6 DEGREES

It's not just big names -- it's anyone. A native in a rain forest, a Tiero del Fuegan, an Eskimo. I am bound -- you are bound -- to everyone on this planet by a trail of six people. It's a profound thought. Ouisa Kittredge - "Six Degrees of Separation"

The premise that everyone in the world is connected to everyone else in the world by a chain of only 6 acquaintances.

Consider the possibility that you are connected within 6 acquaintances to a child in Darfur, a displaced homeless person in New Orleans, the President of Brazil, the year's Best Actress, the person who lives nearest the same coordinates as you, but the other hemisphere.

In looking at the issue (of opportunity) at hand, who are the players, who are the people that feel greatest the impact of the decision? Who are the people that are playing an active role in making that decision? What is my degree of separation to each of these participants?

Provisions -Guiding Principles-