Your Mark On The World

Never miss another interview! Join Devin here: http://bit.ly/joindevin. Amy Stanton, the CEO of Stanton & Company, an agency that focuses on sports and lifestyle businesses, mostly run by women, co-authored The Feminine Revolution with Catherine Connors. Their thesis: women’s feminine traits don’t make women weak, they make them powerful. Be a hero! Join the elite group of supporters who ensure that stories like this can continue to be shared! Visit heroes4good.org to become a hero now.

Never miss another interview! Join Devin here: http://bit.ly/joindevin. Adam Treiser wanted to do something to make a difference in the world. A lawyer by training, he was unsatisfied with the work he was doing, so he immersed himself in artificial intelligence. He developed a way to help nonprofits optimize the ask to every donor. If you ask a donor who is willing to give you $250 for $25, you’ll likely get the $25. On the other hand, if you ask a donor who is ready to give you only $50 for $250, you’ll likely get zero! Knowing just the right ask is a game changer. Using only information that you already have, his company, Arjuna Solutions can help you increase donations from your existing donors. Their experience to date suggests a first-year bump of 19 percent and a second-year increase of 72 percent. Be a hero! Join the elite group of supporters who ensure that stories like this can continue to be shared! Visit heroes4good.org to become a hero now.

Never miss another interview! Join Devin here: http://bit.ly/joindevin. Lakisha Simmons holds a PhD in Management Information Systems, seeming to make her an unlikely candidate to tackle a distinctly non-business, non-technological social issues. But that didn’t stop her. Simmons recognized that too many young women here in America struggle to afford feminine hygiene products. To address the issue, Simmons launched the Period Project, to ensure that every young woman has access to period products. Interview with Lakisha L. Simmons, Ph.D., the Executive Director of The Achiever Academy; Founder Homework Suite App; Associate Professor of MIS at the Jack C. Massey College of Business at Belmont University of The Achiever Academy. The following is the pre-interview with Lakisha L. Simmons, Ph.D.. Be sure to watch the recorded interview above. What is the problem you solve and how do you solve it? We tackle issues that are obstacles for girls and young women when striving for success. We found that college w

Never miss another interview! Join Devin here: http://bit.ly/joindevin. Read the full Forbes article and watch the interview here: http://bit.ly/2EasuEs. “I was living in Tokyo at the time and working for a Wall Street bank when the earthquake hit; I was on the trading floor literally when this huge earthquake hit,” says Wendy Hapgood, 40, now chief operating officer for the Wild Tomorrow Fund. She goes on to explain that it wasn’t the earthquake that rattled her so much or even the ensuing tsunami. Rather, it was the nuclear crisis that developed in the following days. “A lot of people commented at the time of the disaster, ‘Well, you know, it wasn't that bad; nobody died [from the radiation].” And I really thought—because I was there on the ground and I experienced it personally—that they were missing a crucial part of the environmental destruction and the poisoning of our Earth,” she explains. Read the full Forbes article and watch the interview here: http://bit.ly/2EasuEs. Be a hero! Join the elite

Never miss another interview! Join Devin here: http://bit.ly/joindevin. Read the full Forbes article and watch the interview here: http://bit.ly/2IMwWYL. Heather (not her real name) was working consensually at an escort service as a sex worker when she realized that a human trafficking ring was trying to trap her. “She was completely panicked,” says Sherrie Caltagirone, to whom Heather reached out. Caltagirone leads the Global Emancipation Network, a young, nonprofit organization that utilizes data to identify both traffickers and victims. Their weapon is Minerva, named for the Roman goddess of wisdom and strategic warfare, which puts the big data to work. Studies about the number of people being trafficked today yield different results, ranging from 20 to 45 million, giving the estimates a margin of error greater than 100%. The trafficking problem is huge but so is the lack of good data. The Global Emancipation Network is out to fix that. “Human traffickers are reliant on current technology to increase

Never miss another interview! Join Devin here: http://bit.ly/joindevin. Sly Young sees communities commonly called “at risk” differently. He sees “opportunity communities,” places where positive change saves lives and creates new possibilities for people in that place. Interview with S. L. "Sly" Young, the Founder and President of Saving Our Communities at Risk Through Educational Services (SOCARTES) and Beyond SPRH, LLC. What is the problem you solve and how do you solve it? SOCARTES is committed to providing individuals access to personal development opportunities, which can lead to these individuals reaching their career potential and goals. Beyond SPRH's goal is to deliver quality services with minimal time, effort, and cost with an objective of highly satisfied customers and measurable performance outcomes. Be a hero! Join the elite group of supporters who ensure that stories like this can continue to be shared! Visit heroes4good.org to become a hero now.

