The Loss of Creativity and Innovation

"If school's function is to create the workers we need to fuel our economy, we need to change school, because the workers we need have changed as well."

-Seth Godin

If you have been within ten feet of me this last month,  you've been subject to the rant I've been on about standardize testing and the loss of creativity, innovation and critical thinking skills in our education system.

Specifically, I've been ranting about how my 8th grader will need to pass a standardize test for the high school to allow her to not repeat Algebra I as a freshman.   For someone with a history of weak test taking, the fact that my daughter needs to show a year's worth of knowledge on a single day, on a single test seems obsurd to me.  To further my frustration, I learned that the high school only requires the private school kids to take this test and not the public school kids.

So I've been ranting about how this is exactly what's wrong with our education system and how a single standardize test isn't the only way for a child to show proof of knowledge.  Isn't proof of knowledge what we are looking for regardless of the method used to identify it?  For some, this is like saying the sky isn't blue.

It didn't help that I saw Sir Ken Robinson speak this month on how our education system is based on utility and linearity with the assumption that we can predict the single best path for all. "We've designed a system that kills the discovery of talents and passion.  A system that alienates students.  No wonder they drop out," says Sir Ken

It didn't help that Seth Godin published a 30,000 word manifesto, Stop Stealing Dreams, pointing out that the public school system was designed during the industrial revolution to churn out good factory workers.  He also points out that the multiple choice test was designed during a crises in World War I when the male factory workers enlisted in masses.  The government needed a temporary and effecient way to sort immigrant students and quickly assign them slots in the factories.  The creator of the multiple choice test says this about the methodology he developed, "This is a test of lower order thinking for the low orders."

It didn't help that the other week, at Partnership for Excellence, when asked what keeps her up at night, that the women on the panel representing the Health Careers Collaborative stated, "Employers comments that we've lost a generation of people with critical thinking skills."

It didn't help that an expert on early childhood education for low income families told me that she is seeing a wave of low income kids being medicated in schools.  Unfortunately, this is not always because they have true issues requiring medication, but instead these kid's behavioral problems are due to unresolved social and emotional trauma from their home lives.  Kids are being medicated to fit into the system because the system isn't flexible enough to fit their needs.


So it's been a month of ranting and what have I learned from it?


TAKE-AWAY #1:

My loss of sleep about my own daughter turned out for not.  The public high school made the sane decision to not standardize test the private school kids as the sole determinant of their math placement.  Thank you for renewing my faith.  However, if she had bombed the test, which many capable kids did last year, I would have fought tooth and nail that the results of the test were not an accurate proof of knowledge.  Every time I push back on the system for my own daughter, I am pushing back on the system for other children who don't have an engaged (okay, sometimes too engaged) parent to do it for them.


TAKE-AWAY #2:

I imagine my battles aren't over.  However, I have been impressed with the high school's talk about creating different pathways for kids.  I am proud of them for seeing that there is no singular utilitarian pathway for every kid and success lies in providing multiple pathways.  For this reason, you will see me donating my time to supporting the existence of these different pathways with programs like MAD and VADA.


TAKE-AWAY #3:

I need to push myself to think outside of the box.  I am naturally a linear, in the box thinker and yes, the school system was just perfect for me.  However, without creativity and innovation we wouldn't have people thinking like the biomedical engineers in my last post, who are creating innovative solutions to health issues in developing countries.  I am also reminded of a post I did a year ago where I realized we need creative and innovative thinkers to find solutions to gobal development issues, not factory workers.

TAKE-AWAY #4:

As for the lower income kids being alienated from the system or being medicated to fit the system, my heart bleeds for them.  I continue to have faith in early childhood education programs, like Storyteller.  I truly believe being ready for kindergarten, as shown on the Cradle to Career Roadmap, including being socially and emotionally ready, is the single first critical benchmark on the path to college.

Boimedical Engineering IS Philanthropy

When I think of philanthropy, I think about giving time or money to help a cause.  Last month, I saw Dr. Harshad Sanghvi, an internationally recognized expert on maternal/child health, speak.  He made me think about philanthropy in way that had not occurred to me.

Dr. Sanghvi made a poignant point on the impact Community Health Workers, with minimal training, can have on reducing  the over two million child birth related deaths a year.  However, he also made me realize the importance of bioengineering on making these Community Health Workers successful. 

I am not a person naturally drawn to science and could probably not define the term bioengineering if asked.  However,  Dr. Sanghvi pointed out the urgent need for culturally adapted, extremely affordable, and easy to us tools for people with almost no training.

For example, preeclampsia/eclampsia is one of the main sources of maternal/child deaths.  One of the innovations the bioengineering field is working on is a blood pressure cuff that is simple enough for use by Community Health Workers who may not even know how to read, durable enough for harsh, rural environments, and takes advantage of large manufacturers to reduce the price.  

Another solution for detecting preeclampsia/eclampsia is a Magic Marker test.  This device allows the Community Health Worker to test protein levels in a pregnant women with a special pen that is easily portable and costs less than a penny.  Early detection of this number two killer of pregnant women is lifesaving for both mother and baby.  You can see a brief video about Dr. Sanghvi's work and the Magic Marker here.

