NEW CIVILIZATION NETWORK
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
- What IS the New Civilization Network?
First of all, there is no final answer to that. NCN is something that
emerges out of what its members are doing and how they are relating to each
other. That said, NCN is a self-organizing international grass-roots
association of people who are interested in creating a better world and who
are working on building it in one way or another. It consists of people who
have a positive vision for the future and who cooperate with each other
where they find it appropriate. It is a communications network that is
there to keep these people in touch with each other. There are no assigned
tasks, everything is done by self-motivated action and spontaneous
cooperation. NCN's aims are broad, to ensure that there is room for
everybody. Overall, the aim is to work on creating a world that will work
for everybody. There is no uniform pre-written agenda on how to do that.
The plan is that we together will discover and participate in this new
civilization as it emerges.
- How do I become a member of NCN?
You send an e-mail message to ffunch@newciv.org stating you would like to
be a member. You include a short description of your interests, abilities
or resources that can be summarized for the member directory. Also let us
know what area of the world you live in.
- What does it involve to be a member?
There are no costs involved. Initially being a member simply means that you
are listed in the member directory and you'll receive the e-mail traffic
sent to the main mailing list. A lot more can follow from that, but that
totally depends on what you are inspired to get involved in.
- What kind of activity takes place in NCN
The communication in NCN mostly takes place electronically over the
Internet. That is not a given, but simply the easiest way of interacting at
this point. There is a web site where information on NCN members and
activities are collected and presented. There are about a dozen mailing
lists for discussions or teamwork of different kinds. There are regular
Internet Relay Chat meetings online. There are occasional physical meetings
in areas where enough members are available and there is an interest in
getting together. And members will spontaneously link up with one another
when they find that they have similar interests or they are in the same
area or they can work together on something. And, of course, many members
are already doing things or are engaged in projects of their own that are
aligned with what NCN is about in one way or another.
- How long has NCN existed?
NCN was started March 13th, 1995 when an informal e-mail message from
Flemming Funch <ffunch@newciv.org> created a remarkable amount of feedback
and interest in participating in such a venture.
- Is NCN a non-profit organization?
Yes. However, it has not sought non-profit status in any particular
country. The reason for this is to avoid being sub-ordinated to the rules
and scrutiny of any particular national tax department. NCN is based on the
inherent right for people to associate, which is respected in most areas of
the world.
- Can I donate money to NCN?
You're very welcome to, and the money would be put to good use. However,
you are in no way required or expected to. As opposed to most common
non-profit organizations NCN is not really about collecting and using
funds. It is about spontaneous cooperation. It is about what YOU do IN NCN,
not about what NCN will do FOR you or anybody else based on your support.
- Are there rules for behavior in NCN?
Not very explicitly. However, the general agreement is to treat others with
respect and kindness. The members of NCN are quite a diverse group of
people with quite different views and beliefs and backgrounds. It is
important to be able to tolerate this diversity and refrain from putting
others down because you don't agree with them. There is no requirement that
we all agree on the specifics. We engage in dialogues to explore our
diverse outlooks and to find common ground where it exists. Be open to new
and different ideas and don't try to enforce your ideas on everybody else.
Do not misuse the common resources of all members for self-serving needs,
but be aware that there has to be room for everybody. Aside from that,
anything goes.
- Is there a spiritual or religious basis for NCN?
NCN is open to people of any belief system, as long as it includes the
right for people to have different preferences. NCN encourages people to
act based on their inner inspiration and to work for the common good. For
some people that is intimately connected with a spiritual motivation and
understanding. For other people it is decidedly not. Thus NCN is neutral in
that regard. There is no imposition of any spiritual beliefs you have to
have. Likewise, there is no imposition of any belief in the material
sciences that you have to have.
- What is the political orientation of NCN?
There isn't any. NCN is not left-wing or right-wing. It is about making the
world work in a wholistic manner. This probably includes both individual
freedom of choice and social responsibility. However, NCN as a whole has no
agenda of political issues. Any member is free to be of any observation
that they choose.
