Elisa Yon is the organizer of PechaKucha Night in Victoria, and she's been experimenting with the PK 20x20 format a bit, as described below: Elisa Yon, who organized Victoria’s Pecha Kucha night, is now in her first year of the MAA program at Emily Carr. Elisa is an architect who won an architectural design competition that led to her representing Scotland at the 2008 Venice Biennale, so she had no shortage of professional accomplishments to share with her fellow students and faculty. But in her getting-to-know-me Pecha Kucha presentation, she began not with the usual approach of showing slides of her work, but instead shared slides that others had sent her. Elisa asked some important people in her life to send her images that said something about her, and in speaking to those slides, Elisa spoke volumes about her work, character and key relationships. Based on that experience, Elisa is now experimenting with Pecha Kucha as a way of curating self-portraits using contributed images. She’s asked for my help, and I have agreed to solicit 20 images from different people who know me — some well, some not so well– in order to build a collective picture. It’s kind of like a 360 evaluation based on creative feedback rather than analytic feedback. You can read the full post here. Why not try it yourself?

How would you like to slip around a basement coated with laundry soap, or eat 3 cheeseburgers before riding a rollercoaster? In today's Presentation of the Day, "Plus: A Non-Chronological Story of Gleeful Self-Deprecation" from Table XI's October Table Talks: My Worst Idea, JC Grubbs (of software developer DevMynd) reverses the flow of time and recounts eight of his favorite mistakes, each one more inane than the last. His gaffes are not all for naught, however -- he encourages us to "keep making enormously huge mistakes, do it with gusto, tell the stories, and hopefully some of them will end up good."

"'Quantified Self' is ... tracking all kinds of data about your daily routines, habits, movements..." Rami Alhamad, CEO and co-founder of PUSH, explains the "quantify self" movement in relation to the revolution of wearable technology to show how individuals are revolutionising how they track their daily habits. In "Quantifying Self" from PKN Toronto Vol. 27, Rami discusses the challenges of privacy and accuracy, and exposes the healthcare system as antiquated and in need of improvement.   

Volodymyr Vorobiov, CEO Ruby Garage, in his presentation from PKN Dnipropetrovsk IT::Education made ​​a presentation on the development of IT education. His advices were simple, but relevant at the same time. First, you need to read a lot. In the age of virtualization and total internetization, reading is necessary like the air! Success achievement in the field of IT education requires the following skills: positive motivation, getting practical experience and ongoing commitment to update information. Moreover it would be great to find a mentor who with his practical advice will guide you to the right and constructive direction. Go for it, and you get it all!

Alexander Korotkiy, a senior .NET developer in SmartGuy Group A/S and is leading MS SQL and .NET-related master classes in Ciklum, in his presentation from PKN Dnipropetrovsk IT::Education gives a lot of useful tips about IT education that have to be considered like the need to constantly improve the educational level, attend workshops, seminars, improve English. 

University is a waste of time. Self-education is the future. Anastasia Demidova, a beautiful Fairy, HR manager in Yalantis, in her presentation from PKN Dnipropetrovsk IT::Education shows a magic way to IT Land.

“I loved the Adventures of Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn and I wanted to take a river trip like theirs.” Ad and film professional Alex Oliver set out on a 1,000 mile journey down the Mississippi River on a mission. In “Voyage: East Tennessee to the Gulf of Mexico” from PKN Knoxville Vol. 14, we see how the goal of this trip was not only to conquer the Mississippi, but also one of self-discovery, and of the talented people around him.

  "You can use coding and programming for art, for music, for helping your grandma." In The Future of Self-Driving Cherry Trees from PechaKucha Night Special x MINI @ BMW Group Tokyo Bay, Joseph Tame shares on his many wild wearable machines. Tame uses the latest technology to break down social barriers through performance art. In his presentation, he will share his vision for a future in which artistic ideas can blossom anytime, anywhere.

In this presentation Lizzy Karp and Ken Tsui explain how their creative studio, Here There, is inspired by challenging the expectations of an activation and an experience.   With a process that often feels like an exploratory mission in the deepest reaches of space, they describe how their goal is to share the feeling of discovery and inspire a more interesting culture within the city.   

“Stunning!”, “Brilliant!”, “They managed to surprise us again!” These are some of the comments that were heard at this year’s PechaKucha event at Maastricht School of Management on Thursday 22 March. The eight students who took on the PechaKucha stage impressed the full audience of staff members and fellow students gathered in the business lounge with the personal and sometimes even intimate stories they dared to reveal. PechaKucha is a concise and fast-paced presentation style that consists in using only 20 slides, and 20 seconds per slide, to share inspiring ideas or projects. Each year MSM and PechaKucha Maastricht team up to organize a special PechaKucha event for the School’s students and staff. From writing a letter to your future self to embarking on a backpack journey around the world to managing a competitive cheerleader team from abroad to discovering the joys and challenges of gaming or oil painting, many speakers emphasized the value of embracing uncertainty and change. “Accept challenges and develop a positive and fearless attitude,” said Juan Carlos Ramonet Moreno (MM5). “Don’t get obsessed with a clear path and embark on a journey of self-discovery and continuous improvement,” advised Maria Kirichenko (MM5). “Value the importance of having a hobby and what you can learn from it,” highlighted Di Wu and Ramzi AlAshabi (MBA34). “Overcome your frustration and dare to change your career,” said Laura Sala Segura (MM5). Defining themselves as risk-takers, these five students showed how they all got energy and new ideas from pursuing their passions in life. Natania Leongson (MM5) and Hai Dang (MBA34) delved into deep personal or global topics. “I would like to inspire you to shift your mindset about the concept of identity. Learn to view it not as something permanent or predetermined, but as a malleable, fluid, and constantly changing phenomenon,” Natania said. In her presentation, she used the metaphor of an Indian totem to show how identity can be seen as a series of experiences that continuously shape and color as we grow older. Hai revealed his profound love and sense of care for his home country Vietnam when he spoke about the Son Doong Cave, the world’s largest cave. “Exploring Son Doong with its extraordinarily rich and unique natural environment should be done with utmost care and in an environmentally friendly and sustainable manner,” he urged. Speaking last and bringing back his fellow students to their year at MSM, Praveen Saragadam (MM5) offered a straightforward and pragmatic tip, based on his personal experience: “Let’s suit up!” he exclaimed with a broad and enthusiastic smile. “In this changing world, the way we dress up has a significant impact on creating the first impression, so let’s suit up and build up our career!” As every year, the event concluded with much joy and laughter when Oliver Olson, Director Global Education Programs, gave his now famous improvisation on random slides. Oliver used the opportunity to praise the students on their earlier performances and the stories they had shared: “It was wonderful to discover all these secret talents in the MSM family!”   By Sueli Brodin