The Forerunner Project

Speculation is …the making of money out of the manipulation of prices, instead of supplying of goods and services. Henry Ford

As a young man growing up in Bavaria (Germany) Christian Nafzinger realized that he and his family were different than the other people in their community. They were outsiders and were looked on with suspicion. The laws of the time (1788) made the things they believed in as Amish Mennonites a “threat” to the powers that ruled the area and most of Europe. At 12 years of age, Chritian already knew what it meant to be hated because he was different and on occasion he let his imagination dissolve the weight of “now” for a time and place that were more friendly and free.

He was almost 40 and had long ago forgotten about his dream of freedom from persecution when a rumor, then confirmed reports became known that there was cheap land and no persecution in North America. He strongly advocated for investigating the opportunity on behalf of his brethren. In 1821, Christian Nafzinger set sail for the United States in what would become a long and difficult journey toward his dream of freedom. On arrival in Pennsylvania, the prospects of cheap land he had hoped for were buried in an avalanche of complications. Prices had escalated dramatically and opportunity to settle there was not within financial reach for him or his community.

Many of the newcomers were, however, heading for Canada where a settler could get 50 acres of land if they built a house and cleared the road frontage. They could also lease another 150 acres then purchase it at a fair price after 7 years. When Christian arrived in Upper Canada in 1822, he saw that the land was good for farming and he immediately applied for settlers’ land for 70 Amish families in the “German Block” of present day Wilmot Township. His dream of freedom from persecution seemed like it could become a reality.

He never thought that he would ever leave his farm near Munich, nor had he dreamed of clearing land and building his future in another world. But the prospect of freedom was a very powerful force in his life, and time and opportunity were intersecting in a way which could not be ignored. Some of the settlers arrived in Canada as early as 1824. Christian and his family arrived in 1826. It was a very difficult beginning. Clearing the land was time consuming and hard work but their hope was for prosperity and the eventual ownership of the full tract of 200 acres of land. Like most pioneers (forerunners), they invested everything into building up their farms; however, all around them things began to change.

The prospect of cheap land for settlers was not overlooked by speculators who purchased land but did not settle it. They were wealthy industrialists who planned to make a profit on land by buying it up and then selling it to settlers at increased prices. For some reason, authorities had “forgotten” about the requirement to settle the land. What further exacerbated the situation was that the 150 acres they had leased and were expecting to buy had been given to King’s College (University of Toronto) which was now asking very high prices for the land. Furthermore, they had not received title to their 50 acre homesteads and therefore were unable to participate in meetings which concerned landowners. The situation was critical. Christian and his neighbours had cleared and begun to work the land but now feared that they may never own it. What had happened in Pennsylvania was in part happening here. The injustice which took them out of Bavaria was happening to them in their new world. Was all of this a big mistake? Some settlers thought so and left for Pennsylvania.

Questions, shock, and uncertainty can immobilize a person when they first come face-to-face with the reality of a difficult situation. Eventually, however, Christian settled on a plan. He decided to confront the situation and expose the injustices. They had cleared the land and now were entitled to it at a fair price. With the support of the other settlers in the area, Nafzinger challenged the practice of land speculation in the township in a letter to Peter Robinson, Commissioner of Crown Lands – a bold move.

Instead of backlash, Robinson commissioned surveyor Samuel Street Wilmot to investigate and report on their complaints. Christian and his settler friends were not very popular. They had confronted an injustice and exposed a deficiency in the administration of the land, but what was at stake was their freedom, their hope, and their dream.

Sam Wilmot’s report was not a “white-wash” but a head-on assessment of the problems that the Amish and other new settlers faced. He wrote in his Feb. 11, 1830 report: “ …..a number of lots, the greater part of which are not occupied, the trifling expense of the settlement duty to open the roads and pay the survey fees amounting to about five pounds enable the moneyed men of Waterloo to hold lots much to the injury of poor persons who wish to become actual settlers in Wilmot, an evil the Inhabitants are desirous to be checked, as such proceedings retard the settlement of the Township….and that those persons who appear to have located lots for the mere purpose of speculation should be called upon to settle them immediately and in the case of their failing to do so, that they should be considered forfeited and given to actual settlers…..the settlers of this Township are desirous to purchase the remaining 150 acres of their respective lots for which they had a promise of a lease, and are willing to pay a fair valuation.”

The report was a turning point in the settlement of the township and in the lives of the settlers. Justice prevailed but only because Christian and the other settlers confronted the situation and called upon the authorities to correct the wrong that was being done to them and others.

Although Christian wrote the letter, the support of all the settlers was equally as important to their success. Christian Nafzinger was a forerunner and a leader whose sacrifice, vision, and values helped bring his people into their dream of a life without persecution. Not all the settler’s requests were immediately resolved but by standing for his values and vision Christian made an important contribution to the betterment of his family, the Amish and his community. Christian Nafzinger died in 1836 at the age of 60 and is buried in Wilmot Township.

