Social Goodness

After a day of travel, recovery, and catching up on work, I bring to you the final installment on my experience at the Social Good Summit; three days that have left me both exhausted and invigorated.

After working in the disaster space for a while, the community can feel small, which made attending this event a welcome opportunity to gain perspective and meet some new faces along the way. And while I may have some beef with certain aspects of the summit, it doesn’t change the fact that listening to people who are passionate and actively engaged in what they’re doing is something that I really enjoy.

So…what was it all about?

Some of the messages that were hammered home were: getting engaged, creating social movements, and empowering millennials. I realize that based on those cliched takeaways that I could've attended a conference on any number of topics, but that's what was scribbled over and over in my notes. And while they may be overused, it doesn't make them any less valid or important. Many of the speakers/panelists from Mashable to [Insert successful nonprofit here] have gained prominence and generated impact because they've been able to strike the right balance of the above factors.

With that said, there were two speakers who didn't represent organizations or foundations, they came as emissaries of two important ideas related to some of the consequences in the increase in ubiquity of social media.

1. Doug Rushkoff. Author, Communications Theorist, and all around smart guy gave a very insightful and brief talk on an interesting question: "What happens, When Everything Happens Now?" Below is his talk from a previous speaking engagement but is basically the same and here is his website: http://www.rushkoff.com/

2. Matt Wallaert. Behavioral Scientist, Entrepreneur, and also a smart guy who talked about: "Competing Pressures: The Struggle for the Future of Attention." As the tools to create movements around ideas and causes become more readily available, the number of messages competing for our attention and our dollars will increase. Matt talked about ways around our limited spans of attention, but his talk reminds me that the proliferation of organizations and causes may have a negative impact on social giving and the social impact space as a whole.

Was there enough talk of Disasters? Definitely not, but through my conversations and learning about my new champion President Yudhoyono, I’ve also stumbled onto something called the “Hyogo Framework for Action: 2005-2015. Building the Resilience of Nations and Communities in Disasters.” Something I will happily read and no doubt comment on. I also learned about some new nonprofits working to end Malaria and those who are trying to raise awareness around social issues that are impacting every country on the planet.

So while the Summit didn’t fit my pre-conceived notions of what I thought it should be, it left me with a lot of ideas, a lot of reading, and hopefully a little smarter and more aware of the challenges facing the world around us, and better equipped to tell that story through this blog.

Disasters as a footnote in the conversation on Climate Change

Climate Reality Project

Yesterday I wrote about how the Social Good Summit's theme of #2030NOW is an opportunity to inform the direction of the Post-2015 Agenda, or life after the Millennium Development Goals. With that understanding, I eagerly awaited today to hear about how the concept of climate change and disasters would be woven into some of the panels and presentations, and more importantly, how it would be cemented in the bedrock of the charter from which the global development community would derive its strategic direction for the next 15 years.

Al Gore kicked off the climate change portion of the day with an impassioned call to arms around climate action and introduced presentations like: We're already paying the cost of Carbon, Today's Solutions Tomorrow's Future, and Millennials Leading the Way. While very interesting, I was ultimately disappointed that disasters were only talked about as an outcome of unchecked carbon emissions rather than a topic within the broader conversation with it's own panel/presentation. 

I know that I shouldn't be surprised by this given that it was Al Gore leading the afternoon, but I feel that it was short-sighted. For the purposes of today's discussion at the Social Good Summit, Climate Change and the solutions proposed were economically based. Provide incentives to business to reduce carbon emissions by levying taxes or a financial tariff and bam! bottom-line thinking that gets at the root of the problem in a language business can understand. Talking in those terms however does not address the secondary and tertiary issues that arise from the fact that disasters are increasing in frequency and intensity, and ultimately affecting millions of people across the world annually. 

There was no talk of creating more resilient communities better prepared to deal with the cycle of drought, flooding, and famine in Africa, nor how vulnerable populations are addressing the challenges of flooding in cities like Manila. And there was certainly no talk of innovative technological solutions addressing the lack of coordination within OCHA's cluster system, nor how emergent groups are giving early recovery a facelift thanks to innovative social technologies. When looking at disasters through the lens of carbon emission, you're not talking about how to address the ongoing impacts of this augmented climate reality all of us are living in. Of course addressing the root of the problem is critical, but the conversation can and should be about so much more.

There was a bright spot however, Maggie Fox, CEO of the Climate Reality Project talked about climate change in the context of current events, i.e. the flooding in Colorado. She contextualized the issue by talking about how the impacts of this new climate reality are already unfolding in communities across the world and left the door open to continue to broaden the conversation as we move towards 2015. 

