iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Kai Degner @kaidegner.bsky.social · 19/06/2026

Every hydration break, I imagine joining half a billion people around the world for a snack or bathroom break and feel more connected to our shared humanity. Anyone else? #WorldCup

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Kai Degner @kaidegner.bsky.social · 28/03/2026

Harrisonburg VA - heart of the rural Shenandoah Valley - Signs of Fascism standing procession along Main Street #NoKings

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Kai Degner @kaidegner.bsky.social · 17/01/2026

"If I want to help a man reduce his defensiveness and become more adaptive, I must try to remove the threat of myself as his potential changer." Rogers, Carl, R.; Farson, Richard, Evans. Active Listening (p. 6). (Function). Kindle Edition.

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Kai Degner @kaidegner.bsky.social · 12/12/2025

Any Celsius-Fahrenheit split households? I just created this to print and hang in the kitchen. Thoughts on improvement? Utility?

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Reposted by Kai Degner

Mother Jones @motherjones.com · 30/10/2025

During a press conference, Kristi Noem claimed that ICE has not detained or arrested any US citizens. This isn't true. The reality is that at least 170 citizens have been held by immigration agents, including two kids with cancer.

motherjones.com

More than 170 US citizens have been held by immigration agents

ProPublica uncovered that Americans have been kicked, dragged, and detained for days.

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Kai Degner @kaidegner.bsky.social · 19/10/2025

After this, 150 people came together from 1-5:30 for a L.O.C.A.L. Summit on Strengthening Democracy and Supporting Vulnerable Neighbors. We created the agenda together at the beginning, and had 18 sessions on a range of organizing topics. Info about the model at www.localsummits.org #openspace

localsummits.org

L.O.C.A.L. Summits

L.O.C.A.L.: Local Organizing for COLLABORATIVE Action and Leadership L.O.C.A.L. Summits are a project of SIMPLER Leadership LLC, a social enterprise by Kai Degner.

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Democracy Docket @democracydocket.com · 03/10/2025

NEW: A federal judge rules that the DOJ’s criminal case against Kilmar Abrego Garcia may be a form of punishment against him for legally challenging his removal to El Salvador, and said he is entitled to discovery against the administration.

democracydocket.com

Judge Says DOJ May Be Vindictively Punishing Abrego Garcia for Challenging Removal to El Salvador

Read more here.

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Kai Degner @kaidegner.bsky.social · 06/09/2025

College prep for 5 yrs old. You can never start too early.

A young child playing with red solo cups, with a scooter in the foreground.

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Kai Degner @kaidegner.bsky.social · 01/09/2025

Brutal way to mess up my bell curve. Wordle 1,535 6/6 ⬛🟨⬛🟨⬛ ⬛🟩🟩⬛⬛ ⬛🟩🟩🟩🟩 ⬛🟩🟩🟩🟩 ⬛🟩🟩🟩🟩 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

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Kai Degner @kaidegner.bsky.social · 18/08/2025

Factor in the math on nukes and proximity to Russia…

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David Ho @davidho.bsky.social · 30/07/2025

Motherfucking wind farms…

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Kai Degner @kaidegner.bsky.social · 03/08/2025

His hypotheses were traffic and red lights. We discussed possibility vs probability. It’s possible there could be escaped elephants from a zoo up ahead, but it’s not very probable. So what’s the experiment to test our hypotheses? “Just drive and see.” We hit traffic and lights. No elephants.

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Kai Degner @kaidegner.bsky.social · 03/08/2025

Then we discussed the mile markers and our speed. I said we are going about one mile per minute and we are 80 miles away. He understood it should take 80 minutes. But I said the map says it will take 100 minutes, so something up ahead must make us go slower. My hypothesis is elephants in road.

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Kai Degner @kaidegner.bsky.social · 03/08/2025

We then discussed how we can test ideas to solve problems. He imagined a scenario where a bow and arrow shot a grappling hook but it didn’t go far enough to reach a wall. The hypothesis for what went wrong is not pulling the string back far enough. The experiment is “Just pull it back further.”

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Kai Degner @kaidegner.bsky.social · 03/08/2025

Why fund #PBS #NPR #CPN: 5 yo on long car ride today: “Daddy, can you tell me about the scientific med dod?” “The scientific method?” “Yes. The scientific method. Can you teach me it?” “Umm, sure. What has you thinking about that?” “The superhero show on PBS. They use it to solve problems.”

