People Everywhere Thrive!

On April 5 and 6, 2024, the HSD Community will gather in Minneapolis to bring this vision to life. People from around the world—old friends and new explorers—will engage in dialogue to:

• Nurture relationships that sustain us and our vision of a thriving future
• Build our Adaptive Capacity to use what we have, to do what we can, wherever we are
• Deepen our theory and practice of HSD
• Share stories about what happens when you see patterns clearly, seek to understand, and act with courage

What are your HSD stories? Here are some that have made a difference for me recently.

• Outside of Barcelona, a community of Agilists convened to share their technical theory and practice. My keynote included a short Power of Questions exercise. Stephan* caught me later in the day. With tears in his eyes, he said three patterns had shifted for him, and only one of them was from his work.
• Margaret, a long-time Associate and colleague, signed her whole team up for the ICF Adaptive Action Coaching program. We didn’t know it, but her regional educational coaching program was built on HSD theory, models, methods, and practices.
• In Kiev, Amelika translated an Adaptive Action Lab workbook into Ukrainian to support her neighbors as they continue their lives in a world at war.
• Peter, a community leader in Burundi, strives to transform political violence and hatred into Adaptive Action for individuals and emerging institutions. He is translating Coping with Chaos into French, so he can share it more easily in his community.
• Paulette shares her story in a TEDx presentation. She and her son use HSD to develop coping strategies to overcome his mental health challenges.
• Tammy supports evaluation and learning for the strategic planning unit of a federal agency in the USA. She weaves HSD models and methods into their team dynamics, client relationships, and global objectives.
• Dr. Tom leads a team of medical officers in a Canadian health system. They wonder how he remains calm and kind, even when emergencies cascade. He is bringing them into the HSD conversation to learn the secrets of how he leads in complexity.
• Betty is navigating a major transition in life and work—retirement. Sam’s current transition is from front-line supervision into executive management. Alice is finding her way in the professional world for the first time. Each one draws on their HSD practices to see, understand, and influence patterns, rather than getting stuck in wicked problems.

Bring your stories and your questions into this wonderful, generative community! You have much to learn and share, whether you are new to the journey or a long-time traveler.

*These stories are real, but the names are not.