INNOVATE OR DIE! ; )

Once the big event of TEDxMonterey was over, we were able to start to think about the video production of the talks.  We had worked with Access Monterey Peninsula to record the talks and for the most part, we were happy with how they turned out.  I had some learning experiences with the audio in our auditorium.  We use a wireless interpretation service which interfered with the wireless mic were were attempting to use for the speakers.  We had to switch to the hand-held mic at the end of the first session and we had some trouble with capturing the audio of the new mic.  Live and learn!

We’ve enjoyed working on the video to make some of the talks even better than the original.  Here’s one of my favorites – Stephen Palumbi and the story of saving Monterey Bay.

You can see all of the TEDxMonterey videos on the TEDx Youtube channel.

The TEDxMonterey conference is over and can be considered a success from many different angles.  With more than 400 in person and online participants, we successfully dissected the theme, “Be the Solution” from an environmental, educational and technological perspective.  Talks ranged from understanding the value of dirt to new computers that you play with like blocks.  This dynamic variety is classic of TEDx talks and kept our audience on their toes.

The two most exciting and innovative products of the event were new relationships in our quest for environmental sustainability and the live audio stream of interpretation into 8 different languages.  I’m very excited to see where these innovations may lead.

The best capture of the spirit of the event was done by the local television news station, KSBW.  Their report on our event reached a wide audience and hopefully introduced the idea of TEDx to our local community.

On April 16th, 2010 we will hold the first TEDxMonterey event with the theme: Be the Solution.  The theme is the motto of the Monterey Institute but also the best unifier of all that we do at MIIS and in the Monterey Community.  We brainstormed concepts that were important to the identity of Monterey County – agriculture, jazz, tourism, oceans, languages, cultures, creative economy, conflict resolution, environmental sustainability (and many more) and realized that in each area of Monterey, we were striving find new and creative solutions to these problems that we face.  Creating a TEDx event around solutions will enable us to dialog about different issues and how we might come together in unique ways to find solutions.

With our theme in hand, we are currently approaching potential speakers, partners and sponsors to help shape this exciting event. You can now follow us on twitter or become a facebook fan to keep  up to date with this project.

Flickr photo by Anecin Exterors

Over the last few years I have dabbled into the art of community building through social networking. I first experimented with Ning when a returned from an organizational development conference and I wanted to connect all the people that attended a my innovation session in a virtual community. This idea flopped, but I learned alot from it. I believe some of the reasons it didn’t work was because we had no goal. We had no reason to interact, only just to continue a good conversation from a conference. I was also bringing people into a new space where they weren’t already active. A new space, no goals, with very little background (just sitting in on my 90 minute session) = not the greatest online community

My next adventure into social networking was for a class I was co-teaching on digital media for social change.  This classes used a ning as its course space. This was highly effective as we had a large class (41 students) and this space made a place people could interact in a way they actually couldn’t in the class.  It fit right in with the goal of the class as it was real easy to share media.  The only problem with this space was that once the class was over, most of the action stopped in the ning even though we wanted to continue it as a sharing space.

I also made a ning space for my innovation pizza process to promote cross-fertilization of ideas and discussion over what the school needed to innovate.  This became a fun space, but was primarily used by me as a communication tool for me to the folks involved with the pizza process.

Has those past attempts with social networking got me down?  No way.  I’m now trying again using facebook to promote the TEDxMonterey event that will take place on April 16th, 2010.  I’ve created a facebook fan page and I already have twice as many members as I have ever had using ning.  I think going to a space that people are already using has helped this page grow in numbers but I’m still struggling with the social interaction.  I’m again the primary participant in this group, but it is proving to be an excellent communication tool.  I have connected with so many more members of the Monterey community through this space and I think the event will draw bigger crowds due to its presence on facebook.

What have I learned?  There is no tool that is perfect for online social networking.  The most important components of creating online spaces is really thinking through the idea before its online and figuring out what my goal is and how I will accomplish that goal with a variety of tools.  What is the goal or incentive to bring people back to the space and how can their interactions benefit them, not just me.  So while I haven’t yet perfected the online community space idea, I do know it has tremendous potential and there is still room to experiment and find the best suite of tools and practices to get the job done well.

Students who are part of Team Monterey: El Salvador travel to the Bajo Lempa region to rebuild a community rocked by environmental disasters with a lack of infrastructure.  Just $15 funds the surveying of the water infrastructure system of one community and $25 funds a board training session for community members.

The project Improving Nutrition for Children in Peru benefits members of the rural community by providing sustainable greenhouses to grow nutritious crops.  Only $10 buys 50 bricks for construction and $25 provides five children with one year of agricultural education.

This new micr0-philanthropy initiative is designed to help MIIS students be the solution by providing a platform for project funding.

Become a supporter today at: http://www.globalgiving.org/miis

Following the adoption of a new strategic plan that grew out of an incipient merger with Middlebury College, The Monterey Institute of International Studies embarked upon a transformation process focused on, academic excellence, financial sustainability and global prominence.  A visionary Board and President set the stage by urging the community to define and achieve its own level of greatness. Social media, networking, and new organizational models strengthened connections, increased opportunities, and flattened the organizational hierarchy. This interactive session highlights change management strategies that are harnessing the power of innovation, institutionalizing and sustaining growth for the next stage of our journey.

The session went so well and I had such a good time with all the participants.  More information on the session can be found on the innovation@miis blog.

This video has since been added to the rotation of videos showcased on Monterey Institute homepage.