Rethos.com - MSF's Global Feed

August 2008: Healthcare update from Nepal

Tue, 05 Aug 2008 16:38:46 -0400

The village of Thulo Syabru, located in the Rasuwa District of Nepal, has been working with The Mountain Fund for the past three years, to turn their idea of a health clinic into reality. This past March, TMF Founder, Scott MacLennan, and ...

A Cry for HELP

Thu, 17 Jul 2008 12:50:16 -0400

This is the story of a 1 year 2 month old boy born to an 18 year old mother on the island of Mindanao in the Philippines. This report/plea for assistance came in recently from a Philippine Physician at one of the remote rural clinics HELP visited during "Needs Assessment" operatio...

2nd Year - Regional Disaster Exercise

Thu, 17 Jul 2008 12:46:45 -0400

HELP has once again (2nd year) been invited to participate in a regional disaster exercise that brings together federal, state and municipal emergency teams as well as non-governmental agencies and multiple universities. Under contract with researchers at the Bio Design Institute at ASU, HELP’s role is to... lvanderkam@yahoo.com). We'll use your name and your blog name unless told otherwise. Thanks!...

ChicoBag founder Andy Keller on landfills, Bikram Yoga and his beef with plastic

Wed, 11 Jun 2008 16:32:45 -0400

There is no shortage of entrepreneurs inspired by the movie Wall Street or the stories of Sam Walton or Steve Jobs. I recently had the opportunity to interview Andy Keller, whose inspiration is a little more, shall we say, down to Earth.

CA -- Tell us about the origins of ChicoBag.

AK -- I used to sell software for an enterprise software company down in the Bay Area. I ended up getting laid off when the company was bought out by a company in the UK. The community and lifestyle in Chico (California) really appealed to me, so it was important...

Treehuggers to descend on Montreal

Fri, 06 Jun 2008 11:43:44 -0400

More than 165 exhibitors and 35,000 visitors are expected to descend on Montreal's Old Port for three days beginning June 13th, to share ideas about living more sustainably.

The "Salon national de l'environnement" (SNE) was developed out of a citizens’ initiative in 2006. The event looks at the current challenges to the environment and offers visitors concrete solutions. The event describes as its objective "to make visitors aware of today’s environmental challenges, while proposing solutions and tools for people to have a better understanding and to encourage beha...

Quebec and Ontario showing leadership with cap-and-trade program

Thu, 05 Jun 2008 17:47:50 -0400

The provinces of Quebec and Ontario have shown great leadership by working together to institute a bilateral "cap-and-trade" system in an attempt to curb green house gas emissions. When the Canadian federal government is dragging its heels on what most consider the most important issue curretnly facing humanity, bilateral initiatives between provinces or municipalities makes a good deal of sense.

This kind of autonomy and leadership at the provincial level is refreshing. A similar dynamic has existed for many years in the U.S., where despite an administration nearl...

What Gets Seventh Generationâ€™s â€œDirector of Corporate Consciousnessâ€ Out of Bed in the Morning?

Tue, 27 May 2008 10:41:01 -0400

What Gets Seventh Generation’s “Director of Corporate Consciousness” Out of Bed in the Morning?

An exclusive interview with Gregor Barnum, senior executive of Vermont-based Seventh Generation, one of the sustainability movement’s most innovative companies.

By Alex Salzman
May 19, 2008

Don’t let the altruistic job title fool you – Gregor Barnum and his cohorts at Seventh Generation are relentlessly pragmatic about building a sustainable company. I recently caught up with Barnum, who is part ethics s...

Rather Important - Pablo Salzman

Tue, 11 Mar 2008 15:56:40 -0400
Hi, please take a moment to refresh your knowledge on the Darfur situation - it is a moral duty for each of us to know what is happening - Going back to work, without taking a few moments to read and ponder is nothing less than inhuman selfishness Click Here Now: http://www.rethos.com/news/view/1198

Excellent Video on Earth Day TV

Thu, 28 Feb 2008 21:25:30 -0500
Here is an excellent video from the Earth Day Network - It's a production of the University of South FLorida, about an hour long, and very inspiring! A great model for what we can do with the 3 finger Solution! Look at www.SustainabilitySymbol.com and check out EarthDay TV

Speaking on Employee CSR, Employee Giving

Thu, 28 Feb 2008 07:35:18 -0500

Hopped over to LA and had the chance to be part of the Our Giving Community (http://www.ourgivingcommunity.org) conference. A fun event exploring a excited dimension of Corporate Social Responsibility! A pleasure to take part ;)

2008 National Workplace Giving Summit
"Defining Excellence"
February 5-8, 2008 Wilshire Grand Hotel Los Angeles, California

Host: Our Giving Community is a nonprofit trade association representing more than 60 charitable federations and funds and 3,000 nonprofits nationwide that raise over $100 million annua...

