In August 2011, the government of Iceland has taken it upon themselves to review a new constitution that was written entirely by the people. Iceland has long sought to revise and/or recreate their constitution because it was a quick rendition of Denmark’s constitution that was adapted when they broke away in 1944.
Enter the wiki-tution!
A group of twenty-five moderators set up a website to ask the people of Iceland what they wanted in their constitution. The response was formidable and while there were your crazies and extremists, the responses were for the most part on target and thoughtful, expanding the creative thoughts of politicians and pundits alike.
This example of trusting the people and seeing from a vantage point wholly different than one’s own, should be commended and revered as a stunning example of facilitative change. Who would have thought that the people—the non-professionals—should be tasked with the offerings of state procedure and defining of power? Furthermore, who would have thought they would do such a wonderful job?
The twenty five did!
They knew that people could be trusted with their own futures, that they could see beyond their own needs to the good of the society.
As leaders, we should remember the following:
-Our people can see what we sometimes do not.
-Our people possess transformational ideas that we need.
-Our people can be trusted with high value responsibilities.
Here is the web site if you are interested:
http://www.stjornlagarad.is/english/