Remember the movie Pay it Forward, based on Catherine Ryan Hyde’s novel?  It was a 2-hour flick boasting the concept of karmic social responsibility?  I remember being slightly disappointed in the Kevin Spacey-Helen Hunt vehicle.  The preview had me jazzed to see a movie that could be both compelling and inspire a renewed interest in creative human kindness.  But in reality, I felt it falling short in inspiring a population to take up its central plot device to transform the world.

Paying something forward actually has its roots in contract law, wherein creditors ask debtors to pay their debt forward to a third party beneficiary, often unknown to the creditor.  In sociology, paying forward is a concept referred to as “generalized reciprocity.”  Likewise, invitations to pay forward a kindness can be found in poetry, theater and philosophical ruminations all throughout history.  And in more recent years, the concept of paying forward kindness has been utilized by such organizations as Kiva.org, where lenders of small entrepreneurs can, instead of collecting the repaid loan, decide to forward the money on to an additional entrepreneur in need. Or like at the Hub where I work, the Pay it Forward concept is used in a kind of Timebank, where users can receive the help, that then they pay forward to others with a skill they have that is in need (FYI, HarmonyWishes community, we’re currently looking for small donations to help us get our Timebank system up and in use for a wider group of Oaxacans.  Click here to help!)

So, perhaps I was wrong to write off the movie so quickly.  It appears that the Pay it Forward idea is galvanizing do-gooders around the U.S. in the last several months.  I first learned about the recent Pay it Forward  trend in coffee shops from Cord Jefferson’s Good Magazine article this January, “It all started two years ago at Corner Perk, a small, locally owned coffee shop, when a customer paid her bill and left $100 extra, saying she wanted to pay for everyone who ordered after her until the money ran out.” Soon the idea caught on with the wider community, finding others stopping in to do the same. But Corner Perk isn’t the only coffee shop to report these random acts of kindness.  It seems the benevolent winds have wafted into even the largest of coffee chains like Starbucks.

The Pay it Forward concept isn’t exclusive to coffee shop purchases.  That same kindness has extended to big department stores, like Kmart, where anonymous donors have been paying off layaway accounts for strangers.  In another article by Jefferson on Good’s site (he’s got a great series entitled “People Are Awesome” that’s worth following), he observes, “So far no organization has come forward to claim responsibility for the layaway giving movement, meaning either organizers want to stay anonymous or this is just a very kind, very heartwarming grassroots effort spreading virally across the country.”

I wonder if Ryan Hyde imagined a grassroots movement like this sweeping the nation, heck, the world (!) after the release of her book, or later the movie–only to be slightly disappointed.  Well, don’t despair! Your idea has been slowing churning in the collective subconscious.  It needed only the effort of a small few, and some good press coverage, to spread a bit further.  Let’s see how far it goes.  Maybe another 12 years will see the Pay it Forward concept reaching further.  I’m curious to see the impact of a thousand tiny kindnesses.  How about you?

Cheers,

Megan

Some call it the “Village that could Save the World.”  Gaviotas, Spanish for “seagull,” is the original vision of Paolo Lugari, as well as the years-long labor of a team of scientists, agronomists, engineers, and doctors. Since 1971 this group has built and expanded a sustainable tropical civilization on 25,000 acres of los llanos, barren plains east of the Andes in one of Colombia’s most unforgiving environments. Complete with family homes, a refectory, commissary, and school–Gaviotas has been not only the birthplace and proof of a true eco-village, but also the site of tremendous technological innovation in the field of sustainability. Alan Weisman (author of a book about Gaviotas) stated in an article in the LA Times about Gaviotas, ”Solar water heating systems developed at Gaviotas now heat water in the president’s palace in Bogota, as well as in the three largest public housing developments – one with 7,500 units – in Bogota and Medellin. At Clinica San Pedro Claver, one of the nation’s biggest hospitals, Gaviotas is installing not just solar water heaters, but boilers, coaxing from Bogota’s cloudy climate temperatures sufficiently hot to sterilize instruments around the clock.”

