TGIF Video: Challenge. Create. Change....

Challenge. Create. Change. is a video project sponsored by Converse One Star and Target where anyone can submit a video project – of any kind – for a chance to win $10,000 and a screening of their video at this summer’s Wanderlust Festival in Lake Tahoe on Jule 24th-26th. Which, by the way, are two of my favorite words of all time – wanderlust and festival. This little fest has a totally rockin lineup including Michael Franti, Jenny Lewis, Andrew Bird, Spoon, Broken Social Scene and Rogue Wave.

The videos can be in any format, made with any kind of recording equipment and the rules are only that it must by between 27 seconds and 3 minutes in length. Who knows, maybe I’ll even work on one for Kiva and my fellowship!

I like little video contests like this and incentive-based ways to inspire people to create something that stands for something. Yes, some people will create anyway and showcase anyway, but if a brand is looking for a way to get the word out about who they are, a product they’re releasing – it’s refreshing to see so many of them do it with cause. Like Johnson & Johnson did with their “Hostess for a Cause” series where I was a host for a cause-related party. Deadline for Challenge. Create. Change. is June 28th.

My Little Sister’s First Solo European Vacat...

Travel is big in my family. It’s part of who we are, what we do together and some of my fondest, funniest and most frustrating moments with my family have often been on the road. When I was a kid, we did very traditional family vacations, alternating spring breaks were to Florida for sun or Colorado for skiing. Summer vacation was the first two weeks of August when we went to Kiawah, South Carolina.

As my two younger sisters and I got older, and especially after my mom and stepdad split up, the annual vacation with mom has been one adventure after another. Of course, this is in addition to the travels and adventures I like to take on my own.

My first solo vacation was taken when I was a junior in college studying abroad in Rome, Italy. It was our fall break and most of my friends were going to Amsterdam or down to Naples and I was reading On The Road (ironic but really true) and I wanted an adventure of my own! I decided to take the slow train through Italy and stop at villages along the way and eventually take an overnight to Zagreb, Croatia to see my distant family. That was one of the first trips to truly open my eyes and change my life.

It was with great joy then when I heard that my youngest sister, Adriana, had decided to take 10 days to travel by herself in Belgium and Switzerland this May after school got out (she’s a freshman in college). While my family and I are certainly nervous for her, I also know this is a great step into the wide world of being able to stand on your own two feet and feel comfortable with yourself.

Travel, especially solo travel, has been my savior the past 10 years. When I feel lost or spinning out of control or not sure what is next for me, I like to hit the open road. The freedom of making decisions at every turn – which way to go – where to eat – where to sleep – is empowering to me, freeing and ultimately a huge assurance that I can make decision big and small and I can trust my instincts.

I’ve often said over the years that I’m my best version of myself while traveling. On my toes, alert, awake to the experience – and this last trip I took to South America I had this aha moment when I was hiking by myself one day in Ecuador after being away for about a month. I thought, “Why I can’t be the best version of myself all the time?” I booked a return ticket home for two weeks later. I have been on a roll ever since.
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TGIF Video: Wounded Warrior Project...

In honor of the upcoming Memorial Day, I wanted this week’s inspirational TGIF Video to be dedicated to the Veteran’s who serve our country, the United States of America, with such pride and honor. Protecting the honor and the people of our country is one of the purest gifts an American citizen can give and so I can quite simply, without pause and with the purest of hearts, THANK YOU.

The video above is from the Wounded Warriors Project, a leading Veteran’s nonprofit. It’s been proven that the aftermath and psychological consequences of being exposed to war-like conditions is traumatic to so many of our Veterans and organizations like WWP help support Veterans, bring them together and lobby on their behalf.

This weekend, as we’re celebrating a 3-day weekend, let’s also take a moment to say thank you to our Veterans. If you’d like to find out more ways to get involved, here are three organizations that I believe are doing right by our Vets.

Veteran’s Nonprofits I Support:

• Wounded Warriors Project
• Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA)
• National Veterans Foundation

The Cause-Filled Life: A Socialbrite Video...

I’m usually don’t like watching myself on video. It’s hard to watch! I want to critique every little thing. JD Lasica filled the video you see above after my panel on building community using Los Angeles as a case study at this year’s SXSW. This is maybe one of the first videos of myself that I actually like. It’s how I think I sound when I talk to people about what I’m passionate about, what I’m up to, where I see social media’s role in the nonprofit and cause-marketing industries. I would have thought I’d be more frazzled – this is afterall moments after my panel ended – but actually I was completely at ease. JD was a great interviewer and so it felt like I imagine the good interviews feel like – conversations.

I hope you enjoy it! And while Socialbrite is in stealth mode still, it’s on the up & up! Check it out!

TGIF Video: Entrepreneurs Can Change the World...

