Calendar

Mar
22
Thu
2018
Global Water Dances – Takoradi – GHANA – In Celebration of 25 Years of World Water Day
Mar 22 all-day

 

  • info@windhouseresources.com

  • Date/Time

    Date(s) – 22/03/2018  in GHANA

    All Day

  • Location

    Chief’s palace

Sankofa: Reclaiming relevant indigenous cultural and ancestral values to make a case for nature-based solutions

The chieftaincy, elders and people of Funko community-located in the Western Region of Ghana- honored World Water Day by creating awareness about the need for circumspection when adopting vices or policies which consequently cause public health problems and are detrimental to the environment. Illegal/unsustainable mining – popularly referred to as “Galamsey”in the country- and fringe activities which indirectly empower the practice are examples of such vices.

The Funko community is close to the Ankobra river and, symbolic of the strong inter-connectivity still existent between most societies and their natural environment. This river is an important source of drinking water for many communities in the Western Region of Ghana- and beyond- but continues to be polluted through illegal mining activities. It flows at least 120 km south to the Gulf of Guinea (Atlantic) and is located very close to the western part of Axim, a commercial center of the river basin.

In celebrating this important day, we sought to highlight the important role some historic cultural practices (spoken word, dancing and drumming) and community dialogues can play in influencing the re-adaptation of relevant conservation values which were more commonly applied by the ancestors. Overall, the concept of Sankofa is espoused. Sankofa is a Ghanaian-originated cultural principle which literally means to take back what was lost in order to protect the future. This -arguably- manifests the tenets of sustainability. There are many of such doctrines in many communities across the world.

The principle teaches communities the importance of going back to their roots- and reclaiming worthy values- in order to move forward. For example, the indigenous and unadulterated local anthropological cognition reveres some key natural receptors – such as rivers, wetlands and forests- as deities. By tapping into the novelty of such values, the current mega trend of sustainability would be well anchored and in a way which significantly addresses most of the conservation, food security and sub regional stability challenges existent now. A cultural dance and community dialogue were among the activities undertaken to commemorate the day.

On World Water Day, the funding partner and collaborator for the performances –who is also the founder of Windhouse Resources Systems (WRS)- would reach out to stakeholders to solicit input on case studies concepts intended to be develop in order to make a stronger case for nature-based solutions. WRS is a boutique sustainability consultancy located in Ghana – West Africa.

Contact information
Email Address:

info@windhouseresources.com

Date/Time
Date(s) – 22/03/2018
All Day

Location
Chief’s palace

Oct
3
Wed
2018
‘GRANDMOTHERS ON THE MOVE’ Podcast Episodes @ ongoing podcasts
Oct 3 @ 12:00 am

‘GRANDMOTHERS ON THE MOVE’ Podcast Episodes

Click HERE!

NO START TIME and NO END TIME – LISTEN to past and current podcasts!

Grandmothers To Grandmothers Campaign

The Grandmothers to Grandmothers Campaign exists to support the indomitable African grandmothers who are caring for the millions of children who have been orphaned by AIDS. Members of the Grandmothers Campaign share three goals. They work to:

  • Raise funds to meet the needs of African grandmothers and the children in their care;
  • Listen to African grandmothers, respect their expertise and amplify their voices, in order to promote authentic and substantive responses to the epidemic in Africa;
  • Build solidarity among African and Canadian grandmothers in order to motivate and sustain the vital work of turning the tide of AIDS in Africa.

Canadian grandmothers groups are tremendously active in their communities. They put on concerts, organize card tournaments, and sell jewellery. They visit countless schools and community organizations. They bake, cook, sew, knit, paint, write, organize cycle tours, walks, and even ride motorcycles – all to raise funds and awareness for grandmothers in sub-Saharan Africa through the Stephen Lewis Foundation.

To learn more about how you can get involved in the Campaign, write to Ilana here.

Articles About The Campaign

What started as a conversation around a kitchen table has grown to become a movement to empower women, especially grandmothers, in Africa.

The Grandmothers Campaign, an initiative of the Stephen Lewis Foundation, is known as Grandmothers 4 Grandmothers in Regina, which was among the very first places in Canada where women took on projects to support families in Africa.

‘We know the power of women’s organizing in Canada and older women have an extraordinary amount of vigour and energy.’– Ilana Landsberg-Lewis

As Ilana Landsberg-Lewis explains, the movement arose in response to the human crisis, observed by her father Stephen Lewis during his time as a special envoy for the United Nations, afflicting the African continent during the HIV and AIDS pandemic.

Millions of children were orphaned by the deaths of their parents. Their grandmothers were left to raise them, with little or no support.

Ilana Landsberg-Lewis

Ilana Landsberg-Lewis is co-founder, with her father Stephen Lewis, of the Stephen Lewis Foundation. One of their main campaigns supports grandmothers in Africa. (Lisa MacIntosh/Stephen Lewis Foundation)

“Grandmothers were just in an agony of loss,” Landsberg-Lewis said. “Death was everywhere. They were left with no income and often isolated by the terrible stigma surrounding HIV-AIDS.”

Landsberg-Lewis recalled how requests seeking aid referred to the grandmothers as “caregivers” and when she asked why, she learned there was a strong bias in play.

“Nobody wants to fund them because they’re older women and nobody sees them as a meaningful investment,” she learned.

“We decided if Canadian grandmothers knew what was happening on the [African] continent then it would surely resonate with them and boy did it ever,” Landsberg-Lewis said.

“I wish I could say that I was prescient but it would be overstating it,” she said, talking about how the success of the organization, which quickly grew from a handful of activists brain-storming at a kitchen table (her own) to over 250 chapters across the country.

Since 2006 they have raised about $25 million.

“It was really extraordinary but I can’t say that I’m surprised,” she said. “Older women in our communities, we know the power of women organizing in Canada and older women have an extraordinary amount of vigour and energy.”

******************************************************************************

The Campaign currently boasts more than 240 grandmothers groups across the country. Many of the groups have organized into regional and national networks in order to support each other’s efforts in solidarity with African grandmothers and the children in their care.

