Theo Edmonds | JD, MHA, MFA

Culture Futurist® with a rich weave of professional leadership experience across 30 years and many sectors. Helping people and organizations reclaim their sense of wonder drives everything I do. Inclusive growth through human flourishing is the goal. My work is to enhance an organization’s skills in creativity and social wellbeing so its workforce and stakeholders are ready to meet an astonishing future.

Core Skill Sets

Harnessing Digital Culture: Leveraging the cultural shifts resulting from digital technology to fuel innovation and drive growth, turning the digital disruption into a competitive advantage.

Creativity as a Performance Driver: Introducing metrics to evaluate the impact of creativity and wonder on organizational performance, reinforcing the value of creative thinking in business success.

Cross-field Collaboration: Forming relationships with groundbreaking artists across diverse fields, bringing fresh perspectives and ideas to the organization.

Strategic Management Coaching: Creating unique strategies that cultivate an artist's mind in strategic planning and innovation, effectively bridging the gap between art and business.

Strategy with Human Focus: Aligning Social Brain Capital with the future of work human skills as delineated by the World Economic Forum. This approach creates a strong, sustainable company-wide strategy that nurtures creativity and social wellbeing.

Cultural Insight for Business Agility: Anticipating cultural inflection points and shaping strategies that help organizations navigate effectively, turning potential challenges into opportunities.

Building Creative Cultures: Establishing environments that foster creativity, encourage experimentation, risk-taking, and active learning — a transformative move that sparks innovation within teams.

CSR with Cultural Insight: Continually assessing cultural transformations and converting this cultural data into actionable intelligence, helping to align commercial strategies with impactful social responsibility programs.

Preparing for the Future: Recognizing cultural patterns to foresee future shifts, offering valuable foresight that keeps organizations ahead of the curve.

Adaptation Strategies: Developing tailored strategies that enable organizations to adapt to cultural changes and seize emerging opportunities.

Communicating Cultural Insights: Sharing valuable cultural insights and trends with all stakeholders, fostering an environment of shared understanding and strategic alignment.

Strengthening Thought Leader Relationships: Building relationships with external experts at the intersection of culture, science, and emerging technologies, bringing a breadth of external insight into the organization.

Professional Roles

Research Associate Professor & Director Imaginator Academy / University of Colorado Denver, College of Liberal arts & sciences (Denver, CO) / August 2022-Present

Based in the Master of Humanities/Master of Social Science Program, I am the Directing Co-founder of the university’s Imaginator Academy, a cultural analytics, strategy, and futurist innovation hub for industry-university research partnerships focused on inclusive, interdisciplinary talent development across the lifespan. Together, we are connecting a global network of entrepreneurs, companies, scientists, artists, creatives, innovators, and change-makers of all kinds to transform research insights into cultural intelligence for solving business challenges centered on the human experience.

Associate Dean of Transdisciplinary Research & Innovation / University of Colorado Denver, College of Arts & Media (Denver, CO) / July 2021-July 2022

Support innovation and research for the college’s professional creatives across visual arts, film, television, music and entertainment industries, and media forensics. Develop innovation initiatives to support the university’s 2030 strategic plan launched in Spring 2021.

Co-Founder & President / CULTURE LEADS (Formerly Underestimated People of Purpose) (Denver, CO) / April 2020-Present

A small, boutique cultural analytics and creativity firm working with state governments, higher education, and private sector companies to identify and unlock latent potential within the workforce. Led the state of Colorado’s efforts in developing its first Small Business Resiliency Index. The firm is currently undergoing an organizational transition to become Culture Leads.

Assistant Professor, Health Management & Systems Sciences / University of Louisville School of Public Health and Information Sciences (Louisville, KY) / July 2018-June 2021

Founding director of the Center for Creative Placehealing. Principal Investigator within the Center for Health Organization Innovation, a National Science Foundation Sponsored Research Center. Awarded University of Louisville Trailblazer Award for Research & Innovation, 2020-21 for leading the research team that invented the Cultural Wellbeing Index.

