Make Social Change A Reality

Taking a cue from President Obama’s speech yesterday , this week’s posting in the series on women and the economy continues its focus on healthcare. Most of President Obama’s fireside-inspired speech which he delivered to Congress and the American public last night centered on the economy, and addressing the labor and economic needs of the 21st Century. A significant portion of the speech however, was geared towards healthcare and the dire need to overhaul the U.S. healthcare system as a critical part of reviving the economy. President Obama pledged reform to the American people in a compelling declaration in which he said that, "Health care reform cannot wait, it must not wait, and it will not wait another year.” Women’s issues were not specifically named in the speech, but hopefully the focus on healthcare and the economy will do some of the greatest good for middle and lower-income women and families. One of the areas of health services in which help is truly needed among women...

If you, like many, would like to do more to serve local and international communities through volunteerism, but don’t have the money to travel or lots of time to commit, I recently came across another great way of contributing – right from your own computer! The UN has launched the United Nations Online Volunteering Service . This great service connects online volunteers with organizations working around the world for sustainable human development. According to the site: ‘Volunteers contribute their skills online to help organizations address development challenges. Organizations collaborate with online volunteers over the internet to strengthen the impact of their development work.’ You can search on the site for volunteer opportunities by your own skills , topics you are interested in such as education or health, or by a region of the world. A quick search on the site gave me multiple opportunities to contribute my skills very easily over my computer. I chose to search by my own s...

I was a teacher for 5 years. Prior to that, I worked in different non-profit organizations where the focus of the organization was education or youth services. I still work in education, but not directly with youth, and I miss it! It’s just one of those things that happens, especially in the current economy, I moved, I found a job, and I kept it for fear of not being able to find another one quickly. However, with this new position, I have a lot of free time after work, time where I can go to the gym, watch TV, read a book, or, another option I recently discovered, mentoring. It wasn’t hard to find an organization looking for mentors and coaches. Especially because of the economy, there is a greater need for volunteers. Many are struggling since most of their funding comes from these companies that are crumbling in the recession. There are many students and young people that benefit from this relationship. Initially I was worried that I wouldn’t know how to relate to the student...

I am a huge sports fan and I have always looked up to athletes for their work on the field of play, their dedication to excellence through practice and living a healthy lifestyle and their determination for becoming the best in what they do. However, with each week that goes by, more and more athletes are on TV and in the newspapers for all the things they are doing wrong and that are illegal, and not for their athletic successes. Yet we still try to suggest that because they are on TV and in the public eye they are role models. Why? Haven’t we learned from the days of Charles Barkley when he said, “I am not a role model,” and even had a commercial to state that fact? Hasn’t the lifestyles of famous athletes made us cringe and question the way we put them in the spotlight? Recently we found out that the king of the Olympics was pictured doing illegal drugs and let down hundreds of thousands of fans, young and old who looked up to him. Baseball players left and right are admitting t...

Adults who grew up during the Great Depression have been shown to be more well-adjusted, stable, and successful in later life than more recent generations. Theories are that during times of collective “deprivation,” children must learn to adapt to frequent change, consequently facing situations which require problem resolution behaviors at a young age. The children of the Depression developed a “ what you see is what you get ” attitude as personal strengths and weaknesses were discovered early and had plenty of time to be further tested and fortified as they grew into adulthood. One of the major reasons why so many children growing in poverty were able to embody such solid characters as adults was the undiscriminating nature of the crisis- they were all in the same boat.” It was not an anomaly to have your neighbor stop by your door asking for money or food, the entire American consciousness was looking through the same lens. This collectivity unified them in their struggle a...

The World Factbook , prepared by the CIA , states that the US literacy rate is around 99%. This means that around 3 million people in America are unable to functionally read and write . That is equivalent to the entire population of Mongolia! As if those numbers weren’t enough to make you sit up and think, there is some dispute about the 99% - the actual figure could be lower, depending on the various definitions of literacy used. Jonathan Kozol, in his book ‘Illiterate America’ states that the government based the 99% literacy rate on interviews and written responses to Census Bureau mailings from a small portion of the population. Of that portion, if the responders or interviewees had completed fifth grade they were considered literate. About 5% had not completed fifth grade , but 80% of those were subsequently considered literate, and so the Bureau reached a conclusion of a 99% literacy rate. In 1993 a new study was released . Over 5 years, and $14 million spent ( the largest lite...

On Wednesday evening, the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate came to an agreement about the Economic Stimulus and Recovery Package , which will tally $789 billion dollars in total, and hopefully give much-needed aid to states, local municipalities, working people, families, and some individuals who have been hit hardest by this Great Recession. The bill, which President Obama has been urging members of Congress to agree upon and push through all week long, emerges with much controversy still surrounding it, even among some seasoned Democrats who were unhappy with the outcome of Wednesday’s inter-Congressional talks. Some of these lawmakers feel that too much money was taken from education and social programs as a way to strike a compromise with the Recovery Package’s detractors. Nevertheless, the bill is ostensibly set to move forward in Congress and may even be on the President’s desk - ready to be signed, sealed, and delivered - by as early as Friday. As I described in Par...