Never miss another interview! Join Devin here: http://bit.ly/joindevin. Mike Domitrz began training audiences on safe and respectful behavior in the workplace and elsewhere long before #MeToo was a hashtag--long before there were hashtags. On the eve of the Senate vote on the confirmation of Justice Brett Kavanaugh, following the hearing with Dr. Christine Blasey Ford last week, Mike and I connected for a perilous discussion about #MeToo--perilous because the #MeToo discussion should include women. (For the record, I have spoken to women about these issues and have written about their perspectives here.) Mike says we need to work together to create safer, most respectful spaces for the people in our lives, both at home and at the office. He draws a close parallel, suggesting that developing a safe, respectful environment at work requires drawing on some of the lessons we learn about having safe, respectful relationships at home. Be a hero! Join the elite group of supporters who ensure that stories like

Never miss another interview! Join Devin here: http://bit.ly/joindevin. Nick Arquette was still a kid when his mother was diagnosed with cancer. The experience tore him apart, at once wanting to help his mom and still wanting to be with and like all the other kids who weren’t worried about their parents. Ultimately, his mother succumbed to the cancer. As the years went by and her memory faded, Nick increasingly wanted to do something in her honor. Reflecting on his childhood, he launched Walk With Sally in her name to mentor children of cancer patients so they can enjoy more normal lives. Be a hero! Join the elite group of supporters who ensure that stories like this can continue to be shared! Visit heroes4good.org to become a hero now.

Never miss another interview! Join Devin here: http://bit.ly/joindevin. Ending malaria will require making high-quality medication available universally in the most remote and isolated villages around the malaria-infected world. It will also require eliminating fake and substandard meds, Dr. Benjamin Rolfe, the Chief Executive Officer of Asia Pacific Leaders’ Malaria Alliance, says. Though malaria has been eliminated from virtually all of the developed world, it remains a scourge in much of the developing world, killing 445,000 in 2016 and infecting millions every year. Be a hero! Join the elite group of supporters who ensure that storieslike this can continue to be shared! Visit heroes4good.org to become a hero now.

Never miss another interview! Join Devin here: http://bit.ly/joindevin. John Porter will never forget the call ten years ago. With some of the key members of his team on a service mission with CHOICE Humanitarian to Guatemala, a survivor called to say the plane had crashed killing ten people, most John’s employees. Chris Johnson and his wife Liz had devoted themselves to helping those living in extreme poverty to successfully build a path to a brighter future through CHOICE. Liz had taken time off to focus on their small children before getting back into the field on that fateful trip. She survived the crash but succombed to her injuries while being treated in Guatemala city. Faced with excruciating decisions about how to move forward, Chris remained at CHOICE. John rebuilt his team and grew his company while cotinuing to support service. CHOICE continued its work in Guatemala. Ten years on, the community has been dramatically reshaped, with improved literacy and job training, including IT training in the

Never miss another interview! Join Devin here: http://bit.ly/joindevin. Ellis Lucas is literally on a mission to save souls, sharing his personal faith in Jesus Christ with incarcerated addicts. A recovering addict himself, Ellis now uses the book he wrote to help struggling addicts develop a sense of personal worth and dignity. The book started as a letter to his estranged son. The words just poured out of him as he sought to share his faith and hope with his adult son. They are still working to heal their relationship, but the book, The Potter and the Clay, has helped many others. Be a hero! Join the elite group of supporters who ensure that videos like this can continue to be shared! Visit heroes4good.org to become a hero now.

