Youth Venture DC Holiday Celebration
On Tuesday, December 15, 2009 Youth Venture DC held a Holiday Celebration in the North Hall of Eastern Market. The event featured a silent auction and served as a great opportunity to spread awareness about Youth Venture activities in the DC area. Check out the slideshow below to view photos from the event!
World Youth Meeting
The first World Youth Meeting will be hosted in Puglia-Italy from January 19th to 21st 2010 to launch the program, confront perspectives on sustainable human development, set a common agenda of action, share knowledge and start up new initiatives.
500 youth delegates from 90 countries and more than a 1.000 youth participants will gather with thought leaders from a range of cultural backgrounds and experience representing government, politic, science and culture, international organizations, media, civil society and private sector. Young participants will be selected among those that will have posted their candidature on this website. Organization will cover costs for travel, hospitality and food only to delegates.
The Meeting will revolve around three keynote lectures, one for each of the meeting days and about 15 thematic workshops. The lectures will address three main topics for the Meeting: “Perspectives and challenges for democracy in a world of global cities”, “Environmental sustainability as precondition for human development” and “The new frontier for social and economic development after the global finance crisis”. The workshops will focus on global issues for development and the potential of tackling them at local level.
APPLICATIONS DUE: December 16, 2009 at midnight.
500 youth delegates from 90 countries and more than a 1.000 youth participants will gather with thought leaders from a range of cultural backgrounds and experience representing government, politic, science and culture, international organizations, media, civil society and private sector. Young participants will be selected among those that will have posted their candidature on this website. Organization will cover costs for travel, hospitality and food only to delegates.
The Meeting will revolve around three keynote lectures, one for each of the meeting days and about 15 thematic workshops. The lectures will address three main topics for the Meeting: “Perspectives and challenges for democracy in a world of global cities”, “Environmental sustainability as precondition for human development” and “The new frontier for social and economic development after the global finance crisis”. The workshops will focus on global issues for development and the potential of tackling them at local level.
APPLICATIONS DUE: December 16, 2009 at midnight.
Ashoka’s Youth Venture announces the @15 Community Impact Challenge
Need help telling your story and building a network?
15 finalists will compete online for
5, $5,000 grants and 5, $1,500 grants
to change their communities!
Finalists will be equipped with digital camcorders
and provided coaching in grassroots marketing, social media,
and public relations.
Apply now for the @15 Community Impact Challenge with Ashoka’s Youth Venture. Applicants must be residents of the United States and age 12-18 (at least 60 percent of team member must meet this requirement). All team members must be age 12-20.
Important Dates: Applications are due January 15, 2010. The online voting takes place from March 15 to April 2, 2010.
Visit www.at15.comfor an application and to learn more!
About @15: Best Buy believes in the power of teens, and @15 is a platform to connect with them, give voice to their perspectives, and invest our resources – including the energy and talents of our employees – to turn their ideas into action and support their efforts to lead social change. Teens bring passion and enthusiasm to tackling tough issues. They’re also important to our business – they shop in our stores, and they’re our future employees. There’s a real opportunity to listen to – and learn from – what teens have to say. And through the @15 Fund, we’ll put the philanthropic power of @15 directly into their hands.
NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. PURCHASE WILL NOT INCREASE CHANCES OF WINNING. OPEN TO LEGAL RESIDENTS OF THE 50 U.S. (D.C.), 13 - 18 AS OF DECEMBER 15, 2009. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED. Enter Contest by: 1/15/10. To enter, visit www.at15.com and follow instructions to download the Grant Application. Grand Prize (5): A $5,000 Grant. For Official Rules and complete details, visit www.at15.com. Sponsor: Youth Venture, 1700 North Moore St., Suite 2000, Arlington, VA, 22209.
Games That Give
Games that Give is a website that raises money for nonprofit organizations while people play their free online games. By simply playing games like Blackjack, Wordsearch, or Memory, Games That Give then donates 70% of the ad revenue to your favorite charity. So far, Games That Give has donated $7,310 to different charities.
So what are you waiting for? Get to playing!
Whats your opinion on social innovation?
Whats your opinion on social innovation? Be here today at 10:30 CST (11:30EST) to join the discussion!
