Great events will cast their shadows before:

This year, there will be at least four more PM camps.

After the magnificent meeting at Stuttgart #pmcamp13str of   May, 3^rd/4^th, 2013 , we will meet again in Vienna for the #pmcamp13vie on  June, 21^st/22^nd, 2013, in Bad Homburg for the #pmcampRM on  27^th through 29^th, 2013, in Berlin for the #pmcamp13ber on September, 13^th through 15^th, 2013 and, as the year comes to an end for the “mother of all PM camps” #pmcamp13 in Dornbirn on  November, 14^th through 16^th, 2013.

Here is the definition:
A PM-Camp is nothing other than a Barcamp, where project managers, entrepreneurs, leaders, students and similarly minded people meet.

This is the reason why I am going to start a small IF blog series on barcamps in general and PM camp in particular.

Today you will read part 1:

Why I Go There!

I was born in 1950. My generation had a nice time to live in. In our Central European home, we experienced luxury as the human race did never before in its history. We were allowed to grow up in a free society. Suppression and force were at least reduced to a tolerable degree. For most of us, education was affordable. And, above all: there was no active war fought on our soil!

To be sure – not all was well. The consumption terror born during the time of the economic miracle was negative. We, too, fell victim to it. The only unnatural threat for our lives was on the streets, where motorized traffic caused many victims, injuries and deaths (in our circles, as well). Perversely, however, we accepted those as logical consequence of our so-called new freedom.

When all is said and done, I and my central European generation probably lived in a time when we were better off than humans had been at any other time. At least that is how I perceive it. I wish to express my gratitude for this and hand as much of my experience and knowledge as possible on to many people.

At the same time, my generation did more damage to this planet than any other generation before us. As I see it, we may not have done it intentionally, but we have certainly been most careless. Because the knowledge we have today (see Club of Rome and others) was already available.  Well, there is a lot we would have to make up for, but we will not succeed. For me, this means a duty to also write about the mistakes we made. After all, you can also learn from mistakes.

Consequently, I particularly enjoy doing presentations for young people. Currently, however, the best way to hand on experience and at the same time work on your constructs are barcamps.

This is why I like going to barcamps whenever my time permits it. And I particularly enjoy the PM Camp.

RMD
(Translated  by EG)

P.S.
I intend to continue in my series with topics such as
What are my experiences on a PM Camp!
What is my contribution at a PM Camp!

A short time ago, I saw “Moses” at the Münchner Volkstheater. I was deeply moved by the play. It also activated my knowledge about  “the burning thorn bush on the Horeb Hill“. This episode marks a significant change in religious history, because here was the first time God made a pact with his “chosen people“ – at least that is how the story is interpreted by the humans. And ever since then, the traditional and often so-called “holy“ stories of human history are characterized by a God who plays the role of an alliance partner with your own interests or group.

In my book, however, the very idea of a “chosen people” drives me crazy. I think of a terrible analogy with our late history. After all, we, too, ran after a maniac less than a hundred years ago. He claimed to lead a race of superior beings into a thousand-year future, as was befitting for said race. And in doing so, he caused endless misery. Perhaps he, too, heard a ”burning thorn bush“ speak to him at some time in his life?

And there is no end to insanity. Tanks are blessed by military priests. Suicide murderers blast themselves into the sky in the name of God. And God is constantly called the alliance partner with their own interests. This is the exact opposite of a world full of love, respect and honour. And in the “Holy Land”, the situation is more complicated than ever before …

All I can recommend to you is: go and see Moses at the Volkstheater. And in a few days, I will tell you about my own religious experiences when I was between nine and ten years old.

RMD
(Translated by EG)

P.S.
The picture is part of the press release (Pressematerial) submitted along with the play. It belongs to the Münchner Volkstheater. The copyright is with the photographer Arno Declair.

