Your Mark On The World

Milken Institute Global Conference: Personal Highlights

Thu, 02 May 2013 15:50:17 -0600

Earlier this week, I had the opportunity to attend the Milken Institute Global Conference 2013. For me, this was a once-in-a-lifetime (so far) experience that ranks high on my list. I wrote a piece for Forbes on some of the great panels on impact investing that I attended.

While Al Gore was there, I did not get a chance to visit with him.

By special arrangement, I was able to get an hour one-on-one with four-star General Wesley Clark, the former NATO commander of allied forces in Europe who ran for President in 2004.

In an upcoming article in Forbes, I’ll be writing more about my interview with him, but let me just say that he is an extraordinary person. He is as articulate off the cuff as anyone I’ve ever met and clearly as smart as they come.

General Clark serves on the advisory board to Vital Capital, which is led by Eytan Stibbe of Tel Aviv. Vital Capital has partnered with Impact Capital Strategies in the U.S. Eric Weinberg and David van Adelsberg joined Mr. Stibbe at the conference. They arranged for me to meet with the General.

General Clark was immediately impressed by Mr. Stibbe when they met in Milan years ago and immediately traveled with him to see his projects in Africa. Vital Capital is a large, private equity firm that does impact investing—investments made with a social impact objective—there in Africa. Vital has provided the equity for several billion dollars of affordable housing in Sub-Saharan Africa.How’s that for impact!

I’m eager to tell you the whole story, but you’ll have to wait. Next month I’ll be going to Africa to see the projects myself. When I return, I’ll write up my report in Forbes and perhaps do a longer report in a Kindle Single. I’ll also share thoughts and insights here—don’t worry.

Devin D. Thorpe

Utahn Devotes Himself to Serving Uganda

Tue, 30 Apr 2013 00:00:00 -0600

This afternoon I had the pleasure of meeting John Shavers, the founder of the Interethnic Health Alliance which is a small nonprofit serving the people of Uganda.

Originally, the organization was founded to serve Utah women in the prison system who had HIV/AIDS or were at risk for contracting and spreading it. When their state funding ran out, they refocused their efforts on Uganda and have been working there since.

Shavers, the gray-haired gentleman near the center of the photo of women supported by IHA microloans, is a clinical psychologist. He will leave in two weeks to Uganda for the 8th time in the past several years.

IHA describes its mission as follows:

OUR MISSION IS TO ASSIST THE RURAL COMMUNITES OF DEVELOPING COUNTRIES, PRIMARILY UGANDA, IN OBTAINING ADEQUATE HEALTH CARE, EDUCATION FOR THEIR CHILDREN & AN ADEQUATE WAGE. WE DO THIS THROUGH ENGAGING IN DIALOG’S WITH COMMUNITY MEMBERS AROUND ISSUES IDENTIFIED BY THE MEMBERS THEMSELVES. OUR CURRENT MAJOR INITIATIVES ARE; ASSISTANCE IN STARTING SELF-SUSTAINING BUSINESSES PROVIDING RESOURCES FOR SCHOOLS AND ORPHANAGES MITIGATING THE IMPACT OF DECLINING FUEL RESOURCES.

Presently, IHA is focused on five inititatives:

Micro loans to women-managed groups.
Clean water in rural schools.
Solar power and lights for rural schools.
Reusable hygiene kits for women.
Computers for refugee families.

It is always a pleasure to meet someone like Shavers, with a real passion for action. He is not content to stand by while others suffer.

What is Rotary? I'll tell you this: no funny hats

Fri, 26 Apr 2013 17:06:24 -0600

Yesterday, I posted an article for Forbes about Rotary International, the global organization that sponsors local service clubs all around the world.

For the article, I connected with dozens of Rotarians from around the world who have been volunteering time and donating money to causes they believe in.

It was amazing to see the power of the organization. Rotary International has been leading the fight to exterminate polio around the world. When they started the effort in 1988 there were 125 countries where polio was still a threat; today there are three.

But the work of Rotary at the club level was the focus of my article. It was inspiring to see how this organization with millions of members around the world has the ability to identify a person who needs to have his car repaired and can’t pay for it—and then to pay for it—while at the same time having the organizational wherewithal to donate $1.5 million to build a new food bank.

