An Exciting Year of Taos Institute Activities

This past year stands as an exceptional one in the vitality of Institute activities. Most of the workshops offered by the Institute have been over-subscribed; the numbers of applicants to the PhD program far exceed the available openings; four new and significant books have been published; the Positive Aging Newsletter has been honored; the Journal of Collaborative Practices has been sponsored, new resources have been added to the web, and by almost all accounts, the fall conference in Sarasota, Dialogues that Deliver, was a smashing success. These efforts have been further energized by grants from the Whitman Foundation and the Reynolds Foundation, along with individual donations that have, for one, established the Dharma program of support for graduate students.

 Yet, the excitement is not limited to these public activities. Behind the scenes lively dialogues have taken place, all promising wonderful things to come. With friends and associates of the Institute, there are plans in motion to develop a Masters Degree program in relational leadership, a European Master Class series in organizational management, a Spanish speaking network on dialogic practice, an on-line course in postmodern therapy, and a new, membership status that would enable more people to participate in the development of Institute activities. Plans are also concrete for a conference on Constructing Worlds next August in Copenhagen. So, there is much to celebrate, and even more to which we should look forward.

Ken Gergen

President of the Taos Institute