LIVE/LOVE INNOVATION
a simple update from ILN Coaching & Consulting
Vol. 12, Issue 6

ILN celebrates 20 years this month -  unfathomable that much time has passed!. Granted, the ILN 2005 is very different from ILN 2025. Reflecting on these two decades, what has not changed is the commitment to building deep relationships that become friendships, that then pull you along a journey that you could never have imagined (think SmartNetworking). The commitment to create spaces that are temporarily owned by those who enter them (think ILN InPrerson and now Dignified Futures). The commitment to understand together, build together, celebrate/cry together…all at the speed of community (think Project 100 and the Youth Crisis Action Coalition). And the commitment to the wisdom of “who is here right now” is enough to get going. 

It’s been a weird and beautiful blend of liberating structures (thank you Keith McCandless!), systems thinking (thank you Rob Ricigliano!), and human-centered design (thank you Ilya Prokopoff!). But mostly, thank you to the many self-identified ILNers who bring their passion for positive impact year after year. 

Onward!
Chris McCarthy, Founder
Strategy or innovation advising? Book time here.

🔮 Dignified Futures 2026 (ILN InPerson!)
And here we go! March 18 - 19 Dignified Futures lands at the Institute of Design (ID) at IIT in Chicago, IL. Amy Heymans and I are in happy disbelief that this will mark year three of our collaboration, which continues to hold us and our communities together.  

We’ve secured our first keynote: the indelible Kim Erwin.  Kim runs the Equitable Healthcare Lab at ID, and last year released a seminal exploration of the role of design in large US-based healthcare systems. (I’m biased..I was part of the Advisory Committee for this work!) All to say, we can’t wait to get to ID and experience more of Kim.

Registration is open: DignifiedFutures.com
    Want to present? https://forms.gle/4HMU1NpZ7BrHFqXWA
         Get connected to the Dignified Futures Newsletter

💡Youth Crisis Action Coalition
The youth mental health crisis continues…and is on full blast.  In my 5 years at Hopelab, each year the number ticked worse and worse, especially for LGBTQ+ young people. The ILN is guiding Sonoma County in a systems and design approach to change this trajectory. On Friday and Saturday, we launched with a deep dive using the system’s iceberg model with 25 stakeholders to illuminate the many interconnections that are accelerating (and some inhibiting) these difficult outcomes. We developed their Guideing Star (ultimate vision) see below. Map coming soon!

🛜 Awesome Sessions to Amp Up Your Knowledge
October 17  @ 9 AM PDT
Futuring for NASA featuring Dignified Futures' favorite Shaunté Kinch! Thank you, Hillary, for keeping these amazing sessions going month after month! 

March 18 - 19  @ Chicago, IL
Dignified Futures 2026. Find your tribe, re-energize your soul, and bring your curiosities as we keep pushing for a more dignified future. Social impact, healthcare, design, futures, and systems folks will run amok.

⚡️Sparks: (Sometimes) Cool Stuff
🧠Purpose Prevents Dementia. Also, while at Hopelab, I had a front-row seat to “purpose” research and its impact on so many vital parts of our lives.  So this story caught my eye and didn’t surprise me.  Keep purpose in your life!

🧽Sponge Park Squarepants. I LOVE this story and innovation.  In Georgia, a park was created that doubles as a massive sponge for floodwaters, saving neighborhoods several times (already!) from flooding.  It basically turns into a football-sized swimming pool when the waters come. A simple and powerful idea.

😎Solar Covered Canal.  California innovation continues on…with a little help from India.  The state just finished covering a section of canal with solar panels that generate electricity, reduce water evaporation, and inhibit algae blooms.  All big wins for green innovation.