Global Warming Explained (For The Average Person)

Ideas, Ideals and Issues
Like most forerunners, I have been motivated by ideas, guided by ideals, and passionate about issues all of my life. I have considered it my duty to know as much as I could about the issues I was interested in and I didn’t mind doing the research to establish my position on an issue. In the early days of the global warming debate, I listened to scientists from both sides explain their graphs and adamantly assert their beliefs. I sat figuratively on the sidelines for years wondering why the two sides were so opposite and why they argued as if there was so much at stake.
Then Al Gore’s “An Inconvenient Truth” hit the screen and the debate became less scientific, more public, and far more political. The science of the film was without a doubt “suspect” and very emotional. I began to wonder where this was going. I was also suspicious about why the major US media promoted global warming and minimized or discredited otherwise recognized authorities on climate who strongly disagreed with the IPCC theory that man-made CO2 was the cause of global warming. The turning point in this journey was reading the “Cap and Trade” law which is currently making its way through the US Senate. It was then that I realized that global warming had very little to do with science and saving the planet and a lot to do with money, power, and control. I decided to plot the historical course of the issue and project into the future what I think will happen so that the average person can understand what the global warming issue is really about and what is at stake.

Global Warming Explained (For The Average Person)
- In the beginning, some scientists think the world is getting warmer.
- The UN sets up an official panel to promote the views of these scientists (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change – IPCC).
- About 2500 scientists join their ranks.
- The official platform of the IPCC becomes: we can identify the problem but science can’t fix it – we have to cut our carbon emissions – we are sure of that!!
- When the “science” of global warming becomes known, 31,000 scientists and climate experts in the USA sign a petition denouncing the theory. Scientists from around the world join their ranks.
- No one really knows for sure if there is climate change, or if there is, what is causing it.
- A politician appears in a film which makes “global warming” a household word.
- There is a lawsuit over the “facts” and a judge calls the film “political propaganda” and requires it to be labeled as such in the UK.
- No one says anything about the film’s misrepresentations – more scientists join the opposition.
- The major media promotes the global warming campaign and marginalizes the opponents.
- People start to believe there is a problem and activists get into the game of saving the planet.
- It becomes social leprosy to question the science of the IPCC’s climate change campaign for those in and out of science.
- A war erupts between the “warmers” and the “skeptics” – the politicians have to step in.
- Politicians refuse to take testimony from global warming opponents in “hearings” in the US and UK – why confuse the issue?
- Politician-turned-filmmaker-activist starts carbon trading company along with other Wall Street “notables” to profit from a system that does not yet exist– what does he know that we don’t??
- Unexpected resistance from credible climate authorities is dismissed by politician/filmmaker as kooks or crooks. Ironic
- Major stock exchanges set up trading facilities to handle Cap and Trade (carbon credit trading) businesses years before there is a carbon tax law.
- Obama projects $680B income from Cap and Trade (taxes) in his 2012 budget.
- Politicians, businesses, and scientists are “sure” that only by introducing a Cap and Trade Carbon tax can they save the planet – they didn’t want to do it – they have to!
- Lobbying gets exemptions for most of the biggest polluters.
- India denounces the global warming “crisis” as a product of the western media.
- More nations join the “denouncers”
- Carbon emissions fall 2.6% in 2009 (the most in 40 years)- yet the carbon trading scheme is pushed forward by politicians.
The temperature of the ocean and land continue to fall – yet the carbon trading scheme is pushed forward by politicians.
Scientist and politicians insist there is only one way to fix the problem – carbon credit trading.
- Businesses who are given carbon credit trading licenses (politician/filmmaker included) are now making boat loads of money – more than anyone could spend.
- The scientists who said there was no solution to global warming except cutting carbon emissions now have a solution – “we can save the planet without changing your lifestyle, just give us the money”.
- Politicians who supported the global warming (scam) are now getting kickbacks from the carbon traders in the form of carbon credits which are better than money and totally unregulated. – “Who thought of this great idea!!!”
- Governments are getting their piece of the action from the carbon tax, the rest goes to “offsetting” the emissions – this is great for the economy!
- The highest consuming nations (the US included) actually get rewarded for their unbridled consumption because every company who sells them products has to buy carbon credits from them. Don’t you just love it!!
- The US Government and their “friends” are getting rich collecting carbon credit (taxes) from everyone on the planet. Consumption and credit income is up – “thank God, we were in trouble there for awhile!”
- The IPCC now has unprecedented powers – no one dares challenge them – there is too much at stake.
- Scientists who don’t cooperate with the “IPCC” are branded as “environmental terrorists” – “disgusting people, get off the planet!”
- Scientists get all the money they want to “experiment” with cutting carbon emissions without cutting consumption – and they are getting rich too!
- They of course can’t solve the problem “overnight” – it’s far too complex for that, but given enough time and money they will stop the “sky from falling”.
- The average guy is getting hosed for thousands of bucks a year  – but that’s not the worst of it.
- Carbon cops are monitoring everybody’s every move in the name of saving the planet.
- Democracy and freedom are redefined as “living green our way ” – we thought 9-11 changed our lives.
- Orwell rolls in his grave.
- The rich are getting richer on the carbon trading scheme – they pay their carbon tax with glee.
- The planet is no better off – probably worse.
- The decimation of our forests and seas (a real cause of climate change, if there is change) are forgotten – didn’t we solve that problem?
- The US and UK force nations who trade with them to get into the game and “save the planet” or be penalized.
- No one can buy or sell anything without Carbon Credits – “everyone and everything has to be monitored!”
- The IPCC and their “science” becomes the final authority on just about everything – uniting everyone under one great religion.
- They put an implant in your forehead or your hand so they know who’s playing the game and who’s not.
- The US controls the Carbon Credit “World Currency” and world-wide commerce – why shouldn’t they, it’s their “game” – besides the US dollar was worthless.
- Round two of “pillage the nations of the earth”.
- Nice thing about this “deal” is there is something in it for everyone – but the average person.

P.S. 30 year ago scientists said the planet was cooling. Today, the oceans have been ”inconveniently” cold and the hockey stick graph that Big Al used to prove global warming in his film is now about as realistic as his claims that he invented the Internet. It’s not CO2 that is causing global warming, it’s low IQ.

Hear the opposing arguments to man-made CO2 as the cause of global warming here:
The Deniers (book), Lawrence Solomon – www.urban-renaissance.org

http://climaterealists.com/

Paul Weigel

When you step back from the trees and see the forest you realize that the problems in the economy are not just another “bump in the road” but the signs of the end of an era. In the last 20 years we have seen the collapse of communism, 9-11, and the failure of capitalism. We are in a season of birthing a new era and economy and the forerunners are looking into the future and moving into what they see. It is impossible to get back to the way things were, in spite of the pundits reassuring us that Humpty Dumpty CAN be put back together again. We have entered into a new era and when we realize this and adjust our lives we will be better prepared for the future.

Ian Graham of Kitchener is an example of a forerunner who has perceived the “season” we are in and has moved into it. He is the only son of a man who ran a successful insurance business but decided to move to Manitoulin Island and get off the grid. He bought a property with no hydro, but it did have a waterfall. He built a hydro-electric system to generate electricity for their satellite TV, lighting, and some of the heating.  He was a forerunner – living a forerunner life.

Ian followed his father’s innovative lifestyle and applied this same creativity to his love of music. He was traveling the country as a singer and musician and realized that one of his greatest expenses was fuel. He began investigating alternatives and settled on buying a diesel van which he could run on discarded vegetable oil (deep fryer oil). The research and the conversion took some time but the benefits of driving for free outweighed the time spent. Even though his fuel costs are zero, he has recently installed a hydrogen cell which uses electricity to convert water into hydrogen, a clean and powerful fuel for diesel or gas engines. A typical forerunner, he is interested in finding new and better ways to do things.

In the old economy, jobs have been more important than innovation, efficiency, impact, and effectiveness. We have avoided change in order to keep things the way they have always have been (safe), and it has backfired on us. Our intervention in the natural process of change has brought us to collapse. In a truly free market, innovation and creativity are rewarded, not seen as threats. The new economy will dramatically change our lifestyle and our values. Consumption has been the engine of growth; however, that has proven to be counter-productive in the big picture. Oil companies create jobs but healthcare costs skyrocket. Conservation will drive the new economy. Through reduction of consumption a new economy will emerge. Ian Graham has reduced his consumption, and the net result for him has been the freedom to make other choices. The less it costs him to live, the more freedom (time and money) he has to do what he wants – innovate, create, and build.

Ian has begun growing his own food in his basement and outdoors. He has been converting his recording studio to solar power. He has built his solar panels and innovated a sun tracking system to improve efficiency. He has been able to do most of this through cooperating and networking with other like-minded forerunners who have helped, advised, and cheered him on.

Getting off the grid means reducing our dependency on others for the important things in life. Most of our life we spend working for what we need to live. By being self-sufficient, we can create more freedom, money, time, and choices in which to live our life. The new era will reward conservation and innovation and penalize unbridled consumption. The sooner we learn this the better off we all will be.

For Ian, this has been a journey of discovery and problem solving. He was helped by others who were themselves on this journey. You may choose to get off the grid in some other way, but whatever it is, there is likely a group of people who can help you reach your goal to make your life more free, safe, and efficient in the new economy.

In the meantime, I would like to inspire you with the potential of moving into this new economy through a film which we consider at the Forerunner Project a “Forerunner Classic” and an award winner at our Forerunner Film Festival last fall – Garbage Warrior. Michael Reynolds has been building “out-of-box” sustainable housing for 30+ years. He is a forerunner who looks at life quite differently than most. He is a very interesting person with interesting values and ideals. We are considering bringing Mr. Reynolds to Waterloo Region for the Forerunner Inspire Festival in November, so please send us your comments, and suggestions.

Recommended viewing: Garbage Warrior – ask your local video retailer or visit the film site at: http://www.garbagewarrior.com/

Paul Weigel

Your comments and suggestions are needed. Email me: paul@paulweigel.com  or visit our web site at www.theforerunnerproject.com

Our good friend Mary-Lou Schagena from Monday Night with The Arts (CKWR – 98.5 FM) did this interview with me recently. She is a forerunner and a great host who knows just how to ask the right questions at just the right time. Take a listen!

CKWR Interview

Most forerunners exhibit a strong desire to establish their values early in life because their ideals and their ideas are the foundation for all that they do. Mark Yantzi grew up in the Amish faith near Punkeydoodles Corners south west of New Hamburg. The second world war was still a recent memory and Mark felt quite different from other kids because of the Amish community’s pacifism. In his early years he wrestled with the pacifist principle of loving your enemies and what that looked like in practical terms. His quest to understand the principles he had inherited from the Amish faith would become a journey of discovery and the foundation for his life’s work.

