As he emerged from the subway 20 minutes late for work due to a decision to have a birthday breakfast with his infant daughter, Mike Jaffe could not have predicted that his life was about to change forever. Seeing the plane slam into the offices on the very floor where he worked, Mike Jaffe stood on the streets of New York City while the world erupted into smoke and flames. In the days that followed, the realization of his near miss death caused many hours of long reflection on his life and his dedication to his job.
More than the understanding of his own potential for a “Wake Up Call,” Mike knew he had to help others live an authentic life based on pursuit of their life goals to honor his many friends lost in the tragedy of 9/11. In the seven years since, Mike has touched thousands of people through Jaffe Life Design (www.jaffelifedesign.com) and inspired them to rewrite their tomorrow (www.rewriteyourtomorrow.com) by changing their lives today. Read more...
Eve Anderson is a holistic healer who has been healing people successfully from all kinds of disease or trouble for the past 6 years. She created a healing method back in 2002, one of a kind, for karma clearing, longevity, perfection on physical, emotional, mental and spiritual levels.
She has the ability to instantly remove karmic blocks in our life, which in turn activates the genes and strands in our DNA in millions which is the key for longevity and perfection. Read more...
Joi Gordon is chief executive officer of Dress for Success Worldwide, an international grassroots organization that has provided professional attire, mentoring, support and career development tools to more than 450,000 disadvantaged women since 1997.
Joi is a visionary, cheerleader, and tireless advocate responsible for overseeing an affiliate network that now spans 87 cities in 5 countries. She is responsible for strengthening the Dress for Success brand, implementing innovative programming and developing collaborative relationships with corporations, foundations and individuals who share the organization’s mission. Read more...
Frank Stewart is a founding editor of the international literary journal MANOA. Published twice a year since 1989, the magazine is now one of the most highly regarded literary journals in the U.S. and has done groundbreaking work in the field of publishing.
For example, in 2004 it produced In the Shadow of Angkor in 2004, described at the journal's website as follows: "Published twenty-five years after the defeat of the Khmer Rouge regime, In the Shadow of Angkor captures the resurgence of the Cambodian arts community and its efforts to restore a rich literary heritage. In many of the works, the artists defy the decimation of their brothers and sisters by the Khmer Rouge, as well as the attempt to erase Cambodia's memory of its history. The range of expression is impressive: the volume includes poetry, short story, film, rap lyrics, and essays, plus interviews with authors and a portfolio of photographs of Cambodia." Read more...
Dr. Bruce Charash, is a leading Cardiology and Internal Medicine specialist at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City - and one of the most enthusiastic people I have ever had the pleasure to meet. While long committed to social causes, Dr. Charash was inspired by a call to action from President Clinton to put his passions into practice.
His stature, connections, drive, and must-do spirit have been the driving forces behind the creation of an organization, Doc to Dock, that collects unused excess basic medical supplies from US hospitals and provides them to clinics in developing nations. Read more...
Bishnu Maya Pariyar grew up in rural Nepal. A Dailt, lowest caste in the Hindu caste system, she was destined to live out her life in abject poverty while bowing in submission to higher castes and as a woman, the men of her caste. Bishnu broke out of the chains she was born into and fought to go to school.
She was fortunate to meet the right people and was able to get an American education which she is now using to help those who are in the position she was in. Her organization EDWON, Empower Dalit Women of Nepal, is helping women who would otherwise be forgotten. These women were beaten daily, forced to work their fingers to the bones for nothing in return and considered worthless. They were not allowed education nor to go to temple to worship. Read more...
Arlene Goldbard is the most respected person in my field: community-based arts, i.e. artists collaborating with communities for positive social change. She has written the seminal textbooks in the field and approaches her subject with deep intelligence, piercing analysis and a full, open heart. She has written for our magazine, High Performance, and written for our Web site, The Community Arts Network. She is the most intelligent optimist I have ever worked with in 35 years in this field. Read more...
Lauren Abramson is a psychologist who has worked with children and families in communities for the past 25 years. She is the Founder and Executive Director of the Community Conferencing Center in Baltimore, Maryland and Assistant Professor (part-time) in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine.
