As promised, here is an overview of what this team is all about and what we need to be thinking about moving forward.
The objective of Team Conflict Management is both to prevent conflict and to manage situations when things go wrong. Beyond that, there is also scope for this team to explore training and techniques for strengthening the relationships between members, and between members and the community as a whole.
When this group first met, there was a sense that we were somewhat of a luxury, and that working towards achieving our objectives was perhaps less of a priority than the work of teams such as Building and Finance, for example. However, even a few months later, there is more of a sense of urgency about having well-thought-out techniques in place, both in terms of anticipating potential conflicts and managing them when they arise. And they inevitably will, as anyone who has been involved with big, complex group projects will know.
So, there are a number of tasks on the Reef’s to do list which will at some point require the attention of Team Conflict Management, but the absolute priority is working on section 6 of the Governance document (internal link 1). This document is in the process of being revised, as some of you will have seen in another thread, and the aim is to present the revisions for consent at a plenary in late January.
Some of section 6 is clear, but in the first subsection on direct conflict resolution, you will see that a number of techniques are suggested as potentials, but we have not settled on anything specific. So, our job before we meet in January is to research possible approaches and techniques that we can use if and when conflicts arise. In the Skills and Experiences document, it is clear that many of you already have a grounding in this area, which is very welcome news 
If you feel that one of the ways you have worked with in the past, or are currently working with, would be a useful approach for this team to take, then by all means present that to us when we meet next. The hope is that when we meet in January, we can collectively decide on how to quickly move forward to the point where we can be a valuable resource for the rest of the community.
Two things to take note of: firstly, that the technique or approach that we decide to run with is one where accessible training that is not too expensive exists; and secondly, that whatever we choose will not be set in stone. We talk about sociocracy and nonviolent communication as being essential elements of our organisation, and they are, but we are also committed to continually growing and learning together, which means that we may well gravitate towards complementary, or even better, ways of doing things as we discover them.
Once we have settled on our starting point and developed the foundations of the team, we can then turn our attention to exploring things such as restorative practices, or defining The Reef’s interpersonal commitments, as was done in Heartwoord Cohousing.
This was a much longer post than I intended! From a personal point of view, I’m excited to begin working on this with you all, not just because I hope to learn a lot with regard to the different skills and experiences you bring with you, but also because I’m confident that we can do something really meaningful for the community.
Either they have passed by now, I’ll be tied up with (evening) work or I’ll be abroad on holiday.