After university, Mark volunteered with the Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) working with young offenders who were on parol. A year later, a full time job as a parole office became available. One of his responsibilities was to direct and guide a group of MCC volunteers who worked with the offenders. In their regular meetings, they often discussed ways in which they could make the programs they offered more effective for the offender and the victims of crime. The idea of loving your enemies came up occasionally and it became the lense through which they began to look at the justice system and the objectives of their programs in an entirely new light. It was May 1974 and the focus of one of their discussions became two youth who had gone on a destructive rampage in Elmira, slashing tires and breaking windows. The group challenged Mark with the idea of having the young men meet and talk to the victims and hopefully discover how their actions had impacted them and the community.

This had never been done before so there was no provision or precedent for recommending this kind of “solution” in the pre-sentencing report Mark was preparing for the judge. Several of the volunteers strongly encouraged Mark to add a letter to the report which would recommend this new approach. They wondered if it was even legal, but they believed that this would offer the offenders and the victims reconciliation. To Mark and the MCC volunteers’ surprise, the judge, without any previous cases of this type of reconciliation on which to rely, agreed that the victims and the offenders should meet. It became a landmark decision and the “Elmira Case”, as it has become known, is regarded internationally as the beginning of  “restorative justice”.

Mark and the volunteer group had discovered a solution that they perceived intuitively, but now they needed to understand the underlying principles of their idea of “loving their enemy” and be able to communicate them. The justice system’s main premise was to come up with a punishment which was equal to the offense as a deterrent to re-offending – hence the scales of justice. The group began to see that this approach often got in the way of dealing with the underlying causes from which a person had committed the offense. It also did little for the victims who had been violated and traumatized; consequently, the re-offend rate was exceptionally high. The group also discovered that even though 90% of the accused pleaded guilty, most of the offenders would try to minimize their responsibility for their actions in order to reduce the punishment. The punishment was supposed to be the deterrent to repeating the offense but when it became the main focus of justice, it became a barrier for people when taking responsibility for their actions. Punishment was also ineffective in deterring crime when the root causes were drug and other addictions – which were the most common cause of people offending and reoffending.

Although Mark and the MCC volunteers believed they had a better solution, change is always a slow process. There were many encouraging moments and some moments when circumstances challenged their belief in what they were doing. Two things helped them persist. Mark met weekly for breakfast with several like-minded friends who encouraged him and became a sounding board for his ideas and concerns. They helped him by simply listening and giving him feedback. Every forerunner needs friends to be their “mirror” so they can discover and rediscover their ideals and from them develop their ideas.

The second thing that helped was the formation of the non-profit agency “Community Justice Initiatives” (CJI), which gave a name to what they were doing and helped expand the concept of restorative justice into other communities. Through CJI they also were able to develop specific programs for unique types of crimes such as sexual offences and elder and child abuse and neglect. CJI also made possible the freedom to experiment, evaluate and quickly respond to the effectiveness of their systems and processes to improve their results.

In the Waterloo Region, an unequaled number of offenders (70%) now meet their victims. Our Region has been a forerunner in restorative justice and has been a leader with unprecedented success. Scores of former “clients” of CJI have written to them over the last 20 years to commend this program as having “saved their lives”. They believe that taking responsibility for their choices and coming face-to-face with the impact of their actions have dramatically and deeply changed them.

Another ground-breaking innovation has been CJI’s programs which engage both the offender and victim in the restoration process. Contrary to the expected, victims often want to help offenders recover. They have a vested interest in seeing that others do not become victims as they did. This process has become healing for both parties as they work together toward redemptive solutions that get at the real cause of the crime.

The process of change has been slow. It is human nature to want an eye for an eye, even if it doesn’t produce the desired results. There are tough-talking opponents to restorative justice who claim it doesn’t work in spite of the success stories and the far superior re-offend rate of the program. It has also become fashionable for politicians to appear to be “tough on crime” which usually means increasing punishments in spite of the dismal results that produces. Thankfully, it hasn’t discouraged Mark Yantzi who has seen first hand the successes of the program.

In spite of the naysayers, this process has redefined the word “justice” based upon the idea of “loving your enemy”. It has been a 35 year journey for Mark, CJI, and his MCC volunteers but they have laid a foundation from which others can also build, create, innovate, and reform our justice system. Restorative justice programs now exist in communities across Canada, the US, Australia and New Zealand, Africa, and Scandinavia. Although there are opponents and challenges, the concepts have proven viable, productive, and effective for many types of offenses.

Mark Jantzi, CJI, and the MCC volunteers have reformed our justice system to the benefit of our community and for victims and their offenders. They and the Waterloo Region have become known world-wide for their contribution to the justice system by being forerunners in restorative justice. Mark has recently retired from his administrative role at CJI, and like most forerunners, he is looking for new ways to implement and spread his ideas to make our world a better place.

Paul Weigel

Mark Jantzi is the author of “Sexual Offending and Restoration” (Pandora Press) and co-author of “Three Paths to Healing”. Both books are available through Community Justice Initiatives (www.cjiwr.com). He was also a Kitchener City Councilor and member of the Waterloo Regional Council from 1982 – 2000.

This is the 1 year anniversary of the Forerunner Column and in this edition we are going to look at one of the most important aspects of creating a forerunner friendly  climate in a community or organization and how the arts are the forerunner of innovation and creative change.

