Visuals – Claudio Nichele

27/11/202527/11/2025

Large-Scale Review meeting – Digital graphic recording

If you’re not part of the EU bubble, you may not be aware that the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, has asked Commissioner Piotr Serafin to lead a large-scale review of the Commission’s organisation and operations, together with an external benchmarking exercise. The aim is to ensure that Europe has a modern, efficient public administration capable of delivering on its political priorities and improving the daily lives of Europeans.

Since April 2025, I’ve had the privilege of supporting, from time to time, the internal team working on this initiative. I contribute with the tools and capacities I know best, especially participatory facilitation and visual thinking, during consultation and reflection sessions with staff.

Last Friday, all European Commission staff were invited to a meeting, held onsite for some and online for most, where the main actors openly discussed the process behind the initiative. Among other things, they explained that the review seeks inclusiveness and collaboration to help shape a more agile, effective, and attractive Commission for the future. My role in this major event was to visually capture the key points from the discussions. For the first time, I worked from an interpretation booth, alongside the French and German interpreters, where my task was to “interpret” the room’s conversation into visual language.

My graphic recording was widely shared internally afterwards as part of the follow-up communication. The feedback I received, both privately and publicly, has been very positive and truly encouraging: colleagues highlighted how valuable visual harvesting is for complex, high-stakes discussions, appreciated the clarity and completeness of the capture, and praised how the visual summary distilled 1h15 of exchanges into a single, accessible image.

I’m proud to see how my practice of visual thinking, which includes graphic facilitation, sketchnoting, and graphic harvesting, has evolved from a tiny niche within the Commission more than 20 years ago to something now requested and used at high-level events. One of my greatest satisfactions is having helped bring this innovation into the Commission, equipping colleagues to think not only with text but also with hand-drawn visuals (icons, arrows, containers, etc.) for richer, broader and more inclusive reflection. I’m grateful to all those who believed in this approach, who had the courage to try visual thinking, and to everyone today who is keen to learn it.

The European Commission needs more creativity and innovative thinking to meet the complex challenges of today’s world. Visual thinking is a skill to be relearned, not just a tool, and it can help achieve this. This is my personal conviction and it is entirely my own opinion.

Share on:

15/11/202518/11/2025

Reflections after the graphic recording at SG REFORM staff away day

On 12 November 2025, I had the opportunity to visually capture the discussions as a graphic recorder during the first away day for staff of SG REFORM, a Directorate-General of the European Commission.

While we often discuss transformation and innovation theoretically or empirically, SG REFORM lives it.

Their teams emerged from the merger of two departments (DGs) during the COVID crisis, rapidly developing innovative solutions like the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF), which is now deployed to tackle almost every crisis the EU has faced since.

At SG REFORM, they are trailblazers exploring uncharted territories, blending traditional and modern work methods to tackle complex issues collaboratively in a matrix structure. In these challenging times, including workload and political pressures, their management trusts the dynamism and expertise of their remarkably young team.

I am proud to be a colleague, in a way close to these people who are shaping the future of the EU with resilience, expertise, and creativity. I didn’t know them well before, but my role as graphic recorder for their internal event gave me an added perspective and allowed me to forge an emotional connection. It helped me focus on the individuals, the teams, and their overall work context. That’s not necessarily what I conveyed visually, but that’s the impression I got.

My post on Linkedin

Share on:

31/10/202518/11/2025

Believe in people and let them fly

Last week, during the Evidence-Informed Policy-Making (EIPM) community meeting in Brussels, I had the chance to do what I love: bringing ideas to life through graphic recording. But this time was special. I was joined by five colleagues I had recently trained in sketchnoting with Célia Pessaud.

For them, it was their first live recording experience. They stepped forward with curiosity, courage and trust, and they did beautifully. Seeing them in action filled me with joy and pride. It reminded me that leadership is not about doing things alone, but about creating the conditions for others to grow and shine. Célia and I wanted to share not just the techniques of visual thinking, but also the confidence to use them. And that’s exactly what happened.

I deeply believe that visual thinking belongs to everyone as a tool for reflection, communication and collective sense-making.
To the five visual thinkers who joined me that day: thank you. You made the invisible visible and you made me proud.

If you are a member of the European institutions and also want to learn the basics of sketchnoting, search for “StartSketch” on EU Learn, our training platform.

My post on Linkedin

EIPM event - graphic recording with new practitioners

Share on:

14/04/202528/07/2025

Starter pack made by human intelligence

It would have been so much easier to write a prompt and receive my starter pack image in one second. Instead, I thought about what I wanted in mine and worked on it long enough to decide I didn’t want to be boxed in. So I escaped from the box. Basically, I’m sad and infuriating to see AIs stealing artists’ rights by copying their art (Studio Ghibli knows something about this), and to make people believe that creating a drawing or any image can be done by prompting an AI with text for a result in a few seconds. Where is the pleasure in taking the time to hand-draw your image? Where is the learning from making mistakes, from wanting to start again and again?