The two presentations I gave last week on “The Change in Management” never got boring. I enjoyed them very much and I got the impression that my audience, too, had fun. Consequently, the feedback I received was also very nice for me

Since the presentations were quite interactive, it is not easy for me to put them in writing. Still, let me write down a few points, even if quite a few things that happened during the presentations will be lost to you.

Change will come – if we want it or not.

My two presentations were about

• Project Management;
• Management;
• Entrepreneurship;
• Leadership;
• Innovation as Creative Destruction;
• Craftmanship;
• The  “Co” Era: co-creation, co-programming, co-operation …
• Future is Female
  Why do so few women serve time in prisons?

All these are elements both of our private and professional world. In enterprises and institutions, we create future. The following factors play an important role:

• The culture we practice in the social systems and
• how said systems are organized.

Processes of communication, decision and responsibility change.

Who knows the terms:

Barcamp, Jam Session, OpenSpace, Fishbowl?

If not, maybe you should look them up in Wikipedia.

Today, the following is important:

Sharing knowledge, hand on experience. From those who are in the thick of it for those who are in the thick of it. Consumers want to turn producers.

You meet at eye-level. Fear-free rooms make creativity possible.

What was it like in former times?

• Trees grew from the bottom to the top.
• At the top, you had the hierarch, clear command structures, disciplinary bosses.
• And it worked for a long time. It was a simple and well-structured, and, above all, a stable world.
  Example: German electronics concern (dealing with everything around electricity) as a hierarchical organization. It was built following the pattern of the German Reichswehr. Build up and procedures are organized, structured into enterprise sectors with up to 10 hierarchical levels, staff divisions for shared tasks, such as F&E, Marketing and all kinds of central functions.
• That is how the matrix: organization with full/dotted lines and staff and central units was created.
• Example: electronics concern, business areas motors/generators, small appliances… Shared design, etc., sales, etc., research were central staff units.
• This organizational model originated with the industrial revolution – Taylorism-style and mechanically. And for a long time, all went well with it.
• After a few years, the organization (mostly only parts of it) had to be modified. But that was easy.

Today, this is no longer an option – which is why so many people lament about their enterprises suffering constant re-structuring. Except that this is not enough for following the speed of change. Consequently, “after the re-structuring” more and more often means “before the re-structuring”. Even worse: the next re-structuring will begin before the last one is finished.

And even in nature, trees grow from bottom to top. The first ones who noticed this were a few idealists in the informatics sector. They put the trees upside down.

• But then, it is not an option to turn trees upside down.
• It would make the CEO the one who supports all (big Frederick as the country’s number one servant).
• So you see, trees are not enough.
• New means of communication, too, cause change. Change brings communication.
• This is how the transition from the tree to the network happens in the shape of a ball in the three-dimensional space.

(Note: even in military dimensions and in warlike conflicts, it seems that – when all is said and done – network-like structures are superior to hierarchical command structures, even if the latter have a huge resource superiority).

Well, all of this is not precisely news. As early as in the 1980ies, there was a remarkable development, for example at St. Gallen College. They came up with a “management model” which makes the HSG world famous. Its basic points are the eight theses by Hans Ulrich – “Management – Essays, part 2,   1981 – 1998 On the Change in Management”:

• Accept the uncertainty and unpredictability of the future as normal state of affairs!
  Strategy as planning of a future: acceptance that decisions will always have to be made with an uncertainty factor.
• Expand the limits of your mental concept!
  Against the “but” … and for freedom of ideas. But also: sharing knowledge.
• Applying the categories “both-and“, instead of “either-or“!
  Black-and-white is out, colorful is in.
• Thinking multi-dimensionally!
  Balancing of interests in an ethically responsible way. Basically, humans can only deal with three ideas simultaneously.
• Self-organization and self-control as the model for your enterprise!
  Responsibility, Subsidiarity.
• Consider a manager’s job as a meaningful task that makes sense!
  New management image.
• Focus on what is really important!
  Working economically.
• Make use of group dynamics!
  Cultures, symbols, rites, rituals.

Today, all is about producing knowledge quickly and shaping the future together. Consequently, what we need is creativity in order to find the problems (first creative obligation). After we found them, we have to make use of our knowledge and generate solutions.

Taylorism and “mechanism“ is no longer possible in modern social systems. It is better if we gain the necessary knowledge through the new communication formats.

(Note on private life: the traditional family model, too, was Taylorist and mechanistic. Does anybody still want it?)

Unfortunately, many managers to this day do not understand it and many enterprises still live in the yesterday. This also explains why the “new enterprises” are such a success. It took them only a few years to overtake the “old industry”.

The roots of what happens today and in this country can be found among the (then criticized) prophets of the Bonn republic, such as Adorno and Habermas (Frankfurter School):

Dominion-free/fair discourse as a basis (Habermas)

1. No outward restraint must hinder the discussion.
2. Having the best argument is the only reason for winning.
3. Everyone gets an equal chance to take part in the discussion.
4. Everyone must be capable of “self-portrayal without offense“ and make himself transparent for the others.
5. Everyone must be prepared to talk about the basic decisions he made in life and be prepared to have them criticized. (There is a clever system of speech and counter-speech, having to prove all you say, experience, authority, etc.).
6. Nobody enjoys special privileges because of his age, experience, authority, etc.
7. Everyone must be prepared to change behavioral expectations with everybody else. The same is true for switching roles.
8. The discussion will continue until a consensus is reached. As soon as the truth is accepted, it will determine the future life and behavior of all the parties concerned.

It all sounds unrealistic and utopian, but it will become more and more reality:

• Through formats such as jam session, barcamp, openspace, fish bowl;
• Pecha Kucha, Ignite;
• Round meeting halls;
• Web 2.0 (interactive Blogs, Twitter)
• Wikipedia and Open Source
• Social Media like Facebook and Google+ as a logical conclusion.

Thesis:

The dominion-free discourse is filled with life. In a hybrid combination with the internet (social web), the new world of shared interests gets stronger and stronger. A new society of communication and “gaining knowledge“ is built. Belonging and sharing get more and more important as values.

And being part of it will make you happier and more successful!

So I tried to give a future-oriented presentation.

RMD
(Translated by EG)

On Friday, it was already sitting in my letter box. And at first sight, it actually looked like a folder with spiral binging. We at InterFace have a few brochures of this kind. One of them is called flatland.

It tells you what sort of entrepreneurial culture we would wish to practice. Well, it is a little utopian. But I believe in it. It is very exciting. The new bran

eins reminded me of “flatland“. But I will write about “flatland“ some other time.
As always, the first thing I do is let the outside appearance of the new brand eins sink in. A friendly gentleman looks at me from the cover page. He is probably older than I.

That is something I enjoy, because it means that, after all, I might still have a chance of some day landing on the cover page of a magazine. The gentleman emanates piece and dignity. Well, that is good news, isn’t it?

Then I see the heading: 
Not For Cowards 
Olla! What might be the meaning of this?

I still do not know if I am a coward. Or am I (what)? What is the opposite of a coward?

A courageous person? A fear-free person? At the moment, I am too lazy to look it up. I will do so tonight. Incidentally, being lazy is an important virtue. It brings a lot of happiness. All you have to do is dare to be lazy. In a way, being lazy is not for cowards.

I read on and get to the focal thesis The Good Life. Again, something comes to mind. Do I have a good life? My spontaneous answer is – doubtless, I do! But then I also read the small print on page one: 
“Today, I have the nice feeling of having decided in favour of the right priorities” Gerd Knop, 70.
Well, once in a while, it pays to read the small print. It is the solution to the riddle. The gentleman looking at me in this content way is Herr Knop and he is 70 years old.

So I plunge into the magazine – as always, the first thing I read is the editorial by Frau Fischer. It says “Not a Matter of Luck” and I think to myself: “it is probably not a matter of luck whether or not you set the right priorities“? Well, this is nowhere near as easy as it looks. I do not know. But it is certainly exciting.

