WWF-UK (World Wildlife Fund) currently pioneers with Tasting The Future. The project aims at taking “practical steps together towards a sustainable food system”. The goal is “to create space to collaborate for change” with “businesses, NGOs, government, social entrepreneurs, artists, activists, and people who are simply passionate about food”. Next to their online NING Network they are hosting an experiential assembly every six months.
ModelMinds collaborated with WWF-UK on last November’s assembly. The challenge was to create meaningful interaction and connections among the attendants. Our role in the organizing team was to clarify the bigger question behind the event. We also helped to design a collective storytelling exercise based on our experience with the BAS Slotdag.
Next to the co-hosting of the assembly, we visually captured the mood and content of the assembly. The purpose of the visual was to involve the wider online network of the ‘Tasting the Future’ movement. In addition, a visual wall keeps those not present updated. So you move the impact of your conference beyond the actual experience.
We worked together with a great team (with Charlotte Millar, Niamh Carey, Simone Poutnik, and Linda Joy Mitchell) at the London’s Living Room, City Hall by Major of London. A typical response of attendants was like:
I really enjoyed yesterday – there was lots of engagement time in those small groups so it was easy to meet and hear from many different people.
(Alan Hunt – University of Newcastle)
Next to the general conference feedback, our client pointed out the added value of us joining the team:
“Manuel & Oscar worked with us as partners to deliver a conference. They brought a creative, dynamic and focused energy to the team, helping us to focus on clear purpose and outputs. They were also able to weave into an existing strong team, no easy thing, and really understood what we wanted to achieve. We would really recommend them and hope to work with them again soon.”
(Niamh Carey, Senior Sustainability Advisor – Food, WWF UK, Dec 2011)