According to the large American company General Electric, ecomagination is the conglomerate’s “commitment to imagine and build innovative solutions to today’s environmental challenges while driving economic growth.” Here’s one imaginative feat highlighted on the ecomagination forum: Jeremy Rowsell, an Australian pilot and insurance industry executive, is planning to fly from Sydney to London on fuel made […]
The concept of positive deviance is the the idea of identifying what is going right in an area in order to amplify it, as opposed to focusing on what is going wrong and fixing it. The term was first used in the 1990s by Tufts professor Marian Zeitlin who documented “Positive Deviant” children in poor communities who […]
Daniel Goleman, the famous psychologist and author of Emotional Intelligence, says we are engaging the wrong part of the brain by focusing on the negative impacts, and that rather than focusing on our negative footprints, we should set our sights on the collective good that we can do. In the area of sustainable development, for […]
Do you know the Better Cotton Initiative? Also known as BCI, it “exists to make global cotton production better for the people who produce it, better for the environment it grows in and better for the sector’s future. “BCI works with a diverse range of stakeholders to promote measurable and continuing improvements for the environment, […]
In recognition of the fundamental principles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, International Bridges to Justice (IBJ) is dedicated to protecting the basic legal rights of ordinary citizens in developing countries. Specifically, IBJ works to guarantee all citizens the right to competent legal representation, the right to be protected from cruel and unusual punishment, […]
Wow. That’s the reaction when reading the short profiles of the 26 social entrepreneurs who are the 2012 awardees of the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship. The list of Schwab Foundation 2012 awardees includes Veronica Colondam of YCAB Foundation (Indonesia), Ronald Bruder and Jamie McAuliffe of Education For Employment (United States), Jane Hunt of Fitted […]
Regina Yau, Founder and President of The Pixel Project, a “complete virtual, volunteer-led global nonprofit organisation whose mission is to raise awareness, funds and volunteer power for the cause to end violence against women” recently wrote that her charity uses “positive images, ideas and strategies to power our campaigns and empower survivors and supporters to take action. […]
Unsung Peace Heroes is a project developed by Butterfly Works and Media Focus on Africa Foundation. It began as a way to “recognize individuals and organizations that participated in peace efforts in the violent aftermath of the December 2007 Kenyan general election.” According to the Unsung Peace Heroes website, the Peace Heroes are ordinary people […]
Gender-focused research initiatives are alive and kicking. They include Catalyst, a non-profit membership organization founded in 1962 that expands opportunities for women and business, and the Closing the Global Gender Gap Initiative at the Harvard Kennedy School. According to the Kennedy School, the three purposes of this Initiative are: “to examine and quantify the impact of specific policy interventions, […]
