Virtuous Meetings: Technology + Design for High Engagement in Large Groups

Chapter OneRealizing Virtue in Large Group Meetings

The concept of being virtuous is as old as the oldest civilizations, from ancient Egypt, where the goddess Ma'at instilled principles of truth and order, to Lao Tzu's enduring Chinese classic from the fourth century B.C. The Tao and Virtue, to ancient Greece and Plato's Cardinal Virtues. As our ideas about morality, order, and justice have evolved, the notion of doing right and caring for others has remained as the implicit “goal” of many of these efforts. Essentially, being virtuous is doing good—toward someone, some group, or some thing. Part of the meaning of virtuous in “virtuous meetings” is about the intention to do good, for the participants, for the leaders, and for the larger endeavor ...