Never miss another interview! Join Devin here: http://bit.ly/joindevin. Shane McKenna is a visionary entrepreneur and inventor who has turned his time and attention to ending world hunger. He’s created a patent-pending hydroponic gardening system that can help urban and rural people alike raise more food. Now he’s raising money on Indiegogo to bring it to life, helping him to bring the device to market. Ultimately, he plans to produce the devices in the developing countries where they will be sold. He sees a variety of uses but is most excited for the applications for people with the least access to adequate food, like refugees who not only may not have enough food but have nowhere to grow it either. Be a hero! Join the elite group of supporters who ensure that videos like this can continue to be shared! Visit heroes4good.org to become a hero now.

Never miss another interview! Join Devin here: http://bit.ly/joindevin. Joanne Chiwaula, founder and director of the US-based nonprofit African Mothers Health Initiative and its sister organization Joyful Motherhood based in Malawi, works to save at risk babies. These include multiple births, babies who lost their mothers in childbirth and low birth weight babies. So many babies born to mothers who die during childbirth die that a local tradition holds that they simply “choose to follow their mothers.” In fact, they fail to receive the vital nutrition that would come from nursing. Similarly, low birth-weight babies may need more nutrition than they can get from a poorly nourished mother. Twins and triplets are also at risk as under-fed mothers may not be able to produce enough milk to multiple children. To combat these problems--while always encouraging nursing where possible--African Mothers Health Initiative raises money to buy baby formula that is distributed in Malawi by Joyful Motherhood. Be a hero

Never miss another interview! Join Devin here: http://bit.ly/joindevin. Read the full Forbes article and watch the interview here: http://bit.ly/2I9m7zH. You’ve probably heard of Kiva, but if you aren’t among the 1.7 million people who have made loans on the platform, you may not really know what it is. This crowdfunding platform is, in effect, a bank funded by people who lend their money with an expectation of losing only a little, to 2.9 million people who stand to gain a lot. Kiva co-founder and president Premal Shah, 42, joined me for a conversation about the site and how it works to not just make loans but also to change lives in 85 countries around the world—including here in the US. Watch the interview in the player at top of the article. Kiva lenders receive on average about 96% of their money back and agree not to receive interest. “It is done philanthropically,” Shah says. For many, presumably, it is their first impact investment. Read the full Forbes article and watch the interview here: http:

Never miss another interview! Join Devin here: http://bit.ly/joindevin. Read the full Forbes article and watch the interview here: http://bit.ly/2QHocql. Still weak from her cancer treatment, 29-year-old Jenna Benn Shersher, now 36, asked her family, friends and followers to help her fight cancer. Wanting to dance but unable to do much on the dance floor, she made a quick video of herself doing the twist and challenged others to do the same. Thousands did. That launched a movement that became a nonprofit organization she calls Twist Out Cancer. The 501(c)(3) now has programs in Chicago, Toronto, Montreal, Ann Arbor, Philadelphia and Tel Aviv. While cancer-free for nearly seven years, Shersher describes her experience with cancer as “horrible.” Despite having the best medical care and a strong network of family and friends, she felt “this sort of overwhelming sense of isolation and loneliness even though I had everything in my favor.” Read the full Forbes article and watch the interview here: http://bit.

Never miss another interview! Join Devin here: http://bit.ly/joindevin. Shelby Hintze, a television producer for NBC-affiliate KSL’s “The Browser” and “Sunday Edition,” called on nonprofits to engage those they serve in leadership, including paid positions. Hintze is a powerful, successful leader at KSL, but she acknowledges her vulnerabilities as a person with a form of muscular dystrophy. She notes that organizations sometimes miss the obvious because they fail to adequately engage those they serve. If members of the community were serving on boards or in executive leadership, she says, the organizations would make better decisions for the people they hope to serve. Be a hero! Join the elite group of supporters who ensure that videos like this can continue to be shared! Visit heroes4good.org to become a hero now.

Never miss another interview! Join Devin here: http://bit.ly/joindevin. Wind turbines are getting bigger and more efficient, now representing the cheapest form of energy on earth! In one corner of the industry, however, Dr. Daniel Farb has been working on little decorative turbines that can be installed on your roof. These little guys aren’t as efficient as the big ones, but you can’t put a big one on your roof! His “flowers” can. And in some situations, he says, they may be as cost efficient--or more so--than rooftop solar. To bring these to market, Farb has launched a crowdfunding