Mash Up: Capacity Building in a Time of Continual Flux

by Jennifer Edwards

There are least two levels of capacity building: practical usable tools, like technology and web-based platforms, and foundational skills, like adaptability, transparency, agility, and the ability to make clear decisions. Many organizations focus on the former–the usable tools–and assume that the latter will take care of itself, but time and again we see that is [...]

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Next-Gen Interventions: What We Need To Perform

by Edwards & Skybetter

Contrary to common sentiment, ‘next-gen’ does not refer to ‘looking to the youngest person in the room.’ From our perspective, ‘next-gen’ refers to a combination of skills that are effective in their approach to contemporary technology and strategic thinking—a fluid and plural intelligence that entails technologic savviness, an ability to delegate to trusted online presence [...]

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Technology’s A Bitch

by Jennifer Edwards

You spend more waking hours at work (and traveling to and from work) each week than you spend at home (not working). Your ‘life space’ very much includes the space in which you work, and in today’s world, that space is more than likely largely comprised of a computer screen. Therefore, it is important to [...]

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Sustaining the Field Through Change: Facilitate Community by Releasing Control

by Jennifer Edwards

Reluctance to embrace innovation holds the field of dance in stasis. This reluctance (or hesitation) limits outreach, spreading and feeding what many call “fear of change.” My interest lies in disrupting this dangerous pattern of institutionalized thinking in order to challenge each of us to see the possibilities and opportunities that technology, new media, and [...]

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3+ Tips on Managing Stress for Entrepreneurs

by Jennifer Edwards

“Always be a first-rate version of yourself, instead of a second-rate version of somebody else.”   ~ Judy Garland One of the most common complaints I hear from solo-preneurs and small business owners is that they feel behind and overwhelmed. Finding time to get our work finished and the motivation to do it can be challenging. [...]

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Shifting Landscapes: 3 Impact Points of Technology on the Future of Dance

by Jennifer Edwards

Technology is taking the lid off of dance somewhat forcibly. The only way dance will thrive in this climate is by adapting, innovating, and meeting its audiences where they are. While the primacy of live dance performance is not in doubt, its scalability is. The relative popularity of television programs like “Dancing with the Stars” [...]

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Dancing in a Vacuum: The NEA Says Get Online

by Edwards & Skybetter

“American dance is a fugitive art, resistant to capture, elusive in definition, and difficult to quantify.” – Douglas C. Sonntag, Director of Dance for the NEA, 2003 Contemporary dance has an image problem. Its impermanence makes it difficult to critique, its apparent opacity makes it impossible to ‘sell,’ and the bureaucracy around dance production is [...]

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