450 Students Creating A Collective Vision for the Year

There’s something that makes you feel more alive when you’re on campus at the beginning of the school year. There’s an energy that’s almost tangible – excited, a little nervous, curious, brave.

Last week I got to sit in on orientation at Regis University in Denver where the organizers were incredibly intentional about the space and thinking they wanted to challenge the students to do together, right from the very beginning. Under a huge open sided tent set up on the quad, over 400 students gathered at round tables to meet each other and begin exchanging ideas.

Using the World Café method, the professors guided the small table groups as they explored and shared with each other in conversations about one of the Core Principles of the University.

As students moved through rounds of conversation, each time with a new group, they were encouraged to leverage previous discussions, eventually using sticky notes to write down their table’s vision for the community they wanted to create together.

I graphic recorded the quick harvests in real-time digitally on site, then we collected the sticky notes from each table while students went off to the next piece of the day. My task was then to synthesize the sticky notes into one graphic that showed the major themes, as well as highlighting creative and unique aspects of each.

The graphic was used the following day as a jumping-off point for deeper reflection with other facilitators, and will be shared with students throughout and at the end of the year to remind them of what they began creating together that very first morning.

What blows me away is that this relatively simple process effectively created space for over 400 student voices to be heard and woven together in just a few hours, into something that hopefully will resonate with them for the year to come!

Once again, thank you from my heart and soul for your support, great senses of humor, brilliant minds, collaboration and what you're each doing to make the world a better place.

Cheers,

Where in the World is ConverSketch?

Aspen, CO: For the annual Tech Policy Institute Aspen Forum. We discussed broadband, antitrust, equity, privacy, and regulations with heavy hitters from around the globe.

Regis University: As you just read. Here’s a snapshot of a meditative prayer parents were invited to attend as they experienced the roller coaster of letting their kids go to college.

And Once Again, for the People in the Back: I’m pregnant with twins! We are due in December, and I will be taking some time off to be a new parent. Here are the details of what it means for ConverSketch.

One Thing You Can Do for More Successful Remote Meetings and Classes

In one form or another, many of us have found ourselves settling into the realization that we’re going to be working and learning remotely for a while longer.

As research and experience reveal that virtual meetings are hard for humans, let’s be honest. How many times have you been in an in-person meeting and felt exhausted and bored? Regardless of platform, I’d like to take a moment to remind us:

We CAN take ownership of how we design meetings for impact and energy!

There are incredible tools and tech out there to support remote work and learning, and it’s easy to narrow our focus to the technology, or fixate on not being able to work together in person.

I love the way So You Want to Host a Web Meeting reframes: Remote meetings are SUPPORTED by technology, but they are not ABOUT the technology. So start with the PURPOSE, then add the tech!

Here’s the question I like to ask myself or my clients: What is the IDEAL OUTCOME for this meeting/event/class? At first, don’t even think about the how – just let yourselves imagine.

Once the purpose or outcome is clear, THEN you can think creatively about HOW. What tools or mindsets do we have now we didn’t utilize before? How might we leverage tech in new ways to create experiences that delight participants or students and ignite creativity and collaboration?

Exhibit A: Here’s what a wonderful, authentic client had to say after a virtual session we designed together and I graphic recorded remotely last week:

What a rich and rewarding session, Karina. Thank you. The excellence that ensued, in large measure, was brought about by your presence, your skills, and your work in making this strategic brainstorm session “not just another Zoom meeting.” Your services and final output, coupled with the willingness of our student leaders to engage, dream big, and plan a great Fall 2020, left us in a really good place to move forward with executing their ideas.

- Adam J. Herman, Jones Graduate School of Business, Rice University

So, what can YOU make possible?

Once again, thank you from my heart and soul for your support, great senses of humor, brilliant minds, collaboration and what you're each doing to make the world a better place.

Cheers,

Where in the Virtual World is ConverSketch?

iBlockBias: Last week I was honored to tune into a session hosted by Block Bias – a non-profit dedicated to facilitating important conversations and giving folks tools to work toward anti-racism. In 2 hours, these women built an environment where people got vulnerable, honest, and left feeling empowered!

Zoom Academy: Zoom Education hosted a two-day free training for teachers, school support, and administrators on how to learn and use their platform for more engaging and effective learning. Panels of experts and hands-on workshops left participants feeling better equipped for a very VUCA future.

Rice University: Working with the fine students representing the Jones Graduate School of Business to imagine what student life could look like this fall.

A Week of Giving Back

This week has been about giving back. It started off doing some graphic recording for Colorado State University's Center for Public Deliberation as students facilitated an event for the City of Fort Collins' new initiative to plan for green space in the city in the future called Nature in the City. The folks running the project solicited input from city leaders on what kinds of parks, green spaces, and wildlife habitat were most visually appealing to them and why, to guide the planning process.

Students share their map of a conservation collaborative.

I also had the opportunity to be a guest teacher in three classes at Colorado State University this week teaching about graphic recording, visual thinking and participatory decision-making. Working with both graduate and undergraduate students focusing on Conservation Leadership and collaborative conservation, I shared my thoughts on how visual thinking can be a useful tool when working with diverse groups and complex situations.

The students blew me away with their willingness to jump in with both feet and a rainbow palette of markers to process the projects they are working on. Many of the graduate students will be traveling internationally next spring to partner with agencies across the globe to help research and implement conservation work.

Conservation Leadership through Learning students discussing their program and projects.

Additionally, I'm delighted to do some drawing for the FoCo Cafe, a pay-what-you-can restaurant rooted in local food, building community, sharing stories and meals, and every person should be treated with dignity. Here's a "before" snapshot of the large chalk boards that will show and describe how the FoCo Cafe works. Stay tuned for updates on the final product!

Donated chalk boards -- before!

...and after! With Jeff, co-founder of the FoCo Cafe! Soon they will be hanging above the counter.