Linking Change and Participation

A non-violent society cannot exist without an expectation of social participation by each and all. This is delivered at CG1 out of a sense of responsibility, and it leads to a social commitment of a sort appropriate to each person.

This level can be considered society’s infrastructure. Much of what is involved here may seem to be peripheral to the big political picture, even wholly apolitical for some, but that is misleading.

Political life absolutely requires a robust functioning society of socially committed individuals to provide the necessary order, wealth and power for progressive change.

Given an infrastructure of commitment to society, no change will occur unless political work-CG2 is done. Participation now turns into a demand that requires far more personal and public effort. Here we distinguish the political players in society from the rest of us. Any significant power-play is liable to push a person into the media spotlight, as well as providing a portal to the temptation to abuse power.

Most political players accumulate and use personal power for the purposes of their own group. Some seek to remedy a failing in a societal institution and seek to serve the public interest. Each player often develops a more limited and potentially divisive focus.

The significance of politics within society becomes evident at the next level with mobilization which forces a choice on whether to participate publicly. Mostly the mobilization is focused on areas of group power and commonalities of personal interest or discontent. However, at times like elections, everyone should be encouraged to rise to the challenge. When tensions run high, physical aspects of mobilizing, like rallies or marches, discharge tensions and encourage physical action.

Given mobilization, inquiries to develop proposals lie on the borderland with change. Participation here is about suggesting possible policy ideas that are believed (if implemented) to signify change in a desired direction. In generating proposals, participation shrinks to a special few.

Actually the few are many, but the many are still few in comparison to those who may be affected. Development of policy ideas and their debate span society: including government, industry, academia, the law, concerned individuals and the media.

At this point, a focus on the people and their participation shifts abruptly to a focus on change. Sources of power in society come into play, interacting with the higher levels of participation as they shape change.

CG5 is the lowest level of the change-set, and is like CG1 in being about expectation: but now it relates to social change. Whatever the issue under consideration, the public expects suitable choices to be delivered by the various leaders in society and the often arcane processes of the governance system. Public trust and respect for politicians, governance and any constitution would seem to be required.

Although we each want changes that we personally approve of, no person participates at this level. Even the leaders are less «persons» in the ordinary sense, and more «creations of the people» i.e. role-receptacles for popular projected fantasies. More… It’s human and warm to emphasize personalities, but political leaders are largely chosen for their mirroring of popular pressures and embody society's power structure meshed with the people’s strengths and weaknesses, hopes and fears.

Society must change to manage failings in societal institutions which result from the social forces liberated by technology, demography, inequalities and injustices, environmental needs and global factors. Although the forces are social, the source of power in politics comes from widespread emotions and experiences. At CG6 the power of the entire populace becomes significant: given the name political will, which demands change. (Even conservatives recognize that if society is to stay the same, then many things have to change!)

It seems that everyone contributes to this force-field, but no individual exists uniquely and idiosyncratically within it, other than as its creature.

Demands for change at CG6 take us up to CG7, where we find sovereignty, the condition that enables stability and the possibility of peace, order and prosperity in society. The mass action that produces stability provides the context for change. Even if there is no mass movement for change, people experience a right and duty to seek change amidst tensions and injustices generated by the diversity of interests and the failings of societal institutions.

If unity within a social territory is not desired, participation might sensibly lead to formal division of the community. The political context will then have changed, but not the political challenge to seek change while maintaining unity in each of the two new territories. To reiterate: there is no escape frompolitical life.

Change v Participation forms the internal duality when Groupings of the structural hierarchy of political activities are treated as Levels. As indicated in the diagram, it is evident that …

Levels/Groupings 1 to 4 deal with popular participation, &
Levels/Groupings 5 to 7 deal with drivers of change.

L4, the heart of any 7 LevelTHEEhierarchy, uses participation to investigate and articulate possibilities for change.