Resources from the Grandmothers Campaign go to grassroots organizations that support African grandmothers with food, health care, school fees and school uniforms for their grandchildren, income-generating programmes, counselling, social support, essential shelter, and other necessities. Throughout Africa, grassroots organizations run by and for grandmothers are sharing insights, deepening their expertise, collaborating with other local organizations, and building their capacity to turn the tide of AIDS at community level.

Nov
17
Sat
2018
 HONOR NATIVE LAND:  A GUIDE AND CALL TO ACKNOWLEDGMENT
Nov 17 @ 1:56 pm – 2:56 pm

 HONOR NATIVE LAND:
A GUIDE AND CALL TO ACKNOWLEDGMENT

IN COUNTRIES SUCH AS NEW ZEALAND, AUSTRALIA, CANADA, AND AMONG TRIBAL NATIONS IN THE U.S., it is commonplace, even policy, to open events and gatherings by acknowledging the traditional Indigenous inhabitants of that land. While some individuals and cultural and educational institutions in the United States have adopted this custom, the vast majority have not. Together, we can spark a movement to change that.

We call on all individuals and organizations to open public events and gatherings with acknowledgment of the traditional Native inhabitants of the land.

Acknowledgment is a simple, powerful way of showing respect and a step toward correcting the stories and practices that erase Indigenous people’s history and culture and toward inviting and honoring the truth. Imagine this practice widely adopted: imagine cultural venues, classrooms, conference settings, places of worship, sports stadiums, and town halls, acknowledging traditional lands. Millions would be exposed—many for the first time—to the names of the traditional Indigenous inhabitants of the lands they are on, inspiring them to ongoing awareness and action.

For more than five hundred years, Native communities across the Americas have demonstrated resilience and resistance in the face of violent efforts to separate them from their land, culture, and each other. They remain at the forefront of movements to protect Mother Earth and the life it sustains. Today, corporate greed and federal policy push agendas to extract wealth from the earth, degrading sacred land in blatant disregard of treaty rights. Acknowledgment is a critical public intervention, a necessary step toward honoring Native communities and enacting the much larger project of decolonization and reconciliation. Join us in adopting, calling for, and spreading this practice. 

Download the #HonorNativeLand Guide

Fill out the form to download the guide

Download the Guide: Created in partnership with Native allies and organizations, the Guide offers context about the practice of acknowledgment, gives step-by-step instructions for how to begin wherever you are, and provides tips for moving beyond acknowledgment into action.

Download the #HonorNativeLand Guide

Fill out the form to download the guide

 

WHY INTRODUCE THE PRACTICE OF LAND ACKNOWLEDGMENT? 

  • Offer recognition and respect.
  • Counter the “doctrine of discovery” with the true story of the people who were already here.
  • Create a broader public awareness of the history that has led to this moment.
  • Begin to repair relationships with Native communities and with the land.
  • Support larger truth-telling and reconciliation efforts.
  • Remind people that colonization an ongoing process, with Native lands still occupied due to deceptive and broken treaties.
  • Take a cue from Indigenous protocol, opening up space with reverence and respect.
  • Inspire ongoing action and relationship.

Acknowledgment by itself is a small gesture. It becomes meaningful when coupled with authentic relationship and informed action. But this beginning can be an opening to greater public consciousness of Native sovereignty and cultural rights, a step toward equitable relationship and reconciliation.

 Marchers at Standing Rock, photo by Nicholas Ward

 

Jul
23
Tue
2019
CAMP KINDNESS DAY – JULY 23, 2019 @ Your neghborhood
Jul 23 all-day

 

Camp Kindness Day logo

Camp Kindness Day — July 23, 2019

On July 23, the camp community will participate in Camp Kindness Day – an event highlighting the practice of intentional kindness that happens every day at American camps. This is an opportunity to raise awareness of the the great work that camps are doing to teach kindness in engaging, simple, repeatable, and high impact ways that live on in the daily lives of campers and staff members when they return home.

Focusing on our youth and young adults, Camp Kindness Day will help showcase the commitment of the camp community to fostering the core values of kindness, compassion, generosity and care, and integrating those values more fully into every aspect of our society. These values are already part of the fabric of the camp experience. We share the mission for our youth to be nurtured, taught, supported, and inspired to grow into our new generation of kind, compassionate, socially-minded, community-oriented citizens.

Camp Kindness Day will allow camps to incorporate into their July 23 programming fun theme-based activities and cooperative games, cool projects, and memorable moments which will celebrate the value and impact of kindness.


How your camp can participate:

  1. Schedule Camp Kindness Day into your programming on July 23.
  2. Help spread the word in a unified social media campaign by tagging #CampKindnessDay into your social media and other communications.
  3. Share your plans so that ACA can support you through localized public relations efforts.

To support your camp’s involvement in Camp Kindness Day, ACA has produced an electronic #CampKindnessDay Backpack, complete with programming ideas and activities, FAQs, social media tips, and other information on how your camp can celebrate Camp Kindness Day.

Open the Backpack

Be part of the nation-wide evolution! Plan now to add #CampKindnessDay to your camp’s programming on July 23.


 

Aug
22
Thu
2019
LOAM Creating Community
Aug 22 @ 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm

CREATING COMMUNITY

Boulder, CO

Free

August 22, 2019

6:00 PM – 8:00 PM MDT

Join Loam on August 22 for a Loam Home strategizing session and sweet summertime picnic. We’ll gather together in the garden to break bread, savor herbal tea, and talk about tangible next steps for Loam Home.

Loam Home is an emerging community center and creative co-working space in Boulder, CO committed to serving as an intentional container for climate adaptation and eco entrepreneurship. From hosting permaculture workshops to farm-to-table suppers, we envision Loam Home as a vibrant hub for our community to explore regenerative living in practice. We want Loam Home to be a true collaboration and hope you’ll bring your radical skills and big dreams to share with us.

Location will be e-mailed to registered participants the day before.

We’re so excited to connect with you all!

