Dear Reader,

In the time from winter to spring, alongside worldwide changes…

I said goodbye to my sister, who passed less than two years after my father and so much younger. I’ve been leaning hard on the tools we’ve co-created and new (re)birth stories:

I learned of the impact of Compass tools in “a turning point” for a city “to be more inclusive than we have ever been…to ensure that all voices are represented.”

I celebrated the success of Compass-guided socially-minded ventures: from climate change projects in US juvenile justice schools to social startups in Ghana and Indonesia.

I reflected on the impact of 10 years at the SXSW EDU conference—and all of you who voted for us and we met there—on the birth of this work.

I'll share these new stories, events, resources and even a few songs. May they help navigate any loss and (re)birth in your world.

More, as always, at innovatorscompass.org—just reach out and share your experiences.

To rebirth,

Ela Ben-Ur, Founder of innovatorscompass.org

Try a New Resource

Thanks for your thoughts! Announcing a collection of the core Compass tools:

A powerful single page with all three core tools (Innovators' Compass, powerful punctuation marks, and our human tools) to blend for powerful breakthroughs
A 1-page background overview
A finalized set of full Cue Cards

Compass Core Tools Collection

And a Compass-based community conversation guide (for creating a Cultural Plan in Somerville, MA—story below).

Join a New Event

I'll showcase your global impact work in a "Get Started" recorded video between live sessions of this 12-hour online ISTE/ASCD Conference on 4/5! (time TBD)

Join the second Boston Collaborative Designers Unite gathering 4/10!

Designing Learning Environments for Tomorrow: I co-chair this program with powerful talks and coached worktime with your team. Discounted registration code EBU25LEFT till 4/8.

Rethink who benefits from—and builds—AI. Two free workshops in Cambridge, MA, I'm co-leading with content experts and Innovators For Purpose.

5/1 4-6pm @ MIT Museum with MIT MAD

5/22 12:30-1:30pm @ Volpe Center, part of a daylong AI summit

All Events

Sip a New Story

Compassing a devastating goodbye

I’ve never shared an extended personal story in my professional newsletter. When I watched my father die less than two years ago, I briefly shared how being in nature offered some solace and inspiration.

But having lost my sister so much earlier in her life, it’s been much harder seeing spring rebirth and knowing that she isn’t seeing it, too.

I’ve had to lean into these tools we created more than ever. And, unexpectedly, a powerful song.

Rebirth: A City's Collaborative Turning Point

Daniel Koff, founder of Solomon Office shared this story of the Compass' impact on a city’s collaborative rebirth—a powerful why for this work:

"I'm galvanized that I played a key role in realizing a turning point for the city of Somerville, Massachusetts: its first-ever Cultural Capacity Plan—cocreated with city residents, Forecast Public Art, and Mallory Rukhsana Nezam, and leveraging the long history of this work by the Somerville Arts Council.

The Plan was grounded in community conversations around the Innovators’ Compass questions: what’s happening in the arts and culture community and why, principles to guide development, ideas to preserve and grow opportunities, and experiments to try right away.

Local Ambassadors worked with Ela to create a discussion guide, then independently hosted thirty community affinity groups, totalling 195 participants.

Mayor Katjana Ballantyne said, 'The success of the plan lies in our collaboration and co-creation. It lies in our ability to be inclusive more than we have ever been before in our outreach and engagement to ensure that all voices are represented.'"

Birth: Social Impact Startups Stories

Ghanaian food security startup Soyko Agro Food won an innovation cash prize for their Compass and ABCD (Asset-Based Community Development) guided work. More in this letter from founder Jerone Agyapong to their CorpsAfrica mentor, Garrett Mason:

Birth: The impact of a decade of SXSW EDU (thanks to YOU!)

I just wrapped my 10th SXSW EDU conference (8th as a presenter). This milestone inspired me to reflect on SXSW’s impact on this work.

It’s mindblowing.

The culture of the community, collaborations it invited, and experiments it enabled have been fertile soil for the Compass to grow.

Many of you who came to this work through SXSW, directly or indirectly, helped birth the name, website, Pocket Compass card, international uses and translations (including 16 African languages), and much more. And many of you voted us in amidst thousands of amazing sessions vying for spots, thank you!