“Do one thing everyday that scares you” – Eleanor Roosevelt (Elana’s favorite quote)
I am amazed by the number of millennials who are not satisfied with the ordinary 9 to 5 job and instead have taken a chance to make a difference in the world. One such woman is Elana Reinholtz, the young social entrepreneur behind Bird + Stone. Elana left an aspiring career in finance in the heart of Manhattan to help single women in Kenya through her company, Bird + Stone.
Bird + Stone is a socially conscious jewelry company with mission aligned products designed to inspire, educate, and most importantly help shape the dreams of deserving women who aspire to be independent and financially stable. As a social enterprise, Bird + Stone uses jewelry as a funding vehicle for micro-loans and financial training, and invests in single mothers in Kenya to start farming businesses to help lift themselves out of poverty. It is a beautiful concept and has shown much success in changing lives.
Elana teaching business classes to women in Kenya
Today October 11th, in honor of International Day of the Girl, Bird + Stone is partnering with Girl Up, a campaign of the UN Foundation, to help fund access to and education for the 62 million girls out of school around the globe. Each bracelet will give $3 to Girl Up programs for girls to become leaders in their communities and get access to school.
To see the new Girl Up and Bird + Stone Bracelets launched today, click here.
New Girl Up Bracelet by Bird + Stone
I had the opportunity to chat with Elana and meet her in person in NYC to learn more about the inspiration behind Bird + Stone and why she views micro-loans as a way of changing lives in Kenya. Here is what she had to say. Continue reading →
A year and a half ago, I had the wonderful opportunity to go to Haiti as part of a program to view Macy’s Heart of Haiti products and meet the artisans behind the beautiful art. It was an incredible trip in many ways as it opened my heart and mind to a different side of Haiti that is often not discussed in the press. Instead of seeing tragedy, hardship and destruction I saw amazing resilience, hope and creativity through the arts.
Our group, #Bloggers4Haiti
It was with a heavy heart that I followed the news of yet another tragedy in Haiti, the destruction and death from Hurricane Matthew. Hundreds more have died, thousands have lost their homes and their livelihoods once again, and the devastation left behind is just another setback in a country that seems to constantly take one step forward two steps back.
As the US and others rush in with aid to help Haiti, it is often asked how one can best help Haiti. Although humanitarian aid is absolutely necessary, tragically a lot of good intentions behind aid aren’t always fulfilled. Selecting the right kind of organization to donate to is even more important than ever.
The “Gingerbread” homes and slums that raise up the mountains behind luxurious Pétionville.
“Colorful yoga mat. Eye-catching home décor. Bohemian table runner. Comfy beach blanket. Each purchase provides a homemade Christmas meal for an impoverished family in Mexico.” – Siestas for Fiestas
Many people travel to enjoy the gorgeous beaches and resorts of Cancun, Mexico however few people think about the other side of Mexico often unseen behind the luxury. The countless number of Mexicans living in poverty, lacking opportunity to find sustainable employment, feed their families, and send their children to school. For Chris and Jesenia, a husband and wife team from Los Angeles, it took an unexpected and serendipitous move to Cancun to realize how much need there was in the community and how passionate they were to make a difference.
It was there in Cancun where Chris and Jesenia met Pastor Arturo Guzman and his congregation at Fe, Amor y Esperanza whose passion for helping the community changed Chris and Jesenia’s life. Upon returning to the US, Chris and Jesenia founded Siestas for Fiestas, a boutique blanket shop that sources textiles directly from Mexico and handcrafts all products in Los Angeles, CA. For each one sold a Christmas meal is provided to a family living in poverty in Cancun, Mexico.
I had the opportunity to speak with Jesenia and learn more about the inspiration behind their company and what their vision is for the future. Here is what she had to say.
Meet Chris and Jesenia, founders of Siestas for Fiestas. Photo credit: Mariel Hannah
Me: Why did you and Chris move to Cancun?