Co-Founder + CEO / IDEAS xLab (Louisville, KY) / September 2013-June 2018 / Advisor / July 2018 – Present

Co-developed and launched multiple arts and culture innovation initiatives across several states attracting national attention and $1.5+ million in funding. Created public health innovation model designated as a United Nations’ United Cities and Local Government's “International Best Practice for Creative Placemaking”– only US-based practice to receive the designation in 2018. Co-developed and led an arts initiative exploring the connections between Appalachia and West Africa (Senegal).

CAREER ROLES:

  • Creative Development Director / Residency Unlimited (Brooklyn, NY) / 2012-2013

  • Cultural Producer and Research Artist / NYC-France-Appalachia / 2007-2011

  • Founder / IDEArchitect, Arts & Healthcare Consulting (Southeast Region, U.S.) / 2004-2007

  • Director of Queen’s Heart & Vascular Center / Queen’s Medical Center (Honolulu, HI) 2003-2004

  • Region Director for Cardiovascular Services / Tenet Healthcare (Gulf States Region, U.S.) 2001-2003

  • Administrator / Ochsner Heart & Vascular Center (New Orleans, LA) 1997-2001

  • Director of Network Development / Ochsner Health Plan (New Orleans, LA) 1996-1997

Education

Degrees:

  • Master of Fine Arts, Studio (MFA) / University of Kentucky (Lexington, KY) / 2013

  • Master of Healthcare Administration (MHA)  / Tulane University School of Public Health & Tropical Medicine (New Orleans, LA) Honored with the Exceptional Leadership Award / 1996

  • Law (JD) / Tulane University (New Orleans, LA) / 1994

  • Bachelor of Arts (BA) Theatrical Directing and Art Studio / Transylvania University (Lexington, KY) / 1991

Certificates:

  • Section4 | Certified Strategist | 2022

  • HarvardX | Improving Business Through a Culture of Health | 2018

  • Acumen | Lean Startup for Social Impact | 2018

Select Research Publications & Thought Leadership Keynotes

  • Trauma Informed Placemaking, Textbook by Routledge. Lead Author for Chapter on Futurist Leadership, 2024.

  • Cross Atlantic Creativity Congress, Salzburg, Austria (Theo Edmonds, Co-Curator). Proceedings published as book. 11/20/23

  • Center for Health and Biosciences | Research Paper | 7 Steps for Igniting the Brain Capital Industrial Strategy | Release Fall 2023 | Eyre, H., et al., | Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy | https://doi.org/10.25613/TYZC-0N60

  • Center for Health and Biosciences | Center for Energy Studies | Research Paper | Brain Capital is Key to a Sustainable Future | July 10, 2023 | Eyre, H., et al., | Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy | https://doi.org/10.25613/5yez-tc65

  • Center for Health and Biosciences | Policy Brief | Toward a Comprehensive Brain Deal to Harness the Potential of Artificial Intelligence. May 31, 2023 | Eyre, H., et al., | Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy | https://doi.org/10.25613/0GQN-7Q13

  • How Cities Can Boost Brain Capital, Psychiatric Times, Apr 10, 2023

  • Supported development of and was featured in the Mapping Collective Wellbeing Project by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Civic Wellbeing Partners and the Institute for Collective Wellbeing: https://mappingcollectivewellbeing.org/#intro 

  • Co-chaired two roundtables and reports on Creativity & Brain Capital for the Euro-Mediterranean Economists Association (EMEA) at its HQs at Sant Pau Art Nouveau Site, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The conference was organized in collaboration with the University of Colorado Denver Imaginator Academy. Sample report available:  Download the report here.

  • Silverman MJ, Segall LE, Edmonds T. "I've Lost My Callouses:" A Phenomenological Investigation of Music Therapists Who Left the Profession. J Music Ther. 2022 Dec 31;59(4):394-429. doi: 10.1093/jmt/thac011. PMID: 36995775

  • “Addressing America’s crisis of despair and economic recovery: A call for a coordinated effort.” Report of the Brookings Working Group on Despair and Economic Recovery, 2021

  • (Podcast) COLLECTIVE WELLBEING & INNOVATION: Featured guest on podcast Brain for Business, which takes the lessons from evidence-based academic research in the brain, behavioural and organizational sciences - neuroscience, psychology, behavioural economics and more - and brings them to life for a business and organisational audience. Listen Here

  • (Podcast) CULTURE INSIGHTS IMPACTING OUR DIGITAL LIVES: In his popular podcast on management in an Experience Economy, Shawn Nason sits down with Theo Edmonds to talk about transformational creativity, courageous imagination, and leadership. Listen Here.

