Social Good Blueprint | Magnifying Change

This week I asked myself how you go about magnifying change. What I found were groups building communities, sharing stories and looking at how people from different backgrounds can work together to solve the needs of everyone at the table.

[1] Ruling Our Experience (ROX) Growing Up

ROX started in Columbus, Ohio, as a program to empower the female leaders of tomorrow… and have grown to serve 4,000 women across 250 schools. They have a special mix of researching the needs, developing relationships and programs for these youth. Because of this, they empower these young women with ideas at a critical time in their life.

“If you don’t know something exists,” she suggests, “you don’t know how you can pursue it. If you don’t see it, how do you be it?”

An organization like this can instill what’s needed to empower and stretch possibilities in young minds. For students just beginning to understand their potential, these are seeds that have the potential to transform the world. Go on Ruling Our Experiences!

[2] Meet FreeWill, New Potential from a Dead End

FreeWill is a social enterprise that allows you to write your own legal will online… they make something complicated easy, and channel the money they earn towards charity. And not small amounts, either. They are aiming to channel $1 trillion towards charity over the next decade. It’s thinking like this which creates new solutions to problems we face.

Speaking of new thinking, here is a 3D printed green wall comes with an embedded irrigation system. Just for the fun of it.

[3] Unions, Environmental Groups Join Forces on Climate Action

If the government can’t do it, maybe everyone else can. Here is an approach between Unions and Environmental Groups Joining Forces on Climate Action. They’re coming together with climate change in one hand and income equality in the other. The question is, “how can you take jobs which relied on coal and create sustainable jobs which make for a better planet?” Asking questions in a way that brings everyone on board is a sure approach to magnifying change.

[4] When the Herbal Industry Meets Corporate Accountability

I’ve been reading about the benefits of organic lately, and as a social entrepreneur, I’m interested When the Herbal Industry Meets Corporate Accountability and Sustainability. I trust what’s in the organic section of my supermarket. But for other foods, that trust is not always so certain. Gia Herbs decided to get the B-Corp designation for this reason. The stringent requirements of obtaining the B-Corp status builds consumer trust, because it communicates their value of being good for the planet in the process. But their transparency goes even further… they have an actual ID on their supplements. You can go to their website and look up how your supplements have been sourced and validated for their quality. Now that’s transparency.

[5] Better Travel

Are you in Delhi, India on September 21st? You might check out the Tourism Shala event, bringing together various organizations through the Sustainable Travel Network – A community of responsible travel organizations in India. I admire companies like G Adventures which work hard to create impactful travel experiences and maintain their accountability. I’ve always hoped to see more people engaging in this, and it looks like the Tourism Shala may be the next step for this.

[6] The July Crowdfunding Roundup

It’s no secret I love crowdfunding. It’s an awesome use of technology that brings people together and allows individuals to find support, partners and a community to launch their dreams. Some ideas flop, some succeed… but either way, it creates an opportunity to start something that didn’t exist 20 years ago. And that to me is magic. The Metroprenuer shares their July roundup, with some great projects magnifying change by building communities, like:

Harness | Her life, unfiltered: by Harness Magazine — Kickstarter – is out to create an online community where women can access educational resources, view exclusive artwork and connect in real time with one another. The Harness Magazine already has experience sharing stories of small businesses who are empowering others in their own entrepreneurial ways, with a mission to increase female empowerment, so this project is very exciting.

High on Sugar on GoFundMe is also working to create a safe community space with their GoFundMe – a space with cake and comedy, and a stage for Performers, Workshops, and Parties.