DREAMING OF HOPEFUL FUTURES +
MAKING BIG DREAMS BUILDABLE.
With over a decade of experience,
From coordinating a regional innovation ecosystem, to national leadership at Student Voice + 4.0 Schools, to facilitating dreaming sessions with international organizations,
I've designed my life at the intersection of authentic stakeholder agency, transformative experience design, and emerging idea development.
I help people dream of new possibilities, and then pilot the most promising ideas to test their core logic and assess what emerges as ideas come to life and take new forms.
My background is in helping students, communities, organizations, and schools dream new visions for what education could be. But I also have run dreaming sessions outside of education, with biotech entrepreneurs, aspiring authors and creatives, and more, because dreaming is for everyone.
As a lifelong gamer and game designer, I bring the joy of play to my work as a means of resisting dystopia and oppression.
Join me in making the future I M A G I N A B L E .
(Shout out Jane McGonigal's book)
In Kindness,
Keaton
With over a decade of experience,
From coordinating a regional innovation ecosystem, to national leadership at Student Voice + 4.0 Schools, to facilitating dreaming sessions with international organizations,
I've designed my life at the intersection of authentic stakeholder agency, transformative experience design, and emerging idea development.
I help people dream of new possibilities, and then pilot the most promising ideas to test their core logic and assess what emerges as ideas grounded in lived experience come to life and take new forms.
My special interest is in helping communities, organizations, and schools dream new visions for what education could be. But I also have run dreaming sessions outside of education, with biotech entrepreneurs, aspiring authors and creatives, and more, because dreaming is for everyone.
As a lifelong gamer and game designer, I bring the joy of play to my work as a means of resisting dystopia and oppression.
Join me in making the future I M A G I N A B L E .
(Shout out Jane McGonigal's book)
In Kindness,
Keaton
With over a decade of experience,
From coordinating a regional innovation ecosystem, to national leadership at Student Voice + 4.0 Schools, to facilitating dreaming sessions with international organizations,
I've designed my life at the intersection of authentic stakeholder agency, transformative experience design, and emerging idea development.
I help people dream of new possibilities, and then pilot the most promising ideas to test their core logic and assess what emerges as ideas come to life and take new forms.
My background is in helping students, communities, organizations, and schools dream new visions for what education could be. But I also have run dreaming sessions outside of education, with biotech entrepreneurs, aspiring authors and creatives, and more, because dreaming is for everyone.
As a lifelong gamer and game designer, I bring the joy of play to my work as a means of resisting dystopia and oppression.
Join me in making the future I M A G I N A B L E .
(Shout out Jane McGonigal's book)
In Kindness,
Keaton
Portfolio of
Projects
Portfolio of
Projects
4K
4K
Stakeholders Reached Through ReinventED
4K
4K
Stakeholders Reached Through ReinventED
600+
600+
Founders Supported Through 4.0 & Coaching
600+
600+
Founders Supported Through 4.0 & Coaching
550+
550+
Students Supported in Imagining Future of Edu
550+
550+
Students Supported in Imagining Future of Edu
400+
400+
Hrs Facilitating Workshops & Events
400+
400+
Hrs Facilitating Workshops & Events
Options For
Dreaming
Options For
Dreaming
Free Dreaming Session
30 Min
30 Min
Give yourself permission to dream & experience a session firsthand through a free 30 min sample Dreaming Session.
Free Dreaming Session
30 Min
30 Min
Give yourself permission to dream & experience a session firsthand through a free 30 min sample Dreaming Session
Strategic Planning
30 Days
30 Days
Efficient, transformational strategic planning to create the future instead of react to it. Get more done in 30 days than most do in years. Longer options also available.
Strategic Planning
30Days
30Days
Efficient, transformational strategic planning to create the future instead of react to it. Get more done in 30 days than most do in years. Longer options also available.
Strategic Planning
30 Days
30 Days
Efficient, transformational strategic planning to create the future instead of react to it. Get more done in 30 days than most do in years. Longer options also available.
Project-Based
Custom
Consulting services to help you create events, trainings, programs, tools, retreats, and more that honor your dreams and those of your stakeholders.
I co-create the scope, budget, and timeline for all engagements based on the unique context and needs of each client. I am currently available for contract, fractional, or part-time work. Learn more about Strategic Planning / Strategic Dreaming services here.
I co-create the scope, budget, and timeline for all engagements based on the unique context and needs of each client. I am currently available for contract, fractional, or part-time work. Learn more about Strategic Planning / Strategic Dreaming services here.
My
Background
Identity
I am a writer, inventor, and educator.
