Next Wave International: News

Technology: The Good, the Bad & the Ugly

Is our growing reliance on digital technology, especially the mobile variety, a good thing or not?

Are we sacrificing some important human functions by relying so heavily on the digital experience?

Mal Fletcher answered these questions in a recent interview for BBC�Radio.

Click here to hear or download the interview.

The Future of Leadership in 2012

What does the future hold for leadership in 2012?

What are the big changes that are likely to impact upon leaders in church life, community groups, charities and businesses in the coming year?

How can leaders get ahead of the change curve in these areas, maximising their influence?

Mal Fletcher presents Five Big Leadership Shifts for 2012: click here for more.

Our Christmas Wish for YOU

Mal and Davina Fletcher and everyone associated with the work of Next Wave International, would like to say:

Top 11 for 2011 - Recommended Reading

‘Take your brain for a long walk today… read a book!’

I’ve often tweeted lines like this, to try to encourage more people to read and to read more widely and well.

Much of my work revolves around developing and inspiring leaders, as a keynote speaker around the world, and addressing major social issues via the media and press as a social commentator.

One of the questions I most enjoy answering in Q & A sessions is this: ‘What do you read?’

I always take it as a compliment that people might be intrigued enough by what I say or write to enquire as to the background, or the material that at least gets my grey cells working.

Below are the top eleven books I would recommend from my reading throughout 2011.

I’ve left all novels, as well as other publications such as magazines and newspapers, all of which I consume rather a lot!

But I think these titles should perhaps appear near the top of your list if you’re looking to increase your ability to innovate and to inspire others to do the same. They may also boost your understanding of where the world is and where it might be headed.

Most of these are available through Amazon and other online outlets and from good bookstores - and you can read reviews on each one on those sites. A number will doubtless be available as e-books, though I’ve read the paper versions.

Note: these titles are not listed in any particular order and, of course, I do not necessarily endorse everything each author has written.

Happy reading!

Mal Fletcher

December 21, 2011

The Filter Bubble
What the Internet is Hiding from You
Eli Pariser

No Time to Think
The Menace of Media Speed and the 24-Hour News Cycle
Howard Rosenburg and Charles S. Feldman

Switch:
How to Change Things When Change is Hard
Chip Heath & Dan Heath

Start-Up Nation
The Story of Israel's Economic Miracle
Dan Senor & Saul Singer

The Master Switch
The Rise and Fall of Information Empires
Time Wu

Rediscovering Values
In the City, our Towns and in Your Community
Jim Wallis

Justice
What's the Right Things to Do?
Michael J. Sandel

The Shift
The Future of Work is Already Here
Lynda Gratton

An Optimist's Tour of the Future
Mark Stevenson

The Sky is not Falling
Living Fearlessly in these Turbulent Times
Charles Colson

The Rage against God
Peter Hitchens

For NEW recommendations, follow Mal on Twitter: @malfletcher.

Mal's predictions for 2012: 'Twelve Big Shifts for 2012'.

Social Futurist Predicts Change for 2012

De-Gadgetisation, New Frugalism, Mass Collaboration, Cultures of Innovation, Privacy and Lifestyle Logging, and Technology Refuseniks.

These are among 12 social shifts in technology and culture for 2012 predicted by Social Futurist, Mal Fletcher.

Widely broadcast and published, Mal Fletcher has researched social trends for two decades. He is the founder/director of Next Wave International and leads the London-based Think Tank, 2020Plus.

He says: "My interest in the future is not merely in its technological, economic or political dimensions. I'm interested in what they might mean for people - in families, communities, companies and groups of all kinds."

The editorial was made available to major press and media figures in the UK and in other parts of the world. If you represent a publication that may want to reproduce all or part of this editorial, please email: media@2020plus.net.