It started with the Sustainable North Carolina Business Collaboratory in May, and continued with the launch of the New Economy Leadership Roundtable in Washington, DC in September. There is a NEW WAVE building toward multi-sector collaborations to meet the unprecedented challenges we face today. 

In September, FutureWave was asked to design and facilitate a gathering of 35 thought leaders dedicated to building a social movement for a just, sustainable economy. Invited guests included CEOs of business, leaders of major educational institutions, and directors of social movements, foundations, government agencies and advocacy groups.  

The New Economy Genius  was in the room.  

It was our job to ignite conversation, capture ideas, identify the common vision and build agreement to work together toward that common vision. It meant that people would have to agree to accept and honor differences in agendas and philosophy, and be able to identify and focus on their common vision. How could they utilize their collective power to advance the ideas and policies that united them? 

Since then I've been doing some thinking around the importance of mass collaboration. 

In the past we focused on developing people and teams. Then the need became, how do we get people to work together across departments within an organization? Our challenge was to eliminate silos. 

Now ... to meet the challenges we currently face, we have to expand our concept of collaboration to include not only those we currently work with, but also people outside our own organization. 

How do we bring together multiple sectors---business, nonprofit, government, academia, and social networks---to create new ways of innovating, building business and tackling the global challenges that face us today? 

This type of cutting-edge collaboration taps into huge potential while raising difficult questions: 

• How do we bring diverse groups together for true dialogue that leads to common vision and inspired action?

• How can we shift our focus from the things that separate us to the common elements of our individual visions that can unite us?

• How do we ensure that all voices are heard and outcomes supported?

In closed system groups, to ensure accountability, the vision and action plans can be tied to compensation and advancement. It was possible to put "teeth" into the decisions. We have some "push" power to enact the change we want. 

In multi-sector collaborations, how do we ensure accountability and follow-through? I believe we must move from a "push" form of motivation to a powerful "PULL." 

How do we work together to create a common vision and pathway forward that is SO COMPELLING that people can't help but become excited and put their energy into following through? How do we work with people in a way that they feel like they "Can't NOT" take steps to initiate change? The motivation shifts from an external push to an internal pull. 

We have been facilitating and attending meetings and conferences around the country, and there is one voice continually missing from the conversation--- Teens-to-Twentysomethings.  

We say that youth are our greatest resource, yet when was the last time you really sat and talked with someone in this age group? Did you listen? 

FutureWave believes that youth have a lot to say, and a lot to contribute to the Conversations that Matter today. We set out to design a high-energy, engaging process that tapped into the youth genius in the room. 

With the help of an amazing group of teens with the North Carolina State Youth Council, we launched our first Youth PossibilityNOW event on September 25 and 26 in High Point, NC. A diverse group of 75 teenagers gathered from around the state to participate in this event.  

In our last issue of The Wave Report, we talked about the SQUINT FACTOR.

Then we began wondering about all the missed opportunities there are to really get people who are passionate about a particular topic area in a room to talk about what they were squinting at.  

Imagine the conversations, ideas and breakthroughs that could emerge if you really got people talking about what they see as the next wave or the cutting-edge solutions and opportunities in their given area of expertise. We asked ourselves , "How do we tap into the Genius In The Room?" 

Hence, "The Speaker Alternative" PossibilityNOW! Caf�

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