To me, it seems like the magazine is quite bulky. It has 170 pages. Well, that is a lot, isn’t it? Again, the first thing I have to do is hold it up and give it a shake so that a lot of adverts can fall out. I am sure you remember me writing about this the last time around. So I get the wastepaper basket and dump all the adverts in it. I feel like Mother Hulda. You can expect it to snow soon on our planet. And the result is – the magazine is now a lot less bulky.

So am I now the kind or the unkind girl? Basically, I know: I must be the kind girl. After all, I did a lot of shaking out material. And I also have the nice feeling of having my priorities just right. And I enjoy life as long as I can still learn and experience new things.

It only takes a few pages for me to see that, again, there is a lot of precious stuff I can learn from this magazine. With other high-gloss magazines, this never happens. Not even with “Playboy”. Neither with business weeklies or manager magazines or periodical journals with the same words on their cover pages (just like there are many parties with words such as “Christian” or “Social” in their name). No matter how I turn them upside down, nothing useful for me will ever fall out.

So here it is in a nutshell: again, they wrote a beautiful magazine with a great title. I will let a few other people read it and then take it with me on my travels. And here is what I say: if you read brand eins, you will not become the unkind girl.

So here are the kind girl’s best wishes for your weekend.

RMD
(Translated by EG)

Last Tuesday, Wilfried Bommert of the WDR was our guest at Unterhaching. Wildfried Bommert is a well-known expert when it comes to “feeding the world”. He also published several books on the subject. Currently, he and a few partners are establishing the Berlin  “Institut für Welternährung”.

Our last presentation in the series “living and surviving in a sustainable way” was yet again another highlight of the 2012 IF Forum. Herr Bommert deliberately kept his presentation very short and concise. We had planned this, because, after all, we wanted to produce an attractive video recording for Youtube as an extra value.

I think we succeeded. Every single sentence uttered by Herrn Bommert was right on target. Without employing unnecessary emotions and questionable judgements, he reported facts in a very objective way and came up with simple, logical conclusions.

Consequently, there was a long discussion after the presentation. It was extremely constructive and passionate. And we agreed: the messages sent by Herrn Bommert are important. He demonstrated in a very simple and rational way how feeding the world dangles on a thin string. And how easily this string could and perhaps will break.

However, Herr Bommert also showed us ways to change matters. And he also showed us that it is, indeed, possible for us to prepare for the time after our stupid and eventually fatal economic habits will have caused a collapse. Consequently, his finishing lines after a very thought-inspiring list of facts and judgements were rather nice and optimistic.

With Vienna sausages and meatloaf (of course from the butcher Schlammerl of Ottobrunn), we spent quite some more time discussing things in small rounds. And finally, when the hot spiced wine and ginger bread were served – also from a local bakery: Götz of Taufkirchen – the general atmosphere was one of courage in view of a possible future and joy about all the interesting information and the culinary delicacies.

I already look forward to watching the video recording by Friedrich Lehn. As soon as it is finished, we will make it available for you on all our diverse Youtube channels.

RMD

Here are a few pictures to refresh your memory and maybe arouse your appetite for the video.

Wilfried Bommert talking to Mr. and Mrs. Gerlach. Thomas Gerlach works for the Bayerischer Rundfunk. He was the one who first introduced Herrn Bommert to me.

The introduction to the presentation. It will start right away …

As so often, all pictures were taken by our Rolo Zollner.

Since so much I do not understand is happening all the time, I will now write down a few utopian ideas I like very much, indeed. And I am determined to develop a few ideas on each of those utopian concepts that justify and explain why I, personally, do not consider them all that unrealistic.