Lauren focused attention on Community Conferencing in Baltimore in 1995. She advances conferencing as a means of building social capital and collective efficacy on many levels, including:
- empowering individuals and communities to resolve their own conflicts
- keeping young people out of the criminal justice system
- mobilizing the existing untapped human assets in communities
Robi Damelin lives in Tel Aviv. She immigrated from South Africa in 1967. Robi’s son, David, was killed by a sniper while on military reserve duty, in March 2002. David was 28 years old, and was studying for his Masters Degree in the Philosophy of Education at the Tel-Aviv University. He strongly believed that through education, he could make a difference in Israel.
After David’s death, Robi felt a burning need to do something to try and prevent other parents from experiencing the dreadful pain of losing a child. She closed her successful Public Relations firm to devote her entire time and energy to the Parents Circle
L. Hunter Lovins is President and founder of Natural Capitalism Solutions. NCS educates senior decision-makers in business, government and civil society to restore and enhance the natural and human capital while increasing prosperity and quality of life. In partnership with leading thinkers and implementers, NCS creates innovative, practical tools and strategies to enable companies, communities and countries to become more sustainable.
Lovins has consulted for scores of industries and governments worldwide. She has consulted with large and small companies including the International Finance Corporation, Royal Dutch Shell, Interface, Clif Bar and Wal-Mart. Governmental clients include the Pentagon, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Department of Energy and other agencies, numerous cities, and the governments of Jamaica, Australia, and the U.S. She also serves an advisor to the Energy Minister of the Government of Afghanistan. Read more...
I met Arlene during Gov. Jerry (Moonbeam) Brown's administration. I'd been drawn by his radical new California Arts Council's commitments to social engagement and cultural diversity in the arts, but was depressed to see how like Bunuel's "Viridiana" (which I saw at the Chicago Latino Film Fest, en route to California from Washington, DC) that agency -- and Brown's administration -- turned out to be: old-fashioned cronyism in reverse.
There was one exception: the Council had contracted with a leading artist-activist from San Francisco, Arlene Goldbard, to create a statewide network of artists and community organizers committed to their espoused values. Unlike much of the CAC's own work, Arlene's independent agency -- Cultural News & Services -- was truly committed to the empowerment of creative community members to transform culture in their own communities. Read more...
Bill Walczak has been working for decades to bring high quality health services to his community of Dorchester in Boston, MA. In addition to founding and continuing to lead the Codman Square Health Center (www.codman.org) from 1970 into the present, Bill has helped motivate, found and lead numerous other community organizations that have helped maintain the vibrant multi-ethnic culture that is Dorchester.
Bill has been recognized locally for over a decade as one of the most successful leaders in the non-profit and health care sectors and a short summary of his work can be found here. Read more...
Adam Bucko exemplifies the values, attitudes, and beliefs that define an Intelligent Optimist. Adam is the Founder, Managing Director and spiritual drive behind the Reciprocity Foundation. He is a former monk, a trained sociologist, lecturer, social services sector consultant and a veteran homeless youth program coordinator.
The Reciprocity Foundation is a U.S. non-profit organization which enables homeless and high-risk youth and young adults to permanently exit the social services system and start meaningful, sustainable careers in the Creativity Economy (e.g. fashion, design, marketing, public relations). The Reciprocity Foundation aims to build a national network of programs to enable homeless youth to enroll in college, secure hands-on work experiences and build a professional network in their field of interest. Currently, their work is focused on the thousands of homeless youth in New York City, New York. Read more...
Jon Young is an innovator, inspirator and wonderful leader. He has created the Wilderness Awareness schools on the east coast and several other places in the states and around the world. Jon currently lives in California and has a large group of followers and community members.
This community consists of people of all ages, where (nature) awareness and peace making are the basis. He makes an important difference in peoples lives by example and by his teachings. He recently published the book Coyote Mentoring. Read more...
Margaret Trost recently published On That Day, Everybody Ate: One Woman's Story of Hope and Possibility in Haiti
She was able to establish the What If? Foundation which began to feed 200 children one day a week. The program has grown to feed 1700 children five days a week and provide over 200 educational scholarships for students. Two hundred and fifty dollars provides tuition, books and uniforms for a student for an entire year. Read more...
Patrice is an Austin musician and founder of the Grace Foundation of Austin - a community-based organization dedicated to helping provide healthcare, education, career training and job placement to young adults who have survived homelessness.