Speaking on Social Entrpreneurship, CSR

Thu, 28 Feb 2008 07:17:53 -0500

Entrepreneurship: Building Change for the Civic Sector

I recently had the chance to speak the the Princeton Univeristy Project 55 panel in NYC. Thx for the invite PU!

Panelists included:

    * Maia Blankenship, Washington DC Managing Director, Education Pioneers
    * Peter Kellner ‘91, Founder, Endeavor
    * PJ Kim ‘01, Former Director, FoodChange
    * Alex Salzman ‘07, Co-Founder, rethos.com

The Moderator:
  ...

Volunteer Greeters Needed

Mon, 25 Feb 2008 19:17:01 -0500

Help out a unique Bay Area HIV/AIDS center in the East Bay!

VITAL LIFE SERVICES has provided much needed services to low-income people living with HIV/AIDS and other life threatening illnesses for over 20 years. We offer two hot & nutritious meals a day, acupuncture & vitamin supplements, mental health services, case management, mas...

Common Video: Product (RED)

Mon, 25 Feb 2008 17:14:30 -0500

Enter Message / description of files attached:

Kid Rock Video: Amen

Sun, 24 Feb 2008 11:35:54 -0500

Just saw this on VH1 - even Kid Rock is doing the awareness thing... good on him...

GOOD Magazine: Obama

Sat, 23 Feb 2008 20:01:26 -0500

Another biography from our friends at GOOD.

TRUTH Campaign - Body Bags

Wed, 13 Feb 2008 18:12:04 -0500

Enter Message / description of files attached:

Ally Request - Matthew Aquilone

Sun, 10 Feb 2008 13:30:16 -0500

FGM and Legislation: Is It Working?

Fri, 08 Feb 2008 12:36:11 -0500

Experts tell JOY FM that practitioners of FGM are smuggling their children outside of Ghana for the procedure

The UN has mandated February 6th as of Zero Tolerance For FGM Day. FGM entails a partial or total removal of the clitoris from the female organ. Practitioners believe it reduces promiscuity in women, but the practice has serious health implications for victims. Under the Ghanaian constitution of 1994, FGM is considered prohibited as a "customary practice" that is considered dehumanizing and "injuri...

Facebook Underutilized as a Tool Kit for Activism

Sun, 03 Feb 2008 04:35:57 -0500

Despite Facebook’s vast, international audience and best-of-breed viral features, the site has yet to realize its potential to advance social change. My two co-founders and I conceived of Rethos.com out of criticism of the landscape of mainstream social networking websites and their apparent obsession with superficial content. Indeed, it remains doubtful that Facebook’s 60+ million members are going to super-poke their way to a more just and sustainable world.

But the...

WHO'S GREENER? Clinton or Obama? McCain or Romney?

Thu, 31 Jan 2008 21:36:17 -0500

WHO’S GREENER? Clinton or Obama? McCain or Romney?

As we get closer to primaries in more than 20 states on February 5th, and with the field of candidates narrowing quickly, it’s important to consider environmental issues as you prepare to cast a primary vote. Have the candidates’ positions on climate change, the Kyoto treaty, and their plans to increase energy efficiency or create green jobs changed your opinion of them? Is climate change a partisan issue? Tell us what you think at http://www.liveearth.org/?p...

Linkin Park - What I've Done

Thu, 31 Jan 2008 15:00:21 -0500

Cheers to Melanie (http://rethos.com/bleuphox) for this find!

U2 and Green Day "The Saints Are Coming" video

Sun, 27 Jan 2008 15:41:44 -0500

Saw this video for the first time today. I wonder if we will see more cause related music videos in future?

Support Darfur, Earn Money & Help a Student at the Same Time

Fri, 25 Jan 2008 20:51:33 -0500

OneBigU (http://www.onebigu.com) allows users to help a struggling student, earn some money, and support a Darfur Charity at the same time.

OneBigU (for One Big University) helps Darfur in the following way:

- Person answers a question asked by any student around the world

- Person gets a little amount of money for every accepted answer

- Person sends the money to a partner Darfur charity, unless he/she wants to withdraw the money

OneBigU is partnered with Help Darfur Now (HDN), a US-based student charity in support of Darfur. All d...

Carpooling Application

Fri, 18 Jan 2008 17:47:52 -0500

With carpooling in a steady decline despite the highest gas prices ever and record traffic congestion, two new online firms want to revive ride-sharing by piggybacking on social networking sites.

