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Showing posts from May, 2010

Top 50 eco-cities

Via this posting , I learned about the top 50 eco-cities. The eco-city ranking includes the following criteria: Water availability, water potability, waste removal, sewage, air pollution and traffic congestion. In the top 5 are the following cities: 1. Calgary 2. Honolulu 3. Ottawa 4. Helsinki 5. Wellington What is the city/town/village, you live in, doing to become a better eco-city?

Sir Ken Robinson: Bring on the learning revolution!

Watching and listening to this TED talk by Sir Ken Robinson, I noticed, for example, this part of his talk: "We have to go from what is essentially an industrial model of education - a manufacturing model - which is based on linearity and conformity…. to a model that is based more on principles of agriculture. We have to recognize that human flourishing is not a mechanical process. It’s an organic process. And you cannot predict the outcome of human development. All you can do is – like a farmer – create the conditions under which they will begin to flourish." What, in particular, do you think needs to change regarding the way education is done?

Surprise people positively

Via this blog posting and this article , I came across the 3 minute video below featuring Mukhtar Adow Mohamed, a Danish bus driver, who gets a surprise birthday present as a flash mob start singing the Danish happy birthday song for him. Reading this posting , I learned that this birthday celebration was a part of a larger campaign called Better Bus Trip .

Encourage kids to build things

Via this blog posting , I came across this interesting 2 minute video about kids in Africa building a radio from scratch in 1 day. If you’re interested in learning about another example of genius in Africa, have a look this and this .

What are people driven by?

In this NZZ interview with Mr. Brady W. Dougan , CEO of Credit Suisse, I heard Mr. Dougan say the following: ”Our compensation systems were an important aspect of us being able to deliver that kind of performance through a very challenging period..” The remarks by Mr. Dougan raise an interesting question: What are people driven by? In this regard, I came across some interesting experiences / studies: # 1 Reading this article , I learned about what the management of BMW has discovered: The people, who work for BMW, are intrinsically motivated people who do not need carrots in order to be able to move. # 2 In this 4½ minute video , Gary Hamel mentions that initiative, creativity, and passion, that create wealth in the creative economy, cannot be commanded. # 3 In this 1 minute video , Alfie Kohn explains that the more you reward students for doing something, the more they tend to lose interest. # 4 In this Time article , I read about the findings of Edward Deci. Mr. Deci’s research sho...

From church to regular home

Via this posting , I learned about a couple that bought an old church in England and recreated the inside like a regular home.

Inputs for leaders

Via a tweet by Alexander Osterwalder , I came across this 10 minute Harvard Business Video IdeaCast with Mr. Marshall Goldsmith . Mr. Goldsmith mentioned the following leader characteristics that are different for a leader of the future compared to leader characteristics of the past: - Think globally. - Appreciate cross cultural diversity. - Be technologically savvy. - Build alliances and partnerships. - Know how to ask. - Learn agility. What leader characteristics would you add?