Leading from the Edge of Possibility
About
Integral Leadership in Action was conceived in an Open Space session in 2004 during an Integral Leadership seminar that was sponsored by Integral Institute. It featured Ken Wilber and Fred Kofman, and Jeff Salzman was a major organizing force. Dan Noble originated the idea of creating a follow-up group, and core collaborators from year one have been Cindy Wigglesworth, Victoria Wilson-Jones and Terry Poling. Their shared intent was twofold: 1) Continue the conversation that Ken and Fred stimulated and 2) Create a conference that each would personally like to attend.
In 2005, the first ILiA took place at the Westin in Westminster, CO. It was a heartfelt reunion of 40 people. Fred Kofman and Jeff Salzman joined-in, and the structure was relatively loose and open. People received 20 minute time slots to share how they were using Integral Leadership in their lives and work. Their goal was to break even (they did) and experience the joy of being in a community of like-minded cohorts (they succeeded).
2005
October 2007
The second conference (ILiA2) took place in partnership with Integral Institute (II) at the Westin in Westminster, CO. This conference represented a shift – it was more formal and structured and featured cutting edge integral speakers: Susanne Cook-Greuter, Diane Hamilton, and Willow Pearson. Two compelling case studies were shared: 1) Using integral to help with homelessness and 2) Adapting integral in Africa to educate local leaders in AIDS prevention. There were 75 participants and a chunk of them were students in the JFK Master’s program. Because II participated as a partner (to the great relief and appreciation of the planning team), ILiA broke even (that was the goal).
2008
We remembered the beginning foundational idea that ILiA is a “gathering of tribe” and should be a conference that the organizers themselves would want to attend. A traditional conference structure is normally heavy in cutting edge information and is didactic by its nature (i.e., talking heads illuminating passive participants). Yes, upper-left learning is valuable AND cultivating a loving WE space harnesses the power to transform intention into service.
In the spirit of embracing a BOTH/AND perspective, ILiA has developed a new configuration. ILiA is structured as a collaborative—meaning the participants, presenters and organizers are all ONE within the container. A collaborative is cooperative, dynamic, inter-active, and carries an inherent capacity for co-creation.
Returning to the geographical Integral Heartland, but with a twist, ILiA partnered with the newly created Boulder Integral. Along with their Boulder Integral partners Jeff Salzman and Ross Hostetter provided the fantastic venue for Jeff and DianeHamilton to demonstrate facilitation as perspectival interpretation in real time. Andrew Cohen (along with his associates Jeff Carreira, Elizabeth DeBold and Carter Phipps) joined Steve McIntosh, Clint Fuhs, Terry Patten, and many other Integral leaders exploring interactive, experiential, collaborative sessions.
2009
We attained 501(c)(3) status. No longer a “club” or an unaffiliated group requiring that a member or members be repaid after financing an event, ILiA could accept donations, and could bank surplus monies generated by event registration fees.
2010
Inspired at our post Integral Spirituality Conference ILiA’s leaders’ retreat, we began organizing a truly “emergent” event. Utilizing Mike Hohnen’s interest and expertise in European versions of World Café and other such we-space methodologies, we dreamed an open-ended event. We were too early; America wasn’t ready. We decided to cancel when we realized the event would not draw enough participation to ensure solvency.
May 2012
Based on the results of a prior survey, we conducted our fifth conference gathering, “Evolving Leadership for an Awakening World,” on the West Coast for the first time. Intended to be a smaller and intimate venue, we maxed-out at The Chaminade in Santa Cruz, CA with over 70 participants. Large group sessions were led by Don Beck, Jeff Carreira, Barrett Brown, Allison Conte, Bert Parlee, Brett Thomas, Cindy Wigglesworth, Willow Dea, and Dana Carman. For the first time in ILiA’s history, we not only succeeded in doubling our seed money prior to the conference, but also received several generous pledges and contributions by participants who attended.
As we mature, the intent is to create ongoing viability and sustainability as a movement. Consequently, one of the challenges for 2013 is to secure those additional Partners and Sponsors needed to guarantee our 2014/2015 event and establish confidence for our subsequent events
[graphic from one of our “retreats”].
September 2013
After initiating movement towards a repeat Chaminade experience, several months prior to the event, the ILiA Board recognized that financial parameters would render the event unviable. We decided to do the radical: deeply listen, shift. The resulting cyber event presented learning opportunities for all—including many for all of us organizers. Hosted by Eric Troth via the Maestro platform, multiple strategies were employed, including individual presenter sessions, panels, variations of cyber experientials, and slideshows. By using breakout technologies participants experienced a more full and enhanced engagement (see the draft flyer, below) .
November 2022
Group re-ignited after the What’s the Future Integral event in Sedona. The board members were inspired by Nomali’s presentation on the future of Integral Leadership. The group is restarting efforts. The first step is to start recruiting new members. The second will be to start planning new events and new ways to support the integral community.
2017
An event was planned for 2020, but was cancelled due to the COVID pandemic.