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Kai Degner @kaidegner.bsky.social · 27/07/2025

I credit Mehdi for doing this.

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Kai Degner @kaidegner.bsky.social · 18/07/2025

Definitely tempted to see what’s going on over on X tonight…

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Reposted by Kai Degner

Blue Virginia @bluevirginia.bsky.social · 28/06/2025

Video: Speaking to a Fired-Up Opening Night of the 2025 VA Women’s Summit, Sen. Kaine Rips Youngkin – “If you won’t stand up for [UVA], will you stand up for ANYTHING?!?”; "I sent [a text to Youngkin asking for him to help] at 6:58 am and I have not gotten a response" bluevirginia.us/2025/06/vide...

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Kai Degner @kaidegner.bsky.social · 27/06/2025

The circumstances driving the resignation of UVA President Jim Ryan are sad, infuriating, and dangerous. He himself had no choice, given his integrity, as demonstrated in today’s email to the University community.

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Diana Degner @ddegner.bsky.social · 22/06/2025

When the word “peace” is being coopted & used as a mechanism of coercion to justify violence & war, is when, those who can & have the privilege to, should pause, breathe, stay grounded, find our center, & continue creating spaces where true peace can be generated.

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Kai Degner @kaidegner.bsky.social · 07/06/2025

Pfff I’m trying to stand up a dissertation w a job and two kids <6. Deep work seems impossible!

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Kai Degner @kaidegner.bsky.social · 05/06/2025

Self-regulation supported by social science research as a predictor of leader effectiveness and emergence.

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Kai Degner @kaidegner.bsky.social · 04/06/2025

Interesting… www.talktothe.city About An open-source AI tool …. Talk to the City bridges this gap with an open-source AI platform that turns large-scale conversations into actionable insights while preserving individual perspectives—from local town halls to national policy discussions.

talktothe.city

Talk to the City

Talk to the City helps large groups of people coordinate by understanding each other better, faster, and in more depth.

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Kai Degner @kaidegner.bsky.social · 02/06/2025

Could this exercise be the secret to creating a listening culture?

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Kai Degner @kaidegner.bsky.social · 02/06/2025

More from Carl Rogers - getting back to the foundational texts of active listening is useful

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Kai Degner @kaidegner.bsky.social · 02/06/2025

From Carl Rogers' intro to Active Listening - rather on the nose about fighting authoritarianism tendencies: "People who have been listened to in this new and special way become more emotionally mature, more open to their experiences, less defensive, more democratic, and less authoritarian."

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Kai Degner @kaidegner.bsky.social · 02/06/2025

Who’s going to mess this up?

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Kai Degner @kaidegner.bsky.social · 28/05/2025

Me: “Mom can do the bath tomorrow. There’s always another day.” 5yo: “Not when the sun explodes.”

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Kai Degner @kaidegner.bsky.social · 22/05/2025

Reminder: the device you’re on right now probably has a feature called “Phone.” It unlocks live, interactive discussions with human beings that have potential for efficient and effective communication.

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Kai Degner @kaidegner.bsky.social · 04/05/2025

Another sign egg prices aren’t coming down anytime soon: Fox News posting affiliate links for backyard chicken coops. 🥚🥚🥚🐣🐣🐣

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Kai Degner @kaidegner.bsky.social · 26/04/2025

You might be at the Virginia Democrats Rural Retreat if…

Two urinals with a paper with a message posted on the wall above. The words are too small to read.

An enlarged version of a paper between two urinals with the message “Please do not spit tobacco or any product in the urinals. Thank you.”

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Kai Degner @kaidegner.bsky.social · 25/04/2025

Pfff excited to be finalizing this presentation to kick off a new learning community for people ready to level up their leadership in these times. Seems like a culmination of 22 years of learning and doing. Title Slide: 3 Secrets to Unlock the Collective Leadership Needed Now to Save Democracy

Title slide of a presentation. The title reads “3 Secrets to Unlock the Collective Leadership Needed Now to Save Democracy”

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Kai Degner @kaidegner.bsky.social · 05/04/2025

Harrisonburg and Rockingham County, VA - #HandsOff Hands Off Rally in the heart of the Shenandoah Valley #resist

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David Dayen @ddayen.bsky.social · 25/03/2025

Some astonishing numbers in here: -OpenAI loses $2 for every $1 it makes -OpenAI projects annual losses of $14 billion by 2026 -To break even OpenAI needs to increase revenue 25x in just 5 years -33% of VC portfolios are committed to AI -5 AI-heavy stocks account for 29% of the S&P 500's value

prospect.org

Bubble Trouble

An AI bubble threatens Silicon Valley, and all of us.