Jesenia: We were leading busy lives working in LA and had always wanted to live in another country. I was working in the wedding planning industry when a short-term position opened up for me to work in Cancun, Mexico with a California-based company who wanted to expand internationally. Since both Chris and I are native Spanish speakers and had been to Cancun before and loved it, it sounded like the perfect opportunity to try something new. We moved to Cancun in January 2015 and stayed for about six months. While we were there we met a Pastor that was working on an amazing project to help feed his congregation and we wanted to help.
Chris and Jesenia with Pastor Arturo and the congregation in Cancun. Photo credit: Mariel Hannah
Me: How did you meet Pastor Arturo Guzman and get connected with church?
Jesenia: Chris and I had a woman taking care of my grandpa in LA and when I told her we were moving to Cancun, she asked me to deliver some things to her nephew, Pastor Arturo Guzman, who lived there and was a Pastor at Fe, Amor y Esperanza. We met him and told him that we wanted to find a church to attend. We started going to Fe, Amor y Esperanza that very first Sunday and continued to go the entire time we were in Cancun. Pastor Arturo and his family became our family. We were so incredibly inspired by him and the work he was doing to help others.
What inspired you to start Siestas for Fiestas?
Jesenia: Pastor Arturo shared with us an especially personal and heartfelt mission: The church’s ongoing Christmas project to feed families living in poverty. We were inspired by his heart for this project and began brainstorming ideas on how we could help. One day we were out shopping and saw beautiful Mexican textiles and I thought “Why not use the colorful textiles of Mexico to make and sell blankets?” I bought some materials and made 16 blankets thinking I would sell them to friends to raise money for the project. I ended up selling all the blankets instantly and little by little, kept making and selling more. Before I knew it, Siestas for Fiestas was launched and we have been making blankets ever since.
Chris and Jesenia hold up one of their blankets. Photo credit: Mariel Hannah
Last week, I attended my fifth Social Good Summit in New York City along with five other amazing friends from World Moms Network. The Social Good Summit is a unique convening of world leaders, new media and technology experts, grassroots activists and voices from around the world that come together for a two-day conference coinciding with the United Nations General Assembly meeting held during UN Week. The Summit is held at the 92nd Street Y and is truly a global conversation as it streamed around the world in multiple languages.
The Crew of World Changers from World Moms Network and other social good bloggers
The theme of the summit– #2030NOW: What kind of world do you want to see in 2030? – challenged speakers, participants and a growing worldwide community to explore how technology and new media can be leveraged to benefit people everywhere, to spark discussion and ignite change in creating a better world for all by the year 2030. The 7th Annual Summit was kicked off with a great promise to connect the world with more humanity and give everyone a voice in improving poverty, inequality, injustice and climate change through the 17 new Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) agreed upon last year by 193 global leaders at the UN General Assembly.
In July, the first report card was released that maps the scope of the SDGs progress, giving leaders an idea of the challenges that lie ahead in order to ensure the SDGs are achieved and no one is left behind. Much progress has been made thanks to the successes of the MDGs (Millennium Development Goals) yet much needs to be done in order to achieve the SDGs.
Some challenges that lie ahead include:
While poverty has been halved, 1 in 8 people were living in extreme poverty in 2012.
An estimated 5.9 million children under 5 died in 2015, mostly from preventable causes.
216 women died in childbirth for every 100,000 live births.
In 2013, 59 million children of primary school age were out of school and 26 per cent of women aged 20-24 reported that they were married before their eighteenth birthday.
In 2015, an estimated 663 million people were still using unimproved water sources or surface water.
World Moms Network contributors talking with Stephanie Sinclair, Founder of Too Young to Wed, about her quest to end child marriage around the world.
As we sat at the conference and listened to all the heartbreaking and inspiring tales facing people around the world it was hard at times not to get overwhelmed or discouraged. The amount of issues and acute challenges at times seem almost impossible. Quite frankly, it can also make one feel quite powerless.
Throughout the two day summit, we learned that there is much work to be done yet there is hope. The Social Good Summit is all about making a plan for the future. The world has a plan and 14 years to deliver it. Despite how enormous the challenges may seem, they are achievable and the Global Goals are our guidelines to make the world a better, more equitable place. It is clear that the future of our planet and our people depend upon it. And, every single human being has a role and a responsibility to make it happen.
