Building trust in society, one tea at a time. Community profile: Tea With Strangers
Building trust in society, one tea at a time. Community profile: Tea With Strangers
Last summer I was sitting with Ankit Shah in a cafe in San Francisco. A while into our conversation a stranger, sharing a table with us…
There are so many amazing community builders in this world … who can’t make a living being a…
There are so many amazing community builders in this world … who can’t make a living being a…
Our work with the Community Canvas has allowed me to see the state of “community building” from a bird’s eye view. Through the Canvas and…
Communities: a space to be heard and seen?
Communities: a space to be heard and seen?
Over the last two weeks I participated in several community retreats. At all of these gatherings the discussion circles with the full group…
Powerful community ritual: Canadian engineers wear an iron ring
Powerful community ritual: Canadian engineers wear an iron ring
A few weeks ago I was part of an inspired dinner conversation where one of the guests told us that many Canadian engineers — like himself —…
Community building is as old as humanity — let’s remember, not invent
Community building is as old as humanity — let’s remember, not invent
A few weeks back I saw Ants Cabraal from Enspiral present at AIME 2019 in Melbourne. He gave a fabulous talk about how community can…
Community is a journey, not a destination
Community is a journey, not a destination
I recently spoke with a UN agency who is building a global community of practitioners. In our conversations I was reminded of a particular…
What do we want to change in the next version of the Community Canvas? Insights from user research
What do we want to change in the next version of the Community Canvas? Insights from user research
These insights come from user interviews in the last few months, the Canvas 2.0 survey and a 3 day workshop the team held in NYC in…
Can a community be planned? Yes and no
Can a community be planned? Yes and no
As we are working on the next iteration of the Community Canvas, an existential question keeps surfacing: can communities even be planned…
Where we are headed with version 2.0 of the Community Canvas
Where we are headed with version 2.0 of the Community Canvas
We have been working on the next version of the Community Canvas for the last couple of months and this post is a summary of the clarity we…
The three core motivators in communities: Being together, Learning together, Doing together
The three core motivators in communities: Being together, Learning together, Doing together
One of the biggest question I’m holding with nurturing thriving communities is simple: what are the core motivations for people to show up…
Community profile: MakeSense
Community profile: MakeSense
A few months ago I sat down with my dear friend Christian Vanizette, co-founder of MakeSense. MakeSense is a global community of 40'000+…
Why do we overload the agendas of our community experiences?
Why do we overload the agendas of our community experiences?
This is part 3 of my reflection about our unhealthy relationship with time and how it affects communities (part 1, part 2). In this post I…
What role do trusted relationships play for the future of work?
What role do trusted relationships play for the future of work?
I had the pleasure of chatting with Katinka Magnussen from Black Boat, who was in NYC to interview people about the future of work. Here is…
The role of strategic patience in building meaningful communities
The role of strategic patience in building meaningful communities
This is a continuation on my reflection about our unhealthy relationship with time and how it affects the way we build and show up in…
Systemic challenge of building meaningful communities: our unhealthy relationship with time
Systemic challenge of building meaningful communities: our unhealthy relationship with time
I recently read Winners Take All by Anand Giridharadas (which I can highly recommend). And it made me realize that if I want to help…
Going from Community Canvas 1.0 to version 2.0 (and we need your help)
Going from Community Canvas 1.0 to version 2.0 (and we need your help)
I always thought of the Community Canvas as a “work in progress” document. What we launched in May 2017 was a pretty rough draft and I…
Poly Tribalism
Poly Tribalism
At a recent community gathering, Kate Beecroft expressed a fascinating idea. She talked about “poly tribalism”: many of us are part not…
Design principles for brand communities (a wish list)
Design principles for brand communities (a wish list)
I have been talking to different brands recently who are building brand communities. And I realized that at the core of these conversations…
Community profile Legal Hackers: interview with Jameson Dempsey
Community profile Legal Hackers: interview with Jameson Dempsey
I had the pleasure of chatting with my friend Jameson Dempsey, one of the founding members and current board members of Legal Hackers…
The dark sides of communities: the in-group and out-group effect
The dark sides of communities: the in-group and out-group effect
When groups come together, and the people in it start trusting each other and feeling a sense of belonging, the magic of community happens…
My talk about the power of community at ESHIP Summit 2018
My talk about the power of community at ESHIP Summit 2018
I tend to be very critical about my own talks and often find them hard to watch without feeling horribly embarrassed. Yet I’m also trying…
People join communities for reason x, but they keep coming back for relationships
People join communities for reason x, but they keep coming back for relationships
Last night I had the pleasure of being part of a beautiful panel discussion about community building with Kristin Hodgson from Meetup…
Community profile: The Sanctuaries
Community profile: The Sanctuaries
A few weeks back, I had the honor of chatting with Rev. Erik W. Martínez Resly, one of the co-directors of The Sanctuaries. The Sanctuaries…