Not Your Father’s Philanthropy

By Bob Somerville

There’s a revolution afoot in giving, and you might already be a part of it without even realizing it.

Have you ever contributed to Wikipedia, or posted a comment or suggestion on a help page? Have you ever made use of these sites? Contributors and beneficiaries alike are creating online networks of individuals with shared interests and goals, and little or no interference from money-making middlemen. They are participating, one-to-one, in what has become a renewed spirit of benevolence, whose effects are now spreading to more-traditional forms of charitable giving.

We are, by nature, a generous species. We like to help each other. In fact, studies show we get a rush from it. But we also like to feel a connection to what we’re doing, as if we’re right there beside the people we’re helping – not just writing a check.

What’s changed, fundamentally, is that givers more and more want to take ownership of their own generosity. They yearn to be active participants, not passive donors. And they also want to be sure, in these troubled times, that every penny counts, that they’re not getting ripped off.

All of this adds up to what we’ll boldly call the New Philanthropy, a movement that’s already advancing by leaps and bounds. Leading the charge is DonorsChoose.org, one of the first and best practitioners of the new way benevolence is working. They are empowering givers at every step in the process, and they’re facilitating those connections between donors and recipients that have proved so profoundly fulfilling for both.

In the weeks and months ahead, we’ll follow several DonorsChoose projects in real time so you’ll get an unfiltered view of how their process is actually working. But in the meantime, a few specifics about one of the leading lights in the brave new world of benevolence:

DonorsChoose.org was launched in 2000 by Charles Best, a social studies teacher in an impoverished Bronx public high school that was in desperate need of even the most basic schoolroom supplies. According to the website, he “sensed that many people would like to help distressed public schools, but were frustrated by a lack of influence over their donations. He created DonorsChoose.org so that individuals could connect directly with classrooms in need.”

Visitors to the website can check out a wide assortment of donation requests posted by public school teachers from across the country. Requests can be as simple as pencils for a poetry project, or as costly as musical instruments for the school band. Givers can search for needy projects by location, by subject area, or by a number of other criteria by typing in keywords. The goal is to help potential donors find a need that they feel is worthwhile. That’s where the sense of ownership begins.

Donors can give anything up to the entire amount being requested. When a given project is fully funded, DonorsChoose.org delivers the materials right to the classroom, and connects donors directly to the classrooms and teachers they’re helping. Contributors get updates and photos of the project, as well as thank-you notes from teachers and students. Ongoing communication often takes off from there.

Contributors get detailed reports from DonorsChoose.org as to how every dollar was spent, and the website team also carefully vets project requests to ensure the integrity of the program.

Since its inception, DonorsChoose.org has brought more than 200,000 teachers and contributors together “to become change makers.” Their secret, they feel, is simple: “At DonorsChoose.org, you can give as little as $1 and get the same level of choice, transparency and feedback that is traditionally reserved for someone who gives millions. We call it citizen philanthropy.”

Call it what you will, this new, more personal form of giving is clearly where the business of benevolence is heading. And we at the-future.com will be there to help you watch it happening.

Bob Somerville, a contributing editor for the-future.com, is a freelance writer and editor based in Washington, DC. He has written numerous books and articles on a wide variety of subjects, including healthcare and eldercare, science and engineering, food and diet, and animal welfare. His 2008 book Dogtown: A Sanctuary for Rescued Dogs won the Ben Franklin Award for Best Book of the Year (Animals/Pets category) from the Independent Book Publishers Association. He co-authored Century of Innovation, a look at the 20 greatest engineering achievements of the 20th century, with projections about the future of engineering. He lives in the Maryland suburbs and enjoys still being able, once in a while, to beat his 16-year-old son, Andrew, at tennis, golf, and Ping-Pong.

Earth Pledge Launches Eco-Friendly Textile Library

The Earth Pledge FutureFashion Textile Library online is the go-to source for eco-friendly fabrics.  They promote renewable, reusable and nonpolluting materials and processes at every step of the supply chain and work to assist designers and brands in their sourcing.  Since 2004, They’ve connected designers and suppliers in the sustainable design process, and have encouraged investment in innovative technologies and techniques that restore the balance between human and natural systems associated with fashion.

Through their collaboration with textile suppliers, we have compiled sustainable fabrics produced with sustainable fibers and/or using sustainable techniques. Images of these fabrics along with information on their manufacture, composition and ordering can be found in the FutureFashion Textile Library which currently has over 2,000 fabrics from 85 mills worldwide, and continues to grow daily.

To learn more about the library, go to www.earthpledge.org and visit the FutureFashion initiative.

If you have any questions or need additional information please contact Amanda Martinez at (212) 725-6611 ext 248 or at library@earthpledge.org.

Welcome IREO

Are we destined to forever ravage the Earth’s natural resources, mindless of the damage we do? Is the legacy of humankind one of greed and selfishness, in the name of corporate profit, as environmentalists say?

Or, are there movements afoot that, behind the scenes, seek solutions on a global scale, shattering political and corporate boundaries in an attempt to ensure that our future on this planet might be sustainable?

One of the primary missions of the-future.com is fostering alliances with forward-thinking global enterprises that have our collective future at heart.

The IREO (Intergovernmental Renewable Energy Organization) is one enterprise that appears to exist outside the realm of corporate influence and pure profit motives that govern the energy status quo.

According to its mission statement: “the IREO aims to contribute to the global battle against the environmental challenges posed by the development of human civilization through the implementation of pilot projects designed to educate, promote and expand the use of renewable energies around the globe.”

And its vision: “to build long-term partnerships with communities, governments, the United Nations, private sector, NGOs (non-governmental organizations), IGOs (intergovernmental organizations), academia and think tanks in order to bring sustainability to communities, while creating a better and cleaner world.”

In coming months, the-future.com plans to initiate and cultivate an open dialogue with the IREO and spotlight its efforts toward a more energy-positive world.

As you will see in our “Coming Departments” preview, we have developed  a significant array of features that foster reader involvement, and create bridges to better understanding of the global issues on the path ahead.
We welcome your comments on our approach to the future.

Here is a brief outline of the IREO’s Global Aims and Aspirations:

Based on the Millennium Development Goals of the United Nations and the outcomes and declarations of the various United Nations Conferences and Summits convened over the last 10 years, I.R.E.O developed the following goals:

• Promote energy efficiency and conservation;
• Foster the collaboration of governments, NGOs, IGOs, academia, and the private sector at the most basic community level to educate the citizenries of the world on the dire need to change its current patterns of energy production and consumption;
• Build alliances with scientists, universities, associations, think tanks and groups that have as an objective: the development of new technologies, to serve as a repository of information on new developments in the area of alternate renewable energy generation, including the results of actual applications either done as pilot projects or in general usage;
• Create awareness to the public via newsletters, IREO’s website, summits, conferences of local, regional and international scopes;
• Encourage the greater use of renewable energy sources as a mean of reducing global warming and its negative impact on the environment, economies and people’s lives;
• Work collaboratively with governments to promote the use of renewable energy sources that are readily available to their respective countries and to propagate the use of proven technologies to other countries;
• Facilitate the transition from a dependence on carbon based energy sources to renewable sources, particularly in the underdeveloped countries where tradition and economic conditions make it difficult to achieve. In this regard, I.R.E.O. will assist in creating the alliances necessary to establish pilot projects in those developing countries that wish to start the process;
• Greening the coal toward energy chain;
• Promote and implement renewable energy for agriculture.

Welcome to the-future.com, IREO!

Timothy Rohde
Co-Founder/Publisher & COO