Day 4 of Global Entrepreneurship Week 2021 and the second Emergent Thinkers.com special edition ‘mind behind’ interview’ supporting the Harmonious Entrepreneurship Society’s celebrations. I met Kay Luan, in his capacity of Vice Chancellor of the International University of Malaya-Wales, at the UWTSD’s Nexus teaching conference in Wales in the summer of 2019, and was blown …
Continue reading “The mind behind the investing in others for sustainable futures”
Day 2 of Global Entrepreneurship Week 2021 and the first of my Emergent Thinkers.com special edition ‘mind behind’ interviews’ supporting the Harmonious Entrepreneurship Society’s celebrations. Bev Pold, QAEP, is an experienced practitioner in the field of enterprise, social enterprise, gender equality, and rural development and community. Bev has been and continues to be instrumental in ensuring that …
Continue reading “The mind behind Women in Enterprise in Wales”
In line with Netflix’s release of ‘The Lost Pirate Kingdom’ 15th March, featuring the ‘Be More Pirate’ Sam Conniff Allende, who recruited me at the Urban Foundry 51.6 event [21st century pirate: the rebel with a cause]…. I share the ‘mind behind 21c rebellion’ interview… My interview with Sam Conniff Allende. Social Entrepreneur. Innovator. Disruptor. …
Continue reading “The Lost Pirate Kingdom – behind the scenes with ‘the mind behind 21c pirate rebellion’”
Gabrielle (Gay) Haskins has worked for forty years in the field of leadership and management development. Her key roles have been threefold: building networks (she was the first woman appointed as Director-General of the European Foundation for Management Development); leading the growth of Executive Education (at London Business School, Saïd Business School, University of Oxford …
Continue reading “The mind behind kindness and support in entrepreneurship”
Professor David A. Kirby, Holder of The Queen’s Award for Enterprise Promotion, is one of the UK’s founding fathers of Entrepreneurship Education (EE). His interest in EE started in the early 1980s at the University of Wales. He was appointed to the UK’s first Chair in Entrepreneurship at the University of Durham in 1989. Before …
Continue reading “The mind behind entrepreneurial mindset education”
Dr Kelly Smith, currently based at the Birmingham Business School, is an influential enterprise and entrepreneurship educator with a strong portfolio of graduate venture creation. Here I spend time with one of the key architects of Enterprise and Entrepreneurial Educator networks in the UK. Contributing to education research and national policy development, Kelly works to …
Continue reading “The mind behind curious & reflective entrepreneurship”
An interview with Dr Simon Brown. From security hologram innovation, pioneering education research and practice, to high impact roles shaping the academic, graduate and business enterprise landscape, Dr Simon Brown is a leading figure in enterprise and entrepreneurship business incubation and education in the UK. You have a multi-sector background Simon, which includes the study …
Continue reading “The mind behind pragmatic and innovative entrepreneurship”
Multiple-award winning educator and author, Dr Colin Jones is committed to the development of authentic and transformative entrepreneurship and enterprise education. Here I gather Colin’s reflections on entrepreneurial education, and garner insight into how his personal journey shapes his students’ authentic learning environments. On Entrepreneurial Education What do you say to those who argue entrepreneurship …
Continue reading “The mind behind authentic entrepreneurship”
An interview with Sam Conniff Allende. Social Entrepreneur. Innovator. Disruptor. Author. Following the impact of my first meeting with Sam at an Urban Foundry 51.6 event, as reported in my previous blog: 21st century pirate: the rebel with a cause I finally get to know more about the mind behind the global movement ‘Be More …
Continue reading “The mind behind 21c pirate rebellion”
Steve Wheeler is a Learning Innovations Consultant and former Associate Professor of Learning Technologies at the Plymouth Institute of Education. Here I interview the global educator, author, edublogger, and disrupter activist whose work on technology-enabled learning attracts millions of followers. You have a rich career path Steve, from artist and musician, psychologist and lecturer, to …
Continue reading “The mind behind harnessing technology for learning”
Emergent Thinkers 5 minute Spotlight: with Dr. Jesse Martin, the mind behind ‘Socelor’ – the digital home to ‘learning how to ‘think’ 1. Jesse, congratulations on the relaunch of Socelor’s website https://socelor.com, an accumulation of a two-decade mission to unlock thinking for the masses, where did it all begin? Socelor was birthed from the collision …
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Continuing on my exploration of key future-proofing skills I turn to Critical Thinking, thinking about how we think.