I got chills when I watched this video for the first time. Something about the idea of hope, the idea that we all can make a difference in the world, and that we can all do it by helping each other. What an awesome concept. Today’s TGIF Video was made by Grasshopper – which is not a nonprofit. Nope. They are a phone-service that recently rebranded, changed their name and kept their mission simple, “We’re Entrepreneurs Serving Entrepreneurs.” Good for them. Way to put out a viral video that means something and has the ability to stick with people.

This concept of helping entrepreneurs might sound like something else I’ve been talking about a bunch recently…Kiva, right? Or for that matter Accion, Wokai, Ashoka, Grameen, – even Etsy or now Elevyn. These are all methods of us helping each other by supporting entrepreneurship. Which by all definitions is someone taking charge of their life, taking the “bull by the horns,” and working to do better by themselves and for their families.

The quantifiable metrics of these methods, and more ways to incorporate them into the everyday lives of every man, woman and child – well that is part of the mission I’ve embarked on. I am immersed in this thinking of if we all could help each other just a little bit more every day, what would the world look like?

I believe, as Grasshopper does, that it all starts with entrepreneurship. Do you agree?

Master Task List #1...

Wow. I was on the verge of a massive flipout these last few days. So much to do. So little time. Where does the time go? My childhood babysitter had a mantra she always said, in her low smoker’s voice, “Time waits for no one.” Isn’t that the truth. Moments like these, I know one way to really get over my fear of the tasks ahead, I make a Master Task List. Yes this is very, Getting Things Done of me. I’m old-fashioned and I like to actually write it out, I like the feeling and satisfaction of crossing each item off the list. Looking it over, I realized I want to share it with you. Especially since I’m currently fundraising for my upcoming Kiva Fellowship in the Philippines this summer. Those in regular contact with me now I’ve been busting my tail to get ready for this, but all of you can’t know that! I’m headed to San Francisco on Sunday morning (more on this to come) so all of these things have to be done before that! Here we go, no particular order:

• Buy plane ticket to San Fransisco.
• Confirm housing for SF (Sunday-Saturday) If anyone knows of anyone with an extra room in SF, let me know!
• Buy plane ticket to the Philippines – research discount options – try to get open-jawed return date.
• Research buying new computer! (Sidebar to this is my Apple Air is not equipped for this journey, not enough juice and I’ll need to edit video, impossible with this machine! I can’t afford a new Apple so for the first time in YEARS, I think I’m going Dell. Don’t judge me, I need to be majorly placated to believe this is the smart and responsible move.)
• Finish re-reading Banker to the Poor.
• Review “Reading List” for Kiva – this is like 5 more books. We’ll see how far I get.
• Finish United Nations Microfinance course online (Kiva got us special access, it’s awesome)
• Read over all Kiva PBWiki pre-training files (uhm this is seriously like 10 major files, and I won’t print large files and waste the paper but it’s hard to read everything online. This has been a major issue. My eyes hurt. Almost done.)
• Read Citizen Journalism articles sent by Kiva.
• Send Kiva the following: scanned copy of passport, flight details, complete intake form online.
• Call my medical insurance to see about international coverage. Look over medical provided by Kiva. Make decision about which to choose. Email Kiva and let them know.
• RSVP for all evening activities hosted and sponsored by Kiva next week in SF (another blog post on that coming, uhm, wait until you see how busy I’m going to be wowzers!)
• Send custom SXSW Mixable.net mix to all new donors.
• Send all new donors acknowledgment letters/emails.
• Update gdocs spreadsheet with all new donations (ChipIn has a download feature, but I cut and paste new people from there into my master list).
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Thank You For Your Donation!...

Well, I’m two weeks into fundraising for my Kiva Fellowship. I started my fundraising on Thursday, April 30, 2009, and so on the closing of the second week, I’ve decided that on Wednesday nights I’ll take a moment to thank the people who have so generously made a donation towards my Fellowship. This list of donors can also be found on the Make A Donation page – it is because of YOU and YOUR faith in me, that I’m able to go on this amazing Fellowship on behalf of Kiva. Second, I’ll talk about how the fundraising went and any tips to go with it. But first the thank you’s…the following list is ALL of my current donors. I have tried to attach a website to each person so if you’re reading this list you can see more about the amazing people who are supporting me. I never cease to be touched and truly honored when I see an email come in for a donation. Some of these people are dear friends, some professional contacts, some people I only know online, some people I don’t know at all. To those of you who have had that moment to press “DONATE NOW” I can’t thank you enough. Drum roll:

Current Donors
Addie King*
Amie Gillingham
Andrew Larimer
Andrew Lin
Brian Weis
Bryan Appel
Callie Miller*
Chris Schultz*
Damon D’Amore
Dave Lakhani
Dave Levine
Denton Biety
Diana Winingder
Dave Whelan*
Doug Campbell
Eleanor Blatell
Elliott Adams
Gerard Ramos
Heather Knauss
Jeff Henderson*
Jerry Lenaz
Joel Ordesky
John Case*
John Trovato*
Johnson & Johnson*
JD Lasica
Josh Tate
Kit Cooper
KW Low
Lauren Purple
Linda Bushkoff
Lindsey Ames
Matt Macnaughton
McKenzie Coco*
Micki Krimmel*
Nathan Winters
Neelu Jain
Nicky Perlman*
Paula Gould
Peter Radizeski
Rob Moss*
Stephanie Schneider
Tim Soslow*
Tony Adam
William Giltner

As of end of day today, I have $2682 in donations which is 35% of my goal, not bad in two weeks!

