Global Leaders Achieve Major Outcomes At First World Innovation Summit For Education

The closing plenary session of the first World Innovation Summit for Education - Wise has produced a number of ground-breaking outcomes that signal the beginning of a new era in global collaboration on education.

Revealing times! We have heard about the tragic suicide of German sportsman

Robert Enke

who suffered from hidden depression. In a world where only performance counts.
We have heard about the outing from

Donal Og Cusack

from ireland.

The first elite sportsman who outed himself as gay.

And British doctor

Brooke Magnati

who wrote for a lomg time the famous blog:

http://www.bellledejour-uk.blogspot.com/

anonymously.

SPIEGEL ONLINE wrote earlier this year:


lO Lord, download our guilt

You find on the left side of the German article some links where online homepages are listed.

Brooke Magnati described herself as master of compartmentalization.

Indeed, this is an important label. Though not profound enough. The complexity of emrging identiities and supressed subpersonalities which are in need of bringing brought to conscious congruence

Billl Harryman has an interesting

Blogroll

to the them of subpersonalities. And John Rowan, an integral specialist from UK will be publish next year a new book about personification.

Personiification: Using The Dialogical Self in Psychotherapy And Counselling

My basic conviction is there are layers of reality emerging which are beyond the conventional label of shadow work. Its about complexification in the interiors of adult life and devlopment..

All the buzz in the media about outing processes of all kind is only scraching the surface. In the core of this public emregence is the need to recovnile private and public life. In new ways.

Compartmentalization is only a sign. it indicates that change, transformation, self discovery and the journey to ones own soul are in need of new ways of communication and expressions of life.

Beyond poltical, spiritual and sexual correctness. And even beyond the segregated life of sub-cultures. No agenda, defind mission statment and purposeful vision per se can do it.

It simply needs to be lived, expressed and communicated.

The day side of consciousness and the night side. No side is more important than the other.

I am posting an article which was given free for Keith Rice`s blog first. Its from 2007 and as fresh and relevant today. Alan told me that a new book will be published in 2010 with the probable title:

Values in Action

Will keep you informed. Heres to the article:

Innovation and Values in the 21st Century

        

by
Alan Tonkin
20 October 2007

 
Alan Tonkin is Chairman of the Global Values Network Group whose www.globalvaluesnetwork.com web site is one of the most advanced in the world at using Spiral Dynamics to monitor shifts in societies and assess impacts at both national, international and even global levels.


Alan generously allowed this piece, written for the GVN site, to be published here.


We continuously hear the call for more and more innovation in our 21st Century world but the question is what is innovation, as seen by the larger mix of global citizens? In a developed world view this means better ways of resolving issues by the use of technology, either by the use of existing technology or by considering new approaches to the issue being tackled. However, in other less well developed and resource deprived societies the question of innovation may appear to be very different to the 21st Century approach above.

 

                                                                                                         Values & Innovation

The level of values present in a society reflects very clearly on the type of problems that it is able to tackle in an innovative way. Some examples taken from the various values levels show that the “life conditions” clearly influence the type of response to a particular issue.

 

At the same time innovation is clearly not only a developed world characteristic as developing countries and even failed states possess innovation of sorts but at very different levels of complexity. Some real life examples are illustrated below:

 

Survival Values: Innovation at this level depends on 'staying alive' and finding the next meal. This includes people in both the developed and developing countries who operate at this level of existence. Examples in developed countries are 'street people', with developing countries including those who forage on rubbish tips. 7% of current global population or 455 million people.

read more

A postive, necessary article about new German Defense Minister Karl Theodor zu Guttenberg. Indeed its necessary to communicate combat missions in war and war-like scenaios to civil society. As Thomas Barnett in USA is doing for a long time already.

In Germany its a novum. After the red-green coalitions NO to Iraq war the word "War" was anxiously avoided in Geman. The Defense Minister id doing a good and necessary job in speaking straight language!

Rising Star Guttenberg Embraces Difficult Defense Job

By Siobhán Dowling

 

It hasn't taken long for German Defense Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg to make a mark in his new job. From referring to the Afghanistan mission as a "war" to announcing a slight increase in troop numbers, he has gained the support of the military. Back home, though, challenges await.

When Germany's new Defense Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg visited troops at the military base of Mazar-e-Sharif in northern Afghanistan on Thursday evening he was feted more as a pop star than a visiting politician. Well into the night the young Bavarian aristocrat signed autographs and posed for group photos as soldiers responded with enthusiasm to Guttenberg's very different approach.




