Just got back from a benefit for the Kageno Organization, a non-profit working to improve the lives of the poorest people in Kenya, and is now working in Rwanda as well. The state of some of these communities is just staggering, as the short video below details.
Not that anyone who would visit my site would necessarily be in the position to make a donation, but even if they can’t, the website and videos are still worth checking out (and are made by people in my creative community).
I met many of the people most deeply involved in their projects, and found them to be inspirational, not just in their optimism and dedication, but also their abilities to feel real human connection with those who can be just too easy to ignore.
Gotta love the nonchalance of this article describing no-bid contracts from Exxon Mobil, Shell, Total and BP coming into Iraq.
It reminded a TED talk posted not too long ago.
A quick word about TED. The Technology/Entertainment/Design conference takes place every year in California. But that name doesn’t quite do it justice. As far as I can tell, it has become a forum for the smart, the ambitious, the talented, and the philanthropic, to share their ideas with like-minded (or un-like-minded) peers. I was introduced to these earlier in the year, and have become addicted. This is exactly what our world need right now. For the people who know their areas of inquiry best (nerds) to reach out and share their knowledge with the world. Hopefully, this helps them find validation, support, funding, and maybe most importantly, an understanding of how it’s all connected. Here is a list of their impressive past speakers Here is their RSS Feed for new videos and the YouTube page for the TED talks Director
but best of all, if you have an iPod/iPhone that is capable of playing video, you can use their VIDEO PODCAST for an easy dose of intelligence.
This is not one of the most entertaining TED talks, but you’ll see the connection to the article pretty early on, and hopefully these “Ideas Worth Spreading” will do just that.