REBAR

Make a parking space your new living room.

Take a nap in public space.

The above are just a few of the avant-garde ideas heard over at Rebar—a studio dedicated to art, design, and activism. Although ideas are usually based out of their San Francisco office, their projects are viewed all over the world.

Encountering a Rebar project often initiates “a double take,” for the everyday objects or ideas used in these social experiments are repurposed to spark out-of-the-box conversation.

While some may chuckle upon seeing a dozen sleeping adults in a public art gallery, others may happily join the “Nappening.” Just imagine a group of business men jumping into a pile of Bushwaffle on the town green, or a “fully-functional corporate conference room submerged seven feet into the desert floor.”

No need to imagine.

This is reality.

Rebar is challenging routine and questioning monotony.

Among the most successful is Park[ing] day, which transforms “temporary public open space in a privatized part of town.” Initiated in 2005, a parking space in San Francisco was temporarily remodeled into a makeshift park—complete with grassy knoll, park bench and supple sapling, providing refuge for pedestrians meandering along the city’s busy streets.

While some may think the space unconventional for rest and relaxation, “more than 70% of San Francisco's downtown outdoor space is dedicated to the private vehicle, while only a fraction of that space is allocated to the public realm.”

Why not integrate the two?

And so, Park[ing] day has become an annual tradition—from California to Tehran. It is a time when vibrant green blades of grass overtake mundane gray strips of concrete.

A time when people around the world take a much needed break.

On a bench.

In the street.

Please visit rebargroup.org for more information.

(Rebar is redefining urban space.)

350.ORG

350 or 10.10.10—which is the greater number?

For the many who arranged wedding vows to the thousands who rallied to combat global warming, 10.10.10 will be commemorated for its pledges.

While the hype leading up to this momentous date was unique, the commitments that culminated from this historic event are unprecedented.

For the folks at 350.org, 10.10.10 was merely a vehicle to serve 350; the number that “scientists say is the safe upper limit for carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.” If atmospheric concentrations of CO2 continue to generate above 350 parts per million, major human and natural disasters around the world will remain imminent dangers.

So, in partnership with the world, 350.org created a day dedicated to lowering the amount of CO2 in our atmosphere; also known as what CNN calls the “'most widespread day of political action in the planet's history.’” That was in 2009.

This year was 10.10.10.

The year of the global work party.

In 188 countries, 7347 events occurred. The people led the leaders. And grassroots initiatives showed the politicians that: “if we can get to work, so can you!”

People pledged and organized campaigns worldwide to reduce our global CO2 number. They partied, rallied, photographed, installed (solar panels), planted (community gardens), shot (movies), and cleaned (up public spaces). Verbs and actions we exhibit everyday—but on 10.10.10, they were reframed to address global warming in a different light.

350.org has successfully built an accessible network across the internet to tackle a complex problem that our political leaders have not yet effectively addressed. Their open portal has collected the photographs, videos, and events of 10.10.10 to unite global advocates in the fight against global warming.

No place is too far or too small to escape the harmful effects of global warming.

350 is achievable from the bright blue sky to the deep blue sea.

Please visit 350.0rg for more information.

(350.org is bringing CO2 levels back to reality)

REDU

The “no child left behind” mantra is transforming into the “no idea left behind” policy.

With the myriad of articles and policies surrounding the ever present U.S. education debate, blogs and websites are serving as venues for discussion and innovation in the education sector.

Redu: Rethink/Reform/Rebuild Education is a platform for entrepreneurs, artists, professionals, and individuals to share their ideas on education reform. Redu most recently sponsored the re:form school project—an interactive exhibit using art as a mechanism to transcend traditional educational boundaries. Housed in a public school in the SoHo area of NYC, re:form exhibited the work of over 150 artists uniquely displaying a public awareness campaign on education.

It transformed the traditional school building, classrooms, and playground into an open medium of questioning the conventional educational system.

While the exhibit was only a temporary gesture to get the creative juices flowing, redu’s website serves as a long term forum on innovative educational collaboration. Powered by Microsoft’s Bing software, redu is making a statement that education has crossed conventional policy.