The 37-year-old Guttenberg has been barely out of the headlines since he became Germany's youngest ever defense minister just over two weeks ago. The country's most popular politician, he has dramatically raised the profile of Germany's mission in Afghanistan, breaking taboos about how the deployment is described, pledging solidarity with the troops and then embarking on the surprise visit to the country on Thursday.

His straight-talking manner, confidence and poise are in stark contrast to the lackluster and often bungling impression made by his predecessor Franz Josef Jung. When it comes to the optics then Chancellor Angela Merkel's choice of Guttenberg to take over the defense portofolio seems to be a remarkably shrewd move. However, it remains to be seen if this will be a change of style or substance when it comes to Germany's increasingly difficult mission in Afghanistan.

Germany has around 4,300 soldiers stationed the country as part of the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan. On Friday Guttenberg announced that he will send another company of 120 soldiers to the north of the country in January, bringing the overall number of German military personnel in the country close to the maximum allowed by parliament.

Unpopular Mission

While Germany has the third largest contingent of foreign troops in the country after the US and the UK, Berlin's allies have often berated Germany for staying in what had been the relatively stable north of the country, while they suffered heavy casualties battling a resurgent Taliban in the south. Yet the domestic unpopularity of the mission makes it almost impossible to comply with requests to put more soldiers on the front lines.

Two-thirds of Germans oppose the country's almost eight-year long involvement in Afghanistan, although the mission is backed by all of the political parties, apart from the far-left Left Party. If anything, recent events have eroded public support even further with an airstrike involving a German officer most likely having led to civilian deaths compounded by the fiasco of the Afghan presidential elections.

Nevertheless Guttenberg seems intent on raising the profile of Germany's mission rather than sweeping it under the carpet. Since taking office two weeks ago he has single-handedly overturned years of government efforts to present Germany's involvement in the ISAF mission as a kind of military led school-building exercise. The public have never bought this line. A war by any other name is still a war.

Guttenberg has recognized that neither the public nor the military are served by these attempts at a semantic smokescreen. Indeed he has argued that politicians need to "bring the mission into the consciousness of the public." In his very first interview after taking on the defense portfolio in the new center-right coalition, Guttenberg broke the long-standing taboo, describing the conditions in Afghanistan as "war-like." And he has repeated this term in subsequent interviews, saying that when soldiers are faced with danger and the risk of death and injury then they might well describe their experience as war. Guttenberg's predecessor Jung refused to use the term, instead describing it repeatedly as a "stabilization mission."

The different tone emanating from the Defense Ministry has certainly gone down well with the German military and with soldiers on the ground, who see his clear use of the word "war" as a show of support and solidarity with troops on a dangerous mission. German soldiers have been serving abroad for 10 years now but many feel there is little recognition back home of Germany's changed military role.

'Feels the Pulse' of the Troops

Jochen Hippler, an Afghanistan expert at Duisberg-Essen University, told SPIEGEL ONLINE that the soldiers are frustrated that their dangerous mission in Afghanistan "is misunderstood and even misrepresented at home."

Ulrich Kirsch, the head of the German Federal Armed Forces Association (Bundeswehrband) has already welcomed Guttenberg's "clear words," saying the minister had "felt the pulse" of the troops. Speaking to the Mitteldeutsche Zeitung last week, Kirsch said: "We are very grateful to the minister for calling things by their name. That makes the seriousness of the situation clear. Our women and men, who are serving there everyday, say this is war."

Any illusion that Germany was merely involved in a humanitarian reconstruction mission was well and truly dashed on Sept. 4 when a German officer called in a deadly airstrike on two tanker trucks seized by Taliban insurgents near Kunduz fearing they might be used in attack on German troops. The strike left as many as 142 people dead, and the German public prosecutor is now assessing whether to investigate the incident. The former defense minister's handling of the attack was an unmitigated disaster. Jung first categorically denied any civilians had been killed and then later conceded that there may have been some casualties that were not Taliban. Guttenberg has since defended the attack as "militarily appropriate," while regretting any civilian deaths.

read more.,

From the desk of editor of Kosmos Journal:

"We are pleased to announce the launch of our newly designed website - with a fresh look and lots of new content. Please bookmark and visit frequently as we add more interactive features."

Here is the new issue:

Seeing the world with new eyes

And, written by Nancy Roof herself the fEditorial.

On Tuesday a young German sportsman committed suicide. This case is shocking the country.Me too. Its -once again- about the split of public life and the high pressure to maintain a mascerade , faking a friendly self for beeing successful. Robert Enke suffered from a hidden depression not known even by the doctors.