I realize that this summit is about expanding how we approach the unfinished business of the MDGs with new tech and fresh ideas, but I also thought it was about expanding upon what was built 13 years ago to encompass the new reality we face, the progress made, and the challenges we've encountered.

Indonesian President Yudhoyono...aka: STUD

Feeling down because no one wanted to talk about disasters, I turned to my friend the internet and looked for hope and found it in Indonesia's President, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. Hailed as the global champion for Disaster Risk Reduction, President Yudhoyono has mounted a crusade to ensure that the gains made in addressing the MDGs are not put in jeopardy due to the increasing risks natural disasters pose. The fact that there is an advocate championing this cause at some of the highest levels within the international development community, and one that represents a country with a deep appreciation for the impacts disasters can have on all aspects of community, gives me hope that the Post-2015 Agenda will have a broader approach to such an important issue.

Social Good Summit: Day 1

Day 1 of the Social Good Summit and I'm in recovery. Today was a mind melting, rapid-fire, Ted-styled idea jam™. Six hours of captivating stories, innovative ideas, and compelling calls to action, from how technology is playing a central role in combating malaria, to the quest for conflict free technology and the dark-side of society's techno-fetish. The discussions and conversations had today were and continue to be a lot to process. 

The theme of this years Social Good Summit is #2030NOW, building on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) created in 2000 to help to guide the discussion for what the post-2015 conversation will look like...with 2030 being the metaphorical finish line.

Giving yourself 15 years to tackle significant systemic issues impacting the global human condition--to say that's ambitious would be an understatement. So with 2015 fast approaching, the UN issued a progress report in July giving a state of the union on where things stand related to the MDGs:

http://www.undp.org/content/dam/undp/library/MDG/english/mdg-report-2013-english.pdf

So what does any of this have to do with the Social Good Summit? Even with the report citing some amazing progress being made, due to a myriad of factors, the MDGs won't be realized by the original deadline. So instead of dropping it, a Post-2015 Agenda is being created, and because things have changed since the MDGs were created, like new instruments to measure impact and new approaches conceived at conferences like Rio+20, a shift in the approach to the post-2015 agenda is needed.

Enter the Social Good Summit.

While the purpose of the Summit isn't to write the book on how to approach life after 2015, it is talking about how to continue chipping away at the MDGs and to do so with greater efficiency. Since 2000 there has been explosive growth in the development and application of technology, mobile or otherwise, in addressing many of the societal issues outlined by the MDGs. By bringing together leaders in industry, the humanitarian sector, education, nonprofits, and the social media sphere to talk about what's working and what isn't, the resulting nuggets of wisdom gained through trial and error can hopefully be incorporated into how 2015 and beyond is approached.

Bring on Day 2.

The Social Good Summit

https://conversationprism.com/

The above graphic represents the ubiquitous nature of social media applications while illustrating the pervasiveness with which they've permeated almost every aspect of our lives.

It's clear that social media has revolutionized the way we tell stories, report the news, relate to one another, build community, and help one another, and with the understanding that this is only the beginning, it's important that we ask how these tools can help create solutions to some of the larger problems we face. Solutions like Crisis Cleanup are an example of how properly leveraged social media coupled with existing institutions within our social fabric (google maps, 2-1-1, etc), can provide the foundation upon which new ideas and solutions to persistent problems can be created.

In that vein, I'm pleased share that I have been accepted to attend the Social Good Summit, a conference that provides an opportunity to talk about the intersection of big ideas and new media in an effort to create solutions to some of our most pressing social challenges. The speaker power at this event is quite impressive and while I wish I was invited as a panelist, I have the privilege of attending as a member of the press representing this blog. (horn toot)

With sponsors like the UN Foundation, The United Nations Development Program, and The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, this event is an exciting opportunity...Jeremey, what do you mean by exciting opportunity?

Well, I'm glad you asked.

This is an exciting opportunity due to the diverse and influential crowd attending this event. This can be an opportunity to advocate for the increase of focus and resources available to build resilience and preparedness given the increased frequency and intensity of events that are impacting our communities. Given that real change takes time and my time will be limited, I'm asking for your help.

If you were attending this event what are the sorts of questions you would ask? While I look funny dressed up, this is an opportunity to advocate on behalf of our community of practice and your input is valued. I believe that we can get more out of this event if more perspectives are included in the mix--think of it like crowdsourcing to get the best possible outcome.

So, based on the outline below what would you ask? 

The Social Good Summit unites a dynamic community of global leaders to discuss a big idea: the power of innovative thinking and technology to solve our greatest challenges: to unlock the potential of new media and technology to make the world a better place, and then to translate that potential into action.

I don't know what to expect but with our collective brain trust it's my hope to generate conversations around issues important to us as a community of practice.

Thanks in advance for your help.