Our Previous System
A concise description of Formal Consensus (pdf file) as developed by Butler et al and taught at CCH by our facilitators. Note numerous similarities to DG/Sociocracy.
Historical Info about Sociociracy
Kees Boeke, a Quaker, combined philosophical ideas (e.g. Auguste Comte "positivism") with Quaker-style consensus to come up with the first sociocracy. He wrote about it in "Democracy as it might be" - first published in 1945. Gerard Endenburg, a student of Boeke, tried to re-create the feeling of Boeke's school in his parent's business. He mixed in some ideas from engineering and cybernetics, and came up with the Sociocratic Circle Method (SCM) which is what people are most likely talking about when they say "sociocracy". Our "Dynamic Governance" is a direct descendent of Endenburg's SCM. Here's an interview with Endenburg along with some commentary from Bob M.
Several new forms of Sociocratic governance exist, including Holocracy (mostly used for business ...very regimented) and Sociocracy 3.0 (flexible, adaptable, modern)
Here's a nice timeline and description of the history, courtesy of the Sociocracy 3.0 folks.
Finally, summing it all up, a piece by Bob M. about the History of Sociocracy and its Application to Cohousing.
Pioneer Valley
Pioneer Valley Cohousing's public Governance page contains a simple explanation of their system. Their language seems somewhat kinder and gentler than ours. However, if you think about it, the rules are about the same. For example, "All Circle meetings are open and participation by non-members is determined by the needs of the Circle." This sounds friendly and open, but it still indicates that participation in the circle meeting is controlled by the circle's official members, and is therefore not guaranteed. So one might ask: If non-member participation is limited, what is meant by "meetings are open?"
Nubanusit - example of a simple system with some Sociocratic elements
Nubanusit - near Peterborough, NH - is a farm and cohousing community. They don't have a long track record, but their documents are uniquely well-organized and well-crafted. The Nubanusit Neighborhood Handbook, which contains all of their high-level agreements, is attached. These are the most-notable sections, listed in suggested reading order:
Agreement Agreement
Membership Agreement
Values Statement
Decision-Making Authority and Decision-Making Guidelines (the core of their delegation rules)
Participation Guidelines
Workshare Agreement
Design Review Policy (including Design Review Process)
Conflict Resolution Guidelines
Email and Communication Guidelines
Minute-taking Guidelines
Common House General Use Guidelines
The overall organization of the document, complete with change history, is remarkable.
In case the language shifts are not clear:
Takoma Village Cohousing - an evolved cohousing governance system, now using Sociocratic Consent
TVC has a relatively clear system of classifying decisions (four categories) and specifying an appropriate process for each class of decision. They have numerous documents, but this one is the heart of their decision-making process. Note that their "Board" is elected like our Managing Board but it serves a purpose that is more akin to our "Hub" -- they are structured as Community -> Board -> Teams (sort of -- or you might say Community & Board -> Teams).
Policy on Consensus Definitions
Sharon Villines' Blog
Sharon is the author, with John Buck, of We, the People: Consenting to a Deeper Democracy. She is also a resident of Takoma Village Cohousing - a development near D.C. that is similar to CCH in age, size, and values ..and building design, and even paint colors. Their site contains a treasure-trove of information about their governance system, which might be described as a Sociocracy-infused version of a typical, hierarchically-flat, cohousing governance system.
Policy vs. Operational Decisions - standard terms describe two types of decisions - usually treated differently in Sociocracy
Policy Decisions - post describing policy decisions and consent
An old (2014) post on Sociocracy, as applied to Cohousing - historically interesting.
Based on Sociocracy's definition of "policy" and "operational" decisions, our policy for the delegation of decisions might be something like this: Policy decisions are made with the consent of the people who will be expected to act in accordance with the policy. Example: We expect all community members to follow the Guest Room Policy. Therefore all community members must consent to any changes that are made to the policy. Another example: The Interior Design Circle might develop a Common House Art Display Policy to specify their process for selecting and displaying community artwork. This policy controls the future actions and operational decisions of the Interior Design Circle. Therefore, it requires only the consent of that circle. A policy like this may have a peripheral effect on everyone in the community, but it only guides the actions of a specific circle.
The GDC is proposing a change from the sociocracy term "policy decision" to the more-straightforward term "agreement." An agreement sets expectations among the members of a circle. Agreements determine how we live and work together. Agreements are consent decisions that set expectations for the future actions of circle members (and sub-circles) for the benefit of the circle. For example, we might agree to a landscape plan that places constraints on where individuals are free to plant their own gardens. Or we might agree to a process that obtains consent from neighbors before planting a tree.
Diana Leafe Christian Materials
Diana is a strong believer that it is necessary to do all the parts of sociocracy and invest significant time in training. (Not coincidentally, she's a trainer.)
Two cautionary tales (PDF files): Cypress Grove and Orca Bay.
Article by DLC "Why No Tyranny of the Minority in Sociocracy" (PDF file)
Resources Explaining Policy and Operational Decisions
https://www.sociocracyforall.org/2017/01/09/what-is-the-difference-between-operations-and-policy/
Policy vs. Operational Decisions - standard terms describe two types of decisions - usually treated differently in Sociocracy
Policy Decisions - post describing policy decisions and consent
Policy vs. Operational Decisions - YouTube video with Jerry K-G
Older resource - also Jerry K-G, I believe.