Postpartum hemorrhaging is another leading cause of death in the developing world for delivering mothers.  This is a condition women almost never die of in the United States.  To help solve this problem, bioengineers have developed a pill for women in remote, rural communities which greatly reduces their risk of postpartum hemorrhaging.  The Community Health Worker gives it to the pregnant women to carry with her at all times and is taken at the onset of labor.

Another example that illustrates the need for innovated minds focused on solutions to health problems in the developing world is a new way to test for cervical cancer.  Eight-five percent of the 250,000 women who die of cervical cancer are in poor countries.  In some countries, if a women was even able to get to a doctor for a pap smear, it would take years for the labs to have the capacity to evaluate the results. Experts at John Hopkins Medical School have developed a simple procedure where a health worker can use vinegar to detect precancerous spots and the ability to freeze them off immediately with carbon dioxide, available from any Coca-Cola bottling plant. New York Times

A new alliance between Jhpiego, John Hopkins Center for Bioenginnering Innovation and Design, and Laerdal Global Health called Day of Birth Alliance, has committed to developing and producing 10-15 products to reduce maternal/child health in the developing world.


TAKE AWAY:

Bioengineering might not define myself as your Everyday Philanthropist, but I am glad that it defines the organizations and people who are committed to developing innovations to reduce everyday fatal risks in poor communities, risks that don't even cross our minds, let alone that we associate as fatal.

As Dr. Sanghvi says, "There's no point in having technologies that are super duper but can get only to two-percent of the population. We need those kinds of technologies that can get to everybody and that everybody can afford."

Flow and Skill Based Volunteering

This past year I heard about a psychological concept that is a determinant of happiness called "flow".  Flow is a mental state where a person in an activity is fully immersed in a feeling of energized focus, full involvement, and success in the process of the activity.  The more moments of flow in your life the greater your happiness.

When do you experience flow in your life?  In my prior professional life,  I didn't use the word flow, but I knew that I felt the most rewarded when I worked with a group of people toward a common goal, each bringing our professional best.  In my volunteer work, I've noticed something similar, when I can apply my professional skills to help a non-profit, I feel that same sense of flow.

The trouble is, it's easy to find opportunities for event planning, other fundraising, long term board commitments, one day beach clean-ups, etc., but it's trickier to match an array of various professional skills with non-profit needs to make an impact and experience your own sense of flow.

So how do you find a volunteer opportunity that will enhance your own happiness while doing good?

1.  My first suggestion is to just start thinking about the concept and what you would like to offer?  What professional background or skills do you have?  Some suggestions include expertise in:

•  Design
• Strategic Planning
• Finance/Acoounting
• Marketing
• IT
• Architecture
• Project Planning
• Development
• Business Planning
• Governance

2.  Think of causes you care about?  Get to know organizations that support these causes and look for ways to help them using your skills?  Don't wait for a silver plated invitation to engage them in a conversation.

3.  When asked to make a volunteer commitment ask yourself if this will be a rewarding commitment for you or just another thing on your "to do" list?

4.  Check out the following resources.  These websites can help you tap into the right volunteering opportunity for you, but there's a lot of room for growth.

• Volunteer Match
• Partner in Education - while many of the requests center around traditional educational help, there are also requests for speaking about your field of expertise, job shadowing, and helping with mock job interviews.
• Sparked - This site lets your micro volunteer online.  You submit you area of knowledge and they hook you up with online opportunities to help a non-profit.  They will also email you suggests that they think are a good fit for you as they come in.
• Volunteer Guide - This sites lets you state the amount of time you want to give and helps you find a match for your time and interests.

Two amazing organizations not yet serving the Santa Barbara area are Taproot and Catchfire both offering high level skill based volunteering opportunities.  I'd love to see the skill based volunteering market expand in Santa Barbara.

The Absolutely Easiest Way to Give - iGive

I can't imagine any easier way for an everyday person to give than iGive.  It takes about two minutes to sign-up for iGive and once you do, whenever you shop at a participating retailer a percent of what you spend is donated to the nonprofit of your choice. 

I have been trying this out for the last month and have been so impressed with how many retailers participate.  Once you register, the moment you go to a participating retailer's page you will automatically see they are a participant, in fact, you can even tell when you do a google search on any retailer.

What this means is as you go about your normal shopping with retailers like Nordstrom, Gap, Nike, Patagonia, Shutterly, Hotels.com and hundreds more, a percent of what you spend goes directly to the cause you care about. 

I designated Direct Relief International, but there are hundreds to choice from and you can even designate a non-profit not listed.  All you have to do is spend the two minutes to register.  Ok, so right now, start the year off right and spend the two minutes and shop away.


P.S.  I also tried out another similar site, Good Search, which I only found annoying.  The sign up process imploded and now I get way too many emails promoting their partners and special deals to me.

Holiday Volunteering with Kids

The kids are out for two weeks and I am wondering how I am going to get them to do anything that doesn't involve a technological device or isn't fighting with their siblings.  This is a great time to take advantage of some easy ways to be philanthropic with your family that doesn't involve any more shopping.

