Dear neighbors & friends,
Requests for communication resources came in after a recent Neighborhood Watch Meeting on March 31, 2010 at the Paleaku Peace Gardens. This article is reprinted from an earlier OCT 2009 post. The work is based on Marshall Rosenberg's book, Non-Violent Communication.
Compassionate Communication
for Community Coqui Control
This is a guide for establishing connection and understanding with your neighbors for community coqui control. Have an intention to remain open to possibilities for creating connection with others when you communicate about this issue. Stay connected to your purpose in sharing - to build awareness, foster education, and to support community collaboration in sharing the responsibility of managing coqui frog populations.
Follow these steps to establish communication:
1. Share the FACTS:
With your closest neighbors, begin a conversation for coqui control with facts or observations. Start with what you see and hear. Here are some examples:
* I noticed “I hear several coqui frogs on your property.”
- Noise levels: Did you know unmanaged coqui habitats have been measured between 70 - 90 decibel levels? Levels above 75 decibels risks hearing or sleep loss.
- Rapid reproduction rates: A pair of frogs can produce 291,600,000 frogs in 40 months or 40+ every 2 1/2 weeks. In unmanaged areas, up to 10,000 frogs per acre have been counted.
2. Share the feelings and values you care about:
* I feel concerned about the health and well-being of people in our community who live in areas where frogs are getting established. * I feel an urgency to do something now, before it’s too late. * I want to help manage the coqui frog population because I value quiet in my neighborhood.
Look for a common connection with your neighbor. What needs or values do you share?
* Health & well-being * Peace, quiet or tranquility * Environmental & personal responsibility * Care for the land /malama the aina * Integrity * Respect for nature/life
3. Establish connection with others by:
* Asking how they feel hearing what you've said.
* Ask if they share some of the needs/values you expressed. If so, which ones?
* If they express a differing viewpoint, try to guess what it is that they need or value. Listen and reflect back what you understand so they know you hear them.
4. Request action, once you have determined you share similar concerns/values:
* Are you willing to allow a team of volunteers help you in managing coqui on your land?
* Will you clear brush and overgrowth from your yard to prevent coqui habitat from spreading?
- Are you willing to donate 2 hours of your time each month to support community coqui control?
Andrea Pro offers classes, individual sessions, and works with groups using the skills of Compassionate Communication, based on the model of NVC. For support with deepening connection and improving communication in your relationships contact Andrea at andrea@konacoast.com.
Mahalo for doing your part to Keep Kona Quiet
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