Innovation Symposium

The magic that you know as the IS experience has happened once again…and you should take much of the credit for that.  Because of the foundations you built–with our friends in England and with the 2010 participants–we were once again welcomed enthusiastically and with much love.  This year’s group got the royal treatment from the Ratcliffs (lunch in the oldest pub in the City of London), from Mark Paterson (two extra hours of his time plus a chat over dinner at the Pier House in Charlestown), from Brendan/Lorraine/Elsie at the Gulls (many of this year’s group now own Royal Navy gear), from Kevin Browning at Alexander Fleming’s (extra time and a tour on his day off), from our friends at Harlaxton (the super-secret tunnel-and-bell-tower tour with Ziggy, a fun service activity planting flowers for a wedding courtesy of Cynthia Marke, gardener Andrew Potter, and Dr. Kingsley’s staff, and a send-off by Doug, Lawrence, Cynthia, Tony, Lesley, Clive, and members of the UE faculty…who wish you were all their students), from Karin the only coach driver we’ve ever had in Cornwall (a CD, a piskie charm, and calendar of Cornwall, along with a fabulous new middle-of-nowhere pub for lunch and the scenic animal tour of Bodmin Moor, plus her calm reassurances that she didn’t mind a bit when we held her over three hours beyond her scheduled time despite a treacherous fog rolling into all of southwestern England), and from dear darling wonderful Kathleen (more kindnesses than can be listed, but a fabulous boat trip to Greenwich and our mandatory dinner at Sally Clarke’s are included).

Because of you, we had new friends lined up everywhere, including the most generous Walter Gill, Clerk of the Worshipful Company of Carmen (another of the Ratcliffs’ charities), and Jeff Sloan, innovator deluxe and a friend of Kathleen’s who created Startup Nation.  The staff at Harlaxton had signed up months ago to do our coach driving to Lincoln and Isaac Newton’s; Ziggy already had the tour on request as well.  Doug and Lawrence were delighted to meet us at the station, and Margaret was pleased to give our Manor tour once again (she loves saying “ko-KO-mo”).  In Cornwall, Brendan took time off work to be with us at the Gulls, and Lorraine and Elsie once again gave us run of the house so that we could have a pizza party and class.  Even the staff at Caffe Concerto welcomed us like old friends. 

You did that.  You made that happen because of who you are and how you treated those who offered you  gifts, insights, and lessons.  You made that happen because you let those people know how much you value their efforts and kindnesses.  You made that happen because you were (and are) decent people who acted with respect and appreciation.  You made me proud, and you have encouraged me to continue this program.  Every time I get a little tired, I remember the long-term importance of what we are doing and how it carries on well past the three weeks we share in England.  Thank you for the valuable gifts you gave to IS 2010.  It may take them a little while to understand completely, but they’ll get it.   Well done, you.

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Jamie Oliver has made a positive impact on both England and America. As we came upon his restaurant, we soon found out why he has succeeded. The restaurant is based on the idea of teaching people that need a chance in life how to cook, and now for the first time ever how to serve.

The restaurant 15 is situated in a less glamorous part of London. This was done to entice more business to the neighborhood. I expected the restaurant to be located in a ritzier location in London. We sat down to breakfast, and I soon found out just how effective this plan was.

 Bacon in England is thicker than American bacon. I find it tastes good, but I did not expect to experience bacon quite like the bacon some of us had for breakfast. The bacon was grilled. I have not thought to grill bacon, but I am sure I will want to try it when I get back to the states.

Jamie Oliver not only put his social skills to use but his talent for cooking as well. This combination attracts people to this less attractive side of London, and satisfies their craving. I was very impressed that Jamie Oliver is able to have this program running in England while he is revolutionizing children’s school food in America. Of course, he is able to do this because he has structured these programs so well.

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Saturday the 29th of May we all had a free day to do most whatever we wanted to do. I sort of talked the group into going to the city of York. York is about a hour north of the city of Grantham by way of train. All of us set out to investigate this city that it is rich in history. The whether was cool and rainy which dampened our moods a little. We arrived at York and divided up into smaller groups so we could have a little more mobility.
The site that catches one’s eye at first is the beautiful York Minster. It is a beautiful structure that towers over the whole city. There are so many sites to see at York that a person could stay here for several days and not see the same thing twice. Other sites to see are the castle ruins, Richard the third museum, the York dungeon, the Shambles that is a exhibit from the medieval period,and the wall that once protected the city is still standing in most places. One last thing I forgot to mention about York is the shops. If one is a shopper you will be completely satisfied when leaving York.
I would like to go back to York someday when I could send a little more time there. I would highly recommend this if anyone ever has the chance to visit this location. Before going do a little homework on what is available to see. After leaving we traveled back to Harlexton and reflected on the day. I know that fatigue is starting to sit in on the group, but York was a positive experience.

