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Natalie C. Rodic - My Blog
Natalie C. Rodic - My Blog
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Get funds to Make a Difference!
Translations available in: English (original) | French | Spanish | Italian | German | Portuguese | Swedish | Russian | Dutch | Arabic

The Alliance for a New Humanity (ANH) is thrilled to announce the launch of the ANH Startfund, an initiative of the Fred Foundation.



Beginning this year, 2009, this initiative builds upon the Fred Foundation's Startfund, which began impacting lives and communities twelve years ago by empowering individuals and organizations. The goal of the ANH is to connect people, who, through personal and social transformation, aim to build a just, peaceful, and sustainable world, reflecting the unity of all humanity. The ANH Startfund has the goal of putting this transformation into action.

The ANH Startfund offers co-funding for projects that are proposed by inspired individuals and organizations. With its financial support, the ANH Startfund aims to contribute to the empowerment of people. The focus of the ANH Startfund is to support projects that have the potential to contribute to a functional, balanced and caring society.


If you have a project in the fields of health, community, or nature/environment that you believe truly impacts society in a positive and sustainable way, please apply! This is an incredible opportunity to realize your dreams of creating positive social change.

Wondering if your project fits the criteria? Here are some questions to ask yourself.
Would your application demonstrate that:

  1. The project is based on an inspiring and/or new idea?

  2. There is a clear plan in place of how to put the idea into action as a project?

  3. The project leader is committed to executing the plan and accepting full responsibility for it?

  4. The project has the potential to make a long-term impact and is it replicable in other places?



Although the categories are broad and the Startfund committee open-minded on what will be funded, there are some restrictions. The following projects will not be considered: in general the construction or rehabilitation of buildings, the making of films, websites, books, brochures, unless these are (an) essential part(s) of the project.

Past projects which have been funded by the Startfund include:

  • Bulgarian Environmental Partnership Foundation - the bicycle as public vehicle in Sofia (2007)

  • Stichting Sathsathai - Toilets & smokeless cookers for Bolde Pediche in Nepal (2006)

  • Stichting Derde Wereldhulp - Home for HIV positive street children in India (2005)

  • Pablo van der Lugt - Bamboo as alternative product for construction in Europe (2004)



Visit the ANH website website for further details and the online application form!

April 13, 2009 | 11:20 AM Comments  1 comments

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YES WE DID!!
Related to country: United States

Translations available in: English (original) | French | Spanish | Italian | German | Portuguese | Swedish | Russian | Dutch | Arabic

Preface: At this moment in time, I have so much work to do and I need to write a Report with a ferocious focus but I simply can't begin until I have written some words on this momentous occasion.

VICTORY!

Barack Obama won the American presidential race in a landslide last night with many sighs of relief from supporters and booos and hisses from the opponents. But the American people have spoken, and for the first time in eight years the majority has made the right decision.

I have never felt a sense of solidarity or pride in this country where I was born and raised. But I feel it today. There is some new electrical charge in the air encapsulating hope and optimism for a brighter future. But it is also a sense of pride tinged with humility.

I wish I would have taken notes on the speeches that both candidates gave last night but finding myself in such a daze, I wasn't able to take my eyes off the candidates as they spoke (except to write a congratualtory text message to everyone I know!). But a few impressions stuck with me and don't consider this to be anything other than my own interpretation and personal take-aways:

First of all, I have to commend John McCain who proved his integrity and humanity last night when he urged his supporters, some of whom are ruthless racist biggots and many of whom are not, to accept and support Obama moving forward. He quickly discouraged negative outcries and literally asked people to lay down their differences. It was crucial for McCain to do so in a country where many people were not reluctant to admit they would not vote for Obama because of the color of his skin. He essentially called for his supporters to move forward into a new era with the president elect and adapt to a changing world. He shone through the defeat with a grace and a message that many Republicans would never be able to achieve.

And as for Barack - he was absolutely pragmatic and inspirational all in one moment. He said its not about him but rather us. Its about the American people as well as the global community, those on both sides of the digital divide. What stands out the most is his mention of finding security through peaceful means, as well as his call for us all to be of service. His belief is that individual liberty can prevail when we take care of one another and make that our focus. No American president has called for altruism as a means in itself in my lifetime and that is one amongst many traits that sets Obama apart from other leaders of our country. JFK said it as wel,l but after him the focus shifted. And that shift has led us into the economic crisis as well as our deteriorated reputation in the global community.

Inshallah Barack Obama will be strong enough to stand up against the forces of corruption and a very powerful machine in Washington DC that few of us will ever have access to understand. And in shallah, Barack Obama will be shielded from forces that few of us wish to understand, the leftovers of a dark past of slavery and racism that despite what John McCain claims has not yet been fully confronted.

