En Voyage - Issue #8

THRIVING
ISLAND
The Dandelion Foundation was created with the goal of bringing the community
of Guernsey together to help create a better place for us all to live. Thrive 2020
is the mental wellbeing platform of the Foundation, with the aspirational aim to
make Guernsey the happiest nation on Earth by 2020. Thrive 2020 runs a series
of events that has already made an impact – and everyone has a part to play in
this amazing revolution.
‘GUERNSEY IS A TEST BED
FOR SOLVING COMPLEX
CHALLENGES,’ SAYS MARC
WINN, WHO FOUNDED
THE DANDELION
FOUNDATION ALONG
WITH JOCK PETTITT.
Every society has problems,
and solving them doesn’t have
to be the sole responsibility
of government. With the
confidence that communities have
enormous strengths and assets
to address their own problems
without having to demand
taxpayer funding, the Dandelion
Foundation invites speakers
from all over the world, as well
as some home-grown talent, to
inspire islanders to adapt to the
challenges of a rapidly changing
world. The latest edition of Thrive
2020 was entitled From Surviving
to Thriving and covered a full
spectrum of thinking and solutions
to coincide with the new Guernsey
Mental Health and Wellbeing
strategy launched in 2017.
‘Guernsey is a test bed for solving
complex challenges,’ says Marc
Winn, who founded the Dandelion
Foundation along with Jock Pettitt.
‘We’re living in an extraordinary
time where small teams of people
can do extraordinary things, and
large systems propagating old
ways of doing things are being
reimagined. Small islands are in a
strong position to adapt and adjust
to the changing environment in
which they find themselves.’
So far four Dandelion TEDx
events have taken place, which
covered a range of issues that
addressed the question, ‘How do
we make Guernsey the best place
to live on Earth?’. Journey to 100,
in June 2017, explored ideas for
a new and sustainable approach
to lifelong health. Marc is a firm
believer in the power of meeting
for coffee and Thrive 2020 was
launched after he met Dr Greg
Lydall, a Consultant Psychiatrist
based at the Oberlands Centre.
As Greg explains: ‘I decided to
meet with Marc for what turned
out to be a life-changing series
of coffees after I saw him at TEDx
and thought that he was just
about crazy enough to make his
dream come true! I also thought
the Dandelion team needed a
team psychiatrist to keep them
on the straight and narrow. In
my job I was acutely conscious
of the unmeetable demands
on healthcare systems, locally
and globally. I realised that our
community had an opportunity
to reimagine mental health to
meet these challenges. It struck
me that we needed a platform
for “solving” one of the biggest
challenges – mental health –
and Thrive 2020 was born.’
Although Greg and Marc
co-curated the first two Thrive
conferences, by the third Greg
had gained the confidence to
lead the event. ‘I was initially
somewhat fearful as a government
employee associating with
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