Educator and researcher R. Brian Stanfield was the Director of Publications for ICA Canada. He was the editor of Edges: New Planetary Patterns, a newsstand magazine, and also wrote The Art of Focused Conversation, The Workshop Book and a journal to accompany this book. Australian born, he worked with the Institute of Cultural Affairs (ICA) in many communities, especially in Australia, India, USA and Canada. A non profit with a presence in 24 countries, ICA has 50 years of experience in organizational development, adult and child education, community development and methods of social change.