The startup services, through the popular Facebook.com, attack obstacles that have held back ride-sharing programs: the fear of sharing a car with a stranger and reaching the “critical mass” of numbers required to effectively match up people for rides. Related Stories

The site’s core users, college students and recent grads, could turn out to be the perfect ...

The $10 per Gallon World

Fri, 18 Jan 2008 16:40:29 -0500

c/o Adei Ressi Blog (see link below)

We are already living in a $10 per gallon of gasoline world. Did that get your attention? Here are some things to think about:

The average yield of gasoline per barrel of oil differs widely based on the quality of the oil (logical), ranging from 5% to 30% of the 42 gallons in a barrel when using straightforward conversion methods. The price per barrel of oil that you read about is normally the â€œgood stuffâ€ (Texas or Arabian grade), yielding over 12 gallons of gasoline per barrel and as much as two thirds in prime conditions.

Doing Philanthropy the Google Way

Fri, 18 Jan 2008 02:27:07 -0500

This is a great article about the changing landscape of philanthropy. As it has the worlds of search, advertising and online media, Google is disrupting and evolving the nature of corporate philanthropy by taking an entrepreneurial approach as opposed to a charitable approach to solving societal problems. Says Susan Raymond, senior managing director for research and chief analyst at OnPhilanthropy, about Google.org and its new, entrepreneurial attitude towards philanthropy: “Instead of just giving a man a fish, or even teaching him to fish, a social entrepreneur would invest in hi...

NYC PASSES PLASTIC BAG RECYCLING BILL

Thu, 17 Jan 2008 11:11:38 -0500

NYC PASSES PLASTIC BAG RECYCLING BILL

Last week, New York City took a giant step forward in the fight against plastic. New York’s City Council passed a bill requiring large stores and retail chains to collect and recycle plastic shopping bags. According to a New York Times report: “New York is by far the largest American city to enact so broad a measure to limit the environmental impact of the bags. Altogether, each year the country is estimated to use 86 billion bags, which end up blowing down city streets, or tangled in the stomachs of wh...

Hummer Ad

Mon, 14 Jan 2008 14:41:04 -0500

While Hummer is often held up as the poster child for corporate irresponsibility this ad offers an interesting perspective that defends Hummer’s service as a disaster rescue vehicle.

Any thoughts on this new perspective?

Nau's Thought Kitchen: Cutting Through the Crap

Mon, 14 Jan 2008 14:35:37 -0500

From Nau’s Thought Kitchen (see link below) -

I recently spoke with Zoe Cameron, who hails from Toronto but is currently living in London. She works as an award-wining freelance journalist specializing in science, environmental, and health-related stories. When I went to check out her blog Zoetic I found the following post pertaining to the United Nations Development Programme report: â€œFighting Climate Change: Human Solidarity in a Divided World.â€ Zoe contends that â€œthereâ€™s no better way to cut through the crap and get right to the point than with some simple stat...

Ally Request - Bari George

Sat, 12 Jan 2008 22:03:49 -0500

Violence in Kenya - Can you help?

Sat, 05 Jan 2008 13:46:12 -0500

Hello Friends,

I am sad to include this latest update for your review today. As you may know HELP has supported a water purification operation in the southwest area of Kenya with a village water purification system and the training to operate it safely and effectively. We have also been visited here in Arizona by other native Kenya relief agency personnel and have received numerous pleas for assistance.

The following letter came in just this morning from Pastor John Obyo Njoni. John has operated an outreach to orphans and has requested our...

Big Oil lets sun set on renewables

Thu, 03 Jan 2008 00:39:58 -0500

Shell, the oil company that recently trumpeted its commitment to a low carbon future by signing a pre-Bali conference communique, has quietly sold off most of its solar business.

The move, taken with rival BP’s decision last week to invest in the world’s dirtiest oil production in Canada’s tar sands, indicates that Big Oil might be giving up its flirtation with renewables and going back to its roots.

Shell and BP are among the biggest producers of greenhouse gases in the world, but both have been keen to paint themselves green through a series of cle...

CSRwire Reports Top Corporate Social Responsibility News of 2007

Wed, 02 Jan 2008 13:08:04 -0500

CSRwire Reports Top Corporate Social Responsibility News of 2007

Al Gore’s Nobel Peace Prize helps validate business case for addressing climate crisis, Sudan divestment progresses, Starbucks agrees to Ethiopian coffee trademarks, and much more…

In 2007, corporate social responsibility (CSR) continued the momentum of the past several years, shifting this year from mainstream recognition to widespread action. The scale and scope of business-led solutions is rising to meet the severity of the monumental environmental and social challenges facing us, from the...