**************************************************************************************************

Loam is a movement of compassionate and creative activists who strive to support one another as we find our footing in the heart of the climate crisis. Our community is passionate about seeding regeneration, resilience, and joy through embodied experiences that inspire the cultivation of sustainable activist practices, foster inter-sectionality across movements, and help each one of us to heal our connection to our earth.

From publishing vibrant print publications to facilitating immersive workshops, Loam’s constellation of creatives is committed to building a better world through arts-as-activism.

We are endlessly grateful to the Kalliopeia Foundation for supporting this work. Loam would not be possible without our community!

*************************************************************************************************

Reconnecting Ecology, Culture, and Spirituality

Kalliopeia Foundation is responding to a need—a global challenge—to take spiritual as well as physical responsibility for our common home. Our programs and those we support engage with contemporary issues at their root, with the understanding that ecological, cultural, and spiritual renewal are interdependent.

We envision a future rooted in fundamental values, such as compassion, respect, dignity, reverence for nature, and care for each other and the Earth. Our work strives to embody the following core principles:

  • Life Is Sacred: Honoring all life as sacred; expressing reverence for one another, the Earth, and life as a whole.
  • Interconnectedness: Approaching ecology, culture, and spirituality as inextricably interdependent.
  • Innovation: Generating creative ideas and outcomes through simple, meaningful engagement with others and the Earth.
  • Service: Embracing an ethic of care—the essential and natural aspiration to respond to needs beyond our own.

Kalliopeia’s Story

In 1997, Kalliopeia was founded as an independent private foundation to help support people and organizations who are working to bring spiritual values into institutions and systems of everyday life and work. The name “Kalliopeia” means beautiful voice and refers to the first of the nine Greek muses. She is associated with heroic poetry, justice, and transforming lower qualities into higher.

https://kalliopeia.org

Sep
1
Sun
2019
BORNTHISWAY/FOUNDATION – Channel Kindness Challenge: #BeKind21 @ Social Media
Sep 1 – Sep 21 all-day
Video Thumbnail
Lady Gaga – Born This Way – YouTube
https://www.youtube.com › watch

Channel Kindness Challenge: #BeKind21

Sign up today,

share your kind acts on social media with the hashtag

#BeKind21 + tag @btwfoundation,

and be entered to win two tickets to an upcoming

Lady Gaga show and a Love Bravery merch basket!

Help us make kindness – to ourselves and to our communities – a habit by practicing an act of kindness each day from September 1st to September 21st! We’ll send you all the information you need to get started – including suggestions for how to be kind from our Co-Founder Lady Gaga + some of our amazing partners. Oh, and you’ll also be entered to win a pair of tickets to an upcoming Lady Gaga show!

You can participate as an individual or you can assemble a Kindness Team by inviting your friends, family, coworkers, classroom, book club, neighborhood, sports team (…you get the idea) to join you. Just let us know if you’re signing up as a team below!

In the words of our co-founder Lady Gaga,

“In order to heal you have to feel.”

That’s why we believe that mental wellness is fundamental

to building a kinder, braver world.

We strive to

raise awareness of the importance of mental and emotional health,

decrease stigma, and

provide young people with better access

to quality resources

that meet their unique needs.

*Please read below for eligibility rules.

********************************************************************************

TO GET HELP NOW:

The Trevor Project /

1 866-488-7386

Trans Lifeline /

1 877-565-8860

The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline /

1 800-273-8255

Teen Line /

310-855-4673

LGBT National Youth Talkline /

1 800-246-7743

********************************************************************************************************
RULES
  • In order to win the two tickets to the upcoming Lady Gaga show, you must be at least 15 years old (Note: Minors under the age of 18 will need the permission of a parent or legal guardian.)
  • In order to be eligible to win, you must sign up above, pledging to participate in the challenge, and share at least once on social media about your experience. You must use the hashtag #BeKind21 and tag @btwfoundation on Instagram and Twitter or @BornThisWayFoundation on Facebook.
  • The winner will be selected at random from everyone who has taken the pledge between August 14, 2019 and September 21, 2019.
  • If you are selected as the winner, you will be asked to submit proof of your social media post documenting your acts of kindness – such as a link or screenshot – within 48 hours.
  • Born This Way Foundation will provide the winner with two tickets to an upcoming Lady Gaga show, the date and location of which is to be determined. The Foundation will not be able to cover any expenses, including travel or accommodation costs.

In partnership with:

 

        
                                                                              

 

Think Kindness @ Your community
Sep 1 – Sep 30 all-day

THINK KINDNESS, WE CHARITY, COUNT ME IN CHAMPION KINDNESS WORLD WIDE

There’s a growing crisis among young people today. One-in-five students report being bullied, cyberbullying is on the rise, and teen suicide is at a record high. As these problems continue to worsen, many adults may be left scratching their heads. How do we stop this crisis and help our youth?

There are a lot of possible answers, but there’s one that I’d like to pose today that I think is too often overlooked: kindness.

Yes, the simple act of kindness – not just witnessing it, but participating in it – has the ability to change people’s lives for the better. To make our world safer and happier for our children, we need to be teaching them how to be kind at home, at school, and in their communities.

This may seem overly simple, but science backs it up. According to research from places like Harvard and UC Berkeley, among others, acts of kindness release chemicals in the brain, such as serotonin and oxytocin, which reduce depression and anger and boost overall happiness.

Being kind isn’t something we should just mention to our kids in passing – it should be an integral part of their daily activities.

As the founder of Think Kindness, I am blessed to have an incredible job. I go into schools all across the country and help kids tap into their inner kindness potential. In my ten years here, I’ve seen some amazing results. For instance, after my very first speech, a student who struggled with suicidal thoughts wrote me to tell me how getting involved in helping others radically changed his life for the better.

Luckily, Think Kindness isn’t the only organization that makes kindness its mission.

