Using the metaphor of a river to describe continuous and lifelong learning, this paper details an action research project aimed at developing effective learning environments in a large, distributed organization called Thiess Contractors Proprietary Limited, an Australian mining and construction company. Two major outcomes of the project are described. Described first is the work activity briefing, a sharing of critical information by all participants on a work project. Out of the briefing dialogue is produced a document signed by all participants that serves as a project "blueprint" and identifies the activities, parties involved, actions required of them, and roles and responsibilities of the parties. Second, the Frontline Management Initiative that extended the training boundary is described. The authors explain how a group of workers, who identified their position in relation to their colleagues and found they needed to advance their individual and collective knowledge and skills to keep up, developed a program in which they had control of the methods, input, rate of activity, and agenda. The final section of the paper emphasizes the critical importance of the learner in all aspects of the learning process. (Contains 20 references.) (YLB)