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Welcome to my Creative Blog
Here, I explore leadership, learning, culture, and creative learning as human capacities shaped through lived experience.
This blog brings together essays on pilgrimage as leadership, cross-cultural learning, ethical leadership, and creative thinking — written from an observational, systems-based perspective. Grounded in educational psychology and reflective practice, each piece offers space to think beyond performance models and toward more human-centred ways of leading, learning, and belonging.
Rather than offering answers, these essays trace patterns: how leaders are formed over time, how cultures meet, and how inner coherence supports ethical action in complex systems.
May each entry offer clarity, perspective, and insight for your own learning journey.
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Intercultural Leadership As Creative Intelligence: How Difference Becomes Imagination And Leadership Becomes Art
The creative spark in human difference. In my work across cultures, I’ve noticed something simple and astonishing: every genuine encounter reveals a new way of seeing the world; a different rhythm of thought, a surprising humour, a tone of meaning we hadn’t known before. When we stay curious rather than certain, our thinking begins to shift shape. Leadership today isn’t only about analysis or efficiency; it’s about imagination. And imagination grows in the space between us.
Louise Sommer
Jan 194 min read
The Leader as a Bridge Between Cultures: When leadership becomes a meeting of inner courage and outer connection
When I teach cultural sensitivity or leadership communication, I often see this quiet fear surface. A hesitation, as if opening up to another worldview means giving away our identity, our power, our right to belong. In both Denmark and Australia, I’ve seen this happen again and again. People want to do the right thing, but somewhere deep down they think: If I make space for your difference, will there still be space for me? The paradox is this: we don’t lose ourselves by meet
Louise Sommer
Dec 10, 20254 min read
Leading from the Inside Out: Reggio Emilia and the Practice of Inner & Cultural Leadership
Leading from the Inside Out: Reggio Emilia and the Practice of Inner & Cultural Leadership explores what happens when leadership is understood not as management or control, but as a living culture of presence, belonging, and creative intelligence. Drawing on my years studying the Reggio Emilia tradition in Florence, I reflect on how a philosophy of early-childhood education became a compass for adult leadership, cross-cultural psychology, and the way we cultivate learning com
Louise Sommer
Dec 2, 20254 min read
Reggio Emilia: A European Tradition of Creative Intelligence
I grew up with Florence and her history. From my earliest visits as a child, I remember sitting alone in front of Botticelli, or walking into Santa Maria del Fiore without queues or noise, when the locals still lived in the heart of the city. I still remember stepping into a Reggio Emilia classroom on my study trip to Florence. Sunlight poured through large windows, children’s drawings and sculptures covered the walls, and the room itself was bursting with curiosity and stori
Louise Sommer
Nov 3, 20254 min read
AI Is Not to Blame. What We’re Missing Is Human Leadership
This is a conversation about leadership, not the leadership of titles or positions, but the leadership that begins within each of us. It is about how we meet change, how we respond to uncertainty, and how we take responsibility for the impact of our choices. Everywhere we turn, AI is being framed as a threat, a saviour, or a force we must race to control. The real question is how we, as humans, choose to lead ourselves in a world where intelligent systems are becoming part of
Louise Sommer
Oct 5, 20254 min read
The Crisis Isn’t Artificial Intelligence. The Crisis Is Artificial Connection.
AI shows us what we’ve neglected: closeness, listening, and humanity itself. Let’s stop making AI the scapegoat for what is missing in us. We are not losing ourselves to artificial intelligence, but we are losing ourselves to artificial connection and most people don’t even notice it happening. We scroll, we click, we respond, we 'connect', yet we feel increasingly alone, unseen, and disconnected. This is not a technological crisis. This is a human crisis of connection and le
Louise Sommer
Sep 28, 20253 min read
The Empathy Gap: What Ancient Ports Can Teach Us About Understanding Across Difference
Ancient ports like Alexandria and Carthage show how empathy once thrived as a skill reinforced by daily life. Combining neuroscience, cultural history, and lessons from high-cooperation societies, Louise Sommer explores how modern systems undermine empathy — and how education, leadership, and technology can rebuild it. A thought-provoking read for researchers, educators, and leaders shaping the future of human connection.
Louise Sommer
Sep 21, 20256 min read
How ancient Malta engineered the mind for higher learning and creativity
Ancient Malta’s Hypogeum reveals how Neolithic societies engineered the brain for learning, empathy, and long-term thinking. Combining archaeology, neuroscience, and cultural history, Louise Sommer explores how past reward systems shaped human potential — and what we can learn to design better education, leadership, and social systems today. A thought-provoking read for researchers, educators, and innovators.
Louise Sommer
Sep 7, 20256 min read
The Words That Shaped Me: How a Teacher Can Open a Life, or Shut It Down
Everyone carries a story behind their eyes. A moment that closed something down. Or moment that made something possible. A memory of feeling stupid, or a memory of feeling seen. These stories are not always visible. But they’re present; in how we speak, how we learn, how we show up. And that means teaching is never just about content. It’s about creating the conditions where someone can unfold again.
Louise Sommer
Jun 30, 20253 min read
How standing in front of a multicultural class shaped my approach to education, empathy, and creative intelligence
I remember the moment clearly. I was standing in front of my very first class in Australia. In front of me sat a group of adults from six different countries and vastly different cultural backgrounds. There were 20-year-old backpackers from France and South America, published authors and artists from all over Australia, emerging entrepreneurs, and even two senior scholars who wanted to learn how to communicate their field to 'outsiders.' No pressure, right?
Louise Sommer
Jun 23, 20252 min read
Gertrude Stein: Lessons from Paris’ Most Fearless Muse & the Golden Age of Creative Living
Paris is a State of Mind. There are cities you visit, and there are cities you live in. And then there is Paris; a place you inhabit with your soul. To walk the cobbled streets of Montmartre or the Left Bank is to wander through time, brushing shoulders with the ghosts of artists and writers who defined entire epochs. One of the most iconic of them all, in my opinion, is Gertrude Stein. She wasn’t just a writer, a collector, or a cultural connector. She was a force.
Louise Sommer
May 5, 20253 min read
Jonna Jinton: The Power of Authentic Living and the Creative Dance
In an age of fast-paced digital consumption and curated perfection, there are rare artists who touch something deeper. Someone, who remind us of the raw, unfiltered beauty of life itself. Jonna Jinton is one such artist. A Swedish creative powerhouse, she has captured hearts across the globe through an unwavering commitment to authenticity, cultural honesty, and an artistic dance with her heritage that is as real as the northern winds that sweep through her village.
Louise Sommer
Apr 24, 20253 min read
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