At an event at Roche in Basel last week entitled “Shared leadership in action” #slia22 #slia founder of Buurtzorg Jos de Blok was asked what ideas he has for #Roche. In his response, which followed a presentation he shared, Jos de Blok chose to focus on #purpose. He asked: Are you creating medicine, or are you helping people have better health?
Walking to and from the event location I used the path along the river Rhine. I noticed that quite a lot of people were cycling there. I very much can understand that, as the atmosphere at the banks of the river is really wonderful.
Sharing experiences I had via bikeable.ch, I noticed – in the comments – a wish for a spacious boardwalk at the Rhine river front. It’s a fascinating idea, and I imagine that wider and more attractive spaces for, for example, cycling, walking, jogging and swimming would create lots of added valuable for the population.
What I notice about cities in South India is that there are many buildings, many streets as well as many scooters and cars. Scooters and cars create a relatively high noise level on the streets. Among reasons for this is, I found out, that many people, who use scooters and cars, use the horn frequently as they move forward. In addition, by speeding up and slowing down continuously, engines make noise. A question I came to think of in this regard is how cities can become more environmentally friendly, greener and a litte more quiet. In Pondicherry, i came across some inspiration:
Example # 1: In the beautiful botanical garden at Pondicherry, there are 1,500 plant species from around the world and several fountains.
Example # 2: Besides the botanical garden, there is another beautiful park in the city. The Bharati park in Pondicherry, which is not far from the shore, is a landscaped park featuring a Greco-Roman arch structure, flowers, a play area as well as fountains.
Example # 3: I noticed that along the Goubert Avenue right at the shore, there are no motorized vehicles. It is peaceful there, a great promenade. Also, there are palm trees and a wonderful view over the sea.
As I was walking around in Mahabalipuram, a town of strong historic character in South India, a person, who was selling handicrafts in a shop on the street, started talking to me. I stopped and listened to what he wanted to say.
He explained that his brother had come to Mahabulipuram from Kashmir in North India 28 years ago and had started the shop. As we talked, I sensed he was curious to tell more about the story of the shop. He explained that over many years his brother had bought products in different places, for example in Jaipur. Many of the products, his brother had bought, were handmade.
How will your store develop, I asked. I was quite surprised as he responded that he and his brother are planning to close down the shop and move it to another place in Asia. Asking about reasons for this change, he said that he sees a declining need for handicrafts. People want less and less handicrafts and souvenirs.
The handicrafts store manager also mentioned that there are more than 40 handicraft shops in Mahabalipuram and that this number is too high. Another handicraft store manager, with whom I talked, agreed about this point and added that he thought there would be a need for 10 to 15 handicraft shops in Mahabalipuram.
Following up on this, I asked the store manager what he experiences that people, who come to Mahabalipuram for some days, need. He responded that he sees growth in various kinds of hotels, restaurants and other services. What kind of services do you think, people need?, he asked me.
My initial response regarding what people need was better infrastructure. In this regard, I think about improvement of streets, sidewalks, bicycle lanes, lighting on the streets as well as better buildings. I also mentioned this idea: What about a beautiful, air-conditioned library at the shore, where people can read, have a cup of coffee and enjoy the view towards the sea? And what about creating facilities where people can swim, for an example an outdoor pool at the rocks with sea water such as the one at Bondi beach in Sydney?
He nodded. And then he pointed at the street as well as at the shops on the street. It looks like this:
He also talked about the need to take clean water supply to the next level. Currently, people can – at certain times of the day – collect water, which is purified through filters, at water tanks at the sides of streets all around the town. What is needed next, is, as I understood, that water is channelled into every house, so every household has access to clean, drinkable water.
Later, as I walked down the street to the shore, another person from the local area, who was selling handicrafts, started talking to me. The question about what people, who come to Mahabulipuram, need, also came up in this conversation. As I sensed he wanted to understand what I need, I passed on my thoughts and ideas to him.
For example, I mentioned that cleanliness is important for me. I like when streets, restaurants and other places, I go, are clean. In fact, when I can see that a restaurant is not clean, I choose another place. He responded that he found the government does not do enough to recycle various packaging, people want to get rid of. And as he said that, I came to think about the importance of Drucker Forum‘s 2020 theme “Leadership is everywhere.”
I responded that it is my experience that each one of us can help to clean up. Each one of us can pick up packaging that lies on the street. And each one of us can use a broom to clean up in front of our houses. In addition, everyone can clean windows of houses and apartments we live in. All of us can do something to help keep the community clean. In this regard, I told him about Clean up day in Switzerland, during which everyone can help to make spaces a little cleaner.
Very positive in Mahabalipuram is that it is clean close to the water. This makes it a pleasure to take a walk there.
The monuments at Mahabalipuram in the Southern part of India are UNESCO world heritage. The monuments were carved out of rock during the Pallava dynasty in the 7th and 8th century. The Pallava dynasty , a monarchy that ruled a part of Southern India, existed from the year 275 to the year 897. They were particularly known for their work in architecture. Mahendravarman I, who was King from 600 – 630, had much interest in art and architecture. He was a curious person, liked to learn and worked creatively. Through the King’s initiative, people carved out temples from huge rocks without using bricks, wood and mortar. This technique was an innovation in the field of South Indian art and architecture. Thereby, the King became a pioneer in the development and building of cave temples. Mahendravarman was also skilled in other areas such as music, languages and writing.