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While in Cornwall, we went to the Eden Project which is this amazingly beautiful place full of plant life from different regions of the world, housed in bio-domes. The story behind the Eden Project was most interesting. The land sought out and eventually used for the project was a desecrate clay mining pit and was looked at by almost everyone as a waste land. Tim Smit had a vision and would not be discouraged. He would turn this waste land into a beautiful expression of art. Though getting support and funding was seemingly impossible, he found a way to overcome and wouldn’t take no for an answer. Tim had faith in his project and sometimes through the development stages took the road travelled; but he persevered and saw his project through to fruition. Much can be learned from the story of the Eden Project, especially now that we are beginning to develop our project ideas and proposals. Sometimes a good idea can be hard to convey, but after implementation it is impossible to ignore.

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This was a museum where one’s inner child could be set loose! We were surrounded by original inventions that have completely changed our world. How was this museum different than the rest? It was interactive. My favorite interactive exhibit was a room called the “Listening Room” where one could “listen” and see the human element of the internet. Around a hundred screens were positioned in the room and each screen displayed text from the museum’s live, internet chatrooms. For a New Media student like myself, this was insanely cool.

One of the greatest outcomes from this adventure was the debate that was sparked at that night’s roundtable. We were asked to take a stand for the “best” approach to stimulating social and/or environmental change. Grouped in twos, we entered into a heated debate that went from logical to emotionally defensive quickly. That night we learned how to communicate our ideas effectively to others as well as take a person’s criticism and use it to benefit our stand. Overall, a very good day!

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Our initial project proposals were due today, and we presented them to our group.  Just to show you how wonderful our group is and the change that we are going to have I am going to share with you what each person’s project is going to be.  You will see how innovation comes in all sorts of packages.  Each of us have something very special to offer our communities.  I hope you are as proud of our group as I am when you see what is to come with the development of these projects.

In the order presented in this morning’s discussion:

Megan:  “Let There Be Light”.  Implement a legacy program for the terminally ill (population base in development).  Provide opportunity for patient to have a sense of purpose through sharing their past knowledge/experiences as well as a gift for the families that will be left behind.

Greg:  A Health and Wellness Center at IU Kokomo.  While this has been attempted by administration over the past few years, it has not been able to get off the ground.  Greg’s plan is to try and utilize a location on campus that is not being used and start small and grow it from there.  He states his world has opened up through education broadening his mind and he would like to pay it forward to help IU Kokomo get this vision achieved.

Brandie:  Arts summer camp for underprivileged children.  Single parents and low income families do not have the means to provide extra curricular opportunities for their children.  Through this camp children will be able to build their self esteem by gaining artistic skills in a setting that the family otherwise could not afford. 

Ann (aka Nurse Ann as we have two Anns):  Ophthalmology referral program for patients with complicated ocular needs at the Trinity Free Health Clinic.  Trinity Free Health Clinic is the only clinic in Hamilton County currently providing free optical services and glasses to the underserved population.  There is not a network of Ophthalmologists in place at this time, and it is greatly needed.  Additionally, create an RX program for patients that need expensive optical prescription medications for the interim while the patient advocate helps them set up pharmaceutical assistance through other resources.

Geny:  Literacy Program for teenage youth in Rossville.  Studies show that teenage boys and girls who have good reading skills are less likely to engage in sexual activities at a young age.  By establishing this program and creating partnerships in the community she is hopeful to help reduce the increasing teen pregnancy rate in this community.

Anne (the prettier Anne):  Establish an education program with alternative learning for students that are struggling in school through the means of travel.  She would like to create a network with programs already established in Indianapolis and implement them in her own community in Kokomo, Indiana.  Her belief is that not all children learn best in the structure of a traditional classroom setting, and therefore this alternative learning will provide another means to gain confidence and knowledge.

Norma:  Establish assistance for Hispanic families that have children of preschool age in Logansport, Indiana.  This assistance is to provide education with a strong focus on overcoming language barriers.  Her program is unique in that there will also be an emphasis on educating parents as well as the children on the importance of learning English to enable children the greatest opportunities once they start kindergarten.  She intends to establish networks with Reading Railroad, and colleges to help foster this program.

Nicole:  ”SANDY”:  Sports and Nutrition Developed Young.  Establish a sports and nutrition facility to combat obesity.  Her intention is to start with a food service program and grow it into sports recreation programs.  Joining the two together will help combat obesity in today’s youth.  She states that studies show this generation will be the first that will have a shorter life expectancy than their parents. 