Rotarians from my Salt Lake Club work in the Wasatch Community Gardens to provide fresh food for low income families.

It is clear that each club has its own culture and priorities, but over and over again I heard the Rotary motto repeated: “Service above Self.” This particular value is universal among Rotarians.

It appears to me that the current generation of professionals—those we call Gen X and Gen Y or Millennials are more focused on social good than any prior generation. They would love what Rotary is doing, but few are even aware.

While the average age at my club, the Salt Lake Rotary club, appears to be north of 65, there are some younger people involved. Not enough, however. If ever there were a natural home for people who believe in doing good regardless of religion, race, gender, sexual orientation or any other potential identifier, Rotary is that place.

Rotarians don’t wear funny hats—not that there is anything wrong with that. They don’t take secret oaths or use special symbols. They do openly pledge to treat others fairly and honestly and to build friendships with others in and out of Rotary. They also sing patriotic songs and, in America, recite the pledge of allegiance.

While the Rotarians I know are deeply patriotic, they are not in the least xenophobic. Instead, they are globally minded citizens of the world whose passion to serve is fueled by a genuine hope for peace.

If you know a Rotarian, count yourself lucky. Ask her if you can join her at the next meeting. If you don’t know one, just show up at the next meeting. They’ll be excited to have you!

"Peace cannot be achieved through violence, it can only be attained through understanding"

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 14:16:54 -0600

No More Hurting People: Peace

Wed, 17 Apr 2013 10:48:10 -0600

Martin Richard made this poster in school last year. On Monday he was killed by the bombs in Boston.

Let’s make sure the world remembers Martin and his message.

Booted from the homeless shelter; homeless guy's life on the streets

Sun, 14 Apr 2013 12:07:00 -0600

With my fellow Utah-based Forbes Contributors on Thursday evening I enjoyed a lavish dinner at Cucina Toscana downtown Salt Lake City, just a few blocks from my home.

As I walked past the Rose Wagner theater on Broadway, I saw a homeless guy apparently sobbing and begging as the patrons filed out of the show. My reaction wasn’t any different than the theater patrons; I thought he was putting on a pretty good performance.

Nevertheless, having walked past him, I felt impressed to turn around and ask him if he wanted some food, to which he responded, “I want some money to buy some food.”

Again, I asked, “Do you want some food?”

Sensing, I suppose, that he wasn’t going to get any money from me nor from the theater patrons, he said, “yes.”

We walked a few blocks to McDonalds where he ordered three cheeseburgers, a large milk shake, two fruit pies, and a sweet tea.

As we walked toward the McDonalds and while we waited for the order to come up, we visited. He started his story by saying, “Have you ever met a mental health patient?” He didn’t wait for an answer before continuing, “Well, I am one.”

He went on to tell me his name was Andy. His speech was hard to understand. That was partly due to a cut in his mouth that he said he got from eating garbage from dumpsters.

He said he had two daughters, ages six and nine when he last saw them. He split with his wife, he said, when he found her doing drugs with the girls watching. The girls, he says, are now in foster care in Seattle.

When I asked how old the girls were now he said he didn’t know.

“How long has it been since you saw them?” I asked.

“Nine months.”

Andy also explained in ragged detail that didn’t provide anything like a complete narrative how he’d been kicked out of the homeless shelter for a benign reason having something to do with bed bugs.

As we waited for his dinner order, he asked me to wait and talk to him. I agreed and we visited for about ten minutes until his order came up.

As we waited and chatted the night manager emerged from the back of the restaurant; Andy greeted him like they were old friends. The night manager responded, clearly recognizing Andy though not calling him by name.

When the food came up, I helped him get it all to his seat. I then explained that I would now leave. He got angry, displaying a sense of feeling betrayed.

It was an awkward moment for me. I said, “I’m sorry that you don’t think this food is enough, but I have to go.”

And, I did go. I went home to my high-rise condo to sleep in my sumptuous king size bed with my beautiful wife.

The next morning I arose and went for a run. Near the end of my run, half a block east of the Rose Wagner theater where I’d found him the night before, I found Andy outside of the Peery Hotel eating what appeared to be a fresh, hot breakfast burrito.

As I ran by, I yelled, “Hi Andy” and waved.