There’s a group called Count Me In, founded and led by youth, which helps to connect young people with volunteer opportunities in their communities and around the world. To date, the organization has inspired over 100 million volunteer hours. In addition, Count Me In has an annual leadership summit which serves as a bootcamp training kids how to be volunteers and do good in the world. I am also blessed to sit on the advisory board for such a powerful and meaningful organization.

Similarly, there’s an organization in Canada called the WE Charity which does incredible work to connect kids to acts of kindness. For instance, WE offers volunteer trips to impoverished communities around the world, giving young people a powerful chance to make a real difference for people in need.

They also host what they call We Days, which draw hundreds of thousands of children into stadiums across the world to hear nspirational messages about doing good around the world.

Organizations like these and others are essential to turning the tide of anger, depression, and sadness among our youth today.

But they need backup, because according to one study, youth volunteering has gone down over the last fifteen years. All of us – parents, teachers, community leaders – need to promote kindness to young people.

We can do it in two ways: first and foremost, by showing kindness ourselves; second, by connecting our kids to groups which can give them the tools they need to be conduits of kindness everywhere they go.

Let’s get to it – it just might change the world.

 

With Kindness,

Brian Williams
President & Founder, Think Kindness

Sep
19
Thu
2019
Lakota Waldorf School Pow Wow @ Lakota Waldorf School
Sep 19 @ 1:00 pm

Lakota Waldorf School Pow Wow

Dear Friends of Lakota Waldorf School

We are very excited to host our first Pow Wow in celebration of Waldorf school’s 100th anniversary, September 19th 2019

 

Apr
23
Thu
2020
Strike, Divest, and Vote for our future…with EARTH DAY LIVE @ Online and Social Media
Apr 23 – Apr 25 all-day


Earth Day Live will feature a three-day livestream where millions of people can join activists, celebrities, musicians, and more in an epic moment of community and hope for the future.


STRIKE, DIVEST, AND VOTE

FOR OUR FUTURE!

From April 22 – the 50th anniversary of Earth Day –  to April 24…

The fights against the coronavirus and the climate crisis go hand-in-hand, and as we work to flatten the curve of this pandemic, we must strive toward the longer term goal of building a society rooted in sustainability and justice.


FIND A LOCAL LIVESTREAM

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https://www.earthdaylive2020.org/

The Earth Day Live stream will be viewable on this website and will be the full user experience. In addition, it will be simulcast across major streaming platforms such as Facebook Live, YouTube, Instagram, Twitter and Twitch to engage with broader audiences. Partner organizations and an extensive network of major websites will be embedding the live stream as well.


PARTICIPANTS

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Featuring Al Gore • Amanda Palmer • Amber Valletta • Angela Rye • Angelique Kidjo • Bill McKibben • Chef Alexandra Shrader • Chef Dominique Crenn • Daniel Fernandez • David Wallace Wells • DJ Spooky • Dr Michael Greger • Dr. Sweta Chakraborty • Ed Begley Jr. • Emily Wells • Ilyasah Shabazz • Jack Johnson • Jameela Jamil • Jason Mraz • Joaquin Phoenix • John Kerry • Kathryn Budig • Lil Dicky • Lisa Edelstein • Local Natives • Louie Schwartzberg • Luke Baines • Madame Gandhi • Margaret Klein Salamon • Mark Ruffalo • Mary Heglar • Matt McGorry • Megan Boone • Michael Franti • Moby • Monica Dogra • Mustafa Santiago Ali • Nahko the Bear • Ndaba Mandela • Patricia Arquette • Patrisse Cullors • Questlove • Rep. Lauren Underwood • Rep. Ted Lieu • Reverend Dr. William Barber II • Robby Romero • Rosanna Arquette • Secretary John Kerry • Sharon Carpenter • Shepard Fairey • Soul Clap • Stacey Abrams • Talib Kweli • The Both -w- Aimee Mann and Ted Leo • Tim Heidecker • Tony Revolori

And many more to be announced soon!

STRIKE – Earth Day and Youth Climate Strikes – April 22

On the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, we will demonstrate our collective power and unity through community building and storytelling. This first day will focus on amplifying the voice of indigenous leaders and youth climate activists who are leading the movement to halt the climate crisis


DIVEST – Divestment and Climate Financing – April 23

Led by Stop the Money Pipeline Coalition, during this day of action we are calling for a global reset. We want to reprogram the economy so that it works for people and the planet, not polluters and politicians.


VOTE – Voter Registration and Political Engagement – April 24

We need leaders who will address this existential threat. It’s critical for all of us to show up at the polls this year and vote for our future. So the final day will focus on the importance of voting through a nationwide youth voter registration day.


The US Climate Strike Coalition and Stop The Money Pipeline Coalition, who together are made up of over 500 organizations, have come together to organize Earth Day Live.

The US Climate Strike Coalition is a coalition of over 400 organizations that formed ahead of the September 20, 2019 climate strikes. Led by the leading youth-led climate organizations in the US, the coalition works intergenerationally and collaboratively to coordinate the Climate Strikes in the US.

Stop the Money Pipeline is a coalition of over 100 climate, environmental and Indigneous rights groups that is demanding that the financial sector stops funding the fossil fuel industry and deforestation, and starts respecting Indigenous sovereignty and human rights.

May
1
Fri
2020
Global Love Day presented by The Love Foundation @ Your community
May 1 all-day

Global Love Day


The Vision

We honor each May 1st as a symbolic day of unconditional love and call upon all people and all nations to gather together in the wisdom of peace and love.

Global Love Day is the universal recognition of our innate oneness through love. It is our vision to unite one and all in a celebration of love and compassion. Join people around the world in celebrating and expanding LOVE.

We are one humanity on this planet.
All life is interconnected and interdependent.
All share in the Universal bond of love.
Love begins with self acceptance and forgiveness.
With respect and compassion we embrace diversity.
Together we make a difference through love.

When we come from this limitless love we naturally and easily embrace ourselves and our fellow humanity. Opening our heart, we allow unconditional love to be our guide and compassion to be our gift to life.