The word revolution may seem to be misused here because it brings to mind men with rifles storming a fortress; but revolutions are going on everyday in the quiet of offices, schools, and businesses. Every time someone revises the way of doing something to improve efficiency and effectiveness, there is a mini revolution. Revolution is change which comes by force. It is human nature to resist change; therefore, most change comes because it is forced upon us, and that is revolution.

In a previous column I outlined how technology is the leader in social revolution. Technological advancements change the way we live our life, then this new lifestyle changes how we perceive our life. In other words, new technology forces social revolution.  Although technology leads social innovation, it is not the foundation on which change is built. It is the cultural industries which create an atmosphere of creativity, flexibility, and innovation in a community on which other forerunners “feed”. The atmosphere or the “vibe” (short for vibration, a term commonly used by jazz musicians) is the catalyst for creativity and creativity and innovation are the foundation of enterprise and the prerequisite for wealth.

Art and music create the vibe of a community. A vibrant local arts community builds an atmosphere of “possibility” and is critical in attracting forerunners who are the main agents of change, innovation, and new enterprise. Their motivation is increased exponentially by the synergy of coming together with many forerunners in one place. The greater the public expression of creativity in a community, the greater the motivation to create is expressed by the community.

Good art causes us to look at everyday objects in entirely new ways. It challenges the boundaries, breaks the rules, and expands our boundaries to include ideas and perceptions that have not been previously considered. Art is a celebration of the capacity of humanity to create, build, and innovate. It interprets our emotions, our hopes, our failures and when it is successful on a personal level, it inspires us to aim higher, dig deeper, and break out of our self-induced limitations and think broader.
Good art lifts us out of the “way it is” into the realm of possibility. It challenges us to ask “why” and answer the question with, “why not”.  Art IS the foundation of the economic health of a community – it is not the other way around. The arts community creates the vibe for forward, innovative thinking, and it attracts forward-thinkers to the community.

One of those forward-thinkers is Isabella Stefanescu – a founder and forerunner in our arts community. She came to the Waterloo Region on a mathematics scholarship from Romania. She had, however, been identified as a gifted artist as a child and had also been trained in visual art. In 1994, recognizing that visual artists required community, collaboration, and inexpensive studio space, Isabella and a small group of artists formed Globe Studios. The not-for-profit group has enhanced the viability of the arts and artists in our community, but not without a great deal of risk taking and personal sacrifice. The upside is that the existence of Globe Studios has made possible the proliferation of a local expression of visual art in our community, by making it a viable industry for artists. The existence of this artist cooperative under the Globe Studios banner has been inspiration for many arts assistance programs and numerous arts expressions, galleries, and events within Waterloo Region.

CAFKA
The Globe Studio success was not only inspiration to other arts groups but also an incubator for new ideas within art. One of those ideas became CAFKA (Contemporary Art Forum Kitchener and Area – pronounced calf-ca). Artists and forerunners in general who are in the business of creating are challenged by the human tendency to undervalue local artists and overvalue those who come from far away. For local art to exist it must first have local support; therefore, the premise that you must be accepted far away to be accepted at home is a dead end street for all but a very few artists. Local art is an expression of who we are and best tells our story and is, therefore, most valuable to us.

CAFKA attempted to address the problem of resistence to local artists by taking the creation of art into the market place. The public creation of art and artist talks in unexpected locations and in unexpected ways was bold, effective, and it impacted the community in many ways.  The festival has become one of the most important art events in Ontario and a forerunner for many other public art creation festivals. The taking of art and artists to the community has been an important step in building an “art culture” within the region, and it has contributed to the community’s image in the minds of Canadians, as well as built the vibe. From its success has come the Open Ears (music) Festival, New Hamburg Live and numerous other music and arts festivals, theatre companies, galleries, and music and arts events all of which contribute to the wealth of our community in numerous ways.

It is the artists which lead their generation and every generation of artists must find an effective way of impacting their peers. Isabella Stefanescu and her colleagues at the Globe Studio are forerunners. Their vision, sacrifice, and persistence have helped build the arts community and has in turn contributed to the economic and cultural wealth of our region. All the artists and arts organizations in the Region are building the culture of innovation and change, and that is valuable to all of us. The appreciation of the arts and the importance of their role in the health and wealth of our community has been largely underestimated by the community. Artists and their contribution are interconnected to our economic, social, and cultural welfare. They deserve our support and honour for their important contribution to our region.
For more information about Globe Studios, visit: www.globestudios.org or CAFKA Visit:
www.contemporaryartforum.ca and New Hamburg Live www.newhamburglive.ca
© Paul Weigel 2009

Over the past ten months we have looked at forerunners engaged in everything from humanitarian relief and fair trade, to transmitting a handshake over the internet, building a public utility, and bringing electricity to our community. Although these forerunners have been active in a broad array of activities, they have had a common motivation – their ideals and their ideas.

Some of the forerunners which we have profiled knew and understood exactly where they were going before they started their journey. Others started without a clear picture of where they were going only to discover their path as they journeyed. They all solved problems as they moved forward and in spite of the obstacles which are common to any project, they found ways to overcome them. Some projects required flexibility and the adjustment of priorities and objectives along the way. But common to all was their belief that their goal was attainable and worthy of their best effort.

