In 2001, Deborah Frieze walked out of her career as an executive in the high-tech industry. She was disillusioned by a business culture that emphasized short-term results, looked upon growth as an end rather than a means, and cared more about compliance than community. A year later, she met Meg Wheatley and a community of pioneering leaders who, like her, were walking out of organizations and systems that were failing to contribute to the common good. These were friends and colleagues of The Berkana Institute.
Deborah joined Berkana full-time in 2002 and succeeded Meg Wheatley as co-president from 2005-2009. She currently serves as a board member and is leading several Berkana initiatives, including Feeding Ourselves Sustainably, a youth-driIn 2001, Deborah Frieze walked out of her career as an executive in the high-tech industry. She was disillusioned by a business culture that emphasized short-term results, looked upon growth as an end rather than a means, and cared more about compliance than community. A year later, she met Meg Wheatley and a community of pioneering leaders who, like her, were walking out of organizations and systems that were failing to contribute to the common good. These were friends and colleagues of The Berkana Institute.
Deborah joined Berkana full-time in 2002 and succeeded Meg Wheatley as co-president from 2005-2009. She currently serves as a board member and is leading several Berkana initiatives, including Feeding Ourselves Sustainably, a youth-driven community of practice in North America; Swaraj University, an alternative learning institute in India; several Sharing Our Learning projects, including publications and online media; and consulting as part of the Berkana Collaborative.
Previously, Deborah was a partner and founding member of ZEFER, an Internet services firm. Earlier in her career, she was an editor for Snow Country magazine, and she continues to count skiing and winter sports among her greatest passions.
She has worked in partnership with the Mastery Foundation, leading peace and reconciliation programs in Northern Ireland and Israel. She serves as a consultant and adviser to numerous grassroot organizations both locally and abroad. Deborah has an MBA from Harvard Business School and a bachelor's degree from Amherst College....more
Are you familiar with runes? I was first introduced to these ancient Norse divination stones by Meg Wheatley when she told me that Berkana, the name of the institute she founded, was the rune for growth and rebirth. Ever since, I’ve cast a single rune each January 1st to give me a clue about the year to come. This year I drew Jera which means harvest and fruition, a time of reaping rewards from se