Two weeks ago I participated in a so-called Thoughtstudio weekend. A group of AIESEC (www.aiesec.org) alumni started those meetings 2 years ago in order to reflect together every 2-3 months. This meeting was my first Thoughtstudio and one of the main topics was “Collaboration vs. Competition?”.

Talking in pairs and switching your dialogue partner every 20-30min we had an interesting Advent walk through Cologne along the Rhine river. During those conversations more questions came up for me: how do I integrate collaboration into competitive environments? What happens to brands in a networked society? And I concluded that I want to read more about the networked society and the book that I picked is Wikinomics (http://www.wikinomics.com/).   Read more...

Sometimes just thinking about world peace is enough to make me want to take a nap. It’s such a big job and, I know this is an illusion, but sometimes I feel like I’m carrying the ball all by myself. Anyone else feel that way?

Enter Blog Catalog on my Sunday morning email telling me that there’s a movement in the blogosphere called Bloggers Unite: blogging for hope. http://unite.blogcatalog.com/ Its purpose is to use the sheer numbers of the blogging world for good works. The latest date we are invited to join together is today, December 17th, 2007 to do some Act of Kindness and write about it. All of us, on the same day.   Read more...

Ichinohe is one of my best friends. He is a healer. He heals the body, of course, but much more profoundly the heart and the soul. He gives massages, shiatsu, acupuncture and moksa. But more than that, he gives his full gentle presence to anyone whom he serves.

For a Japanese Ichinohe’s work is unusual for several reasons. First, usually masseurs are blind. (1) In the entire northeast region of Japan, where Ichinohe lives, there are only three schools for sighted masseurs. Also in this collective culture a person who goes his own way, as Ichinohe has, is very unique.   Read more...

Jeff Fifield, Curriculum Facilitator at Colegio Maya American International School of Guatemal, sent the following request to members of the Positive Change Core (Appreciative Inquiry):

"Every year at our elementary school during the month of February we promote a reading incentive month where our students begin with a school-wide read of one book that set’s the tone/theme for the month. Last year’s example was “The Three Questions” by Jon Muth (the story is based on Tolstoy’s book of the same title) which was chosen so as to promote ‘finding almost a Zen inner-peace through doing good deeds’ amongst our young students. The illustrations are beautiful and complimentary.   Read more...

The Season of Light is upon us. Hanukah, Christmas, Kwanzaa, Solstice. This is the time of year when the light returns to earth. This year its official return is marked on December 22nd at 1:08 AM (EST), 6:08 (UT).

In the Christian calendar, these next few weeks are called Advent. Christians welcome the advent of the light each week by lighting candles. One of the precious memories of my childhood is my grandparents’ many-windowed home each with a single lit candle at the time of the holidays.   Read more...

Is it me or does anyone else feel like they’re standing in a cornfield in Kansas eying The Scarecrow from Oz? “He went that-a-way.”

The lead article in the Week in Review in Sunday’s New York Times flabbergasted me. It was called “Peace? Sure. I’ll See What I Can Do,” and it detailed President George W. Bush’s non-engaged engagement in the peace process in the Middle East.   Read more...

I was delighted to be introduced recently, through a book on Awareness, to a school operating in the UK on a completely different basis to the vast majority of educational establishments in the world.

The school is called Summerhill School, and was established by A.S Neill in 1921 to provide 'progessive, democratic education' to its children. In essence, the children have an equal say to the 'teachers' in the life of the school, and they are able to choose which lessons to attend, if any. There may not be a great deal of surprise to hear that the school has frequently come under very close scrutiny, to say the least, from Ofsted, the UK government schools inspection agency!   Read more...

Last Saturday, I presented We Are What We Do (www.wearewhatwedo.org) at a forum “For a better world” at the Rudolf-Steiner-House in Berlin. Another guest was a representative from a network movement called “differently better living” (www.anders-besser-leben.de). They are calling for social change in Germany for a sustainable and meaningful lifestyle in solidarity. The network has published a declaration that people can sign and which is giving us guidelines for a more future-oriented lifestyle. Here are some excerpts that I find inspiring and a good starting point for me to initiate dialogue meetings around personal sustainability in Berlin in 2008:   Read more...

A bit more than a month ago I wrote about a tantric seminar that I went to and how amazing I thought it was. I came close to and felt real love and acceptance for others (people I barely knew) and came closer to myself. And I wanted to get involved more with tantra. So last weekend I was at a 2 day tantric seminar in a eco-hotel in the Brazilian mountains.   Read more...

Fritz Eichenberg was one of the great graphic artists of the twentieth century. His masterpieces are on a par with those of Rembrandt and Durer, both in terms of quality and subject matter. Born a Jew in Germany, he witnessed firsthand the ominous devouring of his homeland by the Nazis. So, he moved to New York, where he was able to further develop his extraordinary artistic talents. Later he became a Quaker. So, his works reflect Biblical themes, and also fantasy and social satire, among others. Now “The Catholic Worker”, a non-profit magazine published in New York City, holds the rights to many of his marvelous prints. So on fortunate occasions Fritz’s work can still impress the hearts and minds of the public.

One piece in particular stands out in my mind because of its simplicity and profound message. The scene is a queue of men in a bread line. Everyone is poor, wearing threadbare clothes with patches and shoes with holes. The men are hardworking, obvious from their huge, gnarled hands and bulging muscles. Each has his head lowered, as if exhausted and humbled to receive the meager meal about to be given to them.   Read more...