Forerunners live looking forward, and they are inspired by ideas. They are deeply affected by injustice. They are not “fence-sitters” but passionate about issues. It is this passion which gives them the focus and unyielding persistence to take on the problems inherent in creating, reforming, innovating, and building a dream.

Forerunners are often misunderstood. They have an ability to see and focus on problems because they are problem-solvers; however, because of this, they are sometimes viewed as negative or trouble-makers. Forerunners believe they are helping by bringing attention to problems and pushing for solutions because they understand that problems will eventually hurt and possibly destroy the project. Instead of being considered committed contributors, forerunners are often seen as disloyal, aloof, or destructive by those who don’t understand their motivation.

Forerunners prefer influence over power, and work well in roles as advisors.
They sometimes lack people skills, as in the case of Sir Adam Beck. He developed a number of enemies which could have been avoided by communicating to people how they could benefit from joining him rather than fighting him. Beck was a skilled and fearless fighter, so he put less value on winning people to his side, but this proved to be a costly mistake.

Starters not Managers
Forerunners are very good at starting a project and taking it through the early stages of development, but when it becomes established, they look for a new challenge. Larger projects are best served when forerunners stay engaged and a manager is brought in to oversee the day-to-day work. The pace of change has increased so dramatically that an organization’s survival depends on re-visioning on a continual basis.

Organizations that fail to understand the importance of fresh vision fail to lead in their sector. When managers replace forerunners, vision can become the victim, and it is the beginning of the end of the organization. Projects which are lead by a group of equals who respect the talents and abilities of each other are best suited to excel in the new economy. In the past, “forerunner unfriendly” organizations (the walking dead) could survive for decades with no new products or ideas, but today, lack of vision will kill a company in a few years.

Becoming Forerunner Friendly
Creating a forerunner friendly organization demands a respect and appreciation of ideas. Not all ideas are “keepers” but all ideas have value because they lead to more and better ideas, and ideas are critical to surviving in this new era of unprecedented change. Many leaders see problem identification as a slight of their leadership rather than an effort to fix the problems that are hindering the effectiveness of the organization. Becoming a forerunner friendly organization requires putting aside ego and making problems and solutions a high priority.

The best ideas often come from the most unlikely sources. People who see the problem from 10,000 feet often have a better perspective than those who are engaged in it. Every idea must be evaluated on its merits, not its source.

Being a forerunner friendly organization requires clear communication that ideas are the seeds of change and that the  future depends on how well its workers generate and evaluate ideas, and that everyone is responsible to make the organization better. A separation between management and workers is a costly mistake for any organization if it hinders the flow of ideas that will make the company or project better.

The Value of Ideas
In the past, people believed that “ideas were a dime a dozen”. They placed more value on money than ideas. There is far more money than there are good ideas. That, in part, has been caused by the devaluation of ideas and an over emphasis on the value of money. It has diminished progress in our nation and the world. Ideas are risky but in the new economy new ideas are the only way forward. Safe, secure investments paying big returns are few and that’s why most of today’s wealth is currently in cash. Investing in people who you know and trust builds our communities. Investing in multinational corporations drains financial and human capital from our rural communities and kills them.

Our Community
Communities founded on industries which are no longer relevant in the new economy are in imminent risk of dying. Most rural Ontario towns are void of economic, social, and cultural life. They have been left behind by the world and the people who could reinvent them. They need to be re-founded on a new premise, and that takes ideas. It requires the bringing together and stimulation of forerunners. The original founders had a vision which birthed economic prosperity for a time, but now our communities must be re-founded. People must work together to find a new competitive advantage from which to build their future. We have all been hurled unwillingly into unavoidable change. The future of our communities is dependant on our ability to discover our place in the midst of the current changes. We must re-launch our businesses, communities, and our country with innovative ideas, passionate persistence, and visionary leadership. Our future depends on it.

In 1976, Ernie and Nancy Regehr returned to Canada from a 3 year term in South Africa and Zambia. The 70s were a tumultuous season of the beginnings of change, marked by a heightened awareness in the western world for human rights such as apartheid, relief of poverty, and greater corporate responsibility.

The Regehrs were greatly influenced by what they had seen in Africa. Perceptions were still being influenced by the second world war. A nation’s status in the world community was connected to the size and power of its army. Much of the world’s resources were being poured into building military systems by both the Communist block, “the evil empire”, and what the US called “the free world” nations, while there was little awareness or concern for poverty, education, or health care.

For the Regehrs and a small group of forward thinkers, the proliferation of nuclear weapons on both sides of the Iron Curtain was a course which could only lead to the annihilation of humanity. The US had already used nuclear weapons, and the arms race and cold war had raised fears and mistrust to an all-time high. Policies based on “You’re either with us or against us” only served to polarize people and escalate the tension while minimizing the only thing that really mattered – our humanity.

On their return to Canada, the Regehrs founded Project Ploughshares with the belief that the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction (nuclear, biological, and chemical) would result in their eventual use. It wasn’t a very popular point-of-view at the time, but it was an obvious conclusion for them. Project Ploughshares began to promote the notion that the world could not fight for peace, peace had to be built. The doubters wondered if peace could come through disarmament or was that a dreamer’s dream?