- But aren't our elected officials and governments the only agencies who
can change the world?
Doesn't seem like that works very well. NCN is not about petitioning those
in power to change the world for us. Rather it is a recognition that we,
the regular people, are the ones who hold the power and WE need to change
our world if anybody is. It is a bottom up approach in other words, but
built on large visions.
- Is NCN a discussion forum?
Not really. The orientation is towards doing something, not just talking
about ideas. NCN includes various discussion groups, but it is certainly
more than that. Some people choose to use NCN mainly as a discussion forum
or as a place to read interesting information, and that is fine. However,
the overall aim is to inspire action and cooperation towards a better world
- What do I do to contribute to NCN?
Whatever you feel like. That might appear overly loose compared with most
organizations. Nobody's telling you what to do and there is no particular
threatening urgency being presented to you. More likely, different members
will start different projects that they find need to be done, and they
might put a call out for volunteers or co-creators. If you are inspired by
the proposed project you can then join together in teams, organized
whichever way the members choose. Individual teams and projects might well
have more specific rules about how things are done and who they want to
play with.
- How many members does NCN have?
About 215 on last count. Spread over 27 different countries on all
continents. Most members are at this point in the U.S. spread over 38
different states.
- But what can such a small group of people do about a world so full of
huge problems?
Don't underestimate what individuals and small groups of people can do.
Most changes in the world indeed originate with individuals and small
groups of people. Change can spread widely like rings in water from the
concentrated effort of relatively few people.
Notice also that the purpose of NCN is not so much to solve the existing
unsolvable problems in the world, but rather to help in the birth process
of a world that doesn't have them. It is about a shift in paradigms, rather
than a fixing of problems.
- Are there any books I should read?
NCN is not based on any particular book or authority. However, these are
some of the books that some of our members find inspiring, that might
illustrate what a New Civilization is about or that provide useful tools
for its construction:
Buckminster Fuller: "Critical Path"
Buckminster Fuller: "Operating Manual for Spaceship Earth"
Kevin Kelly: "Out of Control"
Peter M. Senge: "The Fifth Discipline"
James P. Carse: "Finite and Infinite Games"
Jessica Lipnack and Jeffrey Stamps: "The Age of the Network"
Tony Buzan: "The Mind Map Book"
James Redfield: "The Celestine Prophecy"
Alfred Korzybsky: "Science and Sanity"
Alvin and Heidi Toffler: "Creating a New Civilization"
Mikhail Gorbachev: The Search for a New Beginning
Daniel Quinn: "Ishmael"
Aldous Huxley: "Island"
- What computer facilities support NCN?
The web site and most mailing lists are housed in the Los Angeles based
server of the newciv.org domain, which is owned and operated by Joachim
Steingrubner <jhs@newciv.org>. The server is permanently on the Internet,
albeit with a low speed connection. However, so far it has been able to
capably handle all the NCN traffic with minimal problems. Web areas are
available for members to use for non-profit activities that are aligned
with NCN. The server is completely financed by Joachim and there are no
fees for any of its services. Some of our mailing lists also run from a
server in Holland maintained by Paul Stevens <paul@wice.xs4all.nl>,
financed by himself.
- How do I contact NCN?
For membership or any general questions or communications you don't know
where else to direct, send them to Flemming Funch <ffunch@newciv.org>
For technical issues or requests for web space or mailing lists, write to
Joachim Steingrubner <jhs@newciv.org>
The main web page is found at: http://newciv.org/worldtrans/newcivnet.html
To subscribe to the mailing lists at newciv.org, send a message to
listserv@newciv.org. General discussion for members takes place in the
ncndiscuss-l@mailing list. Subscribe first by sending the message
'subscribe ncndiscuss-l' to the list server address.
o o
/ \------------------ Flemming A. Funch ------------------/ \
/ * \ World Transformation/New Civilization/Whole Systems / * \
/ * * \ ffunch@newciv.org / * * \
o-------o------- http://www.newciv.org/worldtrans/ -------o-------o
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