As Robert Enke is quoted at the end of the article within the interview he gave the magazine:

But it is difficult not to recall a different interview, one he gave to the German football magazine 11 Freunde. In that interview, Enke said: "When speaking with the press, I always have two opinions. My personal feelings, and those which I serve to the public

The divided Self. Countless authors since Ronald laing have commented the theme. Its high time for enabling more integration of private and public spheres. And critical, very critical questions to be adressed at the mentality of so called professionalism. The form who denies the authentic self and the core of a person.

I am mourning with Roberts family, with others in my country and my prayers are with all men and women who wish to speak out the real heart and what really matters for them

Football Tragedy: German National Team Keeper Commits Suicide

He was seen as the favorite to start in goal for Germany at the World Cup in South Africa in 2010. But on Tuesday evening, Robert Enke took his own life.

He was one of Germany's best goalkeepers. But now, Robert Enke is dead. The 32-year-old national team player took his own life on Tuesday evening at a train crossing near Hanover, as his friend and advisor Jörg Neblung confirmed late Tuesday.


"I can confirm that it was a case of suicide. Robert killed himself just before 6 p.m.," Neblung said in a short statement.


Enke played for the German national team and was seen as a likely choice to start in goal at the World Cup in South Africa in 2010. His professional career had been up and down in recent years, seeing him play for FC Barcelona and Fenerbahce in Istanbul before finding success again at Hanover.

The German soccer world has reacted with shock. "We are full of sadness," said Theo Zwanziger, president of the German Football Association, on Tuesday evening. "Our sympathy goes out to Robert Enke's wife and to his family." Oliver Bierhoff, who manages Germany's national team, said: "We are all under shock. We simply don't know what to say."

German Chancellor Angela Merkel had expressed her shock and sympathy in a personal letter to Enke's widow, a government spokesperson said Wednesday.

Lower Saxony Governor Christian Wulff also expressed his sorrow at Enke's death. "Germany has lost an exceptional athlete and a very sensitive person who was an example for many. We mourn him," he said in a statement.

Minute of Silence

Enke apparently threw himself in front of a regional train not far from Hanover. According to a police spokesman, he apparently parked his car near a train crossing, walked several hundred meters down the tracks and stepped out in front of a speeding train. Police say he left behind a suicide note and added that the case would likely be closed later Wednesday.




In addition to his wife Teresa, Enke leaves behind an eight-month-old daughter Leila, whom the couple adopted in May. The couple's biological daughter Lara died at age two in 2006 after being born with a serious heart condition

Timothy Garton Ash has written down some musings -for the New York Review of Books - about the year:

1989!

Ending with his wish for a fresh global look at the year written by a young historian. D``accord. Adding the wish that enough engaged, committed, courageous and globally acting and thinking people have the focus and intention.in.action to shape the unfolding now and set their fingerprints without knowing in the given moment how history will see the value of it.):)

"Unsurprisingly, the twentieth anniversary of 1989 has added to an already groaning shelf of books on the year that ended the short twentieth century. If we extend "1989" to include the unification of Germany and disunification of the Soviet Union in 1990–1991, we should more accurately say the three years that ended the century. The anniversary books include retrospective journalistic chronicles, with some vivid personal glimpses and striking details (Victor Sebestyen, György Dalos, Michael Meyer, and Michel Meyer), spirited essays in historical interpretation (Stephen Kotkin and Constantine Pleshakov), and original scholarly work drawing on archival sources as well as oral history (Mary Elise Sarotte and the volume edited by Jeffrey Engel). I cannot review them individually. Most add something to our knowledge; some add quite a lot. It is no criticism of any of these authors to say that I come away dreaming of another book: the global, synthetic history of 1989 that remains to be written.
...
The year 1989 was one of the best in European history. Indeed, I am hard pushed to think of a better one. It was also a year in which the world looked to Europe—specifically to Central Europe, and, at the pivotal moment, to Berlin. World history—using the term in a quasi-Hegelian sense—was made in the heart of the old continent, just down the road from Hegel's old university, now called the Humboldt University. Twenty years later, I am tempted to speculate (while continuing to work with other Europeans in an endeavor to prove this hunch wrong) that this may also have been the last occasion—at least for a very long time—when world history was made in Europe. Today, world history is being made elsewhere. There is now a Café Weltgeist at the Humboldt University, but the Weltgeist itself has moved on. Of Europe's long, starring role on the world stage, future generations may yet say: nothing became her like the leaving of it.