I've written about my experience with dreaming & authentic youth agency. I've invented a storytelling game to practice imagining hopeful futures. I've taught innovation mindsets in my own courses, fellowship programs, and 1:1 coaching.
I'm neurodivergent and the proud son of a member of the Stockbridge-Munsee Band of Mohican Indians.
Gaming
Game designer & lifelong gaming enthusiast
Speaking
Youth Summit at Tom Tom Innovation Festival
Dreaming
Keaton Wadzinski
Story
At age 18, I became a national leader in the Student Voice movement. In college, I founded ReinventED, a nonprofit to coordinate the regional innovation ecosystem.
Most recently, I served as Innovation Lead at 4.0 Schools, teaching design mindsets to early-stage founders.
Read more on my story here.
What
People
Say
Pam
Lifelong Educator & Innovation Leader
“I’ve witnessed Keaton’s extraordinary capacity for building consensus, from rooms full of superintendents to multigenerational spaces of diverse stakeholders. He provides a practical approach to bring students in as authentic partners in the redesign of school, challenging education leaders to see through students’ lived experience and dream bigger as a result. Most of all, I value his ability to translate those big visions into real solutions. I consider him to be a true reverse mentor.”
Anna
Journalist & Creative
“Keaton has helped me fall in love again with the possibilities in my work as an educator, journalist, and artist. I’ve been able to unlock long dormant dreams and learn so much from his intentional use of language. To me, his superpower is in how he understands the ways in which words shape our perspective and vice versa, and in how he uses words to help me see the world and the work differently, in more imaginative, energizing, hopeful, caring, and joyous ways.”
Josh
Storyteller & Podcast Producer
“When veteran education innovator, Pam Moran, introduced me to Keaton Wadzinski the arc of my life bent perceptibly towards the designer’s mindset, joy in learning, and dreaming as a way of being and becoming, for which I will be forever grateful.”
Laura
International Nonprofit Leader
“Keaton's skillful facilitation and session design have literally changed my life; first giving my nonprofit the foundation to grow and 18 months later; encouraging our nonprofit to dream of better possibilities that came to fruition when doing so seemed impossible.”
Zak
Founder of Student Voice
“Keaton has long understood that meaningful change starts by giving people both voice and agency. From the earliest days of Student Voice, he was already turning that belief into action— organizing young people around clear objectives and ensuring students had a meaningful role in the national conversation about the future of education.”
Pam
Lifelong Educator & Innovation Leader
“I’ve witnessed Keaton’s extraordinary capacity for building consensus, from rooms full of superintendents to multigenerational spaces of diverse stakeholders. He provides a practical approach to bring students in as authentic partners in the redesign of school, challenging education leaders to see through students’ lived experience and dream bigger as a result. Most of all, I value his ability to translate those big visions into real solutions. I consider him to be a true reverse mentor.”
My
Method
The Buildable Dreams framework is designed to hold the past, present, and future of an idea all at once.
The Buildable Dreams framework is designed to hold the past, present, and future of an idea all at once.
PAST
Honor Past Experiences
Apply critical thinking through reflection on lived experiences, moments of inspiration, and historical origins to distill gems of insight about what truly matters most.
PAST
Honor Past Experiences
Apply critical thinking through reflection on lived experiences, moments of inspiration, and historical origins to distill gems of insight about what truly matters most.
FUTURE
Imagine Future Possibilities
Lean into the emergent nature of ideas as they bubble up and present new paths forward, equipping you to creatively envision new worlds of "what could be."
FUTURE
Imagine Future Possibilities
Lean into the emergent nature of ideas as they bubble up and present new paths forward, equipping you to creatively envision new worlds of "what could be."
PRESENT
Meet Present Moments
Consciously consider the unique context you are working within, identifying existing assets to build upon, near-term priorities to address, and ways to test your thinking with other people.
PRESENT
Meet Present Moments
Consciously consider the unique context you are working within, identifying existing assets to build upon, near-term priorities to address, and ways to test your thinking with other people.
By thinking through the connections between these moments in time, dreams of hopeful futures don't feel distant. They are rooted in past experience, and can show up in your everyday life in both big and small ways. This approach offers a reliable, alternative methodology to create truly novel innovation, shifting the focus from problem-solving to possibility-finding.
By thinking through the connections between these moments in time, dreams of hopeful futures don't feel distant. They are rooted in past experience, and can show up in your everyday life in both big and small ways. This approach offers a reliable, alternative methodology to create truly novel innovation, shifting the focus from problem-solving to possibility-finding.
Watch a quick, 5 min video explanation above of the framework, as given at an event I hosted called "Time & Space to Dream."
Watch a quick, 5 min video explanation above of the framework, as given at an event I hosted called "Time & Space to Dream."