But he's going to need help. It is going to take much effort from the people, cooperation between all sectors, and insight into each of ourselves. There are many paths to achieve this and that diversity must be respected. Change has got to come from within and compassion must prevail.




November 5, 2008 | 12:57 PM Comments  0 comments



Hear a mosaic of languages and people reading The Declaration
About this commitment: Universal Declaration of Human Rights

Translations available in: English (original) | French | Spanish | Italian | German | Portuguese | Swedish | Russian | Dutch | Arabic

http://tigurl.org/y66b54
World Voices Project Is A Mosaic of Recordings of people reading the United Nation’s Universal Declaration of Human Rights in their native language.

It is being presented right now in New York City's South Street Seaport but will soon travel to other spots in the world.

If you thought you could only appreciate the concepts found within this declaration, this sound installation might make you change your mind. It is like music.

You can hear it and learn more by visiting the website:http://www.worldvoicesproject.org/

~gNatalie

July 31, 2008 | 5:05 PM Comments  0 comments



MIXING IN THE SOCIAL IMPLICATIONS
Translations available in: English (original) | French | Spanish | Italian | German | Portuguese | Swedish | Russian | Dutch | Arabic

In preparing to attend the Ypulse Mashup in San Francisco this week, perhaps I was overly hopeful that there would be a well-rounded sharing, comparing, and contrasting of best practices between the private sector and the non-profit world in addressing the issues of youth media and marketing to youth. While there was a socially-conscious awareness element to many of the presentations, the emphasis was clearly on selling products. I mean, it is all selling, I understand that. Whether we are selling soft drinks or awareness on the importance of conserving water for future generations, we are all selling something. And while those of us in non-profits can learn a lot from those in the private sector that have funds to invest in marketing and advertising and who have staff with extensive training in it, the converse is also true. The private sector has a lot to learn from best practices of the non-profits who make so much happen in the realm of youth media with so little resources and little or no budget for marketing. This blog is a response to the observation that the audience at the conference was clearly wanting more in the way of the socially-conscious piece of the greater discussion. In numerous panels there was a question from the audience on how the corporate entity that was presenting planned to incorporate helping causes into their work. The movement of the private sector wanting and needing to support altruistic causes is on a rapid upturn, which was mentioned occasionally here and there. But cases where this is happening was not amplified in this conference.

The socially-conscious piece wasn't entirely absent though. Even while MTV is no struggling non-profit, at least a good portion of their work is focused on increasing awareness and action on social issues as well as civic enagement and social responsibility. The presence of Ian Rowe from Think.MTV and Carl Brown, a member of the MTV Street Team '08 added that element of what youth of today are capable of achieving in the realm of civic participation and also how digital media is capable of empowering them to make change. Socialvibe.com was also present, an organization who has created an innovative way of merging consumerism with good causes on an aesthetically-pleasing web platform.

There were a few other panels that I attended which touched on holistic approaches to using media for positive social change as well as the societal implications of participatory media and emerging technologies.

In the panel: "Totally Wired Hip Hop: Reaching Urban Youth", the overall message was that urban youth are often misunderstood and often avoided out of the fear that they are unapproachable. MC Hammer made the point that there are rappers in almost every community who want to give back to the community and are willing to comply with cleaning up their verbiage for young audiences. In discussing why rappers use profanity and harsh language, he pointed out the fact that this is what they are exposed to from an early age. He revealed that the solution for urban angst and relief from conditions of growing up in poverty and surrounded by violence is to address the conditions which the rappers are coming from and to give at-risk youth the tools to make content to share their stories. Great point, but then I had to wonder why smaller non-profits like Bay Area Video Coalition or YouthOutlook, who were present, weren't on the stage to say, "Agreed! That's why we've been doing what we're doing for quite some time now. And here is what we have found..." There was definitely a lack of voices from the experiences of the non-profit world who are focused entirely on the civic participation and positive social change angle.