In any case, the longer-term consequences of 1989 are only now beginning to emerge. They, too, belong in the synthetic global history of 1989 that, partly for this reason, could not have been written sooner. But after two decades, the time has come for a brilliant young historian—at home in many languages; capable of empathizing both with powerholders and with so-called ordinary people; a writer of distinction; tenured, but with few teaching obligations; well-funded for extensive research on several continents; Stakhanovite in work habits; monastic in private life—to start writing this necessary, almost impossible masterpiece: a kind of Wagnerian Gesamtkunstwerk of modern history. With luck, he or she should have it ready for the thirtieth anniversary, in 2019"

Today Gemany Germany is celebrating 20 years after fall of the wall.

Berlin Celebrates the Day the Wall Fell

Instead of expressing my joy in a new post I am presenting a compilation of all 84 entries from 2006- 2009 I wrote here at Gaia:
Germany 1
Germany 2
Germany 3
Germany 4

The rest can be followed via the links at the bottom of the pages.

Its a good day for feeling the relevance o fhealthy  national idendity in a global world. And, regarding Germany, to enter a new chapter of postive history after 20 years after fall of the wall and nearly 65 years after WW 2.

And therefore for even more and deeper integration of Europe too.

I did read the blog entry from Jon Twigge, Center for human emergence UK:

The First Week - A MIlestone

The" Right to be be" blog is associated with the newly launched Centre for Human Emergence (UK.

I consider this pioneering effort in communication very relevant. As it is about an integrated approach of real world projects in innovative communication style. Yes, in its babysteps, but this baby will grow and demonstrate a potential not seen up to now.

I commented below Jons entry these considerations(Slightly modified)


"The dynamics of creating momentum in this medium and online-spaces certainly require at least 100 days for a minimum.

So called Alfa bloggers like Instapundit (f.) reach over 10.000 visits per day.

An integrated f2f/online strategy and communication approach is always more, far more than only connecting the dots.

Its about permanently igniting an inspired field of inspired connection and action. As Otto Scharmer recently put in a paper.

Its not replacable by any marketing, or or some YouTube videos and single blogs.

There is soul in it. I like how Howard Bloom is summarizing lots of it on last pages of his new book “The Genius of the Beast”. Collective intelligence is far more than ANY concept about it has revealed up to now..

Its not only about multiplication of efforts , announcements and some content communication.

It has the potential of memetic innovation. Right now the tipping point for such accelerated momentum has not been reached. The unique strength of such dynamics will be in the vibrant and fast paced interaction of individual and collective too.

However mass communication AND change needs to put into new equations with the meshworking concepts.

This will be pioneering work for the next decade(s).

The cross-effects here in inter-continental and infracultural, intercultural and subcultural convergence and emergence is basically dark matter for the moment.

I am absolutely confident that new discoveries will be made next years. Remember the innovation jam IBM did with tens of thousands in Beijing in 2006?

This was only a beginning. I will engage with strong confidence and appetite for adventure and a new journey in this endvor for German speaking countries.

Very best, have a great time! Once more, thanks for your initiative to get it started!

Albert

SPIEGEL ONLINE presents the transscript of German Chancellor`s Angela Merkel speech before the US Congress. I aggree nearly completely with the chancellor and support the complex partnership in leadership constellation with USA.

We have no time to loose

In her speech before the US Congress on Tuesday, German Chancellor Angela Merkel thanked the Americans for their decades-long support of Germany and for their role in helping to end the Cold War. She also reminded US politicians that the world will be looking to America and Europe in December for leadership in forging a global climate change agreement.

Editor's note: This is the official German government translation of the speech given by Chancellor Angela Merkel before the US Congress on Nov. 3, 2009.

Madam Speaker, Mr. Vice President, Distinguished Members of Congress,

I would like to thank you for the great honor and privilege to address you today, shortly before the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall.

I am the second German Chancellor on whom this honor has been bestowed. The first was Konrad Adenauer when he addressed both Houses of Congress in 1957, albeit one after the other.

Our lives could not have been more different. In 1957 I was just a small child of three years. I lived with my parents in Brandenburg, a region that belonged to the German Democratic Republic (GDR), the part of Germany that was not free. My father was a Protestant pastor. My mother, who had studied English and Latin to become a teacher, was not allowed to work in her chosen profession in the GDR.

In 1957 Konrad Adenauer was already 81 years old. He had lived through the German Empire, the First World War, the Weimar Republic and the Second World War. The National Socialists ousted him from his position as mayor of the city of Cologne. After the war, he was among the men and women who helped build up the free, democratic Federal Republic of Germany.

Nothing is more symbolic of the Federal Republic of Germany than its constitution..

 

read more...