One of the readers of this blog passed along this great website and I thought I would share it. It is called Dreambank and it is exactly what it sounds like. Dreamers post their dreams and Supporters help them realize these dreams. It has a bunch of other interesting tid bits and this is the run down according to the website.

What We Do
Dreams are inspiring! Just imagine how much happier the world would be if more of our dreams could come true. That’s why we created DreamBank. We want to help you fulfil dreams in a way that also cares for the planet and contributes to important social causes.

Here’s How We Do It.
First, we provide a fun, easy way for you to fund your dreams. By posting a dream on www.dreambank.org, friends, family and fans can contribute to your dream fund. Each contribution brings your dream closer to reality. Funding dreams is important, but so is support. DreamBank is also built as a community so you can connect and communicate with fellow Dreamers to: follow their progress, share ideas and resources, or just cheer them on.

Second, DreamBank is about helping the planet. By contributing to a dream, you spare the planet some of the nasty side effects of manufacturing, packaging and shipping gifts that, although we appreciate, we often don’t really need or want. Did you know that 83% of Americans[1] received unwanted gifts during the 2006 holiday season? All that ‘stuff’ puts a strain on the environment.

Last but not least, every time a contributor supports a dream, life gets a little better for someone else on the planet. That’s because DreamBank contributions are pooled into one big fund and the interest it generates is distributed to international charities and non profit organizations. Dreamers are given a choice of organizations to associate with their dream. This acts as a vote and tells us how to divvy up the charity pot according to our Dreamers’ wishes.

At DreamBank everyone wins. Dreamers get a chance to fulfil their dreams; friends and family get to play a role in making dreams come true for the people they care about; the planet is spared needless environmental damage; and people in need get more help.

Give Dreams. Not Stuff.

A great idea that might be handy come holidays or birthdays instead of receiving gifts from a bevy of people you could post your dream (in some cases a gift you could never afford) and your friends and family can put a little towards the dream to help you realize it. Not only that but a not-for-profit will see something from it as well!

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Would it not be nice if life were simple? I often find my head and environment so cluttered that thinking becomes a full time job. I don’t mean thinking about my next big idea or how I might change the world today, I mean thinking about getting out of bed in the morning, to what pair of shorts to wear. The problem isn’t that these are difficult decisions, the difficulty is that my life is full of so many other more complex decisions that even the simple ones become chores. Making life more simple, unfortunately, requires a great deal of effort. Blocking out the myriad of thoughts and noise that exists both within and around ourselves is hard. For me I know it is so difficult because I want to do so many things. I want to stick my nose in everything and not tomorrow, I want to do it now!

We’ll I can’t. And unless you possess super powers, neither can you. We need to declutter our worlds. Take out the garbage so to speak. Simplification is the key to achieving all the our dreams. To make a difference we need to focus and put our efforts into one task at a time instead of spreading our mind into the many distractions that exist. I read many great bloggers on this topic and collect many tools and ideas that I think might just help me make the change. However, they become just another wasted expense or waste of time. The problem can’t be fixed with these external aids because it is an internal problem. Sure, reading about the problem might help you understand the problem, but it wont help you change it. You have to want to change it. For me, the complexity of life is like an addiction. I am addicted to the clutter, to the noise. It makes me feel normal and I don’t know how to kick the habit.

Every day I try a little more to simplify my life. I try to trim my list of things to do, or put off something in favor of something else. One of these days I will break the cycle. and maybe you will too. We have to want it, and then we have to make it so. The ‘making it so’ part is the key. Everyone says it is a good idea but very few actually do it. You might recognize that this is the exact same thing that separates the brilliant world changers from those who talk about it. Unless you do it, it means little. We are measured by our actions not our intentions. Simplifying your life is one step towards becoming the person who will change the world. If for nothing else than the process it will take to get you there. Take the first step.

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Here is another website some of you may be interested in. It is called Avaaz.org: The World In Action. Their mission is:

Avaaz.org is a new global web movement with a simple democratic mission: to close the gap between the world we have, and the world most people everywhere want. Across the world, most people want stronger protections for the environment, greater respect for human rights, and concerted efforts to end poverty, corruption and war. Yet globalization faces a huge democratic deficit as international decisions are shaped by political elites and unaccountable corporations — not the views and values of the world’s people.

Technology and the internet have allowed citizens to connect and mobilize like never before. The rise of a new model of internet-driven, people-powered politics is changing countries from Australia to the Philippines to the United States. Avaaz takes this model global, connecting people across borders to bring people powered politics to international decision-making.

“Avaaz” means “Voice” in many Asian, Middle Eastern and Eastern European languages, according to the website.

Furthermore it is described as, “a community of global citizens who take action on the major issues facing the world today. The aim of Avaaz.org is to ensure that the views and values of the world’s people shape global decisions. Avaaz.org members act for a more just and peaceful world and a globalisation with a human face.”

Take a look and let me know what you think. There are so many different places now for global citizens to congregate, many of which I have written about, that it would be nice to know what people think about each of them and for what purpose each one could be used. They are certainly all valuable resources, but each has a different reason for using.

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Check back soon for details on the launch of the Ideal World Project. Exciting times!

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I thought I would share a few things I have come across in the last couple of months that might be of interest to someone. They are all ideas on change and making the world a better place.

Do Something Awards:
Their mission statement is –

“We believe young people have the power to make a difference. It is our aim to inspire, support and celebrate a generation of do-ers: people who see the need to do something, believe in their ability to get it done, and then take action.

Our website is a community where young people learn, listen, speak, vote, volunteer, ask, and take action to make the world a better place. Currently, only 23% of this generation actively volunteers. Our hope is to create a do something generation: a world where more than 51% of young people are involved with community action.”