  • (Podcast) CULTURE, IMAGINATION & THE ROLE OF TECH TRANSFER, Listen on Spotify. TECH TRANSFER IP / AUTM on the AIR is a weekly podcast about the impact of research commercialization and the people who make it happen. The 9/28/22 episode “Curiosity and Innovation” with Theo Edmonds AUTM on the Air

  • Edmonds, T., et al., "A Framework for Integrating Arts, Science, and Social Justice into Culturally-Responsive Public Health Communication and Innovation Designs." Health Promotion Practice Journal. 2021

  • O'Keefe, M., Salunkhe, S., Lister, C., Johnson, C., & Edmonds, T. "Quantitative and Qualitative Measures to Assess Organizational Inclusion: A Systematic Review." Journal of Business Diversity. 2021

  • Lister, C., Salunkhe, S. S., O'Keefe, M., Payne, H. E., & Edmonds, T. Cultural Wellbeing Index: A Dynamic Cultural Analytics Process for Measuring and Managing Organizational Inclusion as an Antecedent Condition of Employee Wellbeing and Innovation Capacity. Journal of Organizational Psychology, 21(4). 2021

  • (Sample Whitepaper Brief) Colorado Small Business Resiliency Index. Energize Colorado. 2022.

  • (Sample Keynote)Cultural Wellbeing and Creativity, The Wellbeing Project Summit with Omega Institute & Harlem Wellness Center, September 2023

  • (Sample Keynote) The Future of Creativity,  CREACT4MED North African/Southern Europe Mediterranean Conference, Barcelona, Spain. November, 2022, 

  • (Sample Keynote)Reclaiming a Sense of Wonder in the American Enterprise, Cities Summit of the Americas, Denver, CO, April 2023

  • (Sample Keynote) Courageous Imagination in Public Health + Workshop, Colorado Public Health Summit, 2022

  • (Sample Keynote) Edmonds, T., "Culture Futurism, Wellbeing and Economic Development." Euro-Mediterranean Economists Association, CREACT4MED Annual Conference, 2021 (V)

  • (Sample Keynote) Edmonds, T., "Emerging Role of the Arts in Innovation Across Industry Sectors." Yangtze River Art Week, Tsinghua University Cultural and Creative Development Research Institute, Chongqing, China. 2021 (V)

  • (Sample Keynote) Edmonds, T." Reimagining How We Gather to Learn, Work and Celebrate in a COVID-19 World." Aspen Institute, National Convening for Aspen Challenge w/ Bezos Family Foundation. 2020. (V)

  • (Sample Keynote) Edmonds, T. "How Culture Shapes Population Health." High Tech-Human Health Summit, Aarhus, Denmark, 2018

    Recent Creative Work

  • Released 50+ page Culture Futurist 2024 Trends to Watch Report  (12/13/23)

  • Preparation to launch Creativity America in 2024. The following are some key dates and locations of discovery meetings to build the coalition.

    • April 2023: U.S. Department of State’s Cities Summit of the Americas (Denver, CO)

    • June 2023: Brain Capital Summit (Santa Clara, CA)

    • July 2023: Possibilities Studies Conference (Dublin)

    • August 2023: APA Division 10 & AFTA (Washington, DC)

    • September 20, 2023: UN Brain Week, "The Future of Creativity in the American Enterprise" event (New York, NY)

    • November 13-14, 2023: Planning Meeting 1.   In conjunction with AFTA’s national board meeting, gather to formally set the agenda, milestones, and investment for Social Brain Capital Phase 1. Formalize science, arts, corporate work groups, and expert advisors to advance Social Brain Capital development. (Denver)

  • Developed and launched: https://www.imaginatoracademy.com/

  • Led the launch of the first-ever Imaginator Summit with the Denver Chamber of Commerce Economic Development Corporation, Brain Capital Alliance, Science and Cultural Finance District (SCFD), and Energize Colorado. Two-day event attended by 150+ people.