Organizations focusing on today's social innovations range from a handful experienced players (Root Cause, Ashoka, Grameen Foundation) to a growing presence of regional nonprofits and/or social enterprises addressing fundamental problems. With a newly established federal agenda to stimulate and nurture social innovation in this country, how will Sonal Shah, head of the White House Office of Social Innovation create a national agenda sparked by efforts on the ground that can spread across the country and line up with other successful global initiatives such as the United Kingdom’s Office of the Third Sector and Canada’s growing Centers for Social Innovation?
Today at 10:30 CST (11:30EST), during the Texas Governor’s Nonprofit Leadership Conference, Business Boomer's live webcast will feature a distinct panel of leaders to discuss collaborative efforts that stimulate socially innovative activities in order to help answer that question.
Anne DeHaro, Public Affairs Director and host of Clear Channel Radio, will be facilitate a discussion and field questions from an online audience as she interview panelists Andrew Wolk, CEO of Rootcause (www.rootcause.org), Elizabeth Darling, CEO of One Star Foundation (www.onestarfoundation.org), & Stacy Caldwell, Executive Director of Dallas Social Venture Partners (www.dsvp.org).
Topics include:
•Texas Social Innovation Initiative announcement & vision
•How social innovation is changing the way nonprofits do business
•Impact investing & performance measurement
•Collaboration at the global, national, state, and local levels
Organizations focusing on today's social innovations range from a handful experienced players (Root Cause, Ashoka, Grameen Foundation) to a growing presence of regional nonprofits and/or social enterprises addressing fundamental problems. With a newly established federal agenda to stimulate and nurture social innovation in this country, how will Sonal Shah, head of the White House Office of Social Innovation create a national agenda sparked by efforts on the ground that can spread across the country and line up with other successful global initiatives such as the United Kingdom’s Office of the Third Sector and Canada’s growing Centers for Social Innovation?
Today at 10:30 CST (11:30EST), during the Texas Governor’s Nonprofit Leadership Conference, Business Boomer's live webcast will feature a distinct panel of leaders to discuss collaborative efforts that stimulate socially innovative activities in order to help answer that question.
Anne DeHaro, Public Affairs Director and host of Clear Channel Radio, will be facilitate a discussion and field questions from an online audience as she interview panelists Andrew Wolk, CEO of Rootcause (www.rootcause.org), Elizabeth Darling, CEO of One Star Foundation (www.onestarfoundation.org), & Stacy Caldwell, Executive Director of Dallas Social Venture Partners (www.dsvp.org).
Topics include:
•Texas Social Innovation Initiative announcement & vision
•How social innovation is changing the way nonprofits do business
•Impact investing & performance measurement
•Collaboration at the global, national, state, and local levels
Keeping the Dream Alive
Part of running a venture is keeping it sustainable. We all know how hard it is to get volunteers and donations on a regular basis. Now that we’re getting near the end of the year it is a great time to recap your activities for folks that have supported you throughout the year. You can do this by sending out an email or note to everyone involved with your venture and let them know about your progress over the past year. You can do it in a big way and use ‘GOOD’ magazine-like graphic illustrations, add a testimonial from someone that has benefited from your efforts or keep it simple with a bullet point recap. The important thing is to touch base and let these folks know what is happening. You can also let them know what your goals are for the new year, as well as your needs. Often the skills of someone are more important (and easier to donate) than money. For example, reach out and tell your supporters that you need help setting your venture up as a 501(c)3 or that you need someone to store supplies…. whatever it is make a wish list and let them know. Sending out a message also helps you get organized in your thoughts and goal setting and gives you a good way to document your progress. At My Own Book we do this every year and then post the recap on our website as well. Check it out http://www.myownbook.net/2008recap.html
Hope this helps your venture have a happy New Year!
Written by Youth Venture Ambassador--Brady Baldwin, My Own Book
Hope this helps your venture have a happy New Year!
Written by Youth Venture Ambassador--Brady Baldwin, My Own Book
Working With Your Community
The mission of the Climate Action Club is to provide opportunities for people in our school and community to fight global warming. That means we look for ways to connect with 600 teenagers, 20 prominent merchants, and 5,000 residents. What do you think it takes to be successful?