Wiser Earth:
Their mission is -

“WiserEarth serves the people who are transforming the world. It is a community-editable international directory and networking forum that maps and connects the largest movement in the world – the hundreds of thousands of organizations and concerned individuals within civil society that address social justice, poverty, and the environment.

WiserEarth provides the tools and a platform for non-profit organizations, funders, social entrepreneurs, students, organizers, academics, activists, scientists, and citizens to find each other, make connections, build alliances and share resources.

WISER stands for World Index for Social and Environmental Responsibility.”

Change Me:
Here is a screen capture of their website -

and finally,

The Better World Essay Contest:
This was a contest to write an essay about how to become a better world. There are five essays, each with some great ideas and meaning.

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An article in the New York Times on June 23 entitled “Big Paycheck or Service? Students Are Put To Test” delves into the the world of top colleges and the consulting and financial jobs that follow and asks students to question where it is they want to go in life. A professor at Harvard has started leading reflection sessions to get undergraduates to think more about public service. There would appear a trend at Ivey league schools for students to head to wall street after graduation, which would seem peculiar since so many students go to school with the intentions of changing the world.

Is the lure of a large paycheck enough to stop people from pursuing their dreams and aspirations? The security? The fear of the unknown? What happens to the sense of adventure that so many young people possess? I watched the movie Accepted the other day and at the end of the movie one scene really strikes a chord with me. The only real professor at the school is leading a session where he says, “This is not your orientation; you have been oriented your entire life. This is your disorientation.” Is that what school is? In my estimation I would say YES. It is a paradigm we exist in. The paradigm I have consistently said needs to be changed. The very method of thought orients everyone coming up through the school system to be brainwashed into thinking that a paycheck is the answer. Somehow we learn to believe that we can purchase our dreams and aspirations later if we abandon them now.

I am in this peculiar position right now where I have just finished school and am left to think about what is next. Do I go for the security of a job that I can certainly do but would rather not, or do I pursue what I have passion for, what I love? It isn’t an easy question. Many of my friends now have jobs, are getting married, may soon start families, and here I am without even a job. It is too easy to follow the money, but there is this little voice inside my head and my heart telling me there is more awaiting me. What if my dreams and aspirations are within my power? What if I can change the world? I can’t take the easy path until I know for sure. I have found myself disoriented from my disorientation but I trust I will eventually find my path. What about you, do you trust yourself enough to find yours?

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You may have already seen this video, Where the Hell Is Matt. Apparently it has been very popular, but somehow I missed it. What an awesome idea! A fun little dance move that people all around the world joined in on to create a video spanning the entire globe. Funny how something so small can bring people together.

I would just like to say the sponsor, Stride Gum, deserves a big thank you for making it happen.

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This is a great resource for those of you who want to learn more about how to end genocide and crimes against humanity. It is called Enough Project and this is what it it has to say:

“ENOUGH was born out of frustration and hope.
We ran out of patience with the world’s shameful lack of progress in combating terrible horrors. We knew there were many examples of successful conflict resolution processes throughout Africa, but the lessons weren’t widely known. We found confidence in the growing number of Americans who are demanding more aggressive, more successful solutions. And we have faith that we can end genocide and crimes against humanity once and for all.

We know that people care, but many assume that the crises in Africa and elsewhere are intractable. This inaccurate perception of futility sustains the killing of thousands and destroys the hopes of a safe and secure future for millions more. With every passing minute, the slaughter continues.

ENOUGH is a project of the Center for American Progress which aims to answer questions about what is really happening and offer a clear path to sustainable solutions. We were co-founded by CAP and the International Crisis Group in early 2007, setting out to establish a new paradigm for action.

We use in-depth knowledge to create clear, viable policy recommendations, and engage activists to apply pressure on the perpetrators and well-meaning governments whose own inertia prevents them from taking the steps necessary to stop genocide and crimes against humanity.

We shine a spotlight on policies that work. We aim to change the international conversation by demonstrating that progress is possible, and that rhetoric is meaningless without resolute, committed action. We are focusing currently on the situations in Congo, northern Uganda, Darfur, southern Sudan and the spillover violence in Chad.

We aim for real change to close the book on these horrible recurring chapters of human history.“

Check it out. With the Olympics approaching there is going to be a lot of talk about human rights and if you want to be informed before the conversation starts this website is a great place to start and learn what is going on.

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This idea is very ‘balance on earth – esque’. It is called the Global Lives Project and this is the blurb on the website,

“Our goal is to record 24 hours in the lives of ten people that roughly represent the diversity of our planet’s population. These ten lives will come together in an innovative video installation and form the basis of a collaborative online video encyclopedia of human life experiences.“

I think they have hit the nail on the head with this one. Anything that aims to take people out of their own lives and let them see the world through the eyes of someone else is going to impact the viewer. One of the major issues confronting the progress the world can make is acceptance of diversity. To embrace difference is to embrace change – the biggest hurdle we face is change. We are a change adverse world, but if we can come to accept others we can accept that change will not destroy us. Instead it will bring us closer together, capable of taking on any challenge that lies ahead. (Global Warming, Conflict/War, Terrorism, Health Epidemics, etc.)

The more projects like this delve into the issue the more accepting we will all become. If you have an idea about how to increase our understanding of diversity, I would love to hear about it.

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This series of ads is floating around in cyberspace. The ads have not been confirmed as actual ads by Amnesty but may have been created for them and not been approved yet. We shall see as the Olympics get closer what else will be in store. It is an exciting time to witness all that is occurring with human rights awareness and these are one of many examples that are popping up in reaction to China being host to the Olympics.

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Who am I? I am a Do-Good Engineer for gen-y.

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