  • Crafted a “Work to Wonder” track (plenary session + workshop) for the US Department of State Cities Summit of the Americas

  • Wrote more than 20+ long-form essays on arts, science and the future of work for publication on LinkedIn

  • Crafted a strategic plan for Creativity America. Creativity America emerges from the work of the Brain Capital Alliance Creativity Infrastructure Working Group, a partnership with the University of Colorado Denver’s Imaginator Academy. This brain skills initiative intends to ignite new growth in U.S. entrepreneurship, corporate innovation, and city innovation districts by formalizing and testing a neuroscience-inspired “creativity infrastructure.” With a target of achieving a 25% surge in American creativity over the next decade, this multi-sectoral and transdisciplinary blueprint aligns changing labor necessities with the World Economic Forum's top future brain skills.

  • Developed manuscripts for two new poetry-focused books and preparing to submit for publishing:

    • Miss Myrtle & The Razzle Dazzle Belle Bang Bluegrass Band – Children’s book about systems change advocacy, creativity, culture, and health equity.

    • Before We Had Words to Name Flowers: Exploring the Limitations of Light in a Shining City on a Hill – Book of poetry about navigating my personal and professional life as a GenX, neurodiverse person from Appalachia.

    Select Co-creator Roles, Positions, Scientific Appointments, and Honors

  • Directing Co-founder, Imaginator Academy

  • Research Associate Professor, Dept. Master of Humanities/Master of Social Sciences, CLAS

  • Americans for the Arts, National Board of Directors 

  • Energize Colorado, Lead Culture Strategist (Small Business Resiliency Index)

  • Euro-Mediterranean Economists Association, Advisory Board

  • Brain Capital Alliance, Steering Committee & Global Co-Chair for Creativity Sciences Working Group

  • Business Collaborative for Brain Health, National Advisory Board

  • Represented CU Denver at the Biennial of America’s event during Mexico City Art Week

  • Facilitated Community Discussion with Colorado Business Committee for the Arts on “Social Prescribing with Arts” at the Denver Natural History & Science Museum.

  • IDEAS xLab & the Unknown Project, Co-founder and National Advisory Board  (Ten Year Report Published in November 2023)

  • Associate Dean for Transdisciplinary Research & Innovation, CU Denver, College of Arts & Media

  • Co-Founder, UPOP, Cultural Analytics and Creativity Company Humanizing the Future of Work (Now Culture Leads LLC)

  • University of Louisville Trailblazer Award for Research & Innovation, 2021

  • PI, National Science Foundation Sponsored Center for Health Organization Transformation (CHOT)

  • Assistant Professor, Health Management & Systems Sciences, University of Louisville School of Public Health & Information

  • Americans for the Arts, Top 6 Business-Arts Partnerships in America, 2021

  • Co-Founder, IDEAS xLab | Designated as a United Nations' United Cities and Local Governments "2018 International Best Practice"

  • Voted “Faculty Favorite” Teaching Award by Students, University of Louisville, 2020-21

  • University of Louisville Trailblazer Award for Research & Innovation, 2020-21 (Cultural Wellbeing Index)

  • Americans for the Arts, Top 10 Business-Arts Partnerships in the U.S.: Underestimated People of Purpose (UPOP), 2021; Humana, Inc., 2017; General Electric, 2015

  • Americans for the Arts, Vice-Chair, National Private Sector Council, 2017

  • Bingham Fellow, Leadership Louisville, 2016

  • 50 People Changing the Face of the South, Southern Living Magazine, 2014

Personal Passion Projects in Development

  • Miss Myrtle & The Razzle Dazzle Belle Bang Bluegrass Band – Children’s book about systems change advocacy, creativity, culture, and health equity.

  • Before We Had Words to Name Flowers: Exploring the Limitations of Light in a Shining City on a Hill – Book of poetry about navigating my personal and professional life as a GenX, neurodiverse, queer person from Appalachia.

  • Wondervation (with Cameron Lister) – A book translating future of work research into a compelling blueprint for corporate America to devise strategies that align culture change management with inclusive innovation while bolstering stakeholder wellbeing and creativity.