Got Any
Questions?
What do you mean by "dreaming?"
+
I've been trained in many different innovation methods. Most are for solving problems in the world as it is. When I talk about dreaming, I'm framing innovation as an opportunity to envision the world as it could be, and then make that idea or desired future state into something Buildable.
What do you mean by "dreaming?"
+
Do I need to have an idea in mind in order to dream with you?
+
Short answer, no. While you can have an idea, project, or opportunity in mind, it’s not required. My process for Dreaming works in both settings: building around an existing dream or helping you identify and define a new dream. For the latter, I can help you create your own dream or create a dream collaboratively with your stakeholders, synthesizing insights from across individual and group Dreaming Sessions.
Do I need to have an idea in mind in order to dream with you?
+
What services do you offer?
+
I offer the following services, but welcome requests for additional ways to utilize my expertise. #1 Strategic planning (“Strategic Dreaming”). #2: Designing events, programs, and team trainings (both in-person & virtual). #3: Speaking engagements & workshop facilitation. #4: Custom, project-based consulting (examples: education transformation initiatives, pilot program design & implementation, collective visioning & co-design, train-the-trainer, and more).
What services do you offer?
+
What outcomes can I expect from working with you?
+
Every dreaming session I lead produces a motivational reminder of what you stand for, a bank of emerging possibilities, and a clear set of testable projects to pilot the most promising paths with existing assets and initiatives. My Strategic Dreaming process and projects involving multiple Dreaming Sessions can help you shift from surface-level stakeholder feedback to deeper stakeholder agency. This results in clearly defined, deep alignment around fundamental priorities, as well as shared excitement and critical buy-in to co-create the future together.
What outcomes can I expect from working with you?
+
How can I get started & learn more about your services & pricing?
+
Let’s chat! The “Connect with Me” button has an option for a free Consultation to talk through a potential engagement, and in that time, we can discuss and co-create a budget, scope, and logistics that fits your needs. My scheduling page also has options for a Free Dreaming Session sample to experience the method firsthand, an Intro call to just get to know me better, and a Grab Time with Me call to exchange ideas and discuss potential collaborations (exploring joint RFPs, subcontracting me, or teaming up on a project generally).
How can I get started & learn more about your services & pricing?
+
Have more questions? Contact me via LinkedIn or email (my first name.my last name at gmail.com)
What do you mean by "dreaming?"
+
I've been trained in many different innovation methods. Most are for solving problems in the world as it is. When I talk about dreaming, I'm framing innovation as an opportunity to envision the world as it could be, and then make that idea or desired future state into something Buildable.
What do you mean by "dreaming?"
+
Do I need to have an idea in mind in order to dream with you?
+
Short answer, no. While you can have an idea, project, or opportunity in mind, it’s not required. My process for Dreaming works in both settings: building around an existing dream or helping you identify and define a new dream. For the latter, I can help you create your own dream or create a dream collaboratively with your stakeholders, synthesizing insights from across individual and group Dreaming Sessions.
Do I need to have an idea in mind in order to dream with you?
+
What services do you offer?
+
I offer the following services, but welcome requests for additional ways to utilize my expertise. #1 Strategic planning (“Strategic Dreaming”). #2: Designing events, programs, and team trainings (both in-person & virtual). #3: Speaking engagements & workshop facilitation. #4: Custom, project-based consulting (examples: education transformation initiatives, pilot program design & implementation, collective visioning & co-design, train-the-trainer, and more).
What services do you offer?
+
What outcomes can I expect from working with you?
+
Every dreaming session I lead produces a motivational reminder of what you stand for, a bank of emerging possibilities, and a clear set of testable projects to pilot the most promising paths with existing assets and initiatives. My Strategic Dreaming process and projects involving multiple Dreaming Sessions can help you shift from surface-level stakeholder feedback to deeper stakeholder agency. This results in clearly defined, deep alignment around fundamental priorities, as well as shared excitement and critical buy-in to co-create the future together.
What outcomes can I expect from working with you?
+
How can I get started & learn more about your services & pricing?
+
Let’s chat! The “Connect with Me” button has an option for a free Consultation to talk through a potential engagement, and in that time, we can discuss and co-create a budget, scope, and logistics that fits your needs. My scheduling page also has options for a Free Dreaming Session sample to experience the method firsthand, an Intro call to just get to know me better, and a Grab Time with Me call to exchange ideas and discuss potential collaborations (exploring joint RFPs, subcontracting me, or teaming up on a project generally).
How can I get started & learn more about your services & pricing?
+
Have more questions? Contact me via LinkedIn or email (my first name.my last name at gmail.com)