Terry Fox, a Canadian, was an active teenager involved in many sports.  He was 18 years old when diagnosed with bone cancer. This resulted in the amputation of his right leg above the knee. While in hospital, he was overcome by the effects of cancer on other patients, many of them young children. He decided to run across Canada to raise money for cancer research. The start of Terry's run in St. John’s, Newfoundland on 12 April 1980 received little attention.   He was enthusiastic, determined and had a vision.  He ran approximately 42 kilometres a day (26 miles), regardless of the weather. As the run continued, interest and donations increased.  He called his journey the Marathon of Hope.

Regrettably, on 2 September 1980, after 143 days and 5,373 kilometres (3,338 miles), he was forced to stop running near Thunder Bay Ontario because cancer had appeared in his lungs. He raised more than $22 Million during this epic run from St. John’s to Thunder Bay. Terry Fox passed away on 28 June 1981 at the age of 22 years.  The Marathon of Hope did not die with this Canadian hero; the remarkable legacy was just beginning.

The non-profit Terry Fox Foundation (www.terryfox.org) was created and this year, the 30^th anniversary of his run, nearly $CAN500 million has been raised for cancer research in his name through the annual Terry Fox Run, held across Canada and around the world in 28 nations. 

In a letter by Terry Fox written in October 1979 he stated:

“The running I can do, even if I have to crawl every last mile. We need your help.  The people in cancer clinics all over the world need people who believe in miracles.”

For anyone diagnosed with cancer, hearing about Terry Fox gives them hope.

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Here are some of the things going on in and around the community:

• John Drew is an educator and strategic planner. He describes his forecast for the future of colleges and universities in “Global, Mobile, Virtual, and Social: The College Campus of Tomorrow”. (The Futurist.  44(2):46-50. March-April, 2010. www.wfs.org).    Globalized learning, international harmonization of educational standards, increasing use of technology, diversity in enrolment, and new roles for educators will result in many options for where, when, and how learning takes place in the future.

• Mary Gentile has spent the past four years studying the moments when people decide whether to speak up about an ethical issue and what to say when they do.  The insights discussed in her article “Keeping Your Colleagues Honest” (Harvard Business Review.  88(2): 114-117. March, 2010. www.hbr.org ) may help you speak out when you encounter ethical conflicts in the workplace. She first discusses four rationalizations people use for keeping silent. She then goes on to discuss strategies for confronting the problem. An interesting inset provides you with a checklist for action.

• Michael Horn believes that there is no time like the present to replace gas-powered automobiles with electric automobiles.  In his article “Roadmap to the Electric Car Economy” (The Futurist.  44(2):40-45. March-April, 2010 ) he discusses the problems associated with gasoline powered automobiles, the benefits of the electric car, the viability of the electric vehicle, and the prospects for an “electric car economy.”

• Nathan Myhrvold a former chief technology officer at Microsoft believes that the world would be transformed if there was an industry dedicated to financing inventors and monetizing their creations.  His vision is described in “Funding Eureka” (Harvard Business Review. 88(2):40-50. Mar 2010).  His goal is to make applied research a profitable activity that will attract more private investment than it currently does.  This, he believes, will increase inventions and change the world for the better. In his article he details how this might happen.

• History provides many examples of smart people who made poor decisions.  Michael Mauboussin believes that faulty decision-making is avoidable if we understand the reasons for making poor decisions. (“Smart People, Dumb Decisions.” The Futurist. 44(2): 24-30. March-April, 2010). The main obstacle in his view is our brain which is not designed to cope with the complexity of today’s problems.  He describes factors resulting in poor decisions, and then goes on to provide strategies to assist you in making better decisions.

• The inaugural class of the IndustryWeek Manufacturing Hall of Fame is provided by Steve Minter in his article “Manufacturing Hall of Fame” (IndustryWeek.  258(12): 29-35. December 2009. www.industryweek.com). The stories of ten manufacturing leaders that embody the entrepreneurialism, innovation, competitiveness and customer focus that was believed by the judges to be instrumental in building the American manufacturing sector into a global economic force are described. These include:  George David, Joseph Engelberger, William George, Andrew Grove, Charles Holliday, Lee Iacocca, Steve Jobs, Gordon Lankton, Jack Welch and James Womack.

• Josh Cable provides the stories of three Detroit automakers (GM, Ford, and Chrysler) and how they are transforming their assembly plants, increasing efficiency in these times of turbulence in the automotive industry.  (“GM, Ford, and Chrysler Strive to Become the Lean Three” IndustryWeek.  258(12): 36-38. December, 2009).  An understanding of the role of flexibility and lean manufacturing principles is important for long-term viability.

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