Whole System Innovation: the Blog

CONSCIOUS LIFESTYLE OFFERS $1,000 TO STUDENTS WITH SOCIALLY INNOVATIVE IDEAS

January 7, 2007

NEW HAVEN, CONNECTICUT—Conscious Lifestyle, a nonprofit organization concerned with socially responsible consumerism, is now accepting grant applications from high school and college students. Students who exhibit interest and commitment to social entrepreneurship and consumer responsibility in areas such as socially human rights, animal welfare, and environmentalism will receive up to $1,000, web space, and other pertinent resources to complete projects of their choosing. In the past, such projects have included:

• An environmental organization that converted school vehicles to run on biodiesel.
• A socially responsible product-design firm run by engineering students, which provides high-quality services for nonprofit organizations at affordable prices.
• A initiative committed to socially responsible investing on campus.

Students with similarly innovative ideas should download an application from www.consciouslifestyle.org/2008ventureapp and submit it by February 15, 2008. Winners will be chosen by an executive committee of Conscious Lifestyle staff members and announced April 1.

Today’s students are passionate about addressing societal problems, and they want to make sure their hard work will lead to long-lasting change. Fortunately for these students, Conscious Lifestyle has created a program to support their efforts.

Conscious Lifestyle is a non-profit organization that empowers students and schools to be more socially responsible. With a strong emphasis on social entrepreneurship, Conscious Lifestyle trains high school and university students to make lasting contributions to their schools and fellow students. For more information, please visit www.consciouslifestyle.org or call Mike Del Ponte, Executive Director of Conscious Lifestyle at 925-360-4149.

Contact: Michael Del Ponte
Phone: (925) 360-4149
Email: mike@consciouslifestyle.org

Posted by at 7:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I often like to dabble in the abstract. There, I am taken to transitory state that help me feel closer to the Creative Source. For example: below consists of two intertwined trinity models, of which I like to play with when considering the architecture of 'whole systems'. These models help us to both 'look at' and 'participate in' (w)holistically oriented organizations and communities: "structure-pattern-process" and "principle-practice-policy". Note the principle of 'three' shows up in my work a lot. Why? Because I believe it helps to expand our consciousness while, at the same time, providing a simple enough framework to contain the complex nature of creativity and innovation. You will see more discussions relating to these concepts from me over time. Let me know what comes up for you when you read through it.

Vic Desotelle
inKNOWvate

---------------

Transformation (deep innovation) occurs through a three phase evolution:

I've been thinking about the potential for progressing toward a global mind: My experiences with group emergence have noted that a majority of efforts collapse before the desire is sustained and self-propelled; a progression toward the vision that initiated the group in the first place. I propose the reason for this is that there is only a one or two level strategic plan in place made up of immediate context without the anticipation of collective content; a synthesis from which the incredible happens.

What if we instead provide a guiding framework that allows group migration into deeper forms of connection with each other? Eventually this connection moves into behaviorial forms of change and action. I believe this can be done using a 3-phase framework for processing together; thereby allowing a group to consciously see itself go through deep transformation. This would mean for each phase of processing together, there is a SYNTHESIS of its content - a summarizing of what has been done. This would occur as a part of all three phases; thereby generating a thread of synthesis that allows integration.

These three phases are as follows:

1- Establishing Group Intention:
This phase's nature is chaotic. It is expressed by conversations of desire and passion which drive an unfolding *PROCESS*. A focus on creating +PRINCIPLES+ based on diverse values, which opens of new level of awareness; thereby setting the stage for a loosening of existing physical *structure* and allowing change to occur. Vibrational activity is disonant (unconscious) and non-geometric.

2- Building a Value Network:
This phase's nature moves from chaotic to chaordic. It is expressed by individuals linking and clustering around collective ideas - a virtual *STRUCTURE* emerges. A focus on creating +PRACTICES+ sets the stage for individual changes in behavior and an early forming of group identity to occur. Vibrational activity is recognizable (awakening consciousness) but not stable.

3- Experiencing a Community of Practice:
This phase's nature moves from chaordic into order. It is expressed by the emergence of community (collective) identity PATTERNS to be realized and an acceptance of participatory-oriented activities are in place. A focus on creating +POLICY+ is emphasized; thereby a change of governance occurs.

Posted by at 12:40 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Youth are the receivers of today's innovation. They are also the carriers of humanity's future. Engaging them is crucial to realizing deeper forms of innovation - both for ourselves and for the wellbeing of this small little planet we call Earth.

When is the last time you asked anyone under the age of 25 what innovation means to them? Michael DelPonte of Conscious Lifestyle is 'making it so'. Read up and tell the young ones in your life to check it out. Maybe they will become the next recognized "social innovator".

