The pillars exercise

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Contents 1 Name: The Pillars of Power 2 Time: Minimum 30 minutes 3 Goal or purpose of the exercise 4 How it's done 4.1 Describe the Pillars 4.2 Analyse a Pillar

Name: The Pillars of Power

Time: Minimum 30 minutes

Goal or purpose of the exercise

To identify which are the structures holding the problem we want to overcome, analysing each of them separately and coming with a common understanding on how to knock them down.

How it's done

Describe the Pillars

Draw an upside down triangle, with pillars holding it up. Write the name of the problem in the triangle (i.e. “war”). The pillars represent the institutions that support the problem (i.e. the military, corporations, etc.) Ask the group to name and describe the pillars that hold up the problem. Identify the underlying principles that are the foundation of the pillars (i.e. sexism, greed, lies, etc).

Analyse a Pillar

Choose a pillar that your group want to knock down. Draw another set of pillars, writing name of the institution from your chosen pillar in the triangle. Now analyze what holds up that problem, using the above list of questions