We invite you to celebrate with us by consciously focusing on love and what it means to you throughout this day. We hope that by practicing love in all areas of your life, you will find it easy to love unconditionally all year long. Our main themes explain it best…”Love Begins With Me” and ‘Celebrating Our Humanity.”

Be a part of it. Spread the word. Share your love.

Think: Global Love Day;

Feel: Love Begins With Me;

Remember: May 1st

We Celebrate our Humanity

As we continue to connect with people and organizations around the world, we are amazed at how much is being done in efforts to positively assist humanity. There are so many wonderful people and associations that are actively working on behalf of a community, nation and even in global proportions.

As we often remind ourselves, what is presented by mainstream information sources is frequently a narrow and negative perspective of what is happening upon this planet right now. To the contrary, we see and know that good and right is occurring everywhere. Look for love and you will see it all around you.

This simple reminder changes the very nature of our experience. We are what we place our attention upon. When we allow love to be our focus of life, we expand this in our everyday activities. It is as simple as changing each perspective and allowing the negative and limiting views to be released and replaced by a higher, more loving understanding.

We appreciate and are grateful for the courage each of you express. In a world that has historically revered the negative and fear-based aspects, it takes strength to be and share love. It is time for love to become our common vision.

Please join us. Be a part of this global day by choosing love, compassion, peace, and unity. Share this information with your friends, relatives and coworkers. Love locally and spread it globally.

 

Participate

Our first Global Love Day was presented on May 1, 2004. A variety of celebrations and events were held by individuals and groups around the world that initial year and the day was recognized with over a dozen proclamations from prominent Governors, Mayors and Councils. Since then we have continuously expanded each year to include many more communities and nations and now have over 580 proclamations honoring the day with thousands participating individually and at events. We are into our second decade of sharing love and celebrating our humanity – will you join us?

We have a special section dedicated to Global Love Day here on our site filled with ideas of how you can get involved and host your own local event on May 1st. Follow the dropdown tab above and find some suggestions of how you can participate and also find examples of what other creative events have been held before. You can find our Global Love Day social site pages too.

Our annual Art, Essay and Poetry Invitational is held in conjunction with Global Love Day each year and encourages anyone young at heart to submit their art, essay or poetry based on the tenents and vision and theme of the day. See our Guidelines for more information on this special related program.

The Global Love Day Flyers have been translated in over 37 languages so far and all are available to download and print right from your desktop.

 

The Initial Vision

(An open letter from Founder Harold Becker in 2004)
The Love Foundation is delighted to announce the first annual GLOBAL LOVE DAY on May 1, 2004 with this year’s theme of Love Begins With Me. Join people from around the world as we acknowledge, celebrate and share the love we have within. This is a special day of recalling that love is the link that binds us all. It is also the awesome power that heals and transforms everything it contacts.

Each of us is a potent force of love when we allow this energy to express itself. There is nothing we have to ultimately do, rather we need only allow ourselves to feel and be love. It is that simple. Global Love Day is merely our way of saying let’s remember love is ours to be and to share every moment of our lives.

We understand this day is a symbol of what we can do every day of the year. Our intent is to join together in a conscious recognition that love is always present. For so many, love is often hidden under layers of hurt, trauma, drama, pain and suffering. Emotional memories, unspoken doubt, fear, resentment and a multitude of old beliefs often keep us from realizing these thoughts and feelings have no real power over us. We give them power by living in the past and being afraid of the future. We ignore the love that is present every moment while embracing limitation. It is time to change that. It is time to release ourselves from our own self created bondage.

You and I have the opportunity to make a difference. Together we can embrace our unlimited self, the part of us that knows love and expresses it naturally and simply. It is when we accept ourselves just for who we are that we transform the moment into peace, security, joy and love. This process begins with releasing our limiting beliefs, past mistakes, lack of self worth, pride and ego through the conscious act of forgiveness. It is up to us as individuals to undertake this journey. We begin the transformation when we turn within and accept our self. We change the world when we change our perspective.

As we come to know who we are and why we act and react the way we do, we start to see ourselves in the faces of humanity. The reflection of hurt is our hurt, their pain is our pain, another’s anger is our anger. It is also seen in the face of nature. Her destruction is our destruction. These seemingly random expressions are our past thoughts seeking manifestation. It is our constant reminder that love is the answer. We build a new reality in this current moment when we let go. When we choose love over fear, kindness over hate, integration over separation, and peace over war, we bring a new reflection to humanity… our loving selves.

So, please accept our invitation to love. Join us hand-in-hand as we share our love on this planet once again.

Love, light, and peace,
Harold W. Becker
Founder/President

 

Founder’s Address 2019

Welcome Dear Friends to Global Love Day 2019,

We join our hearts this day in celebration of life itself. Coming together around the globe, we unify our highest intention and collective potential, igniting the creative spark that lights our shared journey forward on this precious planet we call home. Realizing our magnificence as loving beings, each of us holds the key to our brightest futures. Compassion, kindness, joy and peace are our natural expressions when we recognize that love begins with me.

As one humanity on this planet, we have a common heritage and universal destiny. With each unfolding moment, we are comprehending the grandness of our personal and combined opportunities to evoke our heart-felt wisdom. It is a simple knowing that all life is interconnected and interdependent and our gift to the world is appreciating one another with grace and dignity.

We all share in the Universal bond of love and, from this essential understanding, we build fresh, new realities that infuse the very best of who we are. In this way, we consciously manifest for the greatest benefit of all. We begin with self-acceptance and forgiveness as the cornerstone to a foundation built solidly on love. This ensures we inspire, nurture, cultivate and express our dreams of a better world for our children and the earth herself.

There are infinite possibilities before us to explore as we walk in harmony with everyone and everything around us. It is with respect and compassion that we embrace diversity. We learn and grow through our countless interactions and expand far beyond the sum of our parts when we allow ourselves to evolve beyond our present perspectives. The majesty of life reveals itself within and about us when we open our hearts. Together we truly do make a difference through love.

With happiness, delight and love, I welcome you to our sixteenth Global Love Day celebration.

