Cappuccino U

TEDTalks : Liz Coleman's call to reinvent liberal arts education.

If you have not listened to some or all of the TED Talks I suggest that you start with this one. Liz Coleman, President of Bennington, challenges Americans and the rest of us to become involved first in reinventing liberal arts education and second in changing the world through our involvement with education, government and society.

We need change and we need it desperately. Dr. Coleman leads the way as does TED.

Subscribing to TED Talks on iTunes is free. It's one of my favourite series of podcasts.

Working With Others

In Cappuccino U I discussed working in 'the third place' and how having other people nearby helps us to work and to learn. This seems a bit strange to some people who feel that one has to work alone without distraction in order to create fine work or original thought.
I'm in Burlington, Vermont, where my wife and I are visiting our son, daughter-in-law, and grandchildren, and house-sitting for friends of theirs who live on the same street. This morning I worked alone in 'our house,' with wireless, and completed the review of a publication for a colleague.
This afternoon my son and I are working at Barnes & Noble in their coffee shop, each with a laptop. We stop working periodically to discuss our work or to buy a scone and another coffee, but mostly we work effectively, writing, reviewing, reading.
In each situation, private and public, I have accomplished a lot. Privacy and quiet may not have been effective for the whole day. Changing to another working situation may have been an advantage in itself, but I think that the people who worked, drank coffee, read books, and chatted near me provided positive energy which helped me to be productive and innovative in my work today.
This suggestion may not receive much support from some of my academic colleagues: but I'm sure that they too have stood beside people in social situations and have been either energized or drained by them. We like to be around positive people, people with ideas and optimism.
I'll continue to work in third places which I feel have a lot of positive energy about them, even though I can't point to a scientific paper that proves that what I'm saying makes sense. I'm not the only one to feel that or to work in such environments.
I'll be back to work at Barnes & Noble later this week: and I'll probably take a few breaks and buy a few books.
Do stop and say hi. I'll be the one with the Starbucks coffee and the laptop.

Third Places for Everyone

One of the folks who has read Cappuccino U has suggested that I have focused too much on high-end coffee shops and have overlooked his favourite coffee chain – one of Canada's most popular – and the folks who spend time there.
Various coffee shops and chains have focused on particular groups of clients, and each develops a clientele, a culture club. Some attract business and professional groups, some attract a younger, leisure crowd, and others attract retired people. Each is a 'third place' (home and work are the other two) for the folks who gather there.
I'm off to one of my Cappuccino offices tomorrow with a friend and colleague. We'll order a latté, spend an hour or two discussing projects and what's new, and perhaps buy a book or magazine before we leave. I'll be back the following day to meet another friend for whom I'm doing some work.
People's favourite third places have more than coffee: they have an interesting clientele and they welcome laptop users and groups holding business meetings. Corporations and educational institutions could learn a lot about providing effective work environments from such establishments.

Learning at Lunch

The Book Publishers Association of Alberta (BPAA) has started a new professional development program, with funding from The Canada Council for the Arts.
It's a very simple program: we have lunch at a local restaurant and invite one of our members to discuss an area of interest or concern. We order lunch, then listen to the speaker/discussion leader, have lunch, discuss the topic and leave – all in an hour. Thus far we have had sessions on used books, e-books and developing and using blogs.
Kathy Shute, Executive Director of the Book Publishers Association developed this program. It's been well received by the members of the association who have welcomed the opportunity to meet, enjoy a meal, and learn something about an interesting topic, all for $10.
Learning and networking at lunch or coffee time is not a new concept, but organizing a professional development opportunity every few weeks is new to this group and probably to most professional organizations.
The program is an excellent way of providing professional development opportunities to people within an industry or working area. The cost is low and the time required is minimal.
Thanks, Kathy: and thanks also to the BPAA and the Canada Council for the Arts.

Pervasive Technology

I spend a lot of time on my local University campus working and networking with colleagues (the University is one of my major clients). While there are several buildings which have wireless access for students and faculty most buildings and outdoor areas do not.
I'm fortunate that the Faculty Club at this campus has wi-fi with open access. Unfortunately, there are only two electrical outlets on the main floor of the club which are accessible to those of us who want to work for several hours at a time. My laptop battery lasts for about three hours and after that I have to plug in to continue working.
We need pervasive technology in our homes, our offices and our institutions. Cities such as Boston, San Francisco and Toronto are in the process of making themselves entirely wireless. Many campuses in the USA and some in Canada and other countries have been wireless for several years. It's inexpensive and essential in learning environments.
I've used wi-fi in airports and hotels around the world. My most recent experience was in Nairobi, Kenya, where I found a wonderful five star hotel with wireless access in the lobby. I was staying outside the city where I had no internet access. I stopped at the hotel whenever I was in the city, paid the concierge for 30 or 60 minutes of wireless access, and relaxed in the lobby while I corresponded with my friends and family in Canada and the USA.
Creative cities, companies and institutions need pervasive technology so that we can work and learn wherever and whenever we want. If it's not available creative people will go elsewhere to live and work. It's as simple as that.