He responded with a quick “Hi buddy.” He seemed much happier than I’d left him the night before, but I’m not sure he recognized me.

Later that morning, I was walking along Main Street and passed the relatively sheltered entrance to the old Utah movie theaters between First and Second South streets, a favorite spot for the homeless to camp for the night. I noticed a cheeseburger still in its wrapper and a small pile of McDonalds wrappers, including two empty cartons for fruit pies.

As much as I felt I’d done for Andy I can’t help but think I should have done more. What do you think? What more should I have done for Andy?

Live Video Interview with 3 Teenage Change Agents Using...

Sun, 07 Apr 2013 22:47:00 -0600

Live Video Interview with 3 Teenage Change Agents Using Crowdfunding

We’ll be live with these three great teens at 4:00 Eastern on Monday, April 8, 2013. Don’t miss it!

Abigail “Astronaut Abby” Harrison: An aspiring astronaut who is crowdfunding on RocketHub to go to Russia and participate in a space launch.

Logan Gardner: Founder of Kids for Kids, an organization that helps teens with social entrepreneurship as a means to teach youth to be successful in life and business.

Jared Kleinert: Founder of Synergist, a crowdfunding site focused on social good.

Could I ask you to give $17 to cure childhood cancer for Ike's sake?

Sun, 31 Mar 2013 10:16:02 -0600

My dear friends Brian and Heidi have a three-year-old son who has been battling cancer for over two years. No family should have to go through what they’ve faced so bravely. Please join me in the fight to prevent childhood cancer.

Here is Ike’s story in Brian’s words:

In January 2011 Israel woke one morning with a significant head tilt. After a week of various tests, an MRI revealed a tumor on his brain stem. The next day, February 1, he had surgery, and the tumor was completely removed. The biopsy showed it was anaplastic ependymoma, a rare brain cancer that forms in the lining of the ventricles of the brain.

The standard treatment when completely removed is radiation only, with 33 doses. However, because he was so young, he only received 30 doses, which is standard for children under 3. He then began regular follow-up scans to check for any regrowth.

In November 2012, during a follow-up scan, we found out that the tumor had begun to grow back in the same spot. They were able to completely remove the tumor again. After consulting with the ependymoma experts at St. Jude in Memphis, we decided to treat him with a full treatment (33 doses) of radiation plus chemo. His cancer doesn’t have a great success rate with chemo (about 30%), but we are hoping that since we are just trying to kill any remaining rogue cells instead of a formed tumor the chemo will be effective.

A week before chemo was scheduled to begin, we discovered that the bone flap they cut out to remove the tumor in November had not fused back into place. He had to go in for a third surgery to repair it.

We are very lucky that he has not had any permanent side effects from any of this. In spite of all the surgeries, treatments, injections, blood draws, and every other annoyance, he continues to be a normal and incredibly happy and positive three year old. His attitude is really what is getting all of us through this.

Ike’s journey is not over and thousands of kids like him face their own life-threatening fight—and every child in the world is at risk.

On June 20 and 21, for Ike’s sake I’ll be joining a group of “Wacky Warriors” to run the 200 mile Ragnar Relay Race from Logan to Park City, Utah to raise money to fight childhood cancer.

This is a fight we can win if we all pull together. As I’ll be running about 17 miles of the 200, I’d like to invite you to donate $17 for Ike’s sake. Just click here and then enter the number of dollars you’d like to donate and choose my name to identify the runner you’re supporting—and remember I’m running for Ike! If you can’t give $17, please give something. If you can give more—may God bless you for doing so!

Whether or not you can donate to the cause, please help us share the story by clicking the links at the bottom of the page. We’re not only fighting for Ike, but for all the children who face the risk of getting cancer. Together we can do this!

Live Interview on Forbes: Report, Your Feedback Needed

Mon, 25 Mar 2013 13:23:00 -0600

Last week, I tried something new in my Forbes blog. I’d love your feedback.

Using the Google Hangout hangout application I did a live interview with social entrepreneurs Andrew Parrucci and Chris Meyer of Planting Empowerment and Archana Verma of Ennovent. Andrew and Chris were in Washington, DC; Archana was in New Delhi India.