• Penalty-Free Society
  It would be nice if there were (almost) no jails. If we could organize living together without having to punish. If we refrained from revenge and instead were to try and prudently minimize the social damage.
• Violence-Free Society
  What about a society free of physical violence against each other, where regions and peoples can live side by side without wars? It would be nice to treat animals and nature in a reasonable way. It would be nice to have a community where opposing ideas could be dealt with at eye-level in a “domination-free and fair discourse”.
• Democratic, Tolerant and Transparent Society without Fundamentalism, Dogmas and Taboos
  Education and enlightenment will counter fundamentalism, dogmas and taboos. It is the only way to find and further develop a shared, humane concept of society. Transparency is the requirement for a common way of thinking and deciding, for achieving new insights through consensus. And tolerance is the Ultima Ratio. Intolerance should only be permitted against intolerance, and even there it should be used with extreme caution.
• A Society of Sharing and Belonging
  I would wish to have a free society. I society where ownership is reasonably distributed and private property is regulated in a responsible and differentiated way. Which includes a particularly sensitive view of “intellectual property”. As far as possible, it should be shared as general knowledge.
• Humane Economy
  I would wish to have an economy that is not powered by the great financial mechanisms and where all activities and behavior is not determined by profit. An economy that is free from lobbyism and the main purpose of which is to provide humans with products and services that make sense (like, for example, it says in the Bavarian Constitution). I would wish to see an economy where enterprises the goal of which is less profit optimization and more an increase of the common good are appreciated.
• Media Free of Marketing
  Why are the media always dominated by marketing? Why do I get two units of brainwashing along with one unit of information? Why do some elements think I am so incapable and take me for someone who cannot make up his own mind about his needs? Why does all the world want to manipulate me for their own advantage and my own disadvantage?
• Soft and Rational Mobility
  How nice would it be to have a mobility without constantly being in a rush and having to fight? Without evil smells and noise? A mobility that serves a purpose, instead of providing us with an emotional arena for ego-boost and self-portrayal? Without burning fossil raw materials? Slower and yet more efficient.

You will say I am a dreamer – but I counter with citing John Lennon in the last paragraph of his “Imagine”:

You may say I am a dreamer
But I’m not the only one

I hope someday you’ll join us
And the world will be as one

And let me remind you of all those utopian ideas that used to be considered totally unrealistic, yet today are a matter of course: women’s vote, violence-free education of children and much more.

RMD
(Translated by EG)

During the vacation I spend in the wild South of Greece (Peloponnes, Mani), I sometimes read a few of the internet “information pages”:  ARD, SZ, Spiegel and such.

And I notice that remarkably often the news sound helpless. Take, for instance, mobility. Here is what I read:

Even the vehicle that won the VCD price for being equipped with the most economical combustion motor still produces far too much carbon dioxide. Electronic cars are nowhere near coming onto the market. Fuel prices skyrocket…

And then there comes the fear:

What will happen to the backbone of the German industry – automobile industry?

To be sure, the fear seems justified. But here, too, there are solutions. And we definitely should concentrate more on the solutions. Also in the “news“. Wouldn’t it be nice if the media were to spread less helplessness and fear, and instead work at a concept for the future?

Our future will be characterized by change. Because the change we need will happen. In fact, it is already under way. This change will and must happen with our collective and individual awareness. We have to change our mental concepts. And that is what we will do, simply because we will have to do it. The process will be a part of the evolution, supported by our world-wide network through the internet.

And here it begins. Even as I write this, more and more people try to coordinate work and life better. Many use public transportation or their bikes more often than they used to. And they will probably soon use the electro scooter. We will have to and will manage to make our mobility, along with our entire lives, a little more “decroissant”.

In many areas, the hierarchic structures dissolve, being replaced by networks. Entrepreneurial initiatives substitute systemic realizations. Strict interconnection is replaced by lose interconnection, central control makes way for self-control. This will be particularly necessary in complex social systems, and that is where it will happen. Maybe this could also indicate how we might solve our “current problems”, such as EU and EURO.