The Gaviotas community project has spanned over 40 years now.  But more surprising is how its taken shape in the last five. Gunter Pauli, an entrepreneur, and protegé of Gaviota’s visionary, Lugari, has spearheaded a new path for the Gaviotas project. Under an agreement with Colombia’s Ministry of Defense, Pauli has spent the past five years “…drawing up plans and enlisting support to build out the Gaviotas model across the entire northeastern quadrant of Colombia – a vast area roughly the size of England.”  The plan is to transform a section of Colombia’s savanna- a place resigned to agricultural and economic destitution; then, to carefully develop it using techniques learned and matured at Gaviotas, to build a clean-tech economy for over 5 million people.  And an added side benefit? Gaviotas II could become “one of the largest biodiverse reforestation projects on earth” (enough trees to offset Japan’s CO2 emissions), as stated in Paul Kaihla’s enlightening article in CNN Money Magazine.  As if that weren’t enough, the longer vision for Gaviotas II is to create a kind of living experiment.  If Gaviotas can prove that sustainable design can also end dependence on oil through the export of biodiesel, it could become possible to pitch that model to a myriad of developing countries. Success draws investment.  And investment can expand the project worldwide.

Whether or not Gaviotas becomes, as Weisman’s article title posits, the “village that could save the planet” remains to be seen.  But it certainly stands out as a shining example of ingenuity, perseverance, and confidence in a new model for common well being.  Hurrah!

Saludos,

Megan

If someone asked you what invention from the 19th century still maintains the basic shape and configuration as it’s original model, and was responsible for dramatically impacting cultures both socially and economically – what would you think of?

Hint: it’s estimated that there are over one billion of them in the world.

That’s right – a bicycle. Most of us can remember at least our first bike, if not more than one that we had as a kid. It was a ticket to freedom, and accelerated our exploration of the world around us.

If you’ve traveled in developing countries you’ve witnessed how fundamental to basic transportation and livelihoods a bicycle can be. That’s why when we came across 88bikes.org we were excited to see an organization that endows young people in orphanages, ashrams, refugee camps and villages with this basic means of transportation which can help them recover happiness and their childhoods.

Founded in 2006, 88bikes has completed projects in places such as Cambodia, Uganda, Peru, India, Nepal, Vietnam, China and Mongolia. This years project is 88bikes ASHA 2012 which is providing bicycles to girls living in an ashram run by their NGO partner in Bihar, India. The girls are survivors of sexual slavery and after being sheltered at the ashram, they are reintegrated back into the community. ASHA means ‘hope’ in Sanskrit, which is what the bikes can represent to the girls.

It’s important to remember that what we often take for granted is often a catalyst for hope, healing and happiness. “You can go anywhere” is a not just part of a mission statement, but a promise with a powerful impact.

For more information on 88bikes, click here.

A lot of us approach each year with new resolve about old issues. For some, it is to lose weight, others to journal every day, and for others it is to find new ways to bring meaning into our lives.

In Jeff Harris’ case, as a Toronto-based photographer, he made a commitment in 1999 to take a photo of himself every day. Fast forward to 2012. He’s put together a video of that project which took a rather unexpected twist and not an uplifting one in the conventional sense. But sometimes witnessing humanity in it’s rawest form can be more inspiring than one would expect as you will hear and see.

I doubt I’d have the discipline to take a picture a day. But I’m certainly glad Jeff Harris did.

What happens when 50,000 performance artists spend a week together? Burning Man. For those who may not have heard of it, Burning Man is a self-described “great dusty idea factory” where every year people come together in the Nevada Desert and dedicate themselves to community, art, self-expression and self-reliance. It’s been happening since 1986 and has produced some truly amazing installation art.

Burning Man’s 10 Principles are: Radical Inclusion, Gifting, Decommodification, Radical Self-Reliance, Radical Self-Expression, Communal Effort, Civic Responsibility, Leaving No Trace, Participation and Immediacy – all principles we can get behind.

In preparation for this year’s Burning Man, they have released a video featuring 2011 participants performing Dr. Seuss’ “Oh, The Places You’ll Go”. (ok, you had us at Dr. Seuss).

We often need to be reminded that we ALWAYS have permission to rediscover our inner child. Videos like this are our ticket to play.

For more information on Burning Man, click here.

“You can think of TechShop like a fitness club, but with tools and equipment instead of exercise equipment. It is sort of like a Kinko’s for makers, or a Xerox PARC for the rest of us.”  So reads the project description on the TechShop webpage.  As you in the HarmonyWishes community know, we are big fans of collaborative spaces and shared resources.  So when I came across the TechShop project on the web, I knew it was a good share for our blog.  How often have you wanted to begin a project, only to have to pause when you don’t have the appropriate tools or space to continue.  Maybe you’re a DIY carpenter around the house, or a dedicated scrapbooker, or a secret seamstress. But you lack certain tools or the necessary room to handle small to big projects.  TechShop to the rescue!  Their space can supply you with a huge variety of machinery and tools, from milling machines and lathes, to hand tools or a 3-D printer.  If you can imagine it, it’s pretty sure that TechShop has the tools you need to make just about anything.

But that’s not what I love most about this idea.  TechShop, like many collaborative spaces, offers resources and space that are in great need.  But what they’re also nurturing is shared ideas, collective and a strong community.  In any given day you might find a variety of people at a collaborative space like TechShop–inventors, designers, entrepreneurs, craftspeople.  Beginners can take introductory “Safety and Basic Use” classes to get to know new tools, or more advanced classes on specific skills like bookbinding or soldering, to courses based on interest like one I saw for “Women in Manufacturing.”

What happens when you build a space where people can learn and imagine together?

An article published in the Economist back in December discussed the rise of  co-working spaces in recent months.  It propounds elements such as “more women and freelancers in the workforce, which means greater demand for flexible work arrangements; and economic pressure on firms’ property costs” as the cause behind the steady rise in co-working spaces around the world.  But space and time needs are not the sole forces behind a growth in collaborative work spaces, like TechShop.  Many are realizing that cross-sector collaboration can spur innovation and ultimately, substantial positive impact. Institutions like Macquarie Bank in Sydney or like the Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s offices in New York City have purged themselves of separate offices, using space design to encourage collective work and shared ideas amongst their employees.  Can carving out shared space like this really have an impact?

I wrote about Steven Johnson’s concept of “liquid networks” here on our blog over a year ago.  Here I find myself thinking about it again at the start of a new year.  Perhaps that’s because each new year I consider the road ahead–attempting to map a route towards a better year, each time.  Do you do this?  When contemplating the great challenges that lie ahead of us, I hold tight to the notion that great ideas for positive transformation don’t come from a single moment, in a quiet, isolated space.  They come from the standing around the  water cooler, sitting at a shared desk, chatting in the Ladies’ Room as you wash your hands.  They come from connections, conversations and a million tiny moments where your imagination mingles with the ideas and challenges of a collective space.

And so, we wish you, HarmonyWishes community, a very happy and prosperous 2012!  I inspire you to drive your dreams for this next year out into the open air, where you can test their mettle with others who are heading in same hopeful direction.

Cheers,

Megan

A couple of weeks ago I had the pleasure to meet Cheryl Heller, who is not only the founder of Heller Communication Design and Board Chair of PopTech, a laboratory focused on innovation through technology and social change; but she’s also the Program Director of the new and growing MFA program in Design for Social Innovation at the School of Visual Arts in New York City. I’d come across the Design for Social Innovation months before. Hearing Cheryl and colleague, Marc Rettig present, inspired me to share the initiative with our HarmonyWishes community.