A third festive season for ‘Emergent Thinkers.com’ and a window of reflection, celebration and relaxation before a new year with renewed hopes! 2021 was another unusual year, yet an improvement on 2020 with respect to freedom of movement whilst keeping safe. My tagline became ‘Pirates, Pioneers, Passion and Phenomenology underpinned by Entrepreneurship & Harmonious Principles.’ …
Continue reading “The shape of my 2021”
Wishing all, local and afar, the best Global Entrepreneurship Week (GEW) 2021. GEW is a special week for me. Not only does it celebrate and empower entrepreneurs in every country and community across the world, but it marks the first year of a fruitful journey with my Harmonious Entrepreneurship Society co-founder Professor David A. Kirby. …
Continue reading “GEW2021 systems are go!”
As co-founder of the Harmonious Entrepreneurship Society, alongside Professor David A. Kirby, I am really proud to share that we have just this morning launched the first iteration of our foundation level online course ‘Principles of Harmonious Entrepreneurship’ at the 15th Enterprise Educators UK International Entrepreneurship Educators Conference at Aston University. Part-funded by Enterprise Educators UK’s …
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From fear to resilience in the face of uncertainty If Sam Conniff and Alex Barker are involved, I know that’s there’s good trouble and positive discomfort ahead…which is why my Pirate self-jumped at the opportunity to further explore dealing with fear, change and uncertainty!. ‘The Uncertainty Experts‘ – has been created up by multi-talented author, …
Continue reading “The Uncertainty Experts: turning uncertainty into opportunity”
2020 is the year coined as ‘one to forget but all will remember’ – challenge, distress, grief and pressure, alongside resilience, adaptability, compassion and dedication.As Christmas day draws nearer, I reflect on the key themes of the second round of seasons of ‘Emergent Thinkers.com’ – change agency, sustainability, entrepreneurship & philosophical thinking, with a portion …
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Excited to reveal a new ‘site banner and logo’ to celebrate Emergent Thinkers.com’s 2nd birthday! There’s been quite a lot to share over these last couple of years, from vlogging to pirate voice, and entrepreneurial, sustainability and phenomenological endeavours. I have also had the privilege to share in-depth conversations with many amazing, accomplished individuals in …
Continue reading “New visuals for Emergent Thinkers 2nd birthday”
Today is ‘International Talk Like a Pirate Day’. My name is Felicity, and I’ve been a pirate for 531 days. Evocative memories of the evening I claimed this mantle firmly cemented. A potent mix of shared values, a collective consciousness of grievances, powerful stories shared by author, social entrepreneur and inspirator, Sam Conniff Allende, and …
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I stand proud as a ‘Pirate in Education’, pledged to facilitate ‘positive disruption’ in the education system. Embracing a shared vision with other ‘rebel’ educators and parents, I commit to shape an education system that maximises the innovative potential of all learners; one purposed to social, cultural, environmental and economic value creation. Subscribed to the …
Continue reading “Pirates in Education: championing challenge & innovation”
2020. The time has come to ditch broken paradigms, and unleash the power of 21st century ‘EntreComp’ skilled change agents. As global citizens, we live with constant change and challenge. Issues seeded from an era of unrestrained greed and competition, and an over-zealous drive for growth. All against the backdrop of rising populations, depleting resources, …
Continue reading “EntreComp: the tool of choice for resilient VUCA*-proof change agents”
As a founding figure of ‘positivism’, Francis Bacon is very well-known for his promotion of the scientific method. This contrasts with my own researcher position as a phenomenologist. Subscribing to the belief that knowledge is obtained through both experience and observation, I adopt the view “science is useful for understanding many things, but not literally …
Continue reading “I’ll do my thinking with a spot of ginger and bacon!”
Beginning with the Winter Solstice celebration this Sunday, then enveloping Christmas, Yuletide starts with a celebration of the lengthening amount of light we experience in the day. This provides a welcome moment to reflect on the first four seasons of ‘Emergent Thinkers.com’. A chance to illuminate the themes that have emerged over the year. Rebellion …
Continue reading “My 12 ’emergent’ themes for yuletide”
Based in South Wales, UK, Emergent Thinkers.com ®. is a reflective blog to support my doctoral research on concepts and practices that support the Future of Education, Work, Sustainability and Global Citizenship. My goal is to respond to the needs and challenges of the fourth industrial revolution (4IR), where human and technology are aligned to …
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Published content by other parties and academic/research institutions Published Oksanen, L., Healey-Benson, F., & McCallum, E. (2022) ‘Take a Chance on CPD! How One School Put its Faith in the EntreCompEdu CPD Programme and Developed Whole-School Collective Entrepreneurial Education’, Kwartalnik Pedagogiczny (Education Research Quarterly), 4(262), p. 138-162. https://kwartalnikpedagogiczny.pl/resources/html/article/details?id=230133 Healey-Benson, F., Kirby, D.A., Omar, N. & Penaluna, …
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I’m magnificently proud to be part of UWTSD’s International Institute of Creative Entrepreneurial Development team (IICED) led by Associate Prof Dr Kathryn Penaluna: compact, dedicated, perfectly formed and sizzling with incredible energy and impact. Today brings an extra burst of pride with the formal communications of our contribution to our placement as one the 5 …
Continue reading “Triple E Awards Finalist Nomination for sizzling entrepreneurship work”
“All philosophy begins with wonder” Socrates said. This I believe is true for all new enterprises and ventures. Wonder, my favourite word and a theme I’ve commented upon many a time here at Emergent Thinkers. Unlike curiosity, wonder can never be satisfied fully, wonder lingers. I am proud to share the legal incorporation of the …
Continue reading “On Becoming Incorporated – Harmonious Entrepreneurship”
Imagination, the engine of my creativity Ian Van Dahl’s millennium classic ‘Castles in the Sky’ conjures strong memories of my youth. Interpreting the lyrics as dreams of visionary projects or the impossible, few can deny the deep neural connections between music and imagination (Kaufman, 2000; Fries, 2009) or memory (Samson & Baird, 2013; Bergland, 2013). …
Continue reading “Embracing sandcastles: rekindling Imagination”
As much as I denounce the commercialisation of this day, alongside many other celebrations, I do enjoy this one. In some ironic way, the pre-marked calendar date forces a break in an otherwise chaotic and fast-moving existence. Today, I take all the goodness (& rest) I can. Being present, humble about my gifts [that are …
Continue reading “A post for my mother”
Yesterday I had the good fortune to lead an educator-centric multi-country webinar on three of my favorite themes: change agency, entrepreneurship, and sustainability. Invited to contribute to an EntreCompEdu café webinar series, I detailed the why, the how, and the what next for educators ‘Creating value through the Sustainable Development Goals’. Important when embarking upon …
Continue reading “Educators facilitate ‘value creation’ through the SDGs”
Recently, a quote of unknown source was shared with me: “The mother whipped off her cape, held her hands in the air, and said ‘I’m struggling this time’. The other mothers breathed a sigh of relief, ripped their capes off and said ‘me too’, and they knew they were not alone“ ‘Vulnerability’ is not new …
Continue reading “Public displays of EV: reimagining a healthier future”
Learning Reframed? On the October 23rd, the topic of the second Societal Innovation and Enterprise Forum (SIEF) webinar was the need for entrepreneurial learning to focus on problems and issues. Moderated by Professor Andrew Atherton, Global Director of Transnational Education, Navitas, the international panel included: • Professor Suzi Jarvis, Founding Director, UCD Innovation Academy, University …
Continue reading “SIEF webinar #2: Re-designing entrepreneurial learning around problems and issues”