All names marked with an asterisk are for donation of $100 or more. That means they’ll be receiving a postcard from me while I’m in the Philippines, watch those mailboxes!! And of course, all donations of ANY amount receive my special SXSW custom mix on Mixable.net – which rocks. Really it does.

#MusicMonday Mix with Donation!...

My legendary mixes are now available for your consumption! It’s quick, it’s easy, it’s Radiohead style!

Simply make a donation to my Kiva Fellowship Fund – any amount you want – and I’ll send you the link to download a mix made specially by me for YOU.

This week’s mix is a SXSW 2009 Edition. As many of you know, I rocked and rolled and tore through 48 bands in 4 days at this year’s SXSW. This mix I’m sharing with you has been my running mix for the past month. It’s 65 minutes long with 17 tracks and can take you through a great workout, listen to it at your desk or just jammin home from work.

Tracks include songs from Easy Star All-Stars, Ladyhawke, Delta Spirit, Harlem Shakes, Glavegas, Ra Ra Riot, The Asteroids Galaxy Tour and MORE!

It’s easy. Ready? Donate here:

And I’ll send you an acknowledgment letter (thanks from me to you), and a link to the Kiva Mix – SXSW 2009 Edition!

All donations $100 and over will ALSO receive a postcard from me in the Philippines.

Spread the word, I need to raise $7,500 by the end of the month and I’m 20% of the way there with $1807 (as of today).

Donate, rock and cause!

Sloane

Make A Donation Page Is Live!...

A few changes to the site I wanted to mention. I’ve added a “Make A Donation” heading to the top of the site to help raise awareness about my fundraising needs for my upcoming Kiva Fellowship.

On that page, I’ll be updating my list of donors, any in-kind or corporate sponsors I have and donations that come in outside of ChipIn, because I have received some cash and checks that won’t be in that total.

If you’d like to help spread the word, here is the URL shortener I’m using for that page: http://bit.ly/hwgc6

If you wanted to send out a tweet or post to your facebook page, it could look something like this:

Quick, easy way to give back today! Donate to @sloane’s kiva fellowship fund in the Philippines this summer. http://bit.ly/hwgc6

Thanks to all of YOU – I’m 20% to my goal! Between Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, MySpace, Tumblr and all the other social media tools I use, I have over 6,000 connections. A good portion of those are duplicated from one network to another, but think about it – if everyone donated just $10, I know I could reach my goal.

Please consider supporting me today. I need a total of $7,500 and I know I can do it. I will be working tirelessly in the Philippines for Kiva and my MFI, ASHI in Quezon City.

Thank you for your support!

Sloane

TGIF Video: Conservation International...

In looking for a video for this Friday’s “TGIF Video” I wanted to find one visually stunning. I turned to a resource I often look for in finding new websites, companies, people who are at the forefront of making change and pushing the envelope: The Webby Awards.

The Webby Awards honors excellence on the Internet and is part of The International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences. The awards take place during Internet Week in NYC, June 1-8, 2009. I’ve always had a conflict precluding me from attending and this year is no different. One day.

Conservation International’s PROTECT AN ACRE campaign is the winner in this year’s Activism category. Their mission is:

Conservation International (CI) is an organization based out of Washington DC that is committed to creating a global movement that will help protect and sustain Earth’s plant and animal diversity. One of the many tasks they have set themselves is the problem of climate change. Unknown to many is that deforestation, and more specifically, the willful destruction of tropical forest areas for farming and other purposes, contributes up to 20% of the world’s carbon emissions.

Atmosphere BBDO was tasked to provide the interactive component of a campaign that would inform the public about deforestation’s link to climate change, and provide them with a way to help. A micro site was developed where people could protect a piece of forest by purchasing one or more acres from a communal forest area shared by all. Their name would then be attached to their acre for all to see. The rest of the site was dedicated to the education of climate change with respect to deforestation, notably in the form of a video introduction by Harrison Ford, the campaign’s spokesperson, and founding member of CI. To date many thousands of acres have been protected by people from all over the world.

Did you know every 4 hours a forest the size of Manhattan disappears? How could you not want to get involved in something like that? $15 dollars protects an entire acre of land. If you’re in the moment, go with it, donate now!

Traveling anywhere in the world, how can you not look around and want to conserve and preserve everything our planet has to offer. To do your part, check out Conservation International and find ways you can discover, learn, explore, act and give. You can also subscribe to their YouTube channel here.