Quality of life is an experience that happens on various levels. Deep Democracy names and addresses three levels of experience:
Material Level, which relates to socio-economic resources, shelter, food, health, etc.
Experiential Level, which relates to expression of one’s creativity, relationships, community life, political freedom, human rights, enjoyment of nature, and the wisdom of the land, and
Spiritual Level, which is reflected in the ability to relate to something larger than oneself, and to find meaning in existence. This inspires a deep sense of sustainable hope, and a sense of connection with individual purpose on this planet.

Three Levels of Deep Democracy in Action

Material Level………Leading towards Empowerment

The material level, or consensus reality level, addresses socio-economic issues. It identifies and addresses problems at the physical, practical level. If there is no food, a material solution would be to find and bring some. At this level of measurable facts, problems and solutions are quantitatively measurable. Leadership that empowers work that brings relief at this level is of course essential, and can bring hope for a better life.

Experiential Level……Leading to find and use Potential

Issues regarding our creativity, our relationships, community life, and the land, belong to this level. This level addresses our subjective experiences including hopes, dreams, visions for the future, experiences of the past, ancient voices, personal and community longings – issues that are experienced but cannot be measured quantitatively. An important component at this level is visioning and dreaming about expressing one’s artistic, entrepreneurial, and political creativity. Working at this level, we reconnect with our dreams, deepen and expand them, and find access to experiences beyond linear time and everyday life issues. Restored hope and liberation result from giving space to the richness and power of our experiences, intuitions, and personal and collective dreams, which hold potential and information that can then be actualized, enjoyed, and celebrated.

Essence - One World Level…Leading while remembering Oneness

At this level we connect with something larger than ourselves, beyond personal and political polarities, time, and personal space. Union at this level brings deeper meaning to life, and through this an inexplicable sense of sustainable hope, which transcends and is independent from everyday ups and downs.
These levels are parallel worlds that interlink. Our work trains facilitation and leading of groups and individuals at each level, and the discovery of the interdependence between them. We aim to teach by assisting individuals in experiencing the joy that can be found through deepening and unfolding experiences at the individual levels, and the great satisfaction that results from finding the flow between them, which brings relief and tangible, experiential change.
Our Work is to train leaders and consult local organizations, businesses, NGO’s, government agencies and their leaders.
Deep Democracy leadership tracks collective transformation as it happens on those three levels. It has a leadership component and an organizational development component specific to the designated region. In DDI, we are aware of the necessity for those 3 levels to be addressed - they are mutually dependent, not exclusive.
Within this framework, our leadership trainings work with mindsets of groups and individuals. Classical leadership models are often action focused. We help individuals and groups to become aware of mindsets that limit creativity and possibility. Making these mindsets explicit allows them to change, inviting hidden potentials to come to the foreground. Greater access to resources and improved quality of life are side effects of this change.
We conduct pilot trainings in regions where individual or organizations invite us to work. During these pilot trainings, we get to know the people and communities, their achievements and worries, the issues that they are dealing with and translate them into a process structure, which become the basis for a customized leadership program. Please study the process of this works on the sample of the Sierra Leone Program.