Project Ploughshares, although small and seemingly insignificant, was passionate and well informed through their network of like-minded co-workers (on the ground) in nations around the world. They made it a point to support their arguments with hard statistics and information which wasn’t readily available elsewhere. This approach earned them credibility and an opportunity to make presentations to the Standing Committees of the House of Commons and Foreign Affairs.

In the early 80s, the nuclear buildup had brought the world to the brink of disaster. It was a turning point for the peace movement. People saw firsthand that building weapons that could destroy all humanity would not make the world a safer place. Throughout the European nations there were millions of people in the streets protesting the proliferation of nuclear weapons. Ronald Regan and Mikhail Gorbachev met in Iceland where it is believed they came very close to an agreement that would ban all nuclear weapons. Their advisors, however, seemed intent on preventing that. The peace debate around disarmament and militarism became even more polarized and heated.

In the 90s, Project Ploughshares and the peace movement were able to convince leaders to ban the use of biological and chemical weapons and the testing of nuclear weapons. The collapse of the Soviet Union in late 1991 put their arsenal and expertise up for sale on the world market. For the first time non-state “players” (terrorists)  became a realistic threat to world peace. The potential for a small group to build a nuclear weapon and use it became very real. It was a turning point in the quest for peace. It helped to impress the need and urgency among leaders and at the UN for nuclear disarmament and regulation as a key component in peace-making.

Although there has never been a more dangerous time in the history of the world, there has also never been a more hopeful time that leaders will agree to lay down their weapons. Former hardline militarists such as Henry Kissinger, George Shultz (Regan administration) and others now support a full nuclear weapons ban. After 30 years of pursuing peace through disarmament, Project Ploughshares and others believe that a world-wide ban of nuclear weapons, the regulation of the production of the components of these weapons, and the regulation and sale of conventional weapons are within reach. There are fewer wars today than there were 30 years ago and there is realistic hope that nuclear disarmament will be achieved in this decade.

Today is remarkably like the 70s. From every country, social strata and domain, a new generation of forerunners is rising who are passionate about poverty relief, education, social justice, and corporate responsibility.  They are motivated by hope, enthusiasm, and vision to transform our world. The challenges they face are no less daunting, yet every bit as possible to overcome. Wisdom would say that their strategies for change-making be built upon the lessons learned by their predecessors because they probably don’t have 30 years to achieve their goals.

The Regehrs have invested most of their working careers building peace by educating the public and advising leaders. They had a vision of a world without nuclear weapons and they have worked persistently over 30 years to make that vision a reality. They have poured their lives into making a better and safer world for all of us. They and other forerunners from around the world have worked to not only change the policies of governments, but also to teach us about our humanity. They have taught us that there is no “us and them”, there is only “us”.  If we can “get” that one simple idea, we will have moved a long way towards overcoming the problems of the world.

Paul Weigel

Project Ploughshare’s Canadian office is in Waterloo. Their web site is: www.projectploughshares.ca

For the past 30 years I have been fascinated with how individuals are gifted with certain strengths, and how all people have a unique set of talents, abilities, and motivations. Within this quest for understanding about giftedness, I discovered the “forerunner”. Although I was familiar with the forerunners of the Bible such as Elijah, John the Baptist, and the forerunner Jesus Christ, I was to discover that the term forerunner was not only a title, but a motivation that about 20 per cent of the population possess.

There are many types of forerunners characterized by an array of talents and abilities but they all have the same motivation to build, create, innovate and reform in whatever area they are engaged. A forerunner may be wearing a suit in an office, marching on the street in a protest, tinkering in their backyard with an invention, or doing research in a laboratory. Each of these forerunners looks very different when you look at their areas of interest, talents and abilities but they are all motivated by the same deep desire to make change. For this reason, forerunners live with one foot in the future and the other in the present.

Forerunners are risk takers because they are motivated by ideas and ideals. They don’t gravitate to groups because they are rarely willing to conform in order to belong. They commonly reject routines and the safe and secure path in order to pioneer, explore, and conquer the unknown. They don’t assimilate well into organizations. They have been called “outsiders” because they hold views outside of the mainstream. They are the early-early adopters of our society. They shape our culture rather than conform to it. They willingly sacrifice a piece of the present for what they see in the future. They have been called “dreamers” and “misfits” because they love change and they pursue it with tenacity, and they do their best to drag us all into it. They irritate the comfortable and challenge our traditions and those people who are resistant to change. These conflicts, their woundedness, and sometimes their lack of skill cause forerunners to be viewed with suspicion. They play an important part in our communities and in the world. A skilled leader recognizes their value and encourages and nurtures the forerunners in their community.

Why are Forerunners Important?
For every important technological advancement in history, there has been a corresponding social revolution. The printing press, for example, made books available to the common person, and they precipitated, with a host of forerunners including Martin Luther, the Protestant Reformation. Television has given us firsthand experiences of far away events, and as a result, governments have been forced to end wars, racial inequality has been confronted, and tsunami victims have been helped. Technological advancement is the forerunner of social reform. In the past 60 years, we have experienced unprecedented technological advancement, and now we are in the equivalent period of unprecedented social reformation. In the past century, the world has focused on new technology. The focus, I believe, has already shifted to social reform. This reformation will affect every domain of society including the Church. The collapse of our financial institutions is only one sign of the world being in the greatest period of reformation in its history. Rather than fear and fight change, we must embrace it, and prepare for it, because it can not be stopped.