Displaced Fleeing War in Somalia Face Humanitarian Crisis

Sun, 30 Dec 2007 13:18:50 -0500

Tens of thousands of Somalis are living in camps like this one north of the capital, Mogadishu, suffering from a lack of water, food, and access to medical treatment.

The violence in Somalia escalated this year to some of the worst levels in over 15 years, causing an unknown number of civilian casualties and the displacement of hundreds of thousands of people from the capital. Many of those remaining in Mogadishu are staying in makeshift camps with little more than ripped cloth and plastic sheeting for shelter and are exposed to a high degree of violence

Top 10 Most Underreported Humanitarian Stories of 2007

Sun, 30 Dec 2007 13:16:49 -0500

Displaced Fleeing War in Somalia Face Humanitarian Crisis enlarge image

Somalia 2007 Â© Jehad Nga

Tens of thousands of Somalis are living in camps like this one, north of the capital Mogadishu, suffering from a lack of water, food, shelter, and access to medical treatment.

As violence in Somalia escalated this year to some of the worst levels in over 15 years, both assistance for and attention to one of the most challenging and acute humanitarian situations in the world seemed to wane. Ethiopian troops and Transitional Federal Government forces, supported by...

HELP's Global Telemedicine

Sun, 23 Dec 2007 16:27:26 -0500

Scenes from various H.E.L.P. mobile medical clinics & telemedicine efforts from various efforts.

Ally Request - DanRose

Fri, 21 Dec 2007 13:28:09 -0500

Alliance Accepted! - Randy Roberson

Wed, 19 Dec 2007 14:23:24 -0500

Alliance Accepted! - Aliaa Tayea

Tue, 18 Dec 2007 15:34:09 -0500

Opportunity for Webmasters and Bloggers! FREE USE OF WEBSITES

Tue, 11 Dec 2007 18:32:14 -0500

King or Queen of your own sustainability domain!

We'd like to offer you some of the valuable Sustainability-related domains collected over the years.

What we ask in return is that you design a really cool site that gets people involved, spreads the Sustainability Symbol (the 3 finger symbol) around the world and brings attention to, and supports at least one of the Climate Change related projects we’re working on (Like “STOP the GLOFs”) The rest will be up to you.

Almost two years ago we introduced the 3 Finger Sustainab...

Alliance Accepted! - Chris Advansun

Tue, 18 Dec 2007 15:34:04 -0500

Alliance Accepted! - Uday Rosario

Tue, 18 Dec 2007 15:34:01 -0500

Alliance Accepted! - Frank Miller

Tue, 18 Dec 2007 15:33:56 -0500

Alliance Accepted! - DragonTHINK

Fri, 07 Dec 2007 10:13:12 -0500

Alliance Accepted! - Philip McMaster

Fri, 07 Dec 2007 10:13:07 -0500

Alliance Accepted! - Pablo Salzman

Fri, 07 Dec 2007 10:13:02 -0500

Alliance Accepted! - Journalists for Human Rights

Thu, 06 Dec 2007 12:40:40 -0500

Alliance Accepted! - The Campus Coalition Against Trafficking (CCAT)

Thu, 06 Dec 2007 12:03:05 -0500

Alliance Accepted! - Michael Johnson-Chase

Wed, 19 Dec 2007 14:23:46 -0500

Alliance Accepted! - Technology For People Group Inc.

Thu, 06 Dec 2007 12:02:55 -0500

Haitian Creole Translator / traducteur crÃ©ole

Wed, 05 Dec 2007 12:47:44 -0500

(ENGLISH FOLLOWS)

Titulaire du prix Nobel de la paix, MÃ©decins Sans FrontiÃ¨res (MSF) est la plus grande organisation privÃ©e de secours mÃ©dical dâ€™urgence au monde. Nous offrons une assistance mÃ©dicale dâ€™urgence aux populations en dÃ©tresse, aux victimes de dÃ©sastres naturels ou dâ€™origine humaine, indÃ©pendamment de la race, de la religion ou de lâ€™affiliation politique, dans plus de 70 pays Ã travers le monde.

MSF produit actuellement un documentaire portant principalement sur le manque dâ€™accÃ...

Alliance Accepted! - Alex

Wed, 05 Dec 2007 12:26:00 -0500

Are you a great designer, or translator?

Sun, 30 Sep 2007 17:15:45 -0400

We are in the process of translating the word/concepts/phrase of

1. SOCIETY

2. ENVIRONMENT

3. ECONOMY

... into the languages of the world, and adapting the different ways of writing to the three fingered hand symbol.

You can see a sample of the Sustainability Symbol in Chinese script on this message.