With staggeringly troubling statistics on the future of education in the U.S., redu is aiming to step ahead of the game by creating “positive social changes through its powerful content, unique network, and expertise in education.”

Education is on the verge of reinvention.

While change in the public education sector is often a grueling process, there are some superheroes who have hit the ground running, or rather flying. Just look at the challenges and victories of the recent hit film “Waiting for Superman,” or the physical redesign of the school classroom.

While it seems that no idea has gone untouched—

schools: small v. big, charter v. public;
teachers: old v. young, experienced v. naïve;
students: inclusion v. self contained classrooms–

the work still remains.

And redu has just raised the bar—for it has just let ALL of us contribute to the presentation.

Please visit letsredu.com for more information.

(Redu is rebuilding education.)

UNICEF

11 December 1946:

The United Nations creates the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF) to aid the emergency needs of children in post-war Europe and China

1950:

UNICEF’s charter is expanded “to address the long-term needs of children and women in developing countries everywhere.”

1953:

UNICEF becomes a permanent part of the UN and is known as the United Nations Children's Fund.

2010:

Although UNICEF’s halls may be overflowing with senior professionals, young leaders around the world are dedicated to helping UNICEF realize its mission as well.

Humberto Elías Orozco, 11, in Vargas, Venezuela:

As President of the Student Center for the Promotion and Defense of Children’s Rights, Humberto “helps his peers in understanding the significance of being an individual with rights, which also means being aware of one’s obligations” to help others in need. He has since both learned and taught lessons about respect and taking responsibility for one’s actions. He hopes that he will be able to raise awareness and encourage other youngsters to become involved and to care for their communities.

Ryan Hreljac, 6, in Kemptville, Canada:

After learning about children around the world who lacked a source of clean water, Ryan began fundraising to build wells in those parts of the country where there was no clean water. Four years later, he had started his own Foundation, which raised almost $800,000 to provide 70 wells for clean drinking in Africa.

Abigail Manglicmot, 16, in Olongapo City, Philippines:

Having worked with street children and children with special needs in her community for a few years, Abigail was inspired to continue educating others on the inequalities and violence in the lives of street children—those who lived in her midst, yet led such a different life.

In this game, age doesn’t matter.

Please visit unicef.org for more information.

(UNICEF is building a world which realizes the rights of every child)

ALEX'S LEMONADE STAND FOUNDATION

My sister and I used to have a lemonade stand.

Mixing our “freshly squeezed lemonade” (from concentrate), we would rack in the big bucks ($15), by quenching the thirst of hundreds of runners (about 20) in the sweltering summer sun.

We thought we were saving the world—or at least thirsty runners who insisted on paying $1 for lemonade we were offering at 25 cents.

But for all of the hours we spent at the bottom of our driveway, giggling through our sales of “the best lemonade in town,” I believe our salesgirl skills have been outdone.

We have been one upped by Alex Scott and her Lemonade Stand—mind you, her Lemonade Stand Foundation.

Battling cancer since just before her first birthday, by the time she was four and had just received a stem cell transplant, Alex told her mom that “when I get out of the hospital I want to have a lemonade stand." Alex, however, didn’t just create another lemonade stand on the streets of Philly.

She changed the Lemonade Stand industry.

At the ripe old age of four, Alex donated the $2000 earned from her one-day lemonade stand profits to “her hospital.”

Like any kid, to Alex, it was simple. She wanted to help others, just like her doctors helped her—so every year, Alex held a lemonade stand to benefit “her hospital” and cancer research.

Tragically, Alex passed away in 2004. However, her legacy and memory have lived on through the people Alex touched in her 8 years of life.

Having raised over $1 million in lemonade stand profits in four years, Alex moved people all over the world to donate to the fight against cancer. Since then, her family created Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation—which has not only raised over $35 million to fund research projects and enhance the quality of life of individuals and family members suffering from cancer, but has also inspired a movement of individuals to fundraise “lemonade stand style” to fight cancer.

There are sometimes when kids are lost in their own world.

There are other times, when kids are changing their world.