Toni:  Assist with improving/maintaining the health and well-being of domestic animals in underprivileged homes.  Some options include a ”Meals on Wheals” program for animals, education components and co-op with another program that is currently addressing similar aspects.  Her belief is that underprivileged families deserve to have the companionship of pets and this assistance will help enable them to do so.

Justin:  Elimination of Illiteracy in Tipton County with a focus on the adults in Tipton County that can’t read or have difficulty doing so for various reasons (e.g. vision impairment).  Additionally, he would like his program to supply adults with their own books, and audio books for those with visual ailments.  His belief is that through improved reading skills the adults will be able to build confidence and develop critical thinking skills.

I AM SO PROUD OF OUR GROUP!!!! 

While these programs are at the beginning phases and may go through adjustments and changes, we are off to a great start!

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Hello everyone, one of our first experiences that I was looking forward to do was Flemings Lab. We got to Saint Mary’s Hospital to meet with curator Kevin. He gave as the tour and It was amazing to experience the development of penicilin. I found facinating to see how patience and determination is a great part of innovations. we got to see some of the utencils use by Fleming himself including the dish in which he observed the anusual. Hey!! pay attention and look carefully for strange things and you may discover the innovasion that will change the world as Fleming did.
cheers and MIND THE GAP haha :0)

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Hello everyone just wanted to let you know about my travels to the British Museum : It was unbelievably beautiful! I really enjoyed traveling back in time, and going to such places as Greece, Rome, China Africa and so many more. What really enjoyed was looking at the way that all of these regions communicated. Carving the daily routines of a society into stone was an affective way of telling stories. Each region developed their own way of communicating and passing the history/legacy of their trib. Clearly someone saw a need and created a fix. Innovation at its best !!!!!! Cheers

originally posted: 2010/05/21 at 4:08 PM

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Westminster Abbey was unbelievably beautiful! Although I enjoyed the architecture, there was much more to be seen there. I really took pleasure in our walk around the Abbey while everyone discussed their innovators that were assigned to them. I talked about Geoffrey Chaucer and Aphra Behn, and why they were considered innovators. The innovators that are buried in the Abbey accomplished such great things. I really admire them all and what they’ve done. They even taught me that it was OK to think differently or with a child-like quality. It only takes one great idea to initiate more. The visit in the Abbey also made me do a little bit of self-assessing. I realized that I need to stop thinking so critically and to completely change my thought process. This visit was very enlightening.

To learn more about Westminster Abbey visit:

2010/05/21 at 12:58 PM

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When I volunteered to blog on our day with John and Marsha Ratcliff, and Walter with the Carmen company, I realized this assignment came with a great responsibility. These are probably the most amazing people in the world with regards to service for humanitarian improvement. John and Marsha are not hurting for friends, resources or things to do. What they are hurting on is time. I am humbled and ever so grateful that the Ratcliffs and Walter spent their entire Saturday afternoon with our group. For me, it has been the most inspirational afternoon I have had on this journey. John, Marsha and Walter are a prime example of what teamwork is and how it can be successful. All of them are quite humble but well aware of the impact they have been able to provide to various charities, primarily supporting The Variety Club. This trio has raised millions of dollars through innovative thinking. Their innovative thinking is another way of saying these folks are creative, persistant and resourceful. I would like a dollar (or pound) for each time one of them has said…”What if we…”. I would probably be quite wealthy in an economical sense.
But what is wealth? Is it how much money you have in your pocket, account or shares of stocks you have obtained. I think John and Marsha understand that wealth comes from the love that you have in your heart and from the relationships established along the way. While they may have a successful business, and I anticipate Walter is well compensated for his tireless efforts to run the Carmen delivery company, they are giving and humble individuals that have a wealth of compassion, love and passion for helping those that they come in contact with.
I had a brief discussion with Marsha. I have concern as I am a new graduate getting ready to enter the field of nursing. There is a great desire in my heart to help the underserved in my community and through mission trips to third world countries. I find I am torn at balancing family, work/school, community and friends. I imagine Marsha is far more challenged with this than I as she states they don’t say no, they just try to figure out how. Marsha’s answer to my question of balance is focus on today. What is the priority, and what needs my attention now? If you worry about the next two weeks, you will go mad. Her analogy is “How do you eat an elephant?” Her answer is “One bite at a time.”
Thank you so much John, Marsha and Walter for taking the time to inspire us. I hope I have given you the justice you deserve in this blog, as you inspired each one of us during our afternoon visit. I will never forget that afternoon, nor will any of my fellow classmates!
God Bless!

2010/05/21 at 1:04 PM

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