Andrew Parucci

Let me take just a moment to be in awe of the technology. When I was born, less than 50 years ago, doing a four-way video conference that was transmitted live around the world was not only impossible, it was virtually inconceivable. Just ten years ago, the idea of doing such a thing was the exclusive domain of large media networks. Last week’s event cost me absolutely nothing—not because Forbes subsidized it—because use of this technology is absolutely free to the users. I recognize that the twenty-somethings will find this paragraph irrelevant or anachronistic or both. I’m still thinking it is pretty cool.

The discussion with Andrew, Chris and Archana was interesting. Planting Empowerment is an organization that is creating sustainable forestry operations in Panama that respect the local culture, creating a business model with high impact triple-bottom line. Ennovent seeks to discover and support organizations like Planting Empowerment as they scale.

Please take a moment to watch the interview and let me know in the comments below or in the comments at Forbes what you think of the format and how we can make it more engaging for the readers.

Silicon Valley Meets Crowdfunding April 4th and 5th; Be There

Mon, 18 Mar 2013 13:39:10 -0600

Crowdfunding is a vital part of the future for social entrepreneurship, ranging from start-up social ventures to long-established nonprofits seeking to innovate.

The internet, especially using platforms like Fundly, Razoo, Causes and StartSomeGood, allows social entrepreneurs to access capital they never could before.

Implementation of the JOBS Act later this year will accelerate what is already an incredibly rapidly growing arena, with the legalization of investment crowdfunding. This will bring an order of magnitude greater scale to crowdfunding immediately and could lead to a two order of magnitude scale difference, taking crowdfunding from a robust $3 billion per year in 2012 to an incredible $300 billion over the next decade.

Entrepreneur Sydney Armani in Palo Alto has organized a conference there on April 4th and 5th to introduce Silicon Valley to crowdfunding. There will be a great slate of speakers and I am honored to be among them.

If you are interested in crowdfunding for your social enterprise, I encourage you to attend this event.

Your $20 could be a critical part of more than $1 million

Thu, 14 Mar 2013 15:37:06 -0600

On March 22, 2013, the Community Foundation of Utah will hold its first Love UT Give UT 24 hours of giving—a massively coordinated one-day crowdfunding campaign. If the people of Utah rally around the effort, well more than $1 million could be raised to support Utah’s nonprofits.

About 400 nonprofit organizations have registered to participate in the event, so Utahns will have their choice of causes, from AAA Fair Credit to the Utah Zoological Society.

Yesterday, I wrote in my Forbes blog about Minnesota’s record setting giving day last November when they raised over $16 million in a single day. Minnesota is a much larger state and had ten times the number of participating non-profits, but their experience suggests that Utah should expect to raise much more than $1 million next Friday.

Today, you can visit the site: loveutgiveut.org. On the site, you can browse the nonprofits that have registered and identify those that interest you most.

Generous donors have already arranged $200,000 in matching grants so your money can go even further.

Together, Utahns, we can make a difference—a truly remarkable difference—right here in our own community on March 22, 2013.

Let’s do some good.

Devin D. Thorpe

Winners Announced: World's Greatest Small Social Entrepreneurs Recognized

Thu, 07 Mar 2013 13:27:00 -0700

Today Your Mark On The World announces the winners of the Hand Up for Social Good Awards for the best small social entrepreneurs based on their mission and impact.

The winner, who will receive $1,000 from Your Mark On The World, The Yonkofa Project, has been profiled in my Forbes blog.

The runner up for the Hand Up for Social Good Award which comes with a $500 prize from an anonymous philanthropist goes to The Senase Project.

For this post, I interviewed The Senase Project founder Christopher Toone. I’ll share that interview with you directly and unedited as Chris tells his story much better than I could.

How did you come to start The Senase Project?

I get this question all of the time and simplest and most accurate answer is this: I was in the right place at the right time and it fell right into my lap. Rather than ignoring it, I just went with it.

The Senase Project began when I was studying abroad on a program called Semester at Sea which consisted of living on a ship while visiting and experiencing 12 countries around the world. When I was initially looking into this program, I was immediately drawn to the fact that I would be visiting Ghana. Although I couldn’t explain it, I just felt like this was my opportunity to do something on a much larger scale than my usual volunteer efforts such as cleaning up parks or painting fences. In an effort to see the real side of Ghana, rather than what most tourists see, myself and six others met up with a local man named Fred who took us to his home village for three days. This village, called Senase, was not accustomed to visits from Americans and few spoke English. Little did we know that the experience would change us forever.

