Full Circle Associates

And now for a learning experience that aptly contributes to the pleasures of the feast. From the good folks at the Pantry at Delancey, I learned about pie. Most specifically, pie CRUST. Yum.

via Becoming a Pie Ninja – YouTube.

Today’s Monday video is a visual gift from Jim Denevan, an artist who takes the word “drawing” and turns it into a meditation of movement, beauty and empherality.   KQED Spark – Jim Denevan – YouTube.

In the world of learning, knowledge management, organizational development, we see solutions that are “scalable” and “sustainable.” But the gems, the breakthroughs, the insights, are most often a fleeting moment when something changes. We can’t capture that in a knowledge base, or “cook” it into a course design. It is lived, in the moment. It becomes the thing we reflect upon as we seek to apply it. But it is ephemeral.

For those wanting an additional visual treat and one that relates to community and conviviality, look at Jim working with tables at a meal. He says (and I strongly agree) “The table is a magnet for stories.”

I often have a “deer in the headlight” look when someone asks me about evaluating communities of practice. I think that is because I have some stereotype in my head about evaluation. But in fact, when I let my common sense kick in, I know of and use many evaluation approaches. I guess I never called them “evaluation approaches.” Recently my friends Etienne Wenger, Bev Trayner and Maarten deLaat wrote a lovely paper on “Promoting and Asessing Value Creation in Communities and Networks.” It is lovely because in many ways it gives voice to the “common sense” practices I’ve used and seen around me. And it gave me confidence to say yes to an interview with the KMImpact Challenge earlier this year. The video came out today. Besides sounding like I’m on speed… what do you think? How do you evaluate your communities?

via Nancy White of Full Circle Associates on CoPs – YouTube.

From the inimitable Howard Rheingold!

A mini-course on network and social network literacy – howardrheingold’s posterous.

I’ve become convinced that understanding how networks work is an essential 21st century literacy. This is the first in a series of short videos about how the structure and dynamics of networks influences political freedom, economic wealth creation, and participation in the creation of culture. The first video introduces the importance of understanding networks and explains how the underlying technical architecture of the Internet specifically supports the freedom of network users to innovate.

Essential Arts – Blog – What is a Community?.

What is a Community? from Essential Arts on Vimeo.

Here are some visions of New Orleans and Seattle, plus a critical question that Essential Arts is addressing through our program Bilocal, which also pairs NOLA and Seattle writers and artists. Support us this month via Kickstarter!. (Nancy’s note – I never posted this till months later. Sorry!)