More and more people start changing their habits. They refuse to be made part of the marketing mechanism. They reduce their consumption. They no longer want status symbols. They are more nutrition-conscious. They get joy in their lives from what is really important to them. They prefer being something to seeming something. They get more critical and autonomous and will no longer accept being told what to think by religions and associations.

If we want change, we need no federal programs. They would be no help, because what must happen has to come from deep inside ourselves. It might be a good idea to do without subsidies and regulations, because they will certainly not help us. The development of our awareness and our values must happen in a fair discourse, free from suppression. And it has already started.

Parallel with this, all we have to do is act. Decentralization is the motto. We all together, as well as every individual person, must do what is right and refrain from doing what is wrong. It is quite simple, isn’t it?

RMD
(Translated by EG)

On Sunday evening, I watched “The News”. Incidentally, this is a stupid euphemism! How would you watch news?

I found it remarkable that they were talking about a “Fateful Hour for Europe”. Just because they had tiny general elections in a tiny European country.  Incidentally, the same country will get a really serious beating next Friday in the soccer game. Because they misbehaved big time.

Or maybe they will cause a sensation. Well, when we are talking soccer, nothing is impossible.

But they call it a “Fateful Hour” – and for all of Europe, at that! Another one of those euphemisms. Are we looking at the next “European War”, or what?

So what is this all about?

For me, the Munich decision about the Third Runway is more important. Perhaps this is really the beginning of an about-face – away from the concrete-chromium-jet-set society? I am not yet courageous enough to be hopeful.

But let us get back to all those billions. In German, one billion means 1,000 times 1,000 million. Unlike the British convention!
Then I heard in the news how fortunate it is for us Germans, too, that Greece will now remain in the EURO zone (?). Otherwise, we Germans would have had to pay additional costs to the tune of more than 100 billion Euros.

Now that, too, is bullshit. But even if it were so: what is an extra 100 billion in this game? In this game, the public corporations of the FRG are already indebted by more than 2,000 billion Euros. Not too long ago, it was a little less than 2,000 billion. In view of this, 100 billion are less than 5 %. This is ridiculous.

And currently the national debt is increasing faster than ever before, regardless of the “debt brake” (another one of those linguistic stupidities) and “an overwhelming tax flow”. Neither the “obligation to economize“, nor the “fiscal package“ (again twice linguistic stupidity) can change anything about that fact. The system is no longer linked to a person. It just runs as it runs.
Besides, it is quite irrelevant whether we reach the 3,000 billion for our national debt sooner or later. Basically, it is quite simple:

This kind of national debt, no matter if we are talking Germany, Greece, Europe or the USA, can only be overcome by one means: inflation (or even better: collapse of the currency).

Let us discuss the friendlier version: inflation (I consider collapse rather unlikely, which is why I am not discussing it).
If we want to achieve a nominal reduction from 2 billion in real debt to 1 billion in a certain time interval (let us say, for instance, five years), then the value of the money must be reduced to half its worth. If we want a reduction from nominally three to one billion, then the money value must be reduced by the factor three. In terms of inflation, there is not that much difference, is there?

Firstly, it is not such a bad idea if the very rich, for a change, have to let go of some of their wealth. The determining factor whether or not someone is going to lose or actually even profit is his or her mixture of investments. And this is one area where the rich cannot be sure about the best strategy. Gold and real estates will not necessarily be the best choice. Which is why mostly the losers are in the majority. In the past, quite a few millionaires ended up paupers.

Unfortunately, the truly poor people who have nothing but their retirement money are the real losers. For instance “Grandma with her savings account” or the “Hartz 4″ recipient. And many more. But it will happen anyway. All we can hope for is that the pain will be eased a little.

Maybe the solution is actually some sort of “un-conditional basic income” – along with supplementary occupations in the typical low-income sector. There is enough work in our society – even for the so-called “social fringe groups“ and “persons with few qualifications“ (another one of those unfortunate phrases).

