Nebo for Sustainability
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Jan Kearce,
Vice President
Nebo for Sustainability
Jan Kearce is a change
leader, strategist, coach, and partner who brings deep passion and experience
to her work with leaders, teams and organizations. Perhaps equal to Jan's depth
of passion and experience is her commitment to building leadership capacity and
operational excellence that supports sustainability for our planet.
Jan has more than three decades of experience working with leaders and teams to
create results that matter - to them, to their organizations, and to the world.
Jan develops and delivers customized leadership development and mentoring
programs and strategy consulting services that support the vision and action of
individuals and organizations committed to ensuring that we live and work in
balance with the earth.
Jan's breath and depth of experience, as well as her education and training,
have fostered her unique ability to connect with what matters to people at all
levels of the organization. She is known for her ability to listen for, hear, and
integrate the emotional, intellectual, physical and spiritual aspects of the
work of an organization, enabling her to catalyze the effective co-creation of
a strategy and implementation plan that realizes results.
With diverse experience as a leader in manufacturing, outdoor education, and
environmental organizations, Jan has experience leading initiatives that span
from quality, safety and operational excellence to design of "a great
place to work," strategic and fundraising planning, and mergers at the Georgia River
Network, Outward Bound, and CertainTeed Corporation, among others.
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Kate Ebner
Executive Coach, Principal
The Nebo Company
In 2004, Kate Ebner founded The Nebo
Company with a vision of bringing innovative people, ideas, research, and
methods together to crystallize visions for a better future and to make those
visions real. Kate is deeply committed to a peaceful
and sustainable future. She has collaborated with Peace x Peace, The Soul of
Money Institute, the Oneness-Family School, and other organizations dedicated
to making a difference in the world.
Kate is a member of the faculty and
co-director of Georgetown
University's Leadership Coaching Program, a renowned certification
program for coaches approaching leadership coaching from an organization
development perspective.
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Featured Resource
The Necessary Revolutionby Pete Senge, Bryan Smith, Nina Kruschwitz, Joe Laur and Sara Schley. For an introduction to the transformational strategies needed for a sustainable world, read The Necessary Revolution. Authors share the stories of innovative leaders working collaboratively to develop creative solutions and business practices that will lead to sustainability.
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December 2009
A View from the Field
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Welc ome to our first issue of A View from the Field, an e-newsletter that highlights the adventures of Nebo for Sustainability, a division of The Nebo Company, and leaders working for a better world.
Nebo for Sustainabilty develops and delivers customized leadership and mentoring
programs, and strategy consulting services that support the vision and action of
individuals and organizations committed to ensuring that we live and work in
balance with the earth.
Join us on our adventures each month. Let us know what you think as we share stories of leadership and leaders making a difference in the world. Join our mailing list
Sincerely,
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Nebo for Sustainability News On October 16th, we launched Nebo for Sustainability with an all day focus group for leaders from not-for-profit, government, media and business organizations working for a sustainable future.Kate Ebner presented a workshop on Personal Sustainability at the ASAE, Association for Association Executives, Women's Conference in Washington, DC.
Last week, Jan facilitated conversations for Prince George's County's Envision process through America Speaks. Envision Prince George's is a call to action to develop and implement a vision for a county with a vibrant economy and high quality of life for all. For more information, America Speaksor Envision Prince George's
Kate and colleague Lloyd Raines, MCC, presented a workshop on how coaches can play a key role in creating a sustainable world with their presentation, Coaching for Sustainability - Shifting from Scarcity to Sufficiency to Create a Sustainable World, at the International Coaching Federation Conference in Orlando, FL.
The Nebo Company will introduce the Global Sufficiency Network to Washington, DC, early next year. The mission of the Global Sufficiency Network is to spread the message
and practice of sufficiency for the creation of an environmentally
sustainable, spiritually fulfilling and socially just human presence on
the planet.
Stay tuned for our workshop schedule and more sessions on Personal and Leadership Sustainability.
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Nebo for Sustainability Kick-Off Event
 The Nebo Company launched its new practice, Nebo for Sustainability, by announcing plans for an "into the field" experience - an innovative, engaging conversation aboard a sailboat on the Chesapeake Bay. However, on the scheduled day of the event, small craft warnings drove us into a conference room with an incredible view of the Bay. Leaders from government agencies, non-profit groups, education, the media, and business joined us for a day-long focus on leadership. With the environmental challenges of the Bay as a backdrop for the conversation, participants shared their own organizational missions and leadership stories.