On the first full day of our stay in Senase, we took a ride in the back of a pickup truck down a dirt road for about 15 minutes to a school in the neighboring village of Akatim. We came bearing supplies for the children, however Fred warned us that we should not expect much. He told us how very few kids attend the school and the lack of a safe structure prevents the students from learning. Even though he had briefed us on what to expect, I’ll never forget the gut wrenching feeling in my stomach when we pulled up to the school in the middle of a torrential downpour. The seven us sat there soaking wet in the back of a pick up truck staring at a “building” consisting of a few pieces of wood holding up a “roof” with students huddled in the middle of the classroom. The tin ceiling was leaking to the point where it was raining inside the classroom and the sound of the rain on the roof was so loud that the teachers couldn’t speak over it. It quickly became clear that this was not an environment conducive to learning and something needed to be done.

We ended up spending the entire day at the school talking to the children, teachers, and the dean. We learned that the school was originally established by the villagers under the condition that the Government would supply a school building, however three years later there was nothing. No sign of any support from Government officials at all. The teachers had no materials to work with and the entire time there I did not see one child smile which is what killed me the most. No notebooks were on desks, no pens, no pencils; no way for the students to take notes and retain information from the teachers.

I have grown up knowing that hope never fails. If you have hope, then you’ll always make it through and things will get better. This was the first time I had ever been in a truly hopeless situation and I wasn’t quite sure how to process it. Part of me felt like breaking down in tears and the other part of me was more motivated than ever to change things. To make matters worse, we walked a few of the children home at the end of the day only to find that these students, grades k-6, were walking 3 miles each way to and from school down dirt roads filled with speeding farming vehicles.

When we departed Senase and made it back to the ship, we all sat down together and realized that this experience would stay with us for a lifetime. We couldn’t just sit there knowing that these children were in a hopeless situation. That at the time of their lives when they should be being told they can achieve their dreams, they are performing physical labor in the farm fields rather than receiving an education because the community views the school as pointless. From then on, every day we spent at sea was researching how to start a non-profit and when we reached Hawai’i and had reliable internet we filed our paperwork to become TheSenase Project, a name that honors a community that changed our lives forever. Our mission, to eradicate poverty through community development, is what keeps me going. Knowing that we are fighting for those that deserve a chance yet may not have access to the resources they need to live a full life is a feeling that I wouldn’t trade for the world. Geography shouldn’t determine survival, and that’s ultimately what we’re trying to overcome.

We don’t just provide charity to these people and go in assuming we’re going to build a school or a well. Rather we sit with the village elders and the people and ask what they need, not what we can provide, which is how our first project, the Akatim Village School came into existence. We aren’t taking on projects that directly change the lives of the people, rather we are enabling them to help themselves. A school doesn’t bring someone straight out of poverty, but it certainly gives them the opportunity to educate themselves, achieve their goals, and help their community which is something that will last for years to come.

What are you most proud of having accomplished?

Speaking in regards to tangible results, our greatest accomplishment is providing the Akatim Village School with four brand new classrooms and nearing the completion of the final three (still about $9,000 away from doing so) in order to have a full primary school built. These classrooms provide the students with an environment conducive to learning and protect them from the elements from being outside. Each class is able to have their own space oriented to their needs and the teachers are now able to focus on the needs of their own class rather than trying to teach two different class levels at the same time which greatly increases the effectiveness of their instruction.

Beyond that, I’d have to say that the amount of hope we have managed to instill in that community and in those children in just over two years amazes me. Back when I first visited in Fall of 2010, I did not see one child smile or laugh. I will never forget standing in the front of the classroom, putting my arm to my face, and belting out the most realistic elephant noise humanly possible yet receiving no laughter in return. Seeing the hopelessness in those kids made me want to say. I am proud to say that during my return visit this past January, the atmosphere was a completely different. The children would run outside to greet our team, play games during recess, speak up in class, and ultimately be excited to be at school. There is actual hope now and it’s only continuing to grow. Even though the construction project isn’t fully finished, this hope gives us the chance to move forward with great strides to help the school in other ways.

