On Monday I got to attend a lunch Lauren and Jennifer hosted for all the CIS fellows at the Stanford Faculty Club. Wow, what an incredible group! I sat at the end of the table next to Andrew and Christoph, who are both leaving soon (Andrew to go to Johannesburg and Christoph to Germany) but the net will keep us close, I'm sure. Andrew mentioned to me that he knows Ayo Kusamotu, who has been leading the charge on African ODR as of late. I also put him in touch with Quentin Tannock, who has run an arbitration center in Zimbabwe and is now looking to start a novel ADR organization in South Africa.
I also got to speak with Matt Margolin, who as it turns out worked at eBay alongside many of my colleagues in Content. Matt runs angrycoffee.com, a very cool website showcasing local music in the bay area. Matt also was the guitarist in the Smokin' Rhythm Prawns, which I gather were semi-famous in the bay area a few years ago. Plus I met Collette, David, and a few other folks. I wish I'd had more time to chat with everyone.
So it's a great group they've gathered together -- very friendly, and engaged in a rich range of activities. I encourage you to reach out to all the folks in the drop down in the upper right of this page. I'm hopeful I'll be able to leverage their expertise in the research I conduct during my connection to the Center.
Happy Thanksgiving!