The Design for Social Innovation program has a fairly simple approach: “[To] prepare students to apply the principles and ethics of social innovation as filters for understanding and as a discipline for engaging with and improving the world through design.”   When I was a university student, I attended a small liberal arts college in Michigan.  As it goes with many liberal arts institutions, the focus is on integrative learning. So the approach for the Design for Social Innovation program sounded akin to the mission of my own alma mater: “a model of an educated citizen that combines scholarship, civic engagement, and in-depth living experiences in other countries.”  What happens when your skills, the tools that you are learning and improving are then applied withing an ecosystem that is in great need?  What kind of graduates do you create when you teach them inside a context where their talents and experiences can be harnessed for a social purpose?  The Design for Social Innovation program posits that “Graduates of the program will be more than graphic designers, filmmakers, advertising creative directors or interactive systems designers. They will be all these, mastering all the skills and knowledge of how to apply them to have a positive impact on business, society and their own lives.”

Examples of design innovation with social purpose crowd the Design for Social Innovation program site.  From a filmmaker using traditional Bollywood film techniques to help to subsistence farmers to try a new pump that can lift them out of poverty, to graphic designers using inspired data visualizations to illustrate new discoveries in science and conservation, to game designers that create news-based video games that simulate and inspire conflict resolutions in real world conditions from around the world.  It is where design meets purpose.

That’s something I think many of us seek in our working life.  How can what we do well–the talents, skills and experiences we embody–be utilized for a positive purpose?  Sometimes it can be a real challenge to discover the link between what we do and our desire to do something positive.  For me, the first step is to put myself in an arena where positive social transformation is happening.  It doesn’t have to be the place I work every day.  Maybe it’s volunteer group in my community.  Or it could be a local café where they have frequent events around social change.  Or maybe it’s just a group of like-minded co-workers who get together once a week for lunch.  Putting myself in the right arena, opens a door to opportunity.  An idea arises, and I can see where my unique talents could be used for that positive end.

Do you have an arena like this in your life?  Do you have a place that inspires you to use your knowledge and talent for a positive transformation?  Share it with us!  We would love to hear everyday stories, large and small scale, where you are integrating your expertise with a positive purpose.

Saludos,

Megan

This past week the city where I live came alive with activity due to a convergence of events.  As many of you might know, the beginning of  November marks the Day of the Dead celebrations here in Mexico, and in other countries in the world.  Nowhere is that celebration more alive, than in Oaxaca–where the series of celebrations that start on the November 1st, rally an entire state to adorn itself for a whole week.  Raucous parades march down neighborhood streets, with candles and giant puppets in tow.  Colorful altars arc across the entryways of houses all over town.  And the city’s cemeteries hum with activity–tombs bedecked with giant, 2-foot candles and colorful marigolds, roving mariachi bands selling serenades to the dead, and families circled around, chatting, sipping hot chocolate, remembering their lost loved ones.  It’s an amazing time in the city!

There are common celebrations all over the world that invite us to reflect on the year before.  A birthday, New Year’s, retirement.  We stretch our minds back to see what we have accomplished, and to very often, renew promises about the year ahead. What I like about Día de los Muertos here in Oaxaca is that it inspires a different kind of reflection.  We invite our dead to live alongside us.  We remember and we reflect, certainly.  But we also open a space for the past to exist in parallel with the present; not to inspire a change or resolution for the following year.  No. But to create a week in which the world is alive with the voices, faces and presence of everyone.

For the first time I built my little altar at home.  I dressed it with flowers and fruit, leaving a cup of coffee for my late mentor, a glass of scotch and water for my grandfather. It changed the holiday for me.  I found myself threading apricots on a string, and chatting with my grandmother about work.  I shuffled past the altar in the morning in my slippers, commiserating with Forrest about how chilly the Fall has grown here. And it wasn’t strange when I went to the neighborhood market and found myself in a conversation with the chocolate seller about whether my Grandfather would prefer dark and bitter chocolate or something more sweet.