How did you do it?

Much of this success was through our partnership with the Ministry of Education for the Berekum District of Ghana. Instead of funding this project on our own dime, we shed enough light on our trip to get the Government to notice and finally, four years later, follow through on their promise to build four classrooms for the village. Our organization then committed to picking up the rest of the cost for the final three classrooms. This goes hand in hand with our efforts to enable people to help their own people, as this partnership with the Ministry ultimately allowed them to take on a project they wouldn’t be able to fund without our help.

Beyond this partnership we are so fortunate for the group of supporters we have here in the United States. We continued to be floored by the messages of encouragement, out of pocket donations, and all around good vibes we receive on a daily basis. Without our gracious donors and followers, none of this would be possible and the three classrooms that are currently being constructed would be a dream rather than a reality. We can’t begin to thank everyone enough.

What are your hopes and plans for the future?

We hope to continue to take steps towards creating a sustainable school in Akatim once the classrooms are completed. A major part of this is helping the teachers, who day in and day out make enormous sacrifices to teach at a school that no one else wants to be a part of. In fact, in January when I visited, one teacher mentioned that when they go to district meetings and announce that they are from Akatim, everyone laughs. Our organization’s goal is to help the teachers turn that laughter into jealousy. We hope to create sponsorship programs to provide the teachers with numerous teaching aids and accessibility to textbooks. In addition, we are in the process of working with teachers to create an after school program for the students. The Village of Akatim mainly consists of self recognized uneducated farmers, so it is the parents’ wish that their students have educated supervision when completing homework. This program would allow students to receive extra help after school in an effort to boost the effectiveness of that day’s particular lesson. Overall, we wish to create an environment where parents, teachers, and the Ministry of Education all work together to create an environment that allows the students to achieve their dreams.

Moving beyond the Akatim Village School, our organization is also in the early of stages of partnering with Ghana Health Services to construct a much needed health center in the village of Senase. This clinic would serve over 11,000 people and provide everything from pediatric medicine to emergency services and a maternity ward.

How does it feel to be recognized for your accomplishment?

It always feels great being recognized for an accomplishment, just like getting an A on a test or scoring the winning goal during a soccer game, however I think it’s important to realize what this recognition actually means. We, The Senase Project, are a group of college students from all across the United States. We break all stereotypes of “typical” non-profits. Our Board meetings are conference calls at obscure hours of the night as we try to incorporate three different time zones, I file reports and have department meetings between homework and internships, and our organization was thought up in Ghana, had paperwork submitted in Hawai’i only to become incorporated in Nebraska. If nothing else, I hope this recognition shows people that anyone can make a difference no matter how large or small. No one is ever too young, or too old for that matter, to overcome obstacles in order to change the lives of others. Many people wonder how we’ve managed to pull this off while juggling college, jobs, and internships, especially because The Senase Project is all volunteer. To us, this one big adventure day in an day out. It’s just as rewarding for us as it is for the students in Akatim and that keeps us motivated more than anything else.

While on Semester at Sea, I was fortunate enough to be in the company of Archbishop Desmond Tutu. He taught me the phrase “Ubuntu,” which simply means “I am, because you are.” Without our family and friends constantly supporting us and our donors both here and abroad, there is no way we would be where we are today and I hope that they take as much pride in this recognition as our organization does. We have been able to overcome numerous hurdles together over the past two years. I’m sure I will never stop hearing the phrase “you’re in college and trying to run a non-profit organization… are you crazy?” All I have to say to that is yes, all of our staff is — just crazy enough to make it work and leave our mark on the world.

Let me offer a special thanks to our panel of expert judges who chose our finalists:

Brock Blake, Forbes Contributor and CEO of Lendio.
Cheryl Conner, Forbes Contributor and Managing Partner ofSnappConner PR.
Alex Lawrence, Forbes Contributor and Vice Provost, Weber State University.
David K. Williams, Forbes Contributor and CEO of Fishbowl.

Devin D. Thorpe

Are you willing to take the Your Mark on the World Pledge?

Wed, 06 Mar 2013 11:19:00 -0700

You don’t need to solve all of the world’s problems all by yourself, but you do have a role to play in making the world a better place to live.

