The Speakers
Ben Crothers
Ben is on a mission to help people be just as capable with the whiteboard as they are with the keyboard. He is a designer, strategist, facilitator, and trainer, and enjoys helping groups work better together, through all sorts of methods of workshop facilitation and graphic facilitation. He's the author of two books to help people draw at work: Presto Sketching: The Magic of Simple Drawing for Brilliant Product Thinking and Design, and Draw in 4! Fun fact: Ben’s first book was actually a collection of comics he drew for the Australian Army newspaper called Stand Easy, back in the early 90s. These days, he does a mix of facilitation and online training, through his training platform Bright Pilots. When not drawing, workshopping or writing, Ben likes a bit of abstract painting, and baking bagels.
Martin Haussman
Martin Haussmann is the inventor of the bikablo visualization technique, the co-director of the bikablo company, a globally active trainer and speaker, a specialist writer (of the best selling bikablo visual dictionaries and “UZMO – thinking with your pen“) and a developer of products and methodologies. Over the last 15 years, he has worked as a Graphic Recorder, Strategic Visualizer, Visual Facilitator and Consultant, Sketchnoter, and Visualization Trainer.
He loves nothing more than being faced with complex problems, which he then tackles with systematic creativity. This generates new training formats, visualization techniques, and dialogue methods – and an ever more profound understanding of the power and possibilities of pictures. With his wife, son and cat he lives in Cologne, Germany.
Vasintha Pather
Vasintha Pather is a South Africa based organisational development specialist and mental health professional. Through the Centre for Gestalt Leadership Vasintha provides coaching and consulting in organisational culture design and trauma-informed leadership practices, as well as learning processes in Visual Thinking and Innovation.
Core to her approach is the application of imagery and other arts-based methodologies in strengthening capacities for critical thinking, ideation, collaboration and change. As part-time faculty at Henley Business School Africa Vasintha leads learning experiences in visual thinking and strengths-based leadership; and as a part-time lecturer at the University of Johannesburg she facilitates learning on applying imagery in therapy and counseling.
Vasintha’s work is focused primarily on supporting organisations to craft healthy cultures that promote innovation, collaboration and whole-systems effectiveness.
As a Creative Arts Therapist registered with the Health Professionals Council of South Africa (HPCSA), she also practices privately in arts-based, psycho-dramatic and somatic approaches in strengthening mental and emotional health.
Roy Blumenthal
Roy Blumenthal has been sketchnoting professionally for the past 13 years. He works digitally on his tablet pc, screening his work live for delegates to follow while he draws live. He's a fan of the idea that having a smooth workflow makes digital work easy.
You can find him almost everywhere online under the username RoyBlumenthal.
To get a sense of how Roy works, here's a link to an overview of Roy's process:
Benjamin Felis
Benjamin Felis is a full time graphic recorder & illustrator from Berlin, Germany. He is a former graffiti artist and consultant, trained in graphic recording, visual facilitation, visual presencing (Theory U), Business Model Canvas, coaching and organizational development. Since 2013 Ben has worked in over 16 countries all over the world – executed over 300 professional Graphic Recordings analog and digitally and hast illustrated on over 400m on paper. During the pandemic he set up a studio space and can now conduct remote digital/analog Graphic Recording with multi-camera views and live filming of the drawing process. A selection of clients he worked for: Microsoft, Ikea, United Nations, Deutsche Bank, Daimler, Panasonic, Bosch & Deutsche Bahn Benjamin is an official Toolmaster for NeulandÒ markers and member of the International Forum of Visual Practioners (IFVP)
Sam Bradd
Sam Bradd is a graphic facilitator, meeting facilitator, and the founder of Drawing Change in Vancouver Canada. He combines 20 years’ facilitation experience with visual tools to help groups engage, solve problems and lead. He has a Master’s Degree in Education (UBC), is certified in Human Systems Dynamics and Integral Facilitation, and is a Dialogue Fellow with the SFU Centre for Dialogue. Sam's facilitation is strengths-based, creative, works with complexity, participatory, and uses an intersectional and anti-racism lens. Throughout his career, Sam has worked with decision-makers in 11 countries, with the World Health Organization, Indigenous communities, and groups working to change the world. He is the co-editor of two books including Drawn Together through Visual Practice (2016), a contributing author to The World of Visual Facilitation (2018) and is a co-founder of the award-winning Graphic History Collective. He lives on unceded Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh territories (Vancouver Canada).
Brandy Agerbeck
Brandy Agerbeck writes, speaks and teaches how to reclaim drawing as your best thinking tool. Brandy published the much-loved volume The Graphic Facilitator's Guide in 2012. She followed this “bible” of the field with the book for every visual thinker: The Idea Shapers. Cultural analyst Patricia Martin calls it, “A new alphabet for the visual age.” Teaching online and in-person, Brandy is a “triple threat” of world-class expert, top-notch trainer and seamless facilitator.
Lita Currie
Your host for the conference is Lita Currie, owner and director of 3 Stickmen. Lita is a graphic facilitator and business coach. She has over 25 years’ experience in the development of talent and has worked with clients from a variety of disciplines. She has designed and implemented various learning interventions across Africa and has consulted in the UK and the US. Her expertise covers performance management, human resource processes, learning design and -facilitation, communication and presentation. She is a member of the International Forum of Visual Practitioners and use pictures created in the moment to help learners make the most of a learning opportunity. She is a registered Learning & Development Professional with the South African Board of People Practices.