When I heard Meg Van Deusen’s desire to make listening the norm, I felt an immediate kinship. As a long-time engagement practitioner who knows the transformative power of listening, I was wowed by her passion and commitment. Something that struck me about Meg was that, like the fellows she supported, she applied what she was learning from the BK Fellowship to her work with the Feedback Fellows. Specifically, she tied her work to the BK Foundation mission – sharing resources to co-create a world that works for all. She supported her fellows from eight countries to grow into a community, just as she became part of the BK Fellows community. Meg did more than support a cohort of fellows to adopt listening as a norm that they’re taking back to their organizations. Meg also discovered the gift of listening to herself. -- Peggy Holman, BKF Board Secretary Reflecting on Meg's 7/9/20 presentation Meg speaks about the power that feedback and listening has: "Not being heard, listened to. We're responding to that feedback and we believe that feedback has the power to create systemic change. We believe believe that this is true in COVID-19 response and in the Black Lives Matter movement. We hope to be using our platform to continue to raise up the voices that so desperately need to be heard." Click on the image above to watch Meg speak about how the tools provided by the BKF Fellowship helped her support 10 Feedback Fellows to transition feedback into a normal practice in their organizations "To be in community now in this virtual world has also changed the way that our community is thinking about incorporating feedback from affected communities. It's becoming even more vitally important to be listening as we determine our COVID-19 responses to really uncover questions about the best way to listen and act on feedback in this new reality." Peggy's reflection continues: I am inspired by Meg and her peers – a new generation on a never-ending journey of discovery, hope, and movement towards equipping people with the skills to create the world they desire. To read Peggy's full reflection on how what Meg learned about herself in the BKF fellowship changed the way she does her work, click here |