Will you take the Your Mark On The World Pledge? Comment below!

I pledge to do my part,

Large or small

To do what I can,

Setting aside

Problems I cannot solve.

I will choose to

Feed the hungry

Comfort the grieving

Clothe the naked or

Shelter the homeless

Care for an orphan

Rescue the victimized

Love the forlorn or

Save the environment

Protect a species

Lobby for peace

Build my faith

Or otherwise engage for good.

I will start today

And so long as I am able

I will not stop.

I will join in

The community of givers and doers,

To be an example,

To become a leader.

Together,

Each doing our part,

We will leave our mark on the world.

Devin D. Thorpe

"Hand Up" Voting Ends; Suspense Builds for Announcement

Sat, 02 Mar 2013 10:54:00 -0700

After tabulating thousands of votes, we have our winners. The Hand Up for Social Good Award winners will be announced next week.

At this point, even the winners do not know they’ve won. I’m working on profiles for the first and second place winners. The first place winner will receive $1,000 and will be profiled in my Forbes column next week and the second place winner will receive $500 and will be profiled here at yourmarkontheworld.com.

You will be inspired by both stories, I can tell you that much. You won’t want to miss out on hearing about these remarkable people and the good they are doing in the world. You’ll feel empowered to change the world, too!

Crowdfunding Workshops Proving to Be Popular Success

Fri, 01 Mar 2013 15:01:00 -0700

On Friday, we had our second crowdfunding workshop. For the workshops, we use Google+ Hangouts that allow for everyone in the group to see and hear the others and to participate fully in the discussion.

These fully interactive sessions are informative for everyone as we get access to the insights and experience of every member of the workshop, not just the benefit of my study and experience.

If you would like to participate in a future workshop, register here.

Everyone needs a hand up once in a while

Mon, 25 Feb 2013 13:15:54 -0700

Voting for our “Hand Up for Social Good” Award will end on Thursday at midnight (MST). Thousands of people have voted, which demonstrates how much people care about seeing the world become a better place.

Remember, the finalist will receive a $1,000 prize and the second place organization will receive $500 (from a generous philanthropist).

All of the finalists are doing great things and making the world a much better place. I’m grateful to them for their work and to all of their supporters who make it possible.

If you haven’t voted yet, please take a moment to review the list of finalists at Forbes.com and cast your vote.

Crowdfunding Workshop Report

Fri, 22 Feb 2013 15:33:37 -0700

This morning, we held the first Crowdfunding Workshop for Social Entrepreneurs. It was a great success, with participation from as far away as Zambia!

The live, private video chat format provided for excellent interaction and an opportunity for the workshop to be genuinely consultative.

We’ve scheduled five more workshops. We’ll run the series at no charge this time, but when we repeat the series there will be a modest fee for participation.

If you’d like to join us for the next one—even if you missed the first session—be sure to register here to receive the information on how to participate.

The next session will be Friday, March 1, 2013 at noon EST.

Join me for free crowdfunding training

Mon, 18 Feb 2013 07:01:02 -0700

Have you ever wanted to learn how to do an effective crowdfunding campaign for your social cause, nonprofit or new social venture? Others have already raised tens of thousands of dollars or more for their projects; you can, too!

More than 90 percent of crowdfunding campaigns raise less than $5,000. To learn how to raise five or ten times that amount, join me for my free training workshops.

Register below for any or all of the small group, fully interactive sessions to help you optimize your crowdfunding campaign.

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Big News: Another $500 for the Hand Up for Social Good

Fri, 15 Feb 2013 11:41:30 -0700

A generous philanthropist friend has offered to provide an additional $500 prize to the second place winner of the Hand Up for Social Good Award conditioned only on our getting another 500 votes!

Our benefactor has asked to remain anonymous. I couldn’t be more excited to announce this because the finalists are all so great! Now we can recognize and reward two winners.

To vote, please review the profiles (and websites) for the finalists by reading this post in Forbes. After choosing your favorite, you can vote here.

This great infographic came from SumAll.org. What do you think...

Wed, 13 Feb 2013 18:42:00 -0700

This great infographic came from SumAll.org.

What do you think we can or should be doing to end modern slavery?