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Blog

20 Aug 2013

Alexandra Barker

What do you say to people when you talk about the RSA? Do you mention a great lecture you’ve seen, a Fellow you’ve met or perhaps share an animate online? It’s easy when you’ve got an example but sometimes when you’re on the spot, it can be difficult to in articulate all the many aspects of the RSA’s work. It’s a multi-layered, multifaceted organisation that is governed from a huge house which can feel like a bit of a labyrinth -  so where do you begin?

Shhh...! Silence in the RSA Library - what do you think?

Blog

19 Aug 2013

This is a blog by Samantha Fletcher, Martina Booth and Anna Clayton (RSA Fellowship staff).

Plus ca change

Blog

19 Aug 2013

Matthew Taylor

Two themes occurring separately and together in weekend media commentary were the state of politics and the state of Ed Miliband. In relation to the former, commentators have quoted the Hansard Society’s annual survey of political engagement showing the lowest recorded figure for the percentage of the public saying they are interested in politics (42%). In relation to the latter the so called ‘summer of silence’ and the resulting sniping from various Party figures is being worked up into a silly seasons leadership crisis.

The most productive act of leadership? Email less.

Blog

15 Aug 2013

Jonathan Rowson

80% of emails are a waste of time? I almost used that as a headline for a brief blog, and that's the statistic doing the rounds at the moment, but on closer inspection that 'statistic' looks like a guesstimate given to a journalist by a consultant with a vested interest in advertising his services....which is not to say he is not broadly correct(!).

Miles worse?

Blog

15 Aug 2013

Matthew Taylor

I am the kind of person who would rather share a train carriage with an unclaimed bag than raise the alarm and risk looking silly - I would probably hesitate even if I knew it contained a bomb. But if it is possible to be smugly mortified, that’s how I felt a few days ago.

Entrepreneurship, AKA ‘pragmatic anger’

Blog

14 Aug 2013

Benedict Dellot

Entrepreneurship is not about money. It never has been. Look at any survey on the motivations for starting up in business and you’ll see that the desire for independence and greater freedom will nearly always trump the opportunity to make money. People start a business to be their own boss, get away from hierarchy and engage in something more meaningful.

Could the rise of micro-business offer a route to a better capitalism?

Blog

13 Aug 2013

I’ve been re-reading E.F Schumacher’s Small Is Beautiful having not picked it up in about twenty years. It seemed like a good point to do so given the rise of micro-business that I’ve been exploring on this blog and elsewhere. The book was also first published forty years ago this year.

Q&A: Maria Ana Neves FRSA shares her inspirations... and social media challenges

Blog

12 Aug 2013

Now that the RSA has it own Fellows’ network of Regional Digital Champions - see their profiles and blog post about the Champions' role - to support and inspire Fellows’ online activity, we thought it would be rewarding to hear from individual Fellows (including RSA Catalyst project leaders) about their challenges, hopes and experiences in the online space, and beyond.

The problem with kittens is they grow into cats

Blog

12 Aug 2013

Joe Hallgarten

The only consensus achieved during last week’s discussions about the UK’s baby boom was that yes, we are definitely having more babies. The facts can’t be denied; 813,000 babies were born in the UK last year, the highest number since 1972. With 254,000 more births than deaths over the year, and a smaller net migration gain, our population is rising faster than any other EU country.