Social Impact Social Media

dan.org What and where is the Nemo's Garden project?  It is an experimental alternative farming underwater biosphere off the coast of Italy started by Sergio Gamberini founder of the Ocean Reef Group in Vista California.  In the summer of 2012, Sergio was enjoying a seaside vacation on the Italian Riviera. Resting in between dives, he enjoyed strolling along the edge of the sea chatting with friends. One day, the conversation veered to his other passion: gardening. He wondered if it would be possible to create the perfect environment to grow basil and was struck by an unusual idea- would it be possible to grow basil underwater? The answer is yes. Plants including basil, strawberries and tomatoes are grown in underwater biospheres They are also experimenting with green beans, peas, zucchini, flowers and a variety of herbs. The goal is to provide an underwater farming alternative without pests or pesticides as a benefit to areas where crops are currently difficu...

oneearth.org Omar Tello, now 64, planted a rainforest from scratch in Ecuador.    38 years ago he bought 7 hectares of land that had been completely cleared. Over time, he converted the pasture into a pristine forest. In the beginning, he spent each afternoon and evening removing the pasture grass with a machete, and then he planted trees and shrubs that he had brought from other parts of the forest that were being cut down. Early on, crickets would eat his baby trees, so one by one, he would get rid of them by hand. It took him 15 years to restore the soil. Then he began training others to do the same-- that resulted in formation of the nonprofit Humans for Abundance . They have a network of "restorers" with projects in environmental #conservation , #restoration and #agroecology . You can explore the work they do and donate to support the projects you are most passionate about. Visit them on Facebook or follow on Instagram @humansforabundance #environment...

Discarded electronics create 50 million tons of global waste each year.  Rwandan-based #Wastezon is doing it's part. So far the mobile app has helped send 460 tons to electronics recyclers in Rwanda alone.  The result is a great positive impact on turning recycled plastic into creative new products. To learn more, meet their team and ask them questions visit https://wastezon.com or follow them on Facebook and Twitter #recycledmaterials #recycling #sustainability

I have always been a big fan of spoken word and the art of storytelling. I look forward to platforms like the MOTH.org and TED.com because they give us a chance to get outside ourselves and literally jump into the experiences and perspectives of so many others.  Spoken word and story telling are ways of connecting in an intimate way with other individual's lives. I've always come away from these listening experiences with a greater appreciation that we ARE all connected. The StoryCorps ("storycore") mission is to collect as many American stories as possible from all walks of life.  StoryCorps is an independent nonprofit.   Since 2003  they have collected over 45,000 stories with over 90,000 folks participating.   The storyteller gets a copy their story to share. The stories are also preserved  in the American Folk Center at the Library of Congress.   These stories ranging from couples talking about how they met, families of immigrants...

Nationwide, according a report from Children Uniting Nations, as of 2014 463,000 American children live in foster care. California has a larger number of children in the system than any other state based on a 2009 AFCARS report. facebook.com Generally at age 18 these young adults are considered “emancipated” and “age out” of the foster care system.  According to an article by John Kelly Editor-In-Chief of the Chronicle For Social Change and the Alliance for Children’s Rights, the number of young adults in California staying in the system for extended foster care up to age 21 has more than doubled since 2012 from 2,000 to over 5,000. The fact is whether at age 18 or 21 these young adults exit the system and then what? The answers are in the data from WELIFTLA and Alliance for Children’s Rights . ·          The stats for those exiting without any sort of housing have varied from 30 – 65% depending on the year ·   ...

voyagela.com Light Bringer is a Pasadena California based nonprofit with signature events including the Annual Chalk Festival- the largest street painting festival in the world and the annual Pasadena Doo Dah Parade –a spoof on the Pasadena Rose Parade. The organization is credited with opening the first young artists’ Room 13, an international network of self-sustaining young artists driven creative studios, to the U.S.A. To date Light Bringer is credited with spearheading the opening of five Room 13 young artists’ studios in the greater Pasadena and Los Angeles County area and the momentum of more Room 13 studios opening across the country. lightbringer.org Other studios are now open in Missouri, Colorado, North Carolina and Indiana. A recent display showing in Pasadena’s Public Library was inspiration for a Room 13 to start in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The Room 13 studio model is based upon four pillars of learning: philosophical inquiry, creative expression, recipr...

Generations Group Home works with adolescent and pre-adolescent males who are in primary need of specialized services for abusive behaviors.  Located in Fountain Inn, South Carolina Generations Group Home was founded in 1991 by Kathleen Reynolds.  Kathleen was compelled and challenged by former SC State Senator Nell Smith' outreach to put an end to the generations of troubled children who were growing up in locked residential institution. There was an obvious need to address the increasing number of “system’s kids” emerging into society. Many of them troubled and abused teens that frequently disrupted foster placements and traditional group care acting out the violence they experienced. Most alarming was the terrible cycle of sexual abuse that was being repeated by these boys. Emotional, physical, and sexual abuse issues had to be addressed to stop this cycle. Generations currently is made up of three campuses... Horizons currently with 20 residents, Bridges ...