Toward Resilience: PopTech in Iceland

| resilience defined | conference recap | alphachimp artwork | photos |

In a world fraught with disruptions, what causes some systems, organizations, communities and people to break down and others to bounce back? For those that rebound, what do they tell us about how to build a secure future, and sturdier selves to inhabit it?

The Harpa Concert Hall & Conference Centre in Reykjavik, site of PopTech

To explore these pressing questions, in June 2012 PopTech convened its first international conference outside its homebase in Camden, Maine. Over 200 researchers, practitioners and thought leaders—working in fields such as international development, global business, climate adaptation, social psychology, economics, systems ecology, public health, emerging technology, disaster relief and community activism—gathered in the world-reknowned Harpa concert hall in Reykjavik for a dialogue about the emerging field of "resilience". 

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Alphachimp collaborator Megan Mukuria featured in Fast Company!

The team at Alphachimp get to travel the world in our capacity as doodlers, and meet amazing people who work on compelling and important projects. It's so heartening to see those people receive the accolades they deserve. This week, our friend and collaborator, Megan Mukuria, founder of the amazing Kenyan non-profit ZanaAfrica, is featured in Fast Company magazine as a member of the League of Extraodinary Women. 

Kibera Girls, by Diane Durand

Ellen McGirt, author of the must-read article about the League, explains it as such: 

“Every change agent needs an agency. We've chosen 60 notable members of the League of Extraordinary Women and the organizations, both for-profit and not-for-profit, that are their vehicle to tackle areas of dire need, such as developing the next generation of female entrepreneurs…

This interconnected group of executives, philanthropists, entrepreneurs, artists, government officials, and academics is formulating groundbreaking initiatives and hacking long-outdated aid models by tapping new thinking and a growing data set that suggests that investing in girls and women will create measurable economic benefits for all.

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Video of the Week on SciAm Blogs (Again!)

Alphachimp is thrilled to share that our entry for The Flame Challenge is being featured on Scientific American’s Blog Network as Video of the Week. 

The Fabulab's Flame Challenge from The Fabulab on Vimeo. 

On the SciAm Video of the Week page, our buddy Bora Z says:

The Flame Challenge, launched with help from Alan Alda, dared scientists and educators to submit videos explaining what a flame is—a subtle concept touching on many subfields of physics and chemistry. What set this contest apart from other science communication contests is that the judges were roughly 6000 11-year old students at 130 schools. Members of the Fabulab earned an Honorable Mention in the challenge, and it’s our favorite video this week.

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Creativity Moves Nashville (and Alphachimp!)

Perrin Ireland graphically records Creativity Moves Nashville; Credit: Matthew Freise, NossiAlphachimps love the lure of the open road- we’ll willingly pack our markers and paper, load up the old roller luggage, and travel around the world to graphically capture an event.

But the events we attend at home, here in Nashville, are a sweet relief. What could be better than going to an action-packed event full of inspiring speakers who all live within a stones throw of us, and then getting home in time for dinner?

Needless to say we were thrilled to be invited to scribe a recent local event, Creativity Moves Nashville. Organized by Jacob Weiss, this half-day conference, held on May 24th, was devoted to connecting artists with causes and entrepreneurs.

Weiss exemplifies a compelling method for artists to lead creative lives full of meaning and success. The solution is simple: make your art relevant, and purposeful, by connecting with a nonprofit or an entrepreneur with a cause, and create impact in your community.

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Dangerous Doodles & Google's Internet at Liberty 2012

Activists and experts from around the world converged in Washington, D.C. on May 23-24 to explore the most pressing dilemmas and exciting opportunities around free expression in the digital age.

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A Personal introduction to Business Model Studios

In April, we hosted a very special guest in Nashville. The talented and witty Patrick van der Pijl, producer of the best-selling business book, Business Model Generation.

For 10 days, Patrick worked with our team to accelerate the production of a new online course set to launch June 1st.

This course is perfect for the busy facilitator, consultant or manager who works with teams to examine, understand and innovate new business models.

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Alphachimp scribes Paramore University

ABOVE: Diane Durand, Managing Director of Alphachimp Studio Inc. scribes for Josh ClarkParamore, the Digital Agency, presents bi-annual Paramore University events where friends of the agency learn from brilliant digital thinkers and doers about how to improve their digital marketing. In typical Paramore style, the events are fun, entertaining, informative, and savvy.

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Science Storyteller at Nature Research Center Grand Opening

Today, Alphachimp's own Perrin Ireland, is the "artist in residence" at the The Nature Research Center, an 80,000-square-foot wing of the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences.

The public is invited to a 24-hour grand opening celebration from 5 p.m. on Friday, April 20 through 5 p.m. on Saturday, April 21, 2012. This is the largest street party for Raleigh, North Carolina, expected to draw 50,000 nature-loving participants.

The NRC currently under construction, will bring research scientists and their work into the public eye, help demystify an often intimidating field of study, better prepare science educators and students, and inspire a new generation of young scientists.

The cornerstone of the NRC will be the SECU Daily Planet, an immersive, three-story multimedia space that will host live programming on current science issues and feature nature films on a giant screen. Other highlights include a 10,000-gallon aquarium with lionfish, bonnethead sharks and Atlantic stingrays, and Investigate Labs, where visitors can perform scientific experiments designed and led by Museum researchers and educators.

MORE: http://blogs.plos.org/takeasdirected/2012/04/17/perrin-ireland-alphachimp-nrc-artist-in-residence/

TEDMEDsters ride forth...

TO CONQUER IGNORANCE, INEPTITUDE, INEQUITY AND INJUSTICE!

from Peter Durand, Creative Director of Alphachimp Studio Inc. 

ABOVE: Peter & Diane with their trusty iPads at TEDMED 2012

TEDMED can be described as the Baby Doc spinoff of the TED Mothership.

Or, it can be summed up as a glimpse into why the human race is doomed and how we screwed everything up through ignorance, gluttony, greed, avarice and the three other deadly sins, and that only a radical change in personal and communal decisions will save us.

(It seems like between the body's natural frailty, Pandora's Box, evolutionary biology, a $15,000,000,000 deficit and malpractice lawyers... we have our collective work cut out for us!) 

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#TEDMEDLive

Over 1,200 delegates gathered at TEDMED 2012 from all around the globe and virtually every profession from the Director of the NIH to the world’s foremost big wave surfer. For almost 90 presentations and performances, comprising 11 sessions, over 3 days we created digital scribing assets available on Flickr, YouTube, the TEDMED blog, and in PDF summaries.

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