The Shore Temple at Mahabalipuram was created between 700 AD and the year 728 AD. It is, I find, one of the most amazing parts of the UNESCO world heritage group of monuments – also because of its Locations close to the shore of the Bay of Bengal. In the time of Pallava dynasty, Mahabalipuram was a popular trading port, and the Shore Temple acted as a landmark for the navigation of ships.
The Five Rathas are also part of the group of monuments at Mahabalipuram and are also carved out of rock. Ratha mean chariot. The five Rathas are in a suburb state of preservation. In fact, many of their carvings are as fresh today as they were 1,300 years ago. They are named after the five Pandava brothers and their common wife Draupadi. Originally, the monuments served as architectural models – not as places of worship. For example, one of the Rathas, the Draupadi Ratha, is created in the form of a South Indian hut. The largest of the five Rathas is the 11 meter high Dharmaraja Ratha, which is dedicated to Lord Shiva. Nakula Sahadeva Ratha is dedicated to Lord Indra and was named after the twins Nakula and Sahadeva, the last two of the Pandava brothers. This is the only ratha among the five that faces south and to some extent resembles a Chaitya Hall, which is a Buddhist prayer hall. The structure looks like the backside of an elephant. Draupadi Ratha is the ratha which lies at the northern end of the five rathas. This ratha is named after the common wife of the five Pandava brothers and dedicated to Goddess Durga.
Following what has been going on at the Drucker Forum, I noticed that care is taken to invite young people to participate in various ways, for example in writing essays. I find this initiative valuable.
Reflecting on these sources, I decided to go out and listen to young people. In the coming postings, I will write about conversations I had with young people, for example about how they live their lives and about what goals they have.
Wie verhält sich ein Zebrabuntbarsch? Der Zebrabuntbarsch ist ein aggressiver Fisch. Besonders aggressiv ist der Zebrabuntbarsch, wenn andere Fische sich auf sein Gebiet eindrängen. Der Zebrabuntbarsch schwimmt sehr gut. Er grabt tief im Bodengrund und reisst Pflanzen aus. Gegenüber seinem / seiner PartnerIn ist der Zebrafisch loyal. Wenn der Zebrabuntbarsch von seiner / ihrem PartnerIn getrennt wird, bekommt er / sie Herzschmerzen. Wenn Zebrabuntbarsche etwa 7 Monate alt sind, sind sie bereit zu züchten. Sie vermehren sich mehrmals pro Jahr und legen Eier auf Felsen.
Was isst ein Zebrabuntbarsch? Ein Zebrabuntbarsch isst Krebschen, Würmer, Insektenlarven, kleine Fische und Larven.
Eine Geschichte die frei aus der Fantasie gedacht wurde:
Es war Samstag. Oscar entschied sich joggen zu gehen. Auf den Weg nach Hause vom Joggen plante er einzukaufen. Denn, an diesem Samstag Abend wollte Oscar Pasta Carbonara für seine Freundin kochen.
Als Oscar loss ging, schien die Sonne. Es war schön zu joggen, fand er. Schon nach 20 Minuten fing es aber an zu regnen. Oscar hoffte, es würde innerhalb kurzer Zeit aufhören. Aber es hörte nicht auf. Im Gegenteil: Es wurde immer schlimmer. Und schon nach 10 Minuten war Oscar total nass. Es regnete so stark, dass er sogar mit Joggen aufhören musste. Oscar konnte aufgrund des starken Regens nur noch in langsamen Tempo zum Supermarkt gehen.
Als Ocar nach etwa 1 Stunde zum Supermarkt kam, war der Laden schon zu. Das Ergebnis: Er konnte, weil es vom Himmel so viel Wasser kam, nicht so viel joggen, wie er eigentlich wollte. Und weil Oscar auf den Weg zum Supermarkt Einiges gehen musste, schaffte er es auch nicht einzukaufen. Etwas traurig wurde Oscar darüber.
Aus dieser Erfahrung lernte Oscar, dass das Wetter sich schnell ändern kann. Er kam auf die Idee ein Wetter App auf sein Smartphone zu installieren. Als Oscar etwas weiter über dieses Erlebnis reflektierte, musste er erkennen, dass es sich gelohnt hätte in dieser Situation ewas mehr zu planen. Auf der anderen Seite denkt er immer noch, dass er doch nicht Alles im Leben planen möchte. Es soll, fand Oscar, auch Raum geben um spontan etwas zu machen.
Fantastic experience watching the sunrise at Saksild in Denmark. I was here with my girlfriend and my mother. As we took a walk around this beautiful area, we did a flashback to the 1960s, when my parents built a summer house not far from this place.
The air here was very fresh, and the sound of the waves as well as the view of the sun rising had a meditative effect on me. I felt energy coming up through my legs through my stomach and breast and up to my head.
Inspiration to create 