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4 CHILDART GLOBAL CREATIVE LEADERS JAN-MAR 2021 5

LEARNING Ambassador Charles Rivkin, who started his career Sergey Eylanbekov is making a difference through

the language of sculpture. The celebrated sculptor
with the Jim Henson Company and is now chairman
and CEO of the Motion Picture Association, is an
of the Eisenhower Memorial hopes his art will “make
FROM exceptional leader fostering creativity in others (pages people stop and think for a while about what is
10-11). “I don’t consider myself to be a creative soul,
depicted” (pages 18-19). In this fast-paced world it
but I do love being around creative people…I think
is increasingly important to pause for a moment to
LEADERS TO some of the best ideas come from people that are look and to feel. Students are the demographic that
all the way down the line in an organization—not just
will most frequently visit the newly opened memorial
in Washington, DC. Sergey uses his skills to work in
from the leadership.” He believes that creativity can
BRIGHTEN THE be found anywhere. clay or stone or bronze to create an experience for
others that will remain with them.
Dr. Olivia Tournay Flatto emphasizes the need to
broaden one’s horizons (pages 12-13). Born in Cannes,
You have to think outside the box. Progress always
WORLD France, she obtained her PhD in molecular biology starts with a creative idea. “It takes courage to go
into uncharted territory, but when you do something
and genetics from the University of Pennsylvania.
for the first time… that’s what is wonderful,” says
After several years of scientific research, she now
heads The Pershing Square Foundation in New York
creative (pages 20-21). He stresses that creativity
City. “Nothing is rigid. Never feel that you are stuck Per Pedersen, who is Denmark’s most prominent
in one path,” she says. “When you want something, is a team sport, “It’s not about me. It’s about us.” He
ICAF EDITORIAL dream big!” Her recommendation: “Surround yourself suggests you pass over your first idea, so you keep
with friends and people who can challenge you and
exploring. “Don’t do what everyone else is doing. If
don’t judge you, and then offer the feeling to others something looks familiar, dismiss it. The best ideas
that ‘you are safe with me.’” should be relatable yet provocative.”
Claudia Romo Edelman embraced a big dream by Leigh Rawdon, the founder of Tea Collection, a
launching We Are All Human to “remind us all that San Francisco based children’s clothing company,
we belong to one large human family. That large has stepped far beyond the boundaries of her
human family, like a body, is made of different parts. childhood home in Memphis, Tennessee (pages
The parts look different and do different things, but 22-23). She travels the world exploring cultures for
they are all interconnected. If you hurt one part, you design inspiration for her children’s clothing line. She
have a sensation of illness all across” (pages 14-15). champions originality and ingenuity. Experience has
A communicator extraordinaire, Claudia believes that taught her that creative leaders possess resilience
“communication occurs by trying to understand who and grit. Most importantly, though, she believes that
is saying what, under what conditions, and when, everyone should be treated with respect and humanity.
and where, and why.” She believes that kids today “It’s important to be yourself and to be celebrated.”
are lucky because of the many opportunities. “Talk to Dr. Michael Schaefer is a bridge builder. He has
your parents, your teachers, and your friends about
having a future in the world that is empowering and spent his life working to build bridges between people
and countries in the quest for a peaceful, just, and
Our world needs global creative leaders who can unite nations, strengthen global communities, and help involves everybody. Dream big! Dream good! It’s sustainable future (pages 24-25). Michael served as
train the next generation of leaders for long-term prosperity and peace. Leaders boldly step beyond the possible! Let’s do it!” Germany’s ambassador to China and represented
boundaries set before them to challenge the norm. They advance human civilization and brighten the future. Author of the recently published book, Making Germany at the United Nations in New York and
To introduce you to global creative leaders, we interviewed sixteen over the past couple of months. You will Conversation, Fred Dust is design advisor to the the Human Rights Commission in Geneva before
learn about them and from them. You will draw inspiration and find aspiration. In talking to these leaders, Rockefeller Foundation (pages 16-17). He believes assuming chairmanship of the BMW Foundation in
we learned some important lessons to share with you. you must fall in love with what you’re doing. “You are Berlin. “It is always individual people who change

We learned that leadership starts with creativity. An evangelist spreads good news. Dr. Frederik G. Pferdt going to make something better if you fall in love with the world—individual people who connect with each
holds the title of Chief Innovation Evangelist for Google (pages 8-9). The good news he spreads is that we who you’re designing for.” He believes in children. “We other to build a community of purpose. Responsible
are all creative. You might lack confidence, but you are creative. The key to unleashing creativity is empathy. can learn so much from kids. Children are leading leadership starts at a young age. Young people can
“Empathy sparks new ideas and innovations. It is the #1 skill of the future. Invest in your empathy skills.” the way for global climate change. They are great create powerful movements—like Fridays for Future.
Frederik helps people discover problems they want to solve and ways they can contribute. His work and at design.” He worries that children can lose their Join forces to build a community of purpose that will
message are timely. The year 2020 has brought change in ways we never could have expected. Frederik expertise as they enter the adult world and says, contribute to solving the problems the world faces today.”
advises we prepare ourselves for a world that is different—but in a positive way. “We are seeing a peak in “We can’t consider creativity, art, sports and play as
creativity at this moment. It is time for a positive change.” luxuries for kids; they are necessities.”

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