Let me give you a concrete example that illustrates our approach: the CAC’s Reusable Bag Campaign relies on students, merchants, and citizens. Our ultimate goal is to reduce the use of plastic bags in our town by persuading people to use a town-wide reusable bag instead. When we began, there were two extreme positions on this issue. Some store owners said: “Why should we invest in reusable bags? They are useless.” Others said: “Reusable bags are an easy step that customers can take to be green...so let’s go for it!” With such opposing viewpoints, it was hard for us to decide what to do next. We didn’t want to yield to the requests of one group and force a solution on the other group. So we turned to the key tool of community organization: compromise. Our strategy was to put the “unity” back into “community” with education, outreach, and lots of dialogue.
We found the happy medium. We made participation in the campaign voluntary and welcomed varying degrees of involvement: merchants could donate money to the campaign and sell bags in their stores, just sell the bags, or wait out the first phase of our campaign and hopefully decide to participate in round two. We also reached out directly to citizens with newspaper articles, flyers, fact sheets, and even a movie made for our local cable channel. In the end, our campaign turned out to be an enormous success for our town. Everyone was extremely proud.
The CAC and I were able to figure out to a solution to our problem because we took time to understand all points of view. We talked with all groups and worked out a solution that satisfied everyone. We didn’t let opposing perspectives stop us. We simply put our heads together and problem-solved. True, it did take a long time. But the result was definitely worth it. We raised $4300 from 14 sponsors. We designed and purchased 1900 reusable bags that featured the logos and names of the CAC and all our donors. On July 1st, the bags went on sale in 12 locations. Each bag sold for $2, and all proceeds are invested in the next installment of bags. We quickly sold out, and we are currently processing the second order. The best part is that more merchants are participating in the second round of our campaign, and our work has been recognized both in our state and around the country. We achieved our goals after two years of hard work and deliberation. You can do the same thing in your town--all it takes is commitment and understanding.
http://www.eia.doe.gov/cneaf/electricity/epm/table5_6_a.html
Written by Youth Venture Ambassador--Chloe Maxmin, Climate Action Club
Let me give you a concrete example that illustrates our approach: the CAC’s Reusable Bag Campaign relies on students, merchants, and citizens. Our ultimate goal is to reduce the use of plastic bags in our town by persuading people to use a town-wide reusable bag instead. When we began, there were two extreme positions on this issue. Some store owners said: “Why should we invest in reusable bags? They are useless.” Others said: “Reusable bags are an easy step that customers can take to be green...so let’s go for it!” With such opposing viewpoints, it was hard for us to decide what to do next. We didn’t want to yield to the requests of one group and force a solution on the other group. So we turned to the key tool of community organization: compromise. Our strategy was to put the “unity” back into “community” with education, outreach, and lots of dialogue.
We found the happy medium. We made participation in the campaign voluntary and welcomed varying degrees of involvement: merchants could donate money to the campaign and sell bags in their stores, just sell the bags, or wait out the first phase of our campaign and hopefully decide to participate in round two. We also reached out directly to citizens with newspaper articles, flyers, fact sheets, and even a movie made for our local cable channel. In the end, our campaign turned out to be an enormous success for our town. Everyone was extremely proud.
The CAC and I were able to figure out to a solution to our problem because we took time to understand all points of view. We talked with all groups and worked out a solution that satisfied everyone. We didn’t let opposing perspectives stop us. We simply put our heads together and problem-solved. True, it did take a long time. But the result was definitely worth it. We raised $4300 from 14 sponsors. We designed and purchased 1900 reusable bags that featured the logos and names of the CAC and all our donors. On July 1st, the bags went on sale in 12 locations. Each bag sold for $2, and all proceeds are invested in the next installment of bags. We quickly sold out, and we are currently processing the second order. The best part is that more merchants are participating in the second round of our campaign, and our work has been recognized both in our state and around the country. We achieved our goals after two years of hard work and deliberation. You can do the same thing in your town--all it takes is commitment and understanding.
http://www.eia.doe.gov/cneaf/electricity/epm/table5_6_a.html
Written by Youth Venture Ambassador--Chloe Maxmin, Climate Action Club
The SEVEN Fund announces the ‘I Am an Entrepreneur’ Photography Competition
About the Contest: The SEVEN Fund is pleased to announce the ‘I Am an Entrepreneur’ photography competition. This competition recognizes the outstanding use of photography to tell compelling stories of role model entrepreneurs from around the world. Anyone is welcome to participate in this competition. The competition will award twelve (12) prizes, one per month, over a period of one year. Each month, one finalist will be selected and will receive a prize of $100. The grand prize winner (selected from among the 12 finalist photographs) will receive $1,000 at the end of the year.