The Grace Foundation is a nonprofit organization aimed at helping individuals whose lives have been affected by abuse and poverty, causing them to become homeless at a young age. This choice affects their ability to stay in school, maintain proper health, make a consistent income and contribute to society in a positive manner. Read more...
I nominate Professor Robert Quinn of the University of Michigan Ross School of Business (www.bus.umich.edu/FacultyBios/FacultyBio.asp?id=000119677). While being one of the most influential thought leaders on issues concerning leadership, vision and change in the world, he has established the Center for Positive Organizational Scholarship:
The Center for Positive Organizational Scholarship (www.bus.umich.edu/Positive) is committed to advancing research in the emerging field of Positive Organizational Scholarship (POS). This Web site is both a medium of communication for the Center for POS, and a learning and networking community for POS scholars and practitioners worldwide. They also welcome anyone who is interested in learning about this emerging field. Read more...
Donna Stoering was a child prodigy who gave her first piano concert at age five. From there she went on to win many music honors and has become known worldwide as a concert pianist.
Donna was also an excellent student. After receiving her masters degree at age 19, she was selected to be a Marshall Scholar. She chose to study in the UK and subsequently made Europe (Italy and then the UK) her home base as she played concerts around the world. Read more...
Ever since I entered AssistU (www.assistu.com) back in 2001, my life has changed, and I'm not shy about telling the world. :) AssistU taught me the basics of starting my virtual assistance business, of course, but it did so much more than that. It taught me that I could be valued and appreciated for who I was. That I could work with people of my choosing. That I could get paid in accordance with my valuable skills. That I could have high standards. That I could attract good things to my life.
My life has never been the same, and never will be again. Read more...
Chris is my beloved husband and a most amazing intelligent optimist with a heart as big as ever : ) I work and travel with Chris so I see him in action. The work sounds romantic and in many ways it is -- but it also very challenging work. Being on the frontline means witnessing first hand some of the most difficult examples of the human being's destructive tenancy. Remaining optimistic within this line of work takes a special sort of character. Chris' hope is inspiring to many.
In Chris' own words: "My job is to accomplish three things: to deliver healing benefits to the market, to help preserve the natural environment by keeping areas agriculturally based and, to enhance living conditions for indigenous people."- Medicine Hunter Chris Kilham Read more...
Demos Kouvaris is the Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer of Chestnut Hill Ventures LLC in Wellesley, Massachusetts. In addition to his busy schedule and job related responsibilities, he is helping to put a non-profit organization that supports homeless children and families 'on the map.'
Demos consistently motivates and challenges the CEO of Housing Families Inc. and the entire Board of Directors to find better and greater ways to raise funds and awareness for this very worthy cause. Read more...
Sometimes we receive a message in life that is hard to ignore. For Jill, that message came in 1993 when a single moment was to alter the course of her life forever...
During the first investigation of a bear farm in China, Jill discovered Asiatic Black Bears imprisoned in tiny cages literally no bigger than their own bodies. Painfully milked each day for their bile through metal catheters crudely inserted into their abdomens, these bears had endured unimaginable physical and mental abuse for over 20 years. As she documented the conditions on that first farm (later exposing the practice to the international community), a bear reached out from one of the coffin-like cages and gently touched Jill. It was a silent plea for help and in that moment, Jill made a promise to do whatever she could to end their suffering. Read more...
Kathy inspires and practically helps young people produce films and other media projects that create awareness of problems in the world. The projects Kathy supports show positive actions all over the world that better problem situations. She does this through her organisation named "Creative Visions." Kathy is a realistic and yet high-reaching person, who does not loose her practicality in her idealism. Read more...
Chef Ann Cooper is a renegade lunch lady. She works to transform cafeterias into culinary classrooms for students - one school lunch at a time.
At The Ross School in East Hampton, NY, Chef Ann served as the executive chef and director of wellness and nutrition, developing an integrated school lunch curriculum centered on regional, organic, seasonal and sustainable meals. The implementation of her pilot wellness program proved successful, and Chef Ann was invited to work with schools across the country. She has transformed public school cafeterias in New York City, Harlem and Bridgehampton, NY, and now in Berkeley, CA, to teach more students why good food choices matter by putting innovative strategies to work and providing fresh, organic lunches to all students. Read more...
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