Your name will be forever associated with the chosen modification of the symbol that represents “Society, Environment, Economy” in your linguistic communi...

Convert website into something attractive

Sun, 30 Sep 2007 16:51:00 -0400

The three finger Sustainability Symbol is beginning to attract attention on and off the internet. This is a double-edged sword.

On one hand, more and more people are learning about the campaign (personally passing it along from one individual to another),

on the other hand, our website stinks.

It’s homemade, and as you will see, I’m no web designer!

If there are any talented web designers out there in the Rethosarian community, please have a look at www.DragonTHINK.com and make a suggestion of how we could use some of the existing conte...

Volunteers needed for Medical Trek to Peru

Sun, 16 Sep 2007 16:51:35 -0400
Trek4Good is a volunteer program of The Mountain Fund. This program was started in order to address the need of volunteers to both see the country of Nepal, and to also contribute their time. By hosting volunteer visits that are close to the people and the cultures of the country, we help to prepare them to be more effective volunteers with a deeper understanding of the issues. Every Trek4Good trip either has a volunteer component built in, or is organized to raise funds for a particular project we support. It is another way that we can support our community-based partners around the world ...

Make Friends, Have Fun and Make Money Saving the Earth

Wed, 12 Sep 2007 14:55:33 -0400

Are you Part of the Problem… or the SOLUTION?

Be the first in your community to start the transformation process to sustainability.

+Become a Black Belt Dragonpreneur, Trainer / DragonMentor + (Seminar / Workshop Presenter – CSR Business Consultant – Private Tutor – Sustainable Lifestyle Coach)

ESSENTIAL REQUIREMENTS: - Excellent Communications and Interpersonal Skills - Unlimited Positive Enthusiasm & Entrepreneur THinking - Assertive Development of you...

Rethos.com - MSF's Global Feed

August 2008: Healthcare update from Nepal

A Cry for HELP

2nd Year - Regional Disaster Exercise

ChicoBag founder Andy Keller on landfills, Bikram Yoga and his beef with plastic

Treehuggers to descend on Montreal

Quebec and Ontario showing leadership with cap-and-trade program

What Gets Seventh Generationâ€™s â€œDirector of Corporate Consciousnessâ€ Out of Bed in the Morning?

Rather Important - Pablo Salzman

Excellent Video on Earth Day TV

Speaking on Employee CSR, Employee Giving

Speaking on Social Entrpreneurship, CSR

Volunteer Greeters Needed

Common Video: Product (RED)

Kid Rock Video: Amen

GOOD Magazine: Obama

TRUTH Campaign - Body Bags

Ally Request - Matthew Aquilone

FGM and Legislation: Is It Working?

Facebook Underutilized as a Tool Kit for Activism

WHO'S GREENER? Clinton or Obama? McCain or Romney?

Linkin Park - What I've Done

U2 and Green Day "The Saints Are Coming" video

Support Darfur, Earn Money & Help a Student at the Same Time

Carpooling Application

The $10 per Gallon World

Doing Philanthropy the Google Way

NYC PASSES PLASTIC BAG RECYCLING BILL

Hummer Ad

Nau's Thought Kitchen: Cutting Through the Crap

Ally Request - Bari George

Violence in Kenya - Can you help?

Big Oil lets sun set on renewables

CSRwire Reports Top Corporate Social Responsibility News of 2007

Displaced Fleeing War in Somalia Face Humanitarian Crisis

Top 10 Most Underreported Humanitarian Stories of 2007

HELP's Global Telemedicine

Ally Request - DanRose

Alliance Accepted! - Randy Roberson

Alliance Accepted! - Aliaa Tayea

Opportunity for Webmasters and Bloggers! FREE USE OF WEBSITES

Alliance Accepted! - Chris Advansun

Alliance Accepted! - Uday Rosario

Alliance Accepted! - Frank Miller

Alliance Accepted! - DragonTHINK

Alliance Accepted! - Philip McMaster

Alliance Accepted! - Pablo Salzman

Alliance Accepted! - Journalists for Human Rights

Alliance Accepted! - The Campus Coalition Against Trafficking (CCAT)

Alliance Accepted! - Michael Johnson-Chase

Alliance Accepted! - Technology For People Group Inc.

Haitian Creole Translator / traducteur crÃ©ole

Alliance Accepted! - Alex

Are you a great designer, or translator?

Convert website into something attractive

Volunteers needed for Medical Trek to Peru

Make Friends, Have Fun and Make Money Saving the Earth

What Gets Seventh Generationâ€™s â€œDirector of Corporate Consciousnessâ€ Out of Bed in the Morning?