The city swells with presence in November.  There are more visitors, and the city dwellers themselves find themselves out on the streets more.  But also there is an almost-tangible presence of those we are living alongside.  It feels like the city might not be able to contain us all.  It’s a happy energy, ballooning and encompassing the region.  I wish you all could come down and feel it  It’s something quite magical!

Saludos,

Megan

Image from Despertar de Oaxaca

The glass bottles and jars in my pantry are beginning to mount up of late.  And here in Oaxaca, there’s not much one can do about that, as there is no municipal recycling system in place to take care of the clutter.  However, like any situation where there is need, a response arises naturally–even if you find it within an informal system, unsupported by the existing structures.  Need can be a very strong force.

Lining the road stretching out to the village of Mitla, dozens of small businesses, spotted with hand-painted signs advertise the purchase of a myriad materials–copper, rubber, tin and aluminum.  If you have the wheels and the initiative you can bring your recyclables out of town, where these small families prepare them for shipment north where they will be reprocessed and reused.  But what do the rest of us do?  Those of us without a car, or the time to transport what we wish we could save from the landfill?  With our city landfill reaching the brim–and another under construction that studies say will be chock-full in under ten years–this city (like many) desperately needs a sustainable solution.

Meet RecycleBank.

RecycleBank, started in Philadelphia in 2004 by Patrick Fitzgerald and Ron Gonen, sought to connect need to opportunity with an innovative approach.  The concept is simple: trucks weigh recyclables at curbside, allotting points per pound to citizens–points that convert into discounts at local and national stores. The municipality provides the infrastructure; RecycleBank outfits the trucks and containers with the technology needed to tally the points, taking a percentage of the transaction of recycled materials as a fee; and citizens get incentive to thoughtfully dispose of waste, and patronize local institutions in the process.  Win!

RecycleBank is a great example of how a thoughtful business with a social and environmental outlook, can be extremely successful when it responds to the needs of a community. As they state on their site they are, “a group of passionate people that believes an individual has the power to change the world. A united community is more powerful than the sum of its parts. The world is at its best when none of its elements go to waste. More importantly, we’re a group of passionate people that makes these things happen every day. And it’s all through one pretty simple approach: You take small actions. We give you everyday rewards. The world gets greener.”  Not bad.

Thanks for the inspiration, RecycleBank.  Are there any great ideas and innovations happening in your neck of the woods?  Share it with us here!  We want to spread the word.

Saludos,

Megan

I work at a place filled with people generating new ideas all the time. I’ve mentioned the Hub Oaxaca before, where I am a type of “host.” In fact, my job is to (1) encourage people to continue innovating and strengthening those ideas, and (2) to help share the story of their ideas and experiences with others here locally in Oaxaca and further afoot.  So when I stumbled upon IdeasWatch, my inner host popped up and thought, other people should check this out!

The basic concept behind IdeasWatch is that they host a platform for people’s innovative ideas, where others can comment, expand upon and even fund it later.  How many of us have thought of something brilliant while in the shower, chatted about it with our spouse, our co-worker, a friend?  But it may just sit idle in conversations, without ever taking shape.   IdeasWatch helps people set their ideas to the public test, and then see if they can grow with help and input.  You can browse the site by the most popular ideas of the last week or last month; or you can search by theme.  The ideas range from the simple, like this Lyrics from online radio post: “I am listening to various online radios on my computer and I want to sing along. I want to have a program that would automatically recognize the song that is played and show me lyrics instantly and automatically;” To the slightly silly but thoughtful: Simple advertisement on toilet paper. What makes something sink or swim in your perspective? Are you a good judge? Where do you vet your ideas good or bad?

Well, if you have a good idea that you’ve been sitting on for years; or maybe you are looking to help support the next Snuggie or Facebook take off–check IdeasWatch out! It may inspire—or just amuse.  What I like most is that it’s a place where ideas can find a platform to not just simmer alone, but become something new that can transform the way we live.

Enjoy!

Megan