Baking - not only can you bake cookies and have a stand to sell them to raise money for a cause your child supports, but what about bringing a plate of holiday cookies you make with your kids to your favorite non-profit to say thank you to the staff who work so hard all year long.


Unity Shoppe - the great thing about spending time volunteering at Unity Shoppe is little kids can do it, too.  They have projects sorting cans goods or stocking the shelves.  Above is a photo taken of my kids with some friends doing this a few years ago.  You can see how young my little one is.


Card Making - have your kids make general holiday or new year cards and deliver them to a retirement community, transition house, etc.  You can also always make cards for Dream Foundation who is always in need of a supply home made cards.  They have a specific size they like and a few words of well wishes they prefer not be used, like "get well soon," so give them a quick call before starting.


Music playing - have your child practice the piano or violin by going to a retirement community and having them play for the guests.


Reading/Coloring - have your kids go by Storyteller to read a holiday story to the kids or bring some coloring pages with holiday images your kids can color with the kids.

Cooking - this is a little more daring, but one family told me they assemble homemade burritos and then pass them out to homeless people, especially down by "the work wall" area.

If you have any ideas of your own, I'd love to hear them!

Giving and Holiday Shopping

It's that time of year, so how can I not publish a list of ways to integrate causes into your holiday shopping. 

KIVA gift cards which can be printed in under 5 mins have been my go to gift this past year.  I also have ordered from the 12 Small Things website.  I'm always happy to hear of anything I missed or sites you particularly like.

This page is available any time of year on my blog under the "Giving for Gifts" tab at the top.

Happy Shopping!

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Gift Cards for Charity 
from Washington Post
I like the idea of a charitable gift card because the recipient gets to shop for where the donation actually goes.  The article mentions two good sites that they feel offer well vetted options:

Global Giving
Tis Best


Nicholas Kristoff's Suggestions 
from New York Times
Any suggestions from this well known international aid journalist are bound to be worthy


Causecast
This site tells you what you can get for what dollar amount.  For instance, $14.00 buys you school supplies for a former child slave in Ghana or $25.00 for immunizations for a child in Haiti.  Also, includes lots of options in the U.S.


Change.org
I like how this charity gift giving guide is organized by the recipient's area of interest.



KIVA
I have wanted to give a microloan as a gift for years and have yet to do it.  This is the year!  I like this gift for two reasons.  One, the recipient gets to shop for the loan they want to give.  Secondly, when the loan is paid back, your recipient gets to loan the money again, and again.

Note:  In another post on this blog there are several negative articles regarding microfinancing, but I am standing behind it's value when done ethically and with integrity.


 12 Small Things
To purchase physical gifts from fair trade/socially responsible vendors check out this site.  It was suggested by a friend of mine who is hired by foreign governments to increase the business of fair trade items to benefit their local communities. 

Global Goods Partner 

My friend, mentioned above, was also hired by this company to do trainings with women in some of the countries this site supports.

Trade As One
I liked this site because it gives you background on the communities benefiting from your purchase. It not only has a selection of nice gifts, but also alternatives to items you buy for yourself probably not fair trade, like soccer balls.

Nest 

A beautiful site and is a nonprofit organization that empowers female artists and artisans around the world. Using a unique combination of interest-free microfinance loans, mentoring from established designers, as well as a market in which to sell their crafts, Nest helps its loan recipients create successful small businesses.

Global Exchange Fair Trade
You can google "fair trade gifts" and get numerous suggested.  This was one that looked particular good.

Should Philanthropies Operate Like Businesses?

On Monday the Wall Street Journal published a special section on Philanthropy.  The cover story was Should Philanthropies Operate Like Businesses?  One article argued "yes" while the other argued "no."  Both articles left me dissatisfied. 

Bronfman and Solomon, authors of "The Art of Giving: Where the Soul Meets a Business Plan," argue that, like business investors, donors should expect specific goals and measurable outcomes from the non-profits they support.  I completely agree this is smart business, but they fail to comment on many other critical aspects of what is smart business leaving the reader to think that having a plan, collecting data, measuring results, and striving to improve is all it takes to be a well run business.

Edwards, author of "Small Change: Why Business Won't Save the World," argues "social change is.. messy, unpredictable, politicized and subject to conflicts of interest and interpretation."  Business oriented philanthropy threatens "the capacity to do whatever it takes to reach your goal and the freedom to use it creatively."  In business terms, he is saying non-profits need to be able to innovate.  He is actually supporting what is also smart business.

The real hero of the section is an interview with Tierney, author of "The Donor Guarantee Trap," who discusses the importance of overhead for non-profits.  "Without the necessary investments in overhead, without a doubt the organization underperforms."  Investing in the sustainability of the people and organization administrating programs is also smart business.  We know VC firms will patiently delay the short term ability for a start up to be profitable in order to invest more in infrastructure resulting in greater gains later.


TAKEAWAY:

Non-profits should operate more like businesses and I like donors wanting clear goals and measurable outcomes, but if we want long term gains, we cannot just fund program after program.  We must also embrace other smart business practices like investing in innovation and infrastructure.


For another look at the need to invest in the sustainability of the people running our vital community programs, please see my earlier post on Courage to Lead