The conversation in the panel "Are Girls the New Geeks" was a great contribution and a boost to the conference's socially-conscious factor. Nancy Gruver of New Moon Girl Media, a leading figure in the world of empowering girls through media creation mentioned that boys respond more to competition while girls respond more strongly to expressing themselves. While the word "geek" has up-to-date held implications of socially inept indivdual who were more comfortable interacting with code than with real live humans, girls are re-defining this term (along with the advent of all these social media tools). It was stated in this panel that girls are by and large the stronger content creators on the web today. Even as a mini case study, the last contest we ran on ymex.org, 100% of the user-created content that was submitted to the World Population Day Media contest was created by girls, mostly aged 17 to 19. The question posed early on in the panel was, "What is making girls such avid digital media creators?" The answer given was that technology has given girls greater access to sharing the creativity and expression that has always inside them. I am not sure if the case could be made that this is the same for guys because unfortunately there weren't any on the panel. It would have been interesting to have a teen guy present or perhaps even a director from a guy-oriented website like Loop'd. To have a guy perspective on the girl topic would most likely make the girl theories uphold under challenges from the guy perspective. It would have added dynamics to the conversation (and perhaps less male members of the audience would have dropped out).

Lastly the panel on Preventing Cyberbullying inevitably touched on socially-relevant matters. Linda Burch of Common Sense Media raised the all important question to all participants: With most of the mainstream media, the news, [and politicians] emphasizing cattiness and humiliation, how do we flip that around into positively-focused, civically-engaged citizens? Hemanshu Nigam, the Chief Security Officer for MySpace.com raised the point that cyberbullying is simply bullying and that old adage the bullying "is simply a part of growing up" needs to be sorted out. "Is it really a part of growing up?", he asked. The issue of bullying has been brought to light in the digital world but we as a society need to tackle it as an on- and off-line issue, simply as an overall important issue. Denise Restauri of Alleykatzz.com pointed out that bullying happens online stronger because its anonymous. You have to be popular to bully others on the school yard, but online you can bully anyone. Further good advice, words-to-the-wise were "self-reflect before you self-reveal; don't say something online that you wouldn't say in real life".

Despite all my criticism kudos to Anastasia and YPulse for even bringing together such a mixed-up mashup of representatives from many different worlds and creating a space for some really dynamic conversations. The worlds of the private and non-profit sector are wildly different and although we're constantly looking for crossovers and ways to work together, the models and means are quite different and don't always strike a balance. But the attempts should continue in order to find a sustainable future and a balanced environment for the youth of today and tomorrow.

July 18, 2008 | 5:23 PM Comments  0 comments



Announcing: YOUTH QUEST CONTEST & other cool new features on ymex.org
Translations available in: English (original) | French | Spanish | Italian | German | Portuguese | Swedish | Russian | Dutch | Arabic

YOUTH QUEST CONTEST!

Do you care about global issues? Are you a blogger, photographer, podcaster, gamer, or do you want to be any of the above? Are you under 18? If you are, then participate in our contest on ymex.org!

[18 years of age or older? Share this contest with your students and friends!]

What is it? Quests are an opportunity for you to showcase your media on global issues that matter to you! Pick one of five quests to learn about a global issue and then team up with other teens around the world to make a new media project with a positive impact!

How do I participate? It's easy! All you have to do is log-in to http://www.ymex.org using your TakingITGlobal account and accept the quest that interests you most. You must complete all steps of the quest by the deadline to enter your Quest into the contest.

Why? Score big points, enjoy the fame as you and your media are in the spotlight, make new friends from around the world, and best of all, raise awareness & make a difference!

Who? Although anyone of any age can take a ymex.org Quest, you must be under 18 years of age to enter this contest. You can be from any part of the world, just make sure your media is in English language-only.

Deadline: All quests must be completed by 11:59 pm GMT on Friday JUNE 20, 2008. Take action today!

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You may be wondering - What exactly are "Quests"? An innovative new concept in collaboration, found only on ymex.org, a Quest is an adventure into a realm of exploration and creation where an issue such as migration meets a type of digital media like audio. Perhaps a young person in Canada realizes that another young person in India and one in China have similar interests and these members work together to complete each step in the Quest, making a lasting record of their ideas, and picking up some skills along the way. Although they may not know what lies ahead, one step builds upon another until they arrive at their destination!
(Also, quests are a way to score big points on ymex!)

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Other cool new features to check out on ymex.org:

Country Pages:
You can see all the members from any country where ymex members are from. See fellow members from India here. Click on any flag to find members from other countries. Remember to complete your profile and add a profile picture to add more color to your country page, as well as tags from your countries' members. (You can score 25 points by completing it as well!)

Get a ymex badge to share on other websites!:
Check out the About page to get the badge, and notice our content partners on this page as well!

Share Global Gallery submissions on ymex!
All artwork in the Global Gallery can now be shared on ymex.org with the click of a button either by the artist or any viewer. If you see artwork that you think fits on ymex.org or if you are an artist who would like to gain further exposure for your work, go ahead and share it!


June 11, 2008 | 3:51 PM Comments  0 comments



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