Love, light and peace,
Harold W. Becker
Founder and President
The Love Foundation

Founder’s Address Previous Years Archive

May
21
Thu
2020
Wes Studi – The Legendary Actor – His Plea for the Indian Country Amid the COVID Pandemic – Action Plans for the Nation @ You! Your community!
May 21 @ 12:00 am

From Indigenous New England

https://indigenous.boston  

 

StrongWalker | May 21, 2020 at 11:15 am | Categories: National News | URL: https://wp.me/pawHOv-4ty

Oscar winner Wes Studi launched a new PSA raising awareness about the seriousness of COVID-19 in Indian Country. (courtesy photo)

ADDISON, Texas — From small-town Oklahoma native to internationally acclaimed actor and musician, Wes Studi forever changed a stereotype with his unforgettable performances in Dances with WolvesThe Last of the MohicansHeat and Avatar.

Now, he’s working on another mission.

Yesterday, the Cherokee citizen and legendary film star released a public service announcement (PSA) to raise awareness of the serious effects of COVID-19 in Indian Country and request widespread support for Partnership With Native Americans (PWNA) to ensure Native Americans are not left behind during the pandemic.

What sparked the PSA is a series of vital health issues happening in the wake of COVID-19, even with many stay-at-home orders in place. The risk of contracting the virus is higher among Native Americans due to overcrowded housing and high rates of diabetes, kidney disease and asthma. And despite more than 7,100 confirmed cases of COVID-19 within the Navajo Nation and other tribal communities, federal aid has been slow to arrive.

In his new PSA, the Oscar winner reminds the public of the need for immediate attention and charitable donations to PWNA, which has secured tribal clearances and follows CDC and tribal guidelines to continue delivering critical items, such as food, water, sanitizer and personal protective equipment (PPE).

For more information on the PSA, and to learn how to donate, visit NativePartnership.org/COVIDrelief. Organizers are asking people to share this on social media using the hashtags #NativeHope and #COVID19. You can also call 1(800) 416-8102 to learn more.

“Every day, remote reservation communities face shortages of food, water and healthcare, and COVID-19 has magnified that reality,” said Joshua Arce, PWNA president and CEO. “Donations are critical now as we bring relief to under-resourced communities.”

Studi notes PWNA is a nonprofit he trusts. In 2019, they collaborated in a five-part Realities Video Series with Wes Studi that aimed to give an accurate portrayal of reservation life and dispels long-held myths that continue to impact Native communities.

The post Legendary Actor Wes Studi Urges the Public to Assist Indian Country Amid Pandemic appeared first on Native News Online.


“This is a major issue right now…also Protect The Sacred has a Facebook page…this was started by youth and has Mark Ruffalo helping them and a couple other actors…and Navajo youth who have stepped up to help their Elders”
from Grandmother Michelle Reid

May
22
Fri
2020
Spotlight on Kindness – A Weekly Offering – Presented by Kindspring
May 22 @ 12:00 am

 


SPOTLIGHT ON

KINDNESS

A WEEKLY OFFERING

 

Editor’s Note: Human beings are capable of great feats, incredible ways of contributing to our families, and communities. And yet at the same time, we can also be really messy, and bump up against each other’s shortcomings. Our lofty ideals of perfection about ourselves and of others may be setting us up for failure. Perhaps it is not so much perfection that we should aim for, but simply just compassion. –Guri

“YOU’RE IMPERFECT, AND YOU’RE WIRED FOR STRUGGLE, BUT YOU ARE WORTHY OF LOVE AND BELONGING.” –BRENE BROWN

 

VIDEO OF THE WEEK

Is perfection a lie that we’ve been told all of our lives? In this short energizing video, Prince Ea has a powerful message about questioning our ideals about trying to be perfect.
 

“Perfection is a prison.”

from KarmaTube

How can I use this site?

There are a number of different ways to use this site! You can share about your own acts of kindness or read hundreds of inspiring stories by others. You can browse through our rich collection of kindness ideas for every occasion and age group or order Smile Cards. You can also become a part of our vibrant online community or subscribe to a newsletter. If you’re up for it you can also join our 21-Day Challenge!

Founded in 1999
Mission
We believe in the inherent generosity of others and aim to ignite that spirit of service. Through our small, collective acts, we hope to transform ourselves and the world.
CONTACT INFO
crew@kindspring.org
http://www.servicespace.org
MORE INFO
About
ServiceSpace is a 501c3 non-profit organization. We believe in the inherent generosity of others and aim to ignite that spirit of service. Through our small, collective acts, we hope to transform ourselves and the world.
Company Overview
ServiceSpace is an organization run entirely by volunteers. We leverage technology to encourage everyday people around the world to do small acts of service. Ou See More
Founding Date
1999

KindSpring is a 100% volunteer-run platform that allows everyday people around the world to connect and deepen in the spirit of kindness.

May
28
Thu
2020
WECAN presents their upcoming webinar, “Structuring an Economy for People and Planet in the Time of Climate Crisis and COVID-19” @ Online - Zoom
May 28 @ 2:00 pm

Please be invited to join the Women’s Earth and Climate Action Network (WECAN) on Thursday, May 28 for our upcoming webinar, “Structuring an Economy for People and Planet in the Time of Climate Crisis and COVID-19”. During this dynamic dialogue women and feminists from different regions of the world will unite to discuss alternative economies that counteract extractive economic systems, colonization, racism, and patriarchy— and instead visibilize women’s labor, center Indigenous knowledge, and prioritize people and planet. There could not be a more important time to ensure we do not go back to business as usual.
As unemployment severely rises, food and housing are under further threat, oil prices plummet, and some governments insist on bailing out the fossil fuel sector and other destructive industries instead of people and nature— the COVID-19 pandemic has laid bare the already existing severe cracks in our global economic system. What is needed now is investment in economies founded on principles of justice, reciprocity, and regeneration. Learn more about this vital interactive discussion and how to participate down below!

Structuring an Economy for People and Planet

In the Time of Climate Crisis and COVID-19

Thursday, May 28, 2020

11:00 am PST/ 2:00 pm EST USA time

Please check your own time zone to coordinate!