We are subsumed by challenge and change, at micro, meso and macro level. The implications and the importance amplified by our tumultuous political, economic, and social landscape. There are transitions in world leadership, and newly mobilised and channelled energies. Voices of the disenfranchised and disaffected grow louder. Enforced covid-related adjustments to daily and seasonal routines …
Continue reading “Addressing elitism, exclusion, prejudice, greed and despair in 2020”
It is ‘National Book Lovers Day’, deliciously coinciding with my wonderful in-depth conversation with Kevin Watson of ‘My Own Coach Ltd’. Recently, Kevin had invited his network to engage in his upcoming podcast series ‘Words Matter’. An invitation for a one-to-one to discuss quotes, poems or book passages that have inspired, changed one’s thinking or …
Continue reading “In celebration of ‘Pathic Writing’: a personal journey”
Through a COVID-19-context lens, it is possible to glimpse the formation of a new economic order. While for some COVID was a ‘known unknown’ and referred by some as a black elephant (Kemp, 2020), the pandemic has been the Neoliberal’s Black Swan (Taleb, 2008), an object lesson in complexity. A difficult situation has unfolded, and …
Continue reading “A COVID-19 driven paradigm shift: ‘disrupting Porter’s Forces’”
Following ‘Judge it! A book by its cover‘ last October, I embraced another invitation to work with the Faculty of Communications, Arts & Media (FCAM) at the International University of Malaya-Wales. This time, my task was to review, reflect and feedback on an extensive collection of digital campaigns about various social issues, to shortlist a …
Continue reading “Digitally Expressed: Winning Social Campaigns”
An abridged re-post from earlier in the summer when I marked one year to the day I last held my father’s [an Irish-man] hand. Reflections on loss that triggered a deeper reflexive insight, on being, life perspective, and identity, including that of a ‘researcher’. Feelings resurfaced, as I make an emotional return journey to Ireland. …
Continue reading “WCOL2019: the power of voice and story unveiled [repost]”
This is a break from the norm for me, as it contrasts with my interest in minimizing cognitive bias and introduces me to the power of visual rhetoric, how we are persuaded by the things we see. Here, on invitation to judge six pieces of art, I celebrate creativity, and pleasurably give in to my …
Continue reading “Judge it! a book by its cover”
Saturday (5th Oct) is World Teachers’ Day, also known as International Teacher Day. Established in 1994, it celebrates the signing of the 1966 UNESCO/ILO recommendation concerning the Status of Teachers, to “acknowledge, evaluate and enhance the instructors of the world” and to “consider the issues identified with educators and the teaching process in general”. Over …
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Imagination, the engine of my creativity Ian Van Dahl’s millennium classic ‘Castles in the Sky’ conjures strong memories of my youth. Interpreting the lyrics as dreams of visionary projects or the impossible, few can deny the deep neural connections between music and imagination (Kaufman, 2000; Fries, 2009) or memory (Samson & Baird, 2013; Bergland, 2013). …
Continue reading “Embracing sandcastles: rekindling Imagination”
Fresh from some research on AI, robots and sustainability, the health of the planet has become a consistent theme that weighs heavy on my mind. Technology vs Nature. Various news media pump out the stories. We see-saw between a celebration of the latest advancement or ingenuity, to serious lament over the newest crisis, another step …
Continue reading “Truth, lies and sustainability”
4th June. Today marks one year to the day I last held my father’s hand; the birth of an all-consuming grief that would transport me into a dual reality. Two states of mind. One, where life continues as normally as can be manufactured, for the sake of a young family. Another, a grief state, bruised …
Continue reading “In grief: the power of voice and story unveiled”
Statistics have been manipulated since time immemorial. Today, in a business context alone, whether its research to advance management knowledge or address policy concerns, or bad statistics feeding Fake News or political campaigns, data is employed for high impact.
Emergent Thinkers.com 