why do we give money or time to people we have never met?

I just made a KIVA donation, if you have never heard of it please check out Jessica Jackley here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cqj0sgrNL10, an amazing organisation doing really amazing things.  My question; what is the psychology, behaviour, attitude and values behind doing something for someone half way around the world who you have never and will never meet?  Sponsor a child, make a micro loan, send donations, etc.  I am sure there is a wealth of information out there on this subject a literature review would probably be quite valuable.  I discussed this yesterday with Auden Schendler author of Getting Green Done and the sustainability VP for Aspen ski resort (pretty cool job).  Auden highly recommended reading Peter Singers (a utilitarian philanthropist) book The Life You Can Save.  Auden says this book says it all, why we give, why we don't, and most importantly why we should!!!  A short video can be found here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=onsIdBanynY&feature=player_embedded.  Brilliant, make a drop in the bucket, so simple. 


On the ride home from the Building Saskatchewan Green Conference today a friend said to me, "I and I" (Used in the rastafarian religion in place of "you and me" to show that all people are equal under Jah.)  and the Beatles sang "I am you and you are me and we are all together".  We are all in this together, a friend often says to me just some of us won the lottery at birth (if you are reading this I am likely referring to you), which I am so thankful for... 


make a drop in the bucket, you, me, we can make a difference!

Roadmonkey Vietnam 2011 - An Attempt At Words

What can I say other than thank you, I was completely humbled yet again by the kindness, generosity and hospitality of the Vietnamese people.

http://www.docstoc.com/docs/document-preview.aspx?doc_id=102279884

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http://www.ted.com/talks/graham_hill_less_stuff_more_happiness.html

Less = More <=>

Watch it!  This is five minutes of your life well spent.  You may even come out with less stuff, less space, a new outlook...  Housing in Regina is currently worth about $200 / square foot to build, this doesn't include the land.  So for the average monster house which we are currently building to the North, East and Harbour Landing south of our city, this is costing 2000sqft x 200/sqft roughly 400,000 + the space (200,000), so roughly 600,000 per house.  What if you could live in half that amount of space, you would save 200,000... I don't know about you but for me to save 200,000 could take decades...

I just returned from Vietnam (more on that to come) where we built a 320ft sq home for a family of three.  In comparison to what many in that community have, they tell me that this is a palace.  I felt a real sense of community while in Vietnam, neighbours look out for children, everyone knows everyone, you don't need to worry about full time supervision of your children because everyone knows everyone in the community and will keep an eye on them.  While I was there this looked a little bit like little monkeys running around everywhere, without the care of a parent.  Since I returned I learned this is completely normal.
Recognizing that you don't have to live close together or in small homes to have a vibrant community, I believe rural and farm communities in Saskatchewan to be very vibrant and warm.  I feel like the design of living closer together (so close) in modest (small) dwellings encourages us to engage with our neighbours and our community much more.

How many square feet do you occupy?  Could you live in 320ft sq?  Could you share it with your sibling and an uncle, like the Vietnamese family we met?  My sister who lives with me, as well as a roommate, in what I am sure the Vietnamese would consider a kingdom (1600sq ft condo), is downsizing.  I am up to the challenge.  Downsize, buy less stuff, occupy less space, save money, reduce your footprint...  I am heading upstairs right now to go through my closet!!

kind of a ramble, sorry about that, the video was worth watching at least!

cheers

curtis

It's all over...

They recently cut open the human brain to look at why we do the things we do, what drives humans, for many years this has been studied through careful observation and experimentation, but now they have chopped it open and looked at the brain behind all those decisions.  So what did they learn?  What are we driven by?

We are driven by four emotional needs:

·         Drive to acquire (obtain scarce goods including intangibles such as social status)

·         Bond (form connections with individuals and groups)

·         Comprehend (satisfy our curiosity and master the world around us)

·         Defend (protect against external threats and promote justice)

So What - well this is the answer to my question, if all I have is all I need then why is all I ever want is more?  Why?  Because I have been hard wired through years of our evolving brain to want more.  The Harvard article states we are driven to acquire, stuff, food, toys and also status, travel and experiences.  We also want to compare to our neighbours, to base our success on what they have, because more is relative and the bottom line we have an insatiable desire for more.

So what if the finite planet can't handle our endless desire for more?  Are we able to re-evolve the mind and actually want less?  Are we able to desire and want a sustainable lifestyle?  a bright future for our children, other species and future generations?