--------

By Michael Del Ponte of Conscious Lifestyle

Conscious consumerism is a growing trend that allows people like you to
vote for the environment and human rights every time you open your
wallet. But we need your help to spread the movement! That’s why
Conscious Lifestyle is offering up to $1,000 to high school and college
students with socially innovative ideas.

Conscious Lifestyle is a nonprofit organization that helps people become
socially conscious consumers. We educate people through our student
chapters and our website (consciouslifestyle.org). We are looking for
social innovators who will educate students about the importance of
conscious consumerism and make their schools more socially responsible
institutions. For example, you can:

• Start a film series and show movies like An Inconvenient Truth, Who
Killed the Electric Car?, The Future of Food, etc.
• Lead trips to local green businesses and organic farms to learn about
innovative practices in your community and conscious companies to support.
• Publish a buyer’s guide that students can carry with them when they go
shopping that includes the best stores patronize and products to buy.
• Organize an art exhibit that demonstrates how workers and the
environment can be uplifted or exploited in our globalized world.
• Lead a campaign to get organic food in your dining halls or
sweatschop-free clothing in your bookstore.

Every social innovator has his or her own idea on how to change the
world. We want to hear yours!

10 Social Innovators will be selected to lead Conscious Lifestyle
ventures and receive up to $1,000 in funding, a web page, t-shirts,
business cards, personalized support, and everything else you need to
make your venture a success.

Apply Now at http://www.consciouslifestyle.org/chapters/index.html.

Application deadline: May 11, 2007.
Contact: Michael Del Ponte
Email: mike@consciouslifestyle.org
Phone: 925-360-4149

Posted by at 9:58 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

As found by an innovation survey done by Innovation Labs, LLC, there are key differentiators that are critical to the success of any innovation efforts. These differentiators include: time, means to communicate, management support, enthusiasm, and ideas. Another dimension that plays a key role is the importance of methodology. iLabs pdf report shows the human dimensions of innovation that emerged as critical.

Posted by at 12:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Old ways of doing things most always will stand in the way of an innovative idea. For an innovative idea to be accepted as a social norm, it is often our human behavior and not the innovation concept that needs to transform. Watch this comical video on innovation :)

Posted by at 1:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

What does innovation mean to you? What is its purpose?

Here is an article that touches on the broadening perspective of what INNOVATION is and its relationship to (w)holism.

Awakening To Total Revolution
From Wie Magazine

http://www.wie.org/j34/thakar.asp

Vimala Thakar

... There have been superficial blendings, as spiritual groups take up social service work and social activists join religious organizations, but a real integration of social action and spirituality at a deep, INNOVATIVE level has not yet happened to any significant degree. ...

... A holistic approach is a recognition of the homogeneity and wholeness of life. Life is not fragmented; it is not divided. It cannot be divided into spiritual and material, individual and collective. We cannot create compartments in life—political, economic, social, environmental. Whatever we do or don’t do affects and touches the wholeness, the homogeneity. We are forever organically related to wholeness. We are wholeness, and we move in wholeness. The awareness of oneness refuses to recognize separateness. So the holistic approach de-recognizes all the fragmentation in the name of religion or spirituality, all the compartmentalization in the name of social sciences, all the division in the name of politics, all the separation in the name of ideologies. ...

Continue reading "Deep Social Innovation" »

Posted by at 10:58 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

By learning seven foundational practices, anyone can become a skillful innovator.

By PETER J. DENNING and ROBERT DUNHAM
48 May 2006/Vol. 49, No. 5 COMMUNICATIONS OF THE ACM

Something big is missing in our understanding of innovation.
Popular magazines annually venerate top innovators with special
articles and profiles of the “Top 50” or “Top 100.” The Amazon.com
Web site lists 8,400 books with “innovation” in their titles. Books on
innovation are frequent bestsellers—for example, Christenson’s The Innovator’s
Dilemma, Foster’s Creative Destruction, and Slywotsky’s Value Migration.
Our technology and business graduates have been steeped in stories of
technologies that changed the world—and many dream of one day
doing likewise.

Despite all the experience and advice recorded by ten thousand
authors, 96% of innovation initiatives fail (Business Week, Aug. 1,
2005, “Get Creative”). That’s an abysmal 1-in-25 success rate. Many
people are openly dissatisfied with their ability to get the wisdom of
the literature to work for them. Our own students and clients complain
often about their technological innovations not being accepted and used. They are baffled, as were we, by the reality that the best ideas often did not make it and many were pushed aside by worse ideas. What is missing? What does it take to help a good technology “win”?

Continue reading "Innovation as Language Action" »

Posted by at 8:15 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)