Registration is required – register at this link


Rooted in neo-liberal capitalism, the current economic system is set to continue to rapaciously extract resources from the Earth and drive the dual crises of climate chaos and pandemics, while exploiting the labor of people worldwide to line the pockets of wealthy CEOs, fossil fuel companies and other large corporations. As we see disaster capitalism play out in real time, we must dismantle the current system and call for a regenerative, rights-based economy that prioritizes communities and nature.
An integral part of the fight for climate justice is rejecting false market-driven “solutions.” This includes the effort to expose and dismantle the roots of the extractivist economy that is inextricably intertwined with the patriarchal system that has been exploiting women and the environment for centuries. Women are on the frontlines of the climate crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic, making up 70% of healthcare workers worldwide and the majority of unpaid care workers who bear the brunt of a broken economic system.
We are calling for a transition from a colonial paradigm of “exploit and extract” to a regenerative, globally-conscious one of “respect and restore.” What is needed now is an investment in alternative economic models predicated on community-led solutions, Indigenous knowledge, and ancient concepts of reciprocity with the Earth and all living beings. Already there are Indigenous economies to learn from and an emergence of socially just, place-based, caring economic models that are structuring a path forward.
Speakers include: Melina Laboucan-Massimo (Lubicon Cree First Nation), Programs Director, Indigenous Climate Action; Ruth Nyambura, Kenyan Activist with African Ecofeminist Collective; Cindy Wiesner, Executive Director, Grassroots Global Justice Alliance; Ellen Brown, Attorney and Founder of the Public Banking Institute; Rauna Kuokkanen (Sápmi) Research Professor of Arctic Indigenous Studies at the University of Lapland, Finland; and comments and moderation by Osprey Orielle Lake, Executive Director Women’s Earth and Climate Action Network (WECAN).

This webinar is part of WECAN’s Advocacy and Solutions Series: A Just and Healthy World is Possible, an ongoing dialogue series lifting up women’s leadership as we continue to collectively build a powerful movement founded on principles of justice, love, and a fierce dedication to our planet and each other.


REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED, please register here:
To ensure the security of our participants and speakers we ask that you register for the webinar via Zoom, which we encourage so that you may participate in the conversation and ask questions and make comments. If you do not want to register, you are welcome to join us on Facebook, where we will be streaming the event live.
If you need support registering or have any questions, be welcome to reach out to katherine@wecaninternational.org.
*************************************************************************************************

Melina Laboucan-Massimo, Lubicon Cree First Nation
Programs Director, Indigenous Climate Action
Canada, Turtle Island

Melina Laboucan-Massimo is Lubicon Cree from Northern Alberta, Canada. She is the founder of Sacred Earth Solar and the Campaign Director at Indigenous Climate Action. She has worked on social, environmental and climate justice issues for over 15 years. Melina has worked, studied and campaigned in Brazil, Australia, Mexico, Canada and across Europe focusing on resource extraction, climate change impacts, media literacy, energy literacy and Indigenous rights & responsibilities.

Melina is the host of a new TV series called Power to the People which documents renewable energy, food security and eco-housing in Indigenous communities across North America. She is also a Fellow at the David Suzuki Foundation with a focus on Climate Change, Indigenous Knowledge and Renewable Energy. Facing the firsthand impacts of the Alberta tar sands in her home community, Melina has been a vocal advocate for Indigenous rights and environmental justice. For over a decade, Melina worked as a Climate and Energy Campaigner with Greenpeace Canada and the Indigenous Environmental Network. She has written for a variety of publications and produced short documentaries on the tar sands, climate change, water issues and Indigenous cultural revitalization.

Ruth Nyambura
Kenyan Activist with African Ecofeminist Collective, Kenya
Ruth Nyambura is a Kenyan eco-feminist and researcher working on the intersections of ecological justice in Africa. Her work and activism uses a feminist political ecology lens to critically engage with the continent’s and global food systems; challenging neoliberal models of agrarian transformation and amplifying the revolutionary work of small-holder farmers of Africa (most of them women), as well as rural agrarian movements offering concrete anti-capitalist alternatives to the ecological, economic and democratic crisis facing the continent.

Cindy Wiesner
Executive Director, Grassroots Global Justice Alliance, USA
Cindy Wiesner, a 25-year veteran of the social justice movement in the U.S. and internationally, is the executive director of the Grassroots Global Justice Alliance. She’s been active in many movement building initiatives, including Climate Justice Alliance, World March of Women, Social Movement Assemblies, International Council of the World Social Forum, Fight Against the FTAA, UNITY, Building Equity and Alignment Initiative and, currently, It Takes Roots and the Rising Majority, Green New Deal National Network and People’s Bailout. Her main passions are training organizers in a transformative radical organizing model and building counter-hegemonic campaigns that not only fight what participants are against, but put into practice what they want to see manifested. She identifies as a lesbian and is of Salvadoran, Colombian and German descent. She is a grassroots feminist, internationalist, and movement strategist.

Rauna Kuokkanen, Sápmi
Research Professor of Arctic Indigenous Studies,
the University of Lapland, Finland
Rauna Kuokkanen is Research Professor of Arctic Indigenous Studies at the University of Lapland, Finland. Prior to that, she was Associate Professor at the Department of Political Science and Indigenous Studies Program at the University of Toronto (2008-2018). Her main areas of research include comparative Indigenous politics, Indigenous feminist theory, Indigenous women’s rights and Arctic Indigenous governance and legal and political traditions.
Professor Kuokkanen’s new book Restructuring Relations: Indigenous Self-Determination, Governance and Gender, forthcoming by Oxford University Press in 2018, is an Indigenous feminist investigation of the theory and practice of Indigenous self-determination, governance and gender regimes in Indigenous political institutions. She was the founding chair of the Sámi Youth Organization in Finland and has served as the Vice-President of the Sámi Council. She has also long worked and advocated for the protection of Sámi sacred sites, particularly Suttesája, a sacred Sámi spring in Northern Finland. Professor Kuokkanen was recently appointed as the Chair of the Arctic Program Committee of NordForsk. She is from Ohcejohka/Utsjoki, Sápmi (Finland).