Maybe, also in the article they discuss our other psychological (emotional) wants and these are to Comprehend, to Bond, and to Defend.  What this means is that we are also hard wired to want to understand science, our world, how things work, etc.  Which has lead us to a deeper understanding of almost everything, including our planet and its constraints on more.  At the same time we are driven to defend, this includes ourselves and direct threats to us and our family but it also includes our neighbours, our communities our friends, our workplaces, organisations and society as a whole.  Finally we are driven to bond, to get along and interact and be friendly with one another and seek social interaction and engagement.  So to sum it all up, if we are driven to learn that our finite planet needs us (comprehend) to be better stewards, and that sharing that planet more equitably would help us all get along better (bond) and that we can help the planet and its people (defend) then I think we can overcome our insatiable appetite for more, I think!  I'm sure a poet could have more luck at making this all sound more poetic...  

enjoy the article as I have, the journey to learn why is all I ever want is more is somewhat over, but I think I will keep blogging, because I have grown to like it, at least a little!!

http://www.opragroup.com/images/opra/pdf/assess/employee%20motivation%20article%20-%20hbr.pdf

Plan de Vida

After reading some great books on the secrets to happiness and long life.  The Blue Zones by Dan Buettner who traveled the world and interviewed those who are living the longest.  One of his key findings was that 'Plan de Vida' in knowing what your life purpose is, is one of the secrets/keys to living a long, healthy and happy life.  So on the subject of plan de vida, I have a few themes in my head today.

I can't help but feeling like we (Canadians, Saskatchewanians, most of the people that I know) are living like kings and queens used to live.  The store shelves are full, the fridge is never empty, we have fast cars, often multiple, computers, smart phones, running water, on demand electricity, great vacations, etc etc etc.  I feel so privileged to be leading the life I live.  I want to partner this thought with one that the Ontario yogi Michael Stone speaks and writes about.  To Serve.  I agree that To Serve is an important piece of this Plan de Vida, now how to put it into action...

You only live once.  I think that with privilege you have the benefit of time and money to think about this concept that you only live once.  You are able to get out of the daily grind of survival, long enough to think about what you want to do, how you will lead your one precious life, these are very privileged thoughts.  If you are just getting by you don't really have the time to consider your options.  Well you only live once has often lead to excitement, pleasure, fun and freedom for myself, doing things that I really enjoy, but that maybe a little or even a lot selfish.  So why do I do them?  You only live once...

Share your passion.  It's fun to do and it feels good.  This can be a tricky balance as often the best way to engage is to ask questions not to share what you love.  But finding ways to share your passion can be rewarding and of course fun.  Why not share the things you love with others who are willing.

So, I don't know why I am blogging this, the rider game is hardly worth watching and I wanted to get a few thoughts on paper.  To Serve, Privilege. You Only Live Once. Share Your Passion.  My philosophy for the day.

cd

Why do we travel???

Why do we travel?

The endless pursuit of happiness, to meet people and learn about new places, because we can, to share our stories with others, to do things (ie. Kite/surf) that we can’t do at home, again because we can we believe we work so hard and do deserve extravagant vacations, to learn language and try new foods, to tell stories to our friends and families, to make life more interesting, relax, I really don’t know the answer, it’s probably a bit of all of the above.  When did travel become engrained in our culture?  When did we start deserving to travel?  Don’t get me wrong I do love it, but I think maybe for reasons that are not obvious.  I think I loved speaking broken Portuguese with the kids and practicing Yoga and Capoeira (Brazilian karate) with them in the front yard at night more than actually kiting their most amazing beaches and steady winds…  In Hatterass I think I enjoyed spending time with 60 other crazy kiters high on life more than actually spending time on the water connected to kite and board… 

I just finished reading two excellent books which I highly recommend.  The Indian Creek Chronicles about a young lad (21ish) a complete outdoors novice who spends 7 months basically alone in a canvas tent in the mountains of Montana.  It a great tale of wilderness and silence and being alone and taking the time to think and reflect and really enjoying nature.  He talks of his college friends and until recently himself in the pursuit of fun without thinking.  I wonder how much of that goes on in our pursuit of travel and holidays…  Fun without thinking.  If I think about it, I think I do this all the time.  The story ends in a great paradox where all the while he is craving the end of winter when the loneliness will end and he will get to go back to civilization, when it finally comes he misses the lonely forest with all the animals and the way of life he has come to love…

The other book was A Brave New World by Huxley.  A Utopia or Dystopia where civilization has advanced to the point where women no longer give birth to babies and there is no sorrow in society.  People live in constant happiness, everyone belongs to everyone, there are multiple lovers but no sole love, you don’t get to connected to anyone, they enjoy sex, drugs and recreation all the time.  Everyone knows there role in the world and plays it.  It sounds idyllic but is it? 

My roommate recently said there comes a point when there is a marginal return on fun.  Where you have maximized your enjoyment out of holidaying or kiting or partying and you need to get back to doing something that you may not really enjoy if only to really enjoy all that other stuff again. 

So arriving home from Brazil and what did I learn?  

On Green Teams

Thinking about Green Teams and the work we have been doing at my head office lately (rooftop garden, green building video, lunch and learns, print reduction presentation and strategy, newsletter, research, making friends, sharing stories and information, electronic phone books and the e-Leader Post, telework pilot, etc etc)

I recognize that we won't solve all the world's or even our own problems.
I recognize these are difficult problems to solve (reducing our environmental footprint).

I believe and have experienced using a grassroots team to work on seemingly small things can be a beautiful experience!!!

I believe Henry David Thorough wrote "small is beautiful" however Wikipedia will not confirm those, nor will Google, it could easily have been someone else.  I leave you with that, small is beautiful!!  Love Learn Live or something like that!

cd