By Sven Latzel for Enlivening Edge Magazine
Our story
During the summer of 2018, Rainer von Leoprechting organized an Art of Hosting training at his community farm Obenaus in Austria. Besides the beautiful setting of this training, the lovely weather and very welcoming hosting team, some interesting conversations got started around the topic of the training: ‘the next stage of organizing’.
Is this next stage about a different set of practices? Is it about a step in the development of humankind? Is it emerging from the future towards us regardless of what we choose to do with it? Where does it start and who initiates it?
Since then, this conversation has continued among Sven Latzel, Rainer von Leoprechting, and Jeroen Vermeer, and has evolved into a network called NXTSTG.ORG.
One of our goals is to give the people creating the change a voice. Besides the consultants and the top leaders also the ones out in the trenches, experimenting, getting all muddy and dirty on their learning journey whilst failing forward.
For this, we have initiated a podcast series, in which we interview these people, hoping to share insights of the interviewed practitioners and inspire listeners to start doing the same in their organisation.
Episode 1
The first podcast interview is with Ruth Andrade. Ruth works for LUSH, a wellknown cosmetics company with a strong focus on conscious capitalism and its role in society at large. In this podcast, Ruth shares with us where her passion for more self-organised ways of working originates from, what she encounters in working in the corporate environment and where she sees she can contribute the most.
Ruth is a prime example of someone who can initiate grassroots changes, by taking small steps and inspiring the people around. If you ever had doubts whether or not you are in a position to make change possible, listen to Ruth!
Originally from Brazil, Ruth grew up in a concrete jungle, amidst high-rise buildings, asphalt and pollution, witnessing firsthand the destruction of the natural environment. That prompted her early interest in environmental issues, and fueled a great passion for driving change.
Ruth started working for Lush in 2004, and after a stint in the Covent Garden shop, she became the head of environment at Lush, inspiring many environmental initiatives during that time.
After a long hiatus, Ruth is now back to work mainly on three aims:
- lead brand strategy on carbon drawdown and water,
- support organisational development based on a living systems view, and
- help to further develop the company’s charitable giving strategies.
She is passionate about how to transform business into a force of regeneration and to leverage the power of a global brand to do good.
To listen to the podcast, please visit https://nxtstg.org/2018/11/08/ruth-andrade-from-lush/
Our next interview will be an interview with Marwa Farouq Al Hefnawi and Phil McComish from Teach For All, an organisation developing collective leadership in classrooms and communities around the world, organized as a network of 48 independent, locally-led and locally-governed partner organizations.
About NXTSTG.ORG
NXTSTG.ORG accompanies organizations in transition by opening and holding spaces for reflection, learning, and unlearning. Meanwhile, it aims to share the tools and principles that are being developed in the wide open space of other organisations transitioning to the next stage and with which we have positive experiences ourselves.
We invite you to suggest podcast candidates to us, via an email to [email protected].
Sven has been freelancing as an organizational and IT consultant and expert in Sociocracy. Since 2005 he has been actively working to make the world of work more effective, more mindful and more human-first of all with IT, and in recent years with a clear focus on humans and on the processes which connect them.