Almost one month into an historic presidency, party lines and a candidate’s stance have certainly faded into the rearview mirror. However, President Obama is only one man. Robert Egger, the founder of the V3 Campaign , would like us all to remember that real change is an ongoing, cooperative effort that involves state and local representatives as well. It’s an effort that would do well to work with nonprofit organizations, as well as the professionals, volunteers, donors, and advocates that keep them running. Egger wants us all to imagine a world in which the nonprofit voice rings loudly in the political arena, working for feasible and effective solutions. Nonprofit organizations are frequently bound by short-term projects and yearly budgets, often waiting into the spring for their annual funding. Despite the large contributions made by nonprofits to their communities, the economy, and the job market, it is large corporations that seem to have the most pull. According to Egge...

I recently discovered a great organization working to alleviate women’s struggles around the world through education and micro loans . This organization – Women for Women International - operates in eight countries including the Congo, Kosovo and Iraq. About a month ago I decided to sign up for their sponsorship program. This includes a small monthly financial commitment, which is used to support a ‘sister’ in a community where Women for Women work. It takes about a month for you to be matched with your sister, once matched you are able to correspond with her to see how she is and how she is using Women for Women’s support. Last week I received information about my sister. She lives in Bosnia. I confess I don’t know much about Bosnia, despite being born and raised in Europe. I know about the war in ‘92, but I don’t know much about how the people are trying to rebuild their lives since the war that ripped their country apart. I was shocked to find out the following: 50% of the schoo...

"As co-founder and CEO of Pura Vida , John Sage has helped Fair Trade coffee – coffee purchased at a price that is fair to farmers – become a regular at U.S. breakfast tables and cafes. At the same time, he has helped better the lives of people in coffee-growing regions. In this talk, Sage discusses how Pura Vida uses every aspect of its products, processes, and profits for social good. He also outlines how the company works to improve the health, educational opportunities, and psychological outlooks of children and families in coffee-growing countries. Sage talks more broadly, as well, about how a new generation of socially minded organizations is producing meaningful, sustainable, and lasting improvements to our world." ~ From Stanford's Social Innovation Conversations website I listened to John's talk recently and was inspired by his story. After leaving business school, he went to the Pacific Northwest to work for a tiny software company named Microsoft. He went o...

“You need surgery” “SURGERY! I don’t have insurance!” “I’m sorry I can’t help you with that…” I severely fractured my finger and was given my options - perform surgery for $5000+ or cast it for $500 and risk recovering full function. Neither option is appealing. Forty seven million Americans are currently uninsured . According to CoverTheUninsured .org, people ages 25-34 are the most likely to be without coverage . Conversely, children, pregnant women, and the elderly are enjoying the actualization of subsidized coverage that’s long since been an obvious necessity with Federal programs such as Medicaid , SCHIPP , Medicare , and the recent passing of a Congressional bill to extend coverage for children. State programs provide even more support for the above niches and families. Meanwhile, twenty- and thirty-something’s wait for the new administration to slowly phase in universal coverage of some sort, but the hard truth is that we will be the last to see it . Many of us are not e...

Blogging can be a mysterious even to those of us who have been doing it for while. It is easy to get lost and lose sight of your goals when you started blogging with the mission of changing the world . How do I join the blogosphere and build community and inspire action ? Below are a few steps to help: Pick a topic that has Personal Significance but Social Implications What are you passionate about and can write about regularly? Generally the things that have personally touched us are things that serve as great motivation. The trick is to moving beyond personal experience to acquiring greater context on your topic i.e. research. Try interviewing people or writing a response to an article that relates to your topic to get your mind going. CONNECT with others who Share Your Passion—on and off line. Read and comment on blogs that relate to your topic. Look for meetups , local university clubs/events, and volunteer groups to find people who are committed to addressing the same issue...

This year, I'd really like to get my writing out in front of a larger audience. On January 20th, I was inspired by President Obama who believed in himself, believed in us, and called us to take action. He empowered us to change our lives, change our country and our world. "If it has to be, then it is up to me." I took this to heart as I watched him take the oath of office. First, I jumped around and did a little dance for joy, and then I set about looking for a part-time blogging gig. With the enormous need for content generation, there are a lot of blogging opportunities out there. Most of the ones I found are non-paid, though I found one fairly quickly with Examiner.com, an on-line newspaper with city-specific news that spans a number of areas from art to food to business, and everything in between. It pays its reporters, Examiners, by click which is a fair and reasonable system and in New York, they had a need in their Business Section. Perfect. Exactly what I want to ...