INTRODUCTION TO EXCELLENCE NETWORKS
by Jill Herndon


Lisa Kimball asked me to write an introduction to Lisa and Frank Burn's new slide
series, for their first U.S. publication, here in NETWEAVER. These nine
easy pieces were published in Tokyo in April. I have to say that I'm
delighted to do so, and here's why.

Part of the context out of which these slides have been created is our
home computer conference the Meta Network. The purpose of the Meta Network
is "To bridge the gap between the human condition and the human
potential." From this starting point there is as you can well imagine, a
lot of sitting around the firescreen talking about human potential, about
the identification and uses of new technologies as catalysts and for the
expansion of the possibilities in being human, and about how to achieve
and maintain peak performance. The members' social action bias focuses the
conversation macrocosmically: how do WE create new socio-technical systems
to close the gap? How do we make "it" simple enough for the planet to get
"it" FAST!

On-line earlier this month Frank was planning out loud to join Izumi Aizu
for the opening of Izumi's Institute for Networking Design in Tokyo. So we
were thinking: "What do we take to Tokyo? And then New York City? And
then... ? And, can we say it in a "release" that will hold its meaning as
it moves across cultures, across time ? Could Frank draw it so that the
"release" has the linguistic power to create changes as it is seen, to
re-engineer how we already have it sorted ? And so that no more than five
words need "translation" ?

We have shaped our world in words. Could Frank re-architect the linguistic
distinctions that are commonly being made: could he explode us into new
thought forms? Could he open up the system of thought in which people
commonly talk about techology, human potential and high performance? Could
he create uncommon spaces to seduce/evoke/provoke us to see new places to
language? Could he draw us into the eye in the pyramid and kaleidoscope
our sight? Visuals with trip value. Values with trip visuals.

By George, I think they've got it!

----- Author's note: Jill Herndon is a founding member of the Federal
Training Excellence Network (FTEN), a catalyst for the introduction of
technology at the Food and Nutrition Service of the U.S. Department of
Agriculture where she works, and is currently participating in an
internship program with Metasystems Design Group.