At the heart of technological and sociological reformation are the forerunners who have a very unique set of strengths, talents, and motivation. Martin Luther King had a “dream” of justice for all people. He, along with other forerunners, through much travail, “birthed” change in the world. Forerunners see a vision of the future and fight to make it a reality. They are the change-makers and we ignore them at our peril.

We have polluted and pillaged the earth, destroyed our institutions through greed and corruption and we now face challenges of monumental proportion. There is however hope, because within the hearts and minds of forerunners all over the world are the seeds of change in the form of ideas which can be the solutions to these problems. The question is: will our leaders listen?

Pundits say there is a lack of leadership in our institutions. What they mean, however, is that there is a lack of innovative ideas and creative insight that can simplify and solve complex problems. I would like to suggest that there is no lack of leaders, but rather an inability to recognize them as such. Voices from outside the circle of authority need not threaten. Evaluating the advice based on its source, minimizes the forerunner and narrows the field of choices. A prudent leader ponders all the advice and gleans from it the wisdom to determine the best course of action. The greatest reformation in the history of man is just getting underway. Leaders must learn to recognize, accept, appreciate, nurture and engage forerunners in the process of change.

“WANTED: 150,000 Engineers – The Waterloo Plan,”
It was an outlandish statement but coming from its author it captivated the imagination of the small group of community leaders that met at the Rotary Club one summer day in 1956.

Ira Needles was the president of local tire manufacturer B. F. Goodrich and a well regarded, forward thinking community leader. He believed that Canada and the region were in desperate need of literally thousands of professional and skilled workers in order to maintain their position as leaders in manufacturing. The growing demand for new products in post war Canada would require designers, engineers and skilled technologists. It was an enormous challenge but the community had spawned and attracted people of vision and determination in the past and through creativity and innovation had built a prosperous economic and social foundation. Needles was one of those visionaries and he had a plan that would change education in Canada forever.

Needles’ long time colleague and friend, Gerry Hagey, had left Goodrich to become the first layman president of Waterloo College. The challenges they faced were many but the big hurdle was that Waterloo College was operated by the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Canada, and it was ineligible for provincial funding. The scope of the need and their plan demanded they find a way to access provincial funding.  The answer was found in establishing a separate corporate entity which was associated with Waterloo College but separately governed and therefore able to access the provincial funding they needed. A lot of skilled negotiation was required to get everyone to the table. Hagey, and Needles in particular, relied on flexibility and a keen ability to listen and deduce what were the important issues for each group. When necessary, they revised their plans but for the most part they infected others with enthusiasm for the vision which made cooperation appealing and mutually advantageous. Ira was trusted and regarded in the community and he had a gift for uniting people around a common goal – the traits of a true leader. Together, they had an intensity of purpose that all the stakeholders believed in without reservation.

Much of the work of getting everyone on side was in selling Needles’ unique approach to education.  It was carefully devised and constructed to improve efficiency – something an industrialist was concerned with. His plan was to integrate study and intern work terms in order to almost double the number of students they could teach at one time. The semestered system would have the facilities in full operation 12 months of the year. It had been done before in the US but it had only been modestly successful to say the least. The idea was new to Canadians and it was met with skepticism and a flurry of “concerns”. Needles, however, saw the potential of the system to quickly expand the student population and increase revenue, making possible higher salaries and thereby attracting the best teachers. The plan would also provide for more research time and private study for the faculty. This would be a key component in defining the University as a leader in science and engineering.

On July 1, 1957, one year after Needles’ speech to the Rotary Club, Waterloo College Associate Faculties (soon to become the University of Waterloo) launched a profoundly world impacting educational endeavor with a class of 74 engineering students.

The dedicated work of Needles and his team revolutionized education in Canada. They have trained hundreds of thousands of students which has contributed to the economy of our region, our province, Canada and the nations. The “Waterloo Plan”, as Needles called his innovative ideas about education, was the foundation from which the University built its reputation as a world leader in science and technology. Through its success, it has become a centre for innovation and creativity in technology which has led to the founding of numerous world class high-tech companies in our region. The University has brought prosperity and recognition to our community as visionary leaders; and it has brought people from all over the world to enrich our lives and our country with their talents and culture. Even for a forerunner like Needles, what the University of Waterloo has accomplished was beyond his wildest dreams.

Needles, by the enthusiastic claims of his colleagues, was the spark plug that led to action. He was the statesman who took the high road and whose guiding hand, integrity and respect made a new way of thinking about education viable. He was an innovative thinker and a skilled leader. He won the trust of his team, the community and politicians and because of that he was able to lead us all into a new era. He didn’t seem to care who got the credit for the team’s accomplishments but as a skilled forerunner I suspect his greatest pleasure was in seeing his dream come true. Ira Needles was born in Iowa, but became a Canadian citizen. He died in 1986 at the full age of 92. The community has recognized his contributions in many ways, the most notable in the naming of Ira Needles Boulevard. Ira Needles was a forerunner who saw what could be, and with the help of other visionaries, built this dream for everyone’s benefit.

For more information about Ira Needles and the University of Waterloo, see: “Of Mud and Dreams” – James Scott, and or “Waterloo – The Unconventional Founding of an Unconventional University” – Kenneth McLaughlin (available at the Waterloo Public Library).

Paul Weigel