Thanks to Matt Moore’s blog discovered a Web 2.0 Social Networking/Travel service called Dopplr. When you plug in your trips (car, air etc …) it has a cool Carbon Calculator that allows you to keep track of CO2 emissions. Given the social networking aspect of Dopplr, this could be a very useful tool to quickly calculate the CO2 emissions of many travellers. Many conferences now are trying to go Carbon Neutral. If all delegates did the Dopplr thing as a part of their registration process, the possibilities include: 1. A convenient way of linking up delegates who are travelling from …

In a world where “Green Washing” is common place … here is a ‘legit’ website that takes the pain out of decision making. When you invest to offset carbon, at some stage you have to trust someone’s advice! Knowing some of the people behind the Carbon Offset Guide … I’m willing to base my decisions on their own research. This site provides solutions for businesses wanting to ‘do the right thing’ and offset their carbon emissions. The Carbon Offset Guide was “developed through a partnership between EPA Victoria and Global Sustainability at RMIT. The Carbon Offset Guide is intended to be a resource …

Applying Improv has sharpened my awareness of what’s going on around me. As a facilitator, practicing presence is critical to help serve the group. As a dad, being fully present with my children brings them joy and confidence. As a project leader, improv reminds me to ‘notice’ what’s happening in real time … let go of control of outcomes & learn from (and celebrate) mistakes.  Thanks to Dave Pollard’s weekly update, I found this New York Times article ‘Can Executives Learn to Ignore the Script?’ Applying Improv principles to our work challenge ‘business as usual’ and, in my experience, makes managers & …

Inspired by Johnnie Moore’s podcasts with Hugh & The Rabbi and The Phoric, Viv and I have started up a dedicated podcasting blog called “Winkipod”. Winkipod emerged from conversations between me and Viv. Like Euan, Hugh and Johnnie … Viv and I have switched off from mainstream, slick & scripted media. Instead, we prefer listening to (and learning from) conversations between people that start somewhere and simply allow topics to emerge in the moment. They say “Yes!And” build on each other’s offers … just like in Improv. At the moment, I have posted a few “practice” .mp3 recordings and provided some …

On his blog, marketing 2.0 guru Seth Godin penned a gem called The New Standard for Conferences. I am going to build on 2 reviews on other blogs (thanks Viv McWaters & Garr Reynolds) AND relate Seth’s message to my own experience as a facilitator. My Conference-Rant – I have been involved in hundreds of conferences, meetings and forums as a facilitator … and even a few as a participant. Invariably, conferences fall into the fatal “death by powerpoint” trap. Generally, they try to rely on “experts” to enter the stage and blow everyone away with their wisdom and experience. Often, conference …