When we are talking inflation, we often forget that many basic necessities, such as food, are still relatively cheap in Germany, regardless of all the inflation we have. With many products, inflation was softened in the past through an “increase in productivity“ and a “readiness to forego top quality”.

The latter of the two aspects is something I cannot understand. But it can be explained by a (slow) adaption to the lower living standards based on the consumer being massively influenced towards poorer but more attractively labeled products – which, in actual fact reveal a tendency towards an abnormal living quality – through marketing.

The former of the two aspects, increased productivity, might well be a dying swan. After all, “increased productivity“ is only partly due to “real creativity“ and “innovative solutions“. In fact, it is mostly more the result of us treating nature and resources extremely lavishly. Along with a systematic exploitation of humans, both here and in other regions of the world. Using humans and nature in a “non-sustainable“ way might be another one of those euphemisms.

Well, the wealthy people, in particular, are now changing their consumer habits. More and more often, quality beats quantity. It gets more attractive to have “less” instead of “more”.

We face many problems – and they get more and more obvious. However, the only way to solve them will be through creativity, innovation and a different mental concept. “Everything is functioning quite well” and “this is what we always did” will get us nowhere!

So here we go – start NOW

RMD
(Translated by EG)

…  has not yet been invented.

Two weeks ago, I heard a very competent presentation about the future of print media in general and daily newspapers in particular on the Sylt Biike. To me, it seems that the future of the daily newspapers is a rather hopeless affair, especially if you consider what I heard there. No matter if you look at the development of sales or the income by advertising, they are on the decline.

I took this as a motivation to think about my personal “dream of a daily”. Here is what it would have to be like:

I would like a classic, rather small size. Bigger than the “modern size“ of those terrible compact papers, but not quite as extensive as the Süddeutsche.

This paper would have to be of outstanding quality. More or less like “Zeit“, better than SZ and FAZ. As few pictures as possibe and no colour. To make up for it, I would want excellent comments.

It would have to be clearly structured and reliable in its build-up. In order to make it easy on the eyes, it would have to have a reasonable font – perhaps Serifen? And high quality print.

A cosmopolitan paper with a natural European-German focus. A critical paper containing ideology-free and non-dogmatic articles. Written by critical journalists who are courageous enough to question what is generally considered self-evident.

But the most important factor for me would be that it is completely free of adverts!

If such a paper came, I would wish to have it available both on paper and in Kindle format.

Perhaps the paper version could be a daily (including Sundays) to be delivered in the morning, whereas an electronic version might well come out both in the morning and in the evening. Or “dynamically flowing“.

And, at least for the electronic version, I would like to see a “very regional“ local sector. Ideally, it would be written by people living there. I am sure the people connected with local networks would be happy to provide the local information.

This is the kind of newspaper I would gladly subscribe to – and I would be quite willing to pay a steep price for it. And perhaps I would even return to collecting it?

To be sure, this newspaper would also not be able to stop the downward spiral of the  media printed on paper. But perhaps it could – by its marmgin existance – postpone the end of the newspapers as we know them.

RMD
(Translated by EG)

When I asked him for a good speaker, one of my friends working at the „Bayerischer Rundfunk“ advised me to consider Herrn Wilfried Bommert of the WDR. After some initial emails to and fro, we had a nice chat on the telephone.

The result is that he will visit us and give a presentation at the IF Forum 2012 on the general idea of
“Sustainable Living (and Surviving)”.
His presentation will be titled „Feeding the World“.

In order to learn more about Herrn Bommert, I bought his book “Kein Brot für die Welt” (No Bread For The World). In it, he gives background information on the food crisis.

Incidentally, it is the first ebook I ever bought for the “normal“ price.
Now I read it on my Kindle. It tells you in a very informative and objective way how we humans treat our most important property. I was truly moved by what I read.

The current state of affairs is worse than I would have imagined. And it is hard for me to imagine that any upright person, after having read the book, can still be in favour of, for example, building a third runway for Munich Airport.

I very much recommend for you to read the book:

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