Alex was one of those other times.

Please visit alexslemonade.org for more information.

(Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation is “fighting childhood cancer, one cup at a time.”)

EVACUTEER.ORG

A simple mathematical equation: NOLA > than the spiral

Translation: The people of New Orleans, Louisiana will not let hurricanes destroy them.

A growing grassroots organization at its finest, “Evacuteer.org is an evolution of citizens' ability to aid and enhance our government during times of disaster.” Evacuteer.org’s founder, Robert X. Fogarty, is doing just that—he is gathering the greater New Orleans community to care for each other in times of crisis, specifically in times of natural disaster.

Stressing the importance of localizing help and sidestepping bureaucracy, evacuteer.org is utilizing community networks to create an efficient system for preparation and evacuation policies in the New Orleans community.

Although the New Orleans’ weather patterns may be unpredictable, the evacuteer is ensuring that competence wins in the face of uncertainty.

Probably one of the newest organizations featured on charitychange, evacuteer.org is damn[ing] the torpedoes full speed ahead. Robert explains that “Building something from scratch has tons of ups and downs along the journey. More than anything, friends and strangers have believed in this idea and now it's what keeps us all going.”

Indeed, building partnerships is the key to the evacuteer’s success. Evoking images of the 3 musketeers, the evacuteer will similarly use their super powers to aid the people on the streets of New Orleans in a time of natural disaster. Evacuteer is leveraging its manpower by requiring partners to bring 10 volunteers headed by a captain in order to be a part of the movement. Such a strategy ensures the continued growth of the evacuteer network.

Developing “a network of organizations committed to assisting evacuteer.org upon initiation of the City Assisted Evacuation Plan (CAEP)” and serving as “the premier volunteer-mobilization entity in the City of New Orleans for individuals and organizations committed to assisting in the CAEP” is a tall order.

However, Robert Fogarty is equipped to enter the battlefield known as organizational bureaucracy. While he claims that “We're not quite [up] to the exciting stuff yet,” he’ll let us know when “we’re close.”

Last time I checked, reinventing the modern day musketeer as the New Orleans evacuteer was, in itself, a pretty exciting adventure.

Thanks, Robert, for sharing the latest in New Orleans’ superhero escapades!

Please visit evacuteer.org for more information.

(Evacuteer.org is a network of volunteers dedicated to helping the New Orleans community in times of crisis by executing the City Assisted Evacuation Plan.)

PROJECT BREAD

Thousands are satiated from Walking in Massachusetts.

Sounds ironic, but Project Bread's annual Walk for Hunger raises millions of dollars to feed the hungry in Massachusetts.

As the “oldest continual pledge walk in the country,” the Walk for Hunger has become an integral part of Boston’s landscape every May. Relying on pledges and sponsors from the Walk for Hunger, Project Bread is able to “run 400 food pantries, soup kitchens, and food banks all over Massachusetts; a statewide hunger hotline; and breakfast and summer food programs.”

Through their investments in anti-hunger programming and advocacy, Project Bread has given a voice to the hungry. While the Walk for Hunger may only occur once a year, for its 42,000 participants and 2,000 volunteers, fighting hunger in their local communities is a constant priority.

Since 1969:

1,002,800 Walkers

20,818,800 miles

Over $77.8 million

has helped to fight hunger in Massachusetts.

Closing some of the Boston’s busiest streets, the Walk for Hunger’s 20 mile route illustrates the donors’ impact in the most public of settings. With the help of musical entertainment and hundreds of gallons of sunscreen, enthusiastic participants and volunteers make the Walk for Hunger a success every year.

As for the rest of the year?

Partnerships.

Working with public schools, the Harvard School of Public Health, local farmers, and the Massachusetts Food Policy Alliance, Project Bread capitalizes on the expertise and interests of various organizations and individuals to alleviate hunger from the State’s agenda.

For the 550,000 people suffering from hunger in Massachusetts, Project Bread’s vision is no easy feat.

Yet, year after year, their successful story fills the streets.

Please visit projectbread.org for more information.

(Project Bread is aiming to end hunger in Massachusetts.)