A crash course in changing the world.

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Secrets of Social Innovation: The World is Not Small

Several of these secrets offer the same lesson: "Problems are not always obvious from afar." "Learn everything there is to know about the specific context." "Understand by observing the environment, infrastructure, culture and lives of people by being there."

These are all about local context, and they are about…

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Added by Rob MacDougall on March 5, 2010 at 4:07pm — 2 Comments

The Shadows are a Welcoming Place

The decision of who to shadow for this blog and I'm sure the continuation of this "game" was not a hard one for me. As a student of Arabic and intelligence studies, my primary region of interest is the Middle East. I expand that to include places as far apart as Morocco and Pakistan. One individual who has made a lot of progress in the eastern most portion of this area is Greg Mortenson. He's founded the Central Asia Institute and with their help built over 80 secular schools in Pakistan and… Continue

Added by Shukketsushi on March 5, 2010 at 4:05pm — No Comments

Appliances That save peoples lives.

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Added by Reid Falconer on March 5, 2010 at 4:00pm — No Comments

How To: Starting a project 2

Once you have come up with your goal, you start working backwards.

Grab a pencil and paper and draw the steps backwards from the goal. Don't forget the testing time! If you build a system to bring water to a region, flipping the switch is not the last step. You have to flip the switch and then make sure it's going to continue working in adverse conditions after you turn your back.

Get these steps down. Put them in phases and then under each phase…

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Added by John Tsangaris on March 5, 2010 at 4:00pm — No Comments

IMAGINE1

Where would I see myself in 2020?

Well firstly I would like to still be living in South Africa. I do believe that there is lots of potential within our country and I would like to be able seize the opportunities available and to benefit from them. I would like to have done a MBA (Masters in Business Administration) within the next 10 years which would help me in achieving my goal of being a successful business man one day. In 10 years I would like to have just set up and be…

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Added by Shaun King on March 5, 2010 at 3:55pm — No Comments

Market principles > giving stuff free

Some random thoughts on paid for vs free in no particular order.

Free is not actually free. Especially with charity of late, donors are increasingly vigilant about how their donations are spent. It is ever

rarer that aid should come with no strings attached. As such, even

donations are not free but paid for; it's just that the currency is not

money but obedience, political capital or a waiver of influence.

However, even as they're paid for, donations are worse… Continue

Added by Dilyan Damyanov on March 5, 2010 at 3:54pm — No Comments

We need progress

What you have matters more than what you lack (If you’ve got a bicycle,
consider what you can build based on that, rather than worrying about
not having a car, a truck, a metal shop.)

Added by Stephan Deloustal on March 5, 2010 at 3:35pm — No Comments

Freedom of thought

think like a child – children have no limit to their thinking

In modern life we are often constrained in our thinking and so in our imagination, we have so many demands on our time and attention we may fail to make connections or allow enough time for our brains to mull over a situation and throw up a great solution.

We also expect ideas and solutions to be instant.

Children play and observe, ask questions without fear of them being seen as 'stupid questions' and have no… Continue

Added by Sarah Evans on March 5, 2010 at 3:34pm — 2 Comments

Signature Strengths

Share knowledge and skills to continue the innovative process both to and from people and communities.

Don't keep the good stuff to yourself. The more we know collectively, the more we can achieve. Understand that each of us has signature strengths which differ, and only by working together can we achieve greater goals for the greater good.

Added by Poach on March 5, 2010 at 3:31pm — No Comments

We need progress

What you have matters more than what you lack (If you’ve got a bicycle,

consider what you can build based on that, rather than worrying about

not having a car, a truck, a metal shop.)

Although what we have is important, what we need is even more important. If you're satisfied with what you've got, then we'll never progress as human beings. That's where innovation comes in. That's our we, as humans, have developed and grown, by taken taking what already existed and transformed… Continue

Added by Stephan Deloustal on March 5, 2010 at 3:30pm — No Comments

Keep learning from your customers

To be a Social innovator is bring new strategies,concepts, ideas and organizations that meet social needs of all kinds.

Keep learning from your customers - Its when you listen to your customers so that you can understand them and be able to identify their needs and wants. From the customer feedback you can implement an effective strategy that will meet their satisfaction.

Added by Sfiso Mbhele on March 5, 2010 at 3:30pm — 1 Comment

Engineers as Social Innovators: Heroes with Slide Rules in their Pockets

I like to read the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) flagship magazine IEEE Spectrum, especially the annual Dream Jobs issue that comes out in February. In each group of engineers that they profile, they often have at least one person who is doing amazing engineering work with significant social implications. This is the type of social innovation that intrigues me the most.

For example, a Fijian engineer named Arieta Gonevelu is using her engineering knowledge… Continue

Added by Dan Horan on March 5, 2010 at 3:30pm — No Comments

GAME1: LOCAL INSIGHT

I think local insight is one of the most important powers, of course all of the powers are useful, I belive that you cannot do much without knowing your market. As you can see if you look at my post LEARN 1

Added by Hannah Peratopoullos on March 5, 2010 at 3:21pm — 3 Comments

My favorite innovation secret

My favorite secret has to be the first one from Ethan Zuckerman's post 'Innovating from constraint' which says innovation (often) comes from constraint (If you've got very few resources, you've forced to be very creative in using and reusing them.)

In most instances you don't always have the desired resources that you may want to complete a certain task. Therefore it is vital that you think with an open mind about how to use the limited resources in such a way to make…

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Added by Shaun King on March 5, 2010 at 3:18pm — No Comments

Teach them to fish

Provide skills, not just finished technologies

The thing that is both amazing and frustrating about the secrets of social innovation is that there is nothing particularly new or revolutionary about any of the ideas. The saying

Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day; teach a man to fish and he will eat for a lifetime.

is as old as dirt but it is an absolute truth. In the US, often…

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Added by Greg Smith on March 5, 2010 at 3:08pm — 3 Comments

John Patrick vs. World Bank

No game without the drama!

My friend John Patrick just published this:…

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Added by Raymond M. Kristiansen on March 5, 2010 at 3:08pm — 11 Comments

My Favorite Secret

Amy Smith's secret of attempting to live on two dollars a day is one of my favorites. Recently I feel that I am coming to a personal fiscal responsibility that I never had in earlier years so I feel I can connect with this point. Differentiating between wants and needs is particularly hard in a developed country where debt is an integral part of the culture. This helps me get closer, although minutely, to identifying with a culture that has no such crutches and priorities come into clear focus.… Continue

Added by Timothy Trulis on March 5, 2010 at 3:01pm — No Comments

The E-Mails have been Sent

So I have spent the morning constructing and sending out an introduction letter too the college, the United Way and the Rochester School District to ask for their support in this project.

While it is a small step it is the first of many that I will need to take in the 30 days that I have left to complete this personal mission of mine. The next 29 are going to be much tougher than copy/paste a letter.

Here is too the future. Let the negotiations begin. Oh, the stress but… Continue

Added by Eric Trott on March 5, 2010 at 3:01pm — No Comments

"Theres an app for that"

I wonder how soon I will be able to download an evoke app for my phones. Does anyone know if there are any in development? If so I would love to be a part of the development/testing. My urgent evokes are already pushed to my phones but wouldn't it be great to have the entire networks functionality in my pocket? Yeh I know I can visit urgentevoke.com via the browser on my phone but the navigation leaves a little to be desired.

Added by Bryan Carman on March 5, 2010 at 3:00pm — No Comments