Art and visual creativity are not just a result but are above all and primarily a practice.

Share on:

09/04/202517/04/2025

Third meeting of the European Citizens’ Initiative network

Here is my graphic recording from the 3rd meeting of the ECI network, the European Citizens’ Initiative.
For a full day, European partners working to promote and communicate this unique tool of participatory democracy gathered at the invitation of the Secretariat-General of the European Commission. Their goal? To explore how they could better collaborate so that more EU citizens are aware of and make use of the initiative.
From my external perspective, one key takeaway stood out: to truly reach citizens, we must meet them where they are, with stronger, more effective communication. This means better campaigns, clearer tools, and more resources. Partners also expressed the need for financial support from the EU and called for a simplification of the administrative procedure, so that reaching the goal of one million signatures becomes more realistic. Incentives, encouragement, and active support from the Commission would help initiators stay motivated throughout the process.

And you, have you heard of this unique European tool for participatory democracy?

I would like to thank Barbara Walentynowicz and Adriana Mungiu for trusting me for the second consecutive year with the graphic recording; and thank Mira Bangel and Marina Lynch with whom the facilitation of the event is so natural and efficient.

ECIgathering_20250408_CommunicationChallenges

ECIgathering_20250408_Knowledge CaféSessions1of2

ECIgathering_20250408_Knowledge CaféSessions2of2

ECIgathering_20250408_QuestionsToDiscuss

Share on:

31/03/202517/04/2025

My first ever workshop on rock balancing

I led a workshop on Rock Balancing, the first time I’ve ever shared my practice at the European Commission. To be honest, I was a bit nervous (not exactly ideal when trying to stack stones!). For most participants, this was a brand-new experience. They explored the practice, experimented with balancing the stones they had brought, and embraced both the inevitable collapses and the magic of finally achieving balance. The atmosphere was light-hearted and full of curiosity. I’m grateful to everyone for enthusiastically embracing both the practice itself and my guidance.

The practice of rock balancing involves creating a contemplative arrangement of stones in a delicate state of equilibrium. It’s a form of moving meditation. It helps you connect with Nature and with yourself. Through the practice, you develop self-control, self-confidence, patience, calmness, and concentration. It is an ephemeral art where collapses are very frequent. These teach you: To appreciate the present moment and the simple joy of balancing stones; To let go of rivalry, perfectionism, haste, rush, and attachment to possessions. The behaviours required are patience, problem-solving, adaptation, slow breathing, steady hands, and an open, empty mind.

Physics tells us that equilibrium is possible when the object is supported under its centre of gravity. This means the vertical line of the force of gravity passes through the centre of gravity and the contact point on the ground.

It means that for each stone, you have to find its three tiny indentations which act as a natural tripod so that the stone remains balanced.

What if people were stones? What would be the outer hands and force that would allow us to be in balance? In balance as individuals alone and with others. Are our indentations our imperfections, our irregularities, or our strengths? Or all? Just like with stones, shouldn’t we take the time to look for these indentations to better understand what keeps us balanced?
I have been practicing rock balancing since childhood, often in the great outdoors.

It is one of my favorite meditation methods, as I am alone in Nature, in intimate contact with the elements, the wind, and myself. During the COVID-19 pandemic, I intensified my practice and decided to take photos that you can watch in my album Rock balancing

Share on:

23/03/202517/04/2025

Inner development goals (IDG) walk

What talents and skills already exist within me, or lie dormant, just waiting to be nurtured and developed? What inner strengths do I already have? What other skills could I cultivate to continue evolving and, in turn, become an agent of change, within my team, my organisation, or even society? How can my personal growth meaningfully contribute to my work environment and the world at large in these times of great transformation, uncertainty, and conflicting viewpoints?

Last week, I joined a group of colleagues from the European Commission for a reflective walk in the forest, immersing ourselves in these questions. Our focus? A deep dive into the five dimensions of the Inner Development Goals (IDGs), a powerful framework for personal and collective growth.

Surrounded by nature, still caught between winter’s lingering quiet and the bold arrival of spring, our conversations took on a different depth. Thinking and connecting in the great outdoors is profoundly different from doing so within four walls, no straight lines, no artificial constraints, just the wind, the sun, the scent of trees, and the grounding feel of stones beneath our feet.

This experience left me wondering: Have you explored the IDGs for your own inner growth and the growth of your team? How do you integrate inner development into your professional life?

In the photo are my visual notes taken live during the walk in the forest.

Inner development goals, IDGs - Sketchnotes

Share on: