In his many keynotes and presentations, Gerd Leonhard popularized the phrase "Data is the new oil" ) originally coined by Clive Humbey / AMA - which has since been used by thousands.  At XML Switzerland "Participation Culture", this internationally renowned futurist and author of 5 books is going to share even more of his secret sauce.....

1.  Do you have a secret recipe to foster participation and engagement ?

Gerd: It's no secret but... expanding from Thomas Friedman: only a crisis or a love affair will cause real change. And only emotional impact will foster real engagement, so that is what I try to achieve when I speak.

2. Who has been the most important person to your professional life and why ?

Gerd: there have been very many smart people in my life that have influenced my work (and even more so, now, given Twitter  see https://twitter.com/#!/gleonhard/smart-people  and the Amazon Kindle sharing see https://kindle.amazon.com/profile/Gerd-Leonhard/1551565/public_notes"> https://kindle.amazon.com/profile/Gerd-Leonhard/1551565/public_notes ) but I think I would say that Richard Branson has been most influential on my work; his humor and irreverence and belief in himself.

3. What have been your three strongest artistic emotions ?

Gerd: just one: speaking from the heart, and getting something across that just flows

4. What challenge are you facing right now?

Gerd: dealing with a huge flood of powerful information, and keeping up with the pace of change - and still focusing on what's truly important. Also, working more collaboratively with like-minded people.

5. Can you give us a sneaky peak at what you will be presenting in Basel?

Gerd:  I will talk about the new business of creativity and culture in a networked and always-on world - the next 5 years.
 

If you have a project you'd like to be mentored by Gerd and the other XML Switzerland International Mentors - you can nominate it for the Lab here.

And to book your place to hear Gerd speak - then register today!