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Kai Degner @kaidegner.bsky.social · 20/03/2025

This is my approach for the L.O.C.A.L. Summits Series, which was launched with an email on Feb 12. Feb 22, we had 150 in the room. March 15, we had 250+. May 10 is summit #3. See the resources, framing, and example at www.localsummits.org.

localsummits.org

L.O.C.A.L. Summits

New Action!Letters to Rep. Ben Cline

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Kai Degner @kaidegner.bsky.social · 20/03/2025

The resistance has room for everyone - but we need to get in a room. Here’s a recipe to do so: 1. Send a powerful invitation speaking to feelings of overwhelm and isolation, and need to be in collective action. 2. Run the meetings in Open Space (attendees create agenda). 3. Donations cover costs.

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Kai Degner @kaidegner.bsky.social · 01/03/2025

See these readings to get oriented to the purpose and to be assured you are welcome. www.localsummits.org/readings

localsummits.org

L.O.C.A.L. Summits - Readings

Please read and share these orientation resources for the L.O.C.A.L. Summits.

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Kai Degner @kaidegner.bsky.social · 01/03/2025

Attend if you can play nicely with others and… ✅ If you’re already in action, you can recruit, share resources, and collaborate. ✅ If you’re looking for a way in, you can find direction, inspiration, and community. ✅ If you believe in democracy and know we need to fight for it, you belong.

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Kai Degner @kaidegner.bsky.social · 01/03/2025

📅 Next Summit: March 15 in Harrisonburg, VA - for the central Shenandoah Valley and beyond. 🔗 RSVP here: www.LocalSummits.org We need broad participation. Who else needs to be here? Tag them. Invite them. Let’s build something powerful together across our communities.

localsummits.org

L.O.C.A.L. Summits

Next Summit March 15Central Shenandoah Valley

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Kai Degner @kaidegner.bsky.social · 01/03/2025

A Call to Action for the Central Shenandoah Valley: Attend the Local Organizing for Civic Action and Leadership (L.O.C.A.L.) Summits. 150 came together for Summit #1. We are bringing people together to connect, strategize, and take action in response to threats to democracy and our neighbors.

localsummits.org

L.O.C.A.L. Summits

Next Summit March 15Central Shenandoah Valley

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Sherrilyn Ifill @sifill.bsky.social · 28/02/2025

None of us can be sure what will “work.” You try multiple things and find your way in. Read some histories of the Civil Rights Movement by those who participated. They were never “sure” of what would work. Some campaigns fizzled out. But persistence, creativity, determination, and focus were key.

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Rachel Maddow @maddow.bsky.social · 27/02/2025

"Most of EPA’s work happens behind the scenes, like when one of its enforcement teams raided a warehouse in Colorado full of mislabeled oil barrels that had been prepared for a landfill and discovered they contained nuclear waste..." www.nytimes.com/2025/02/27/o...

nytimes.com

Opinion | Three Former E.P.A. Leaders: You’ll Miss It When It’s Gone

When the next environmental catastrophe arrives, who will be there to deal with the emergency and its aftermath?

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Kai Degner @kaidegner.bsky.social · 25/02/2025

I’m with you. I had a very well-recognized local entrepreneur and thought-leader take offense I didn’t extend summit invites to “Trumpers” and chastised me with “I used to have a friend who believed in listening.” Totally missed the point, tone deaf to the urgency and needs, and lazy thinking.

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Kai Degner @kaidegner.bsky.social · 20/02/2025

I created/curated this for a local organizing effort (more on that later). I'm curious about your thoughts, reactions, questions, and suggestions! A Google Doc version is here: docs.google.com/document/d/1... Useful? Share w/ others and/or leave a tip! Tip: donate.stripe.com/28og0bbq43Ao...

donate.stripe.com

Stripe Checkout

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Kai Degner @kaidegner.bsky.social · 20/02/2025

Barry Johnson is credited with polarity management thinking, theory, and practice. Read more here and search on YouTube: rise-leaders.com/wp-content/u...

rise-leaders.com

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