round in circles….
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Levels of Harvest
Generally thinking about the harvest –
we tend to think about 4 different levels
• Personal level learn:
How can we enhance our personal learning, using, etc.? Harvest: time for reflection, journaling
• “Ground level” harvest:
After each meeting or process, how can we harvest what happened?
How can we create a collective memory and make collective meaning right now?
• Community level harvest:
What is useful for us as a community to remember or what do we need to
share /feedback and to whom and how is it best done?
What is useful for our longer term learning and what would be useful to share with others, similar networks etc. – How widely could this harvest
• Meta-level serv? harvest: Cyberspace may be the limit?
Holding an Intent
Holding an intent for harvest will give a conscious and sharp set of lenses to focus your inquiry. Your harvest gets rich and focused and intentional.
Most strategic or meaningful conversations have a stated purpose – a reason for these conversations to happen and consequently the
harvesting will serve this purpose.
One can harvest on content as well as on process – output as well as outcome.
Harvesting can happen on the level of creating a record or memory – as well as looking for emerging patterns and emerging meaning.
The process of making meaning – or collective meaning – may be a conversation on the intent next level/meta level. – What did we just notice? –
What did we learn? – What is
emerging?
Both memory and meaning are valuable.
Harvesting Basic
Source: Art of Harvesting - Chris Corrigan - http://www.chriscorrigan.com/parkinglot/category/art-of-harvesting/
Art of Hosting - Collective Story Harvest Process
Standard YouTube License - Bush Foundation
Visual Harvesting
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Anyone can visual harvest, you just need to practice. If you'd like to learn how to create basic visuals when harvesting themes during conversations that matter.
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These worksheets can also be downloaded and shared - visit http://z.umn.edu/7elements
The practice worksheets were created by Jen Mein and Dan Wagner at the University of Minnesota to accompany the YouTube video titled Learning Graphic Facilitation - 7 Elements by Bigger Picture. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S5DJC6LaOCI (4:26)
A list of visual practice resources (books, websites, videos, etc) can also be found at http://z.umn.edu/visualresources