Often, the imagery associated with developing nations captures the misery that accompanies poverty. While it is important that these things are taken seriously and are documented, we believe that developing nations also represent tremendous opportunities for hope. The “I am an Entrepreneur” competition strives to reframe the dialogue around solutions to poverty by infusing the world's imagination with new imagery that focuses on entrepreneurship. Our objective with this competition is to gather stunning photographs profiling individual entrepreneurs from around the globe.
About SEVEN: S.E.VEN (Social Equity Venture Fund) is a virtual non-profit entity run by entrepreneurs whose strategy is to markedly increase the rate of innovation and diffusion of Enterprise-based Solutions to Poverty. It does this by targeted investment that fosters thought leadership through books, films and websites supporting role models - whether they are entrepreneurs or innovative firms - in developing nations and shaping a new discourse in government, the press and the academy around private sector innovation, prosperity and progressive human values.
Topic: This competition recognizes the outstanding use of photography to tell compelling stories of role model entrepreneurs from around the world.
Regions: Anyone is welcome to participate in this photography competition.
Prizes: The competition will award twelve (12) prizes, one per month, over a period of one year. Each month, one finalist will be selected and will receive a prize of $100. The grand prize winner (selected from among the 12 finalist photographs) will receive $1,000 at the end of the year.
Important Dates: The competition will run from January 2010 to December 2010. The first of eleven finalist prizes will be awarded on January 30, 2010. The grand prize will be awarded on January 30, 2011.
Submission: To submit a photo or learn more, please visit: http://www.sevenfund.org/entrepreneur-image/
Venture Interview Series: Connell Wise and National Association of Youth-Owned Businesses
YV: Connell, you grew up in Washington D.C. and are now a freshman at Curry College in Milton, MA. Are you prepared for your first REAL winter in New England?
Connell: Well, my brother and sister went to Curry College. I’ve been going up to Milton for years to visit them in college.
YV: As part of the Dream It. Do It. Challenge in Boston, you coach youth and help launch their Ventures. How does it feel to use your unique experience to help other aspiring young people develop projects to benefit their community?
Connell: It feels good. I am currently studying social entrepreneurship and community development at Curry College. I love sharing my knowledge and am a big believer in social responsibility. By giving back, I am helping someone else get the same type of advantage that helped me get where I am today.
YV: This time last year you were a Venturer, now you’re a coach. How have you dealt with this role reversal?
Connell: My non-profit, the National Association of Youth-Owned Businesses, works a lot with training and coaching youth on running business and also life coaching. So I am coming in with some experience. But I am learning just as much as the youth I coach. I find out lots stuff I didn’t know. We are all students for life and we are always learning. I love hearing their personal stories.
YV: How else have you brought your Changemaker mindset to college?
Connell: At Curry College, I am part of the Program for Advancement of Learning (PAL). I have Attention Deficit Disorder and PAL is the nation’s premier support program for college students with learning disabilities. I have trouble getting my brain to take a minute and slow down. I am always thinking of new ways to save the world and make everyone a Changemaker. PAL helps me get my thoughts in order.
YV: On your website, NAYOB.ORG, you posted the quote, “Dreams come in a size too big so that we may grow into them.” What does the quote mean to you?
Connell: To me it means something special. I have a learning disability and all my life people have told me to think small, to not dream big. Maybe I should go to a 2-year college because of my learning disability. But just because you have a disability does not mean you can’t accomplish something. I am currently the Young Mayoral Appointed Commissioner in Washington DC. I have held this office for 3 year now. If you dream big, you start to build yourself to fit that dream.
YV: Connell, thanks for joining us. Stay warm this winter and have a Happy Holidays.
Connell: I will, the best to everyone and much success.
Contributed by Youth Venture Associate Ethan Burton