Ellen Brown
Attorney and Founder of the Public Banking Institute, USA
Ellen Brown is the founder of the Public Banking Institute and the author of a dozen books and hundreds of articles. She developed her research skills as an attorney practicing civil litigation in Los Angeles. In the best-selling Web of Debt (2007, 2012), she turned those skills to an analysis of the Federal Reserve and “the money trust,” showing how this private cartel has usurped the power to create money from the people themselves and how we the people can get it back.
Ellen ran for California State Treasurer in 2014 with the endorsement of the Green Party garnering a record number of votes for a Green Party candidate. Learn more about Ellen Brown at http://EllenBrown.com.

Osprey Orielle Lake
Executive Director of the Women’s Earth and Climate Action Network (WECAN), USA
Osprey Orielle Lake is the Founder and Executive Director of the Women’s Earth and Climate Action Network (WECAN) International dedicated to accelerating a global women’s climate justice movement. She works nationally and internationally with grassroots and Indigenous leaders, policy-makers and scientists to promote climate justice, resilient communities, and a just transition to a decentralized, democratized energy future.
Osprey serves on the Executive Committee for the Global Alliance for the Rights of Nature and Osprey is the Co-Director of the Indigenous Women’s Divestment Delegations, and actively leads WECAN’s advocacy, policy and campaign work in areas such as Women for Forests, Divestment and New Economy, Indigenous Rights, a Feminist Agenda for a Green New Deal, and UN Forums. Osprey is the author of the award-winning book,”Uprisings for the Earth: Reconnecting Culture with Nature.”
**********************************************************************************************
**********************************************************************************************
For the Earth and All Generations,
Women’s Earth and Climate Action Network
(WECAN) International Team

20,000 Masks Have Been Delivered to Indigenous Communities in the U.S.

WECAN is honored to announce that the first round of 20,000 face masks have been delivered to Indigenous communities throughout the United States through the Protect the Peoples Emergency (PPE) partnership fund with Movement Rights, Indigenous Environmental Network, T.E.J.A.S, Eaton, and other organizations.
As reported by one of our partners, Sebi Medina-Tayak of Eaton, “We have shipped most of the masks out to Navajo, Ponca, Apache, Oglala, Hopi, Piscataway and Houma clinics and organizations in this first round.”
Please learn more about the fund here: https://protectthepeoples.org/
WECAN International | 20 Sunnyside Avenue, #A-438, Mill Valley, CA 94941

Jun
16
Tue
2020
The UPSTANDER PROJECT presents: @ online
Jun 16 @ 8:00 pm
Dawnland And Dear Georgina live screening on June 16
For decades, child welfare authorities have been removing Native American children from their homes to save them from being Indian. In Maine, the first official “truth and reconciliation commission” in the United States begins a historic investigation. Dawnland goes behind-the-scenes as this historic body grapples with difficult truths, redefines reconciliation, and charts a new course for state and tribal relations.

THE UPSTANDER PROJECT

Adam Mazo & Mishy Lesser Upstander Project Co-Founders <adam@upstanderproject.org>

There is a long and steep road that we must climb together if we want to ensure that Black Lives truly matter in the U. S. and elsewhere. We would like to walk with you on this essential journey.
Upstander Project is here to offer films, learning resources, and workshops so we can all learn about the history and contemporary reality of the place called the United States. If your inbox is like ours, it is bursting with beautifully curated lists of essential resources on how to be an anti-racist with a focus on African American history and current reality. To offer an Indigenous perspective, we share this list of anti-racist resources curated by our dear friend and colleague, Claudia Tekina’ru Fox Tree.
Black Lives are Sacred by Afro-Indigenous artist Paige Pettibon (Salish)
Our thanks to yəhaw̓, a collective of Indigenous creatives for putting this beautiful art into our feed by Afro-Indigenous artist Paige Pettibon (Salish). yəhaw̓ says the images are free for non-commercial purposes so you can post, print, wheat paste, wallpaper, or share how you wish.

In Dear Georgina a Passamaquoddy elder journeys into an unclear past to better understand herself and her cultural heritage.
On June 16th, five years after the Maine-Wabanaki Truth Commission concluded, join special guest, Truth Commissioner Sandy White Hawk (Sicangu Lakota) along with filmmaker Adam Mazo, producer Tracy Rector (Choctaw/Seminole) and Upstander Project learning director Mishy Lesser for a Q & A moderated by Claudia Tekina’ru Fox Tree (Arawak/Yurumein) following the films.

DEAR GEORGINA now streaming and on DVD!



Jun
21
Sun
2020
The 8th Annual Children’s Global Wave Of Love @ Your time zone and heart space!
Jun 21 @ 1:11 pm

The 8th Annual Children’s Global Wave Of Love

June 21 at 1:11 pm in your heart and time zone.

We collectively come together to cultivate and

send forth our mission

“Children Across the Planet in Love, Care, and Respect.”

Picture


Picture

We Declare June Children’s Month!!!
Since everyday is children’s day, we create a year-long, free, activity platform for children, families, communities, schools, organizations and YOU to empower

heart space and help transform the world!

Our Mission Statement: Our mission is to provide complete and total support to all children with an entire month of activities that enhance all aspects of a child’s life.

From 0-20 in age, all races, religions, backgrounds and experiences.
A month of FUN! Stewardship, social and environmental activism!
Some suggestions for Mom and Dad, teachers, youth group leaders:
do parades, dances, and plays; songwriting and artwork; write letters to Congress, Parliament, Kings and Queens; shoot some documentaries and music videos; plant gardens—anything you can think of that does something good for the children !
Some suggestions for children:
send us your videos of what you are doing in…
music, dance, sk8 boarding…
Tell us your story !
Where are you at in the world?
What do you want to see happen?
Here is our new email address!
internationalchildrensmonth@gmail.

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