Perhaps it was fitting that small craft warnings drove us inside for our day of conversation. As our participants shared, the people who lead for the environment have to be effective even when they are challenged by dire predictions, news overload, "demand exceeding capacity," unfavorable economic indicators, social disparity, funding shortfalls, the politics of change, gaining the support of the public, and sustaining their own organizations. These challenges brought the group to a discussion of what it takes to be a leader and, indeed, to sustain effective leadership.
On-going commitment to the work is key to leadership sustainability. There is no doubt that this group of experienced leaders remain committed to their missions. Why? Each leader shared an experience about an event,
place or time that was foundational to their connection to the earth
and its inhabitants. That connection led them down a path of service to the environment and to their roles as leaders. At the same time, they recognize that they have huge responsibilities and need support to sustain their efforts.
Highlights of their thoughts include:
Leaders need to BE "prudent, bold, fearless, inspirational, plausible,
dynamic, responsive, transparent, supportive, honest, capable, open, communicative, visionary and capable of saying "I don't know," and "help." Our participants created a challenging image of leaders and described a need for ongoing leadership development and "survival" skills. Have open, difficult conversations with diverse groups to develop workable solutions. Each
leader in the group was from an organization with similar, yet vitally different
paths to sustainability. From their path, each leader provided a
unique perspective on the environment - what's important, who needs to be
involved, actions required, defining success, and urgency. The ability
to meet and have tough conversations, followed by action, is critical to their success.
Nurture the spirit of followers and leaders. Recognizing
and celebrating each step along the path of sustainability
provides energy for the next step. Our leaders say, "Keep the faith - persist. Stop and celebrate. Balance the good / bad news. See the possibilities."
Take time outs for reflection, alone or with a cadre of leaders. "Pause and get
perspective - take time to be creative - consider - what else?" Share stories with others.
Give our conversations time to develop and deepen. Our day on the Bay was far too short for the depth of conversation. Giving our conversations the time they deserve, in the midst of busy schedules, may lead to greater understanding.
To that end, we plan to meet again, aboard a sailboat, on a clear, windy day on the Bay . Future offerings will also expand our perspective as we engage more leaders.
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Creative Leadership -
"Rock the Green Revolution"
Twenty-five years into  a highly successful 25-year career in media creation, specializing in youth education and entertainment, Rick Velleu is off on another creative adventure. As he says, "I am applying what I know to something I believe in." Rick is leading "Rock the Green Revolution" from conception to delivery. Utilizing a "whole new world of connectivity," this campaign engages kids in three ways - videos, a website, and an exhi bit at their local museum. "Visually and aurally sophisticated" commercials for climate change - School House Rock in a new century - will launch on a major network (yet to be determined, but Nickelodeon and Atlantic Records are on the top of the list). The videos will invite viewers to a website where they can engage in a "deep down dig," understand the entire system, what's important and what they can do about it. The last offering completes the learning circle, and involves kids in experiential, "sticky learning," via a locally and sustainably crafted exhibit. It's a three-pronged effort to educate children and paint a clear picture of the possibility that each child can make a difference. Rick is passionate about connecting children, the change leaders for today and tomorrow, to the environment and its challenges in a fun, creative way that encourages life long stewardship rather than instill fear. As a child growing up in Minnesota, during the first wave of environmentalism, Rick was always happiest in the wilderness. That feeling has never left him. It is a core driver for "Rock the Green Revolution." He says, "If you want to change the world, you have to reach the kids," and "if you reach them when they are young, the feeling never goes away." Their experiences may immediately inspire them to play a leadership role at school or home to, for example, reduce, reuse, recycle and repair. Longer term, the kids become the decision makers and funders of the future. Like Rick, they may be inspired by the connections of their youth. Prior to his latest adventure, Rick spent 15 years with
the Jim Henson Company before moving on to Nickelodeon, where he
designed the character of Dora for "Dora the Explorer." He has also
directed documentaries for multiple networks, wrote for feature
films, and worked for The Climate Group to create a consumer campaign called "Together." |
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Sustainability is....
"meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs."
As individuals, leaders and a member of communities of work, play and life, we each have an impact on the problem and the solution. Discovering our potential to act begins with seeking answers.
To achieve personal sustainability, where would you look? How would you answer the question:
- Am I living today to ensure that I meet my present
needs without compromising my ability to meet my future needs?
Think about your own personal resources, tapped and untapped. What are those resources? How are you nurturing your most valuable resources - your heart, mind, body, and spirit? What choices do you make that positively (or negatively) impact the environment? The same question can be asked about your finances.
The key is "sustainability begins with me."
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