Top Tweets of the Social Good Summit:
(Click here to watch a powerful video on what the Global Goals mean).
I also asked my friends and fellow World Moms Network contributors what was the most meaningful quote or event of the Summit. Here is what they had to say.
For me, Two things stuck: Carolyn Miles of Save the Children talking about refugees: “Refugees are people with skills great for opportunities”. And Tiq Milan, Journalist & Spokesperson for GLAAD re: LGBTQ in the Media: “My existence may complicate yours, but it doesn’t invalidate yours.”
For Jennifer Burden
“The UNICEF vigil for refugee children was the most moving for me. Standing in a crowd, holding up candles near the UN and listening to the stories of 4 children from around the world who were refugees was incredibly important and moving. The story of the boy who was kidnapped and was going to be sold if his parents didn’t pay ransom broke my heart. And when the high school choir sang John Lennon’s “Imagine” at the end, I lost it.”
For Nicole Morgan
Loved this … Imagine a world where children are innoculated for measles AND cancers. This is not about some day … but a moment, the days, a month … there is much we can do. #cancermoonshot is about never giving up. It is about promise. And hope. VP Joe Biden.
For all of us
Being together with such wonderful like-minded friends who we could share our hopes, our dreams and our fears together was amazing. Often during our busy lives as a mother, we don’t get much time to spend together with each other. It was amazing, inspiring and fun.
I was so moved by the Social Good Summit and the dedication, enthusiasm and commitment people have towards changing the world and making a more equitable place. Despite the immense challenges, there is hope. We can’t give up. We all must do our share.
Clean water, basic hygiene and sanitation – collectively referred to as WASH – are essential for the survival and dignity of people around the world. Despite being a basic human right, clean water and adequate sanitation is tragically not available to millions around the world; especially the world’s poorest and most vulnerable people.
It is hard to imagine that today there are around 2.4 billion people who do not have access to improved sanitation, and 663 million who do not have access to improved water sources (1). Without these basic requirements, the lives of millions of children are at risk. Children under the age of five are especially at risk, as water- and sanitation-related diseases are one of the leading causes of death. Every day, over 800 children die from preventable diseases caused by poor water and a lack of sanitation and hygiene. (2)
Angola, a country of roughly 23 million people in Southern Africa, has tried to move forward after 27 years of brutal civil war yet remains a struggling country with high levels of poverty, maternal and children under age five mortality rates, and one of the worst sanitation problems in the world. The most recent National Census figures (2014) report that more than 10 million people lack access to improved sanitation, with the majority of the unserved living in rural areas, where only one in four has access to adequate basic sanitary services (3). Open defecation rates average 40 percent nationally, with 74 percent open defecation found in rural areas. Only 36 percent of the population report that they wash their hands after defecation. As a result, contamination remains widespread in Angola, with frequent cholera outbreaks and a high level of deaths in children under age five caused by caused by diarrhoeal diseases – the vast majority of these caused by poor sanitation and hygiene [4]. The good news is that this can be improved and lives can be saved.
Andrex®, the UK’s leading toilet tissue brand, is partnering with UNICEF, the world’s leading children’s organisation, to help tackle the sanitation problem in Angola. The Andrex® and UNICEF partnership is funding a Community Led Total Sanitationprogrammein Angola that provides knowledge and resources for children and their families about the importance of sanitation and helps them build their own clean, safe toilets. With knowledge and resources, communities are empowered to develop their own clean and safe toilets stopping the spread of dangerous, often fatal disease and also providing people with dignity and respect
Edson Monteiro, Water and Sanitation Officer for UNICEF engages with the Waleca Village on issues of hygiene and sanitation during the Andrex® and UNICEF field trip, May 2016. Photo credit: Slingshot Media
Tom Berry, head of sustainability for EMEA at Kimberly-Clark commented:
“Every child deserves a safe and clean toilet. Lack of basic sanitation affects people’s dignity and escalates the spread of life-threatening diseases that can be fatal to children and their families. My recent trip to Angola highlighted how people are positively affected by partnerships like this. In the three-year partnership, Andrex® and UNICEF are aiming to raise £600,000 and impact over 180,000 lives in Angola.”
Victorina Tchinhngala, 13 years old from Waleca, an open defecation free village washes her hands outside their latrine during the Andrex® and UNICEF field trip, May 2016 demonstrating how Andrex® funding into safe sanitation is impacting the lives of children and families in Angola. Photo credit: Slingshot Media
“I’ve seen some of the highest performance bicycles in the world, but I believe the most powerful bicycle is the one in the hands of a girl fighting for her education, or a mother striving to feed her family.” – F.K. Day, Founder of World Bicycle Relief
It is hard to believe that something as simple as a bicycle can be a vehicle of dramatic change, enabling people to go to the market to sell their products and for children to go to school. As a tool for development, a simple bicycle can mean not just transportation but employment—even access to education and healthcare. Bicycles can change people’s lives and lift them out of poverty. Yet access to bicycles can prove daunting especially for people living in the developing world.
For many people in the developing world, walking is their primary mode of transportation. Add the challenge of distance and seemingly simple tasks of going to school, visiting the clinic, or delivering goods to market become difficult and sometimes impossible. With no choice but to walk, meeting everyday needs is a struggle against time and fatigue.
Mobilizing people through the power of the bicycle is the mantra behind the non-profit organization World Bicycle Relief who designs, manufactures and distributes high quality bicycles that withstand the challenging terrain and conditions in rural communities. Entrepreneurs use the bikes to increase productivity and profits. Students with bikes attend class more regularly and academic performance dramatically improves. And, health care workers with bikes visit more patients, more often, providing better, more consistent care.
World Bicycle Relief also promotes local economies and long-term sustainability by assembling bicycles in Africa and training over 1,200 field mechanics. Since 2005, World Bicycle Relief has delivered over 300,000 bicycles and is making an enormous impact in people’s lives.
Ethel, a student in Zambia, begins her nine kilometer ride to school. Before receiving her Buffalo Bicycle from World Bicycle Relief, it took Ethel 2 hours to walk to school. After doing chores for several hours at home and then walking to school, she often arrived tired and had to take a nap during class. Now, she arrives on time and ready to learn. Ethel aspires to become a nurse and give back to her community.
All photos credited to World Bicycle Relief
Ethel lives with her aunt, uncle and cousins and often rides her cousin to school on the back of her bicycle. The rear rack on the Buffalo Bicycle is designed to carry 220 lbs and can accommodate more than one person. Ethel and her cousin are on a track to graduate from high school on time. Photo credit: World Bicycle Relief
And now…
World Bicycle Relief’s 2012 Education Report highlighted a 28% increase in attendance and a 59% increase in academic performance for students with Buffalo Bicycles. Through BEEP (Bicycles for Educational Empowerment), World Bicycle Relief has delivered over 90,000 bicycles.
On July 11, 2016, World Bicycle Relief presented the Trailblazer Award to Dr. Leszek Sibilski, former Olympic cyclist, global development thought leader and advocate for bicycles. The annual Trailblazer Award honors an individual who has challenged conventional thinking around the complex issues of poverty, social justice and access while illuminating a new path forward with innovative and bold ideas that have the power to transform millions of lives. Dr. Sibilski has done just that with his tireless work promoting the bicycle as a tool of great change for people around the world.
Dr. Leszek Sibilski received the Trailblazer Award presented by World Bicycle Relief. Dr. Sibilski is joined onstage by Dave Neiswander, President of World Bicycle Relief.
Dr. Leszek Sibilski addresses the audience at the Trailblazer Award ceremony on how the bicycle can be a powerful agent of change and lift hundreds of millions of people out of poverty and into shared prosperity.
Here are some of the words that Dr. Sibilski shared with the audience while accepting the Trailblazer Award:
“What we are doing to the forests of the world is but a mirror reflection of what we are doing to ourselves and to one another” – Mahatma Gandi
This past June, we took a family trip up north to Ely, Minnesota one of the main launching off points to explore the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW or BWCA). This expansive wilderness area in northeastern Minnesota covers 1,090,000-acres (4,400 km2) of the pristine Superior National Forest and is filled with lakes, streams, waterfalls, forests and wildlife. Its preservation as a primitive wilderness began over one hundred years ago, and its protection was solidified in the signing of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness Act of 1978. Today, the wilderness area is managed by the US Forest Service.
The BWCA is a magical place where you often feel as if you are stepping back in time to an easier, more peaceful way of life. You are awoken each morning to the melodic cry of the loon or lulled to sleep at night by the chirping of the crickets or croaking of the bull frogs. You can easily spot deer and sometimes fawn and if you are lucky you may even see a distant mouse, wolf or a bear. It is a truly remarkable place that has given us so many gifts and with the passing of the US National Parks 100th birthday I was reminded how blessed we are to have such an amazing network of protected parks (both national and state), forests and wilderness areas around the nation.
Looking for a place to find the perfect volunteer opportunity abroad? Check out GivingWay, a new online platform that connects travelers with over 250 international organizations around the world.
Eight years ago, as a stay-at-home mother of two young children a yearning developed that wouldn’t let me go. I had always been fortunate to travel and I quit my career in business to stay home and raise my kids. Yet after a few years, I felt like something was missing. I wanted to give something back and make a difference in the world, outside of my daily life. I turned to the internet and found an organization that for a fee, provided a short-term international volunteer experience working with elderly in a small town in Costa Rica for a week.
It was such an amazing, life-changing experience that I did it again the following year in Morocco with the same organization. The only downfall was the price was exorbitantly high – over $2,000 for a week that included lodging, food and administrative fees and did not include airfare. As a woman traveling alone I thought it was my only option to find a short-term international volunteer position without going through a church or mission group. I viewed the high fees as my donation to helping others, not realizing that the majority of the money did not go to the non-profit in country.
I was so inspired by my experiences volunteering abroad that I dreamed of making a list on my blog of different international organizations that accepted volunteers. However, I never got around to it. You can imagine my delight when I learned about GivingWay, a new online platform that connects travelers with international volunteer experiences around the world for free.
Comunidad Inti Wara Yassi in Bolivia runs three Wildlife Custody Centres where they tend to over 400 rescued animals.
Volunteering abroad – also known as Voluntourism – is one of the fastest growing sectors of international travel, with an expected 20 million travelers participating in volunteer activities on a trip by 2020.
“It’s no secret, every traveler wants a friend in every city they visit. Trusted friends, and insider information, is the lifeblood of amazing travel experiences. Two people with shared passions and experiences meeting eye-to-eye in the same room and forming real relationships is where life’s magical moments stem from. Finding those amazing connections is a horribly inefficient process. We see a better way” – Drew Meyers, Co-Founder of Horizon App
With the growing demand for free or cheap places to stay around the world, many new services have risen to prominence within the hospitality and travel marketplace. Airbnb, VRBO, HomeAway and coach surfing services have become fierce competitors to the traditional hotel stays giving travelers better options for lodging and an opportunity to live like a local while abroad. Horizon, a relatively new mobile app and web-based service has joined the marketplace offering travelers the ability to intersect travel, community and social good with each stay. Launched in March of 2015 by Drew Meyers, Will Moyer and Oren Borovitch, Horizon provides a searchable private hospitality exchange network in over 120 countries around the world.
The mission of Horizon is to increase access to travel opportunities by enabling shared hospitality among trusted contacts and communities; providing free or cheap accommodation and cultural experiences not otherwise available. The founders of Horizon strongly believe in the importance of getting people to travel and experience cultures vastly different than their own in order to create a society that gives back and understands the world.
“Enabling more people to venture outside the friendly confines of the their own country and experience an array of foreign cultures, will grow the community of those who realize we live privileged lives the majority of the world can only dream of. Those who experience the world are exponentially more likely to work on projects that improve society and raise the standard of living for those in poverty, rather than just maximizing income”. – states Drew Meyers.
About 230 km (143 miles) away from Bangalore lies the Bandipur National Park in the district of Chamarajnagar. Tucked around the stunning Western Ghat Mountains in Karnataka, Bandipur National Park is regarded as one of the most beautiful parks in India and is home to many types of wildlife including tigers, elephants and gaurs (a type of bull) as well as the predominantly indigenous communities that surround the park. Together with Mudumalai Wildlife Sanctuary in Tamil Nadu, Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary in Kerala and Nagarhole National Park in the North, it creates the India’s largest biosphere reserve popularly known as the ‘Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve’ and is an important part of India’s efforts towards eco-conservation.
Bandipur National Park was founded in 1974 under the Indian Government in efforts to conserve the tigers and wildlife community, however, in the process of establishing the park the tribal populations who has lived in the forests of the reserve for centuries were moved off of their land and into the villages and hamlets that surround the park. They had lost access to their traditional way of life as forest dwellers and were moved into subsistence farming on dry plots of land.
Morning at a water body inside the Bandipur Tiger Reserve (Photo credit: Nithila Baskaran)
“Keep your face to the sunshine and you cannot see a shadow”. – Helen Keller
Lately I’ve been a lot of looking up. Craning my neck to look up to the sky and watch the clouds move or capture the illustrious hues of a summer sunset in Minnesota. For me, looking up has always been something that inspires me in a metaphorical kind of way. I often think about my favorite Helen Keller quote and of all the obstacles she had to overcome in life to achieve her dreams. I am reminded to look up more often instead of looking down or even worse, away.
I have been spending a lot more time this summer chasing the sunset. Perhaps getting a new puppy has inspired me to get out even more than I normally do (which is a lot as I love being outside). Yet little did I know how important it was to find peace and beauty each and every day by watching the sunset. Even if I only am there for a few brief moments to look up and capture the spectacular dance of changing colors and light, it has an extraordinary impact on me. I feel lighter footed when I leave and more connected to our planet and the comings and goings of each day. Furthermore, I finally feel at peace. Continue reading →
“In a remote and lush corner of southern Costa Rica lies a realm of giant trees, potbellied spider monkeys, harpy eagles, prowling jaguars and herds of white-lipped peccary. This is on the last places on Earth where virgin rainforest grows right to the high tide line, and a visitor might walk for hours – or days – along its isolated coast without meeting a single person. This the Osa Peninsula and there is no other place in the world like it.” – Trond Larsen, Osa: Where the Rainforest Meets the Sea
Quietly pushing off the southern Pacific coast of Costa Rica lies the beautifully pristine Osa Peninsula, a magical paradise of untouched primitive rain forests, deserted beaches and rural communities relatively hidden to mainstream tourism. Known for its conservation efforts and robust ecotourism industry, the Osa Peninsula is one of the most biologically diverse places on the planet with over 2.5% of the world’s biodiversity in less than one millionth of the Earth’s surface area. However, recent plans to open up an international airport threaten the very beauty, uniqueness and ecological diversity of this place both to its inhabitants and its flora and fauna. Sadly, as little as only 5% of all revenue made on tourism goes back into the local community and the rest goes into other hands.
It is here where conservationist and filmmaker Eytan Elterman and his good friend photographer Marco Bollinger lived for five months to produce the award-winning documentary “2.5 % – The Osa Peninsula” that would change the course of their lives and inspire them to create Lokal, an online booking platform and marketplace for community-based tourism in remote places around the world.
It all began in early 2011 when Eytan read an article about the plans to build an international airport in Costa Rica’s Osa Peninsula. Both Eytan and Marco were deeply inspired by their years of traveling and their passion for engaging with diverse cultures and they wanted to combine their vision of responsible, conscious travel with their expertise in powerful visual storytelling. The story about the building of an airport in the Osa Peninsula greatly piqued their interest.
Eytan and Marco had been working together as the founders of iSeeiTravel, a boutique travel media firm producing brand-building documentary content to showcase local experiences, inspire sustainable travel and highlight unique destinations and conservation. Yet they wanted to do something different and on their own. They moved to the Costa Rica and spent five months living in the Osa Peninsula learning about the unique issues of this area and eventually producing their beautiful documentary film 2.5% – The Osa Peninsula.
Unspoiled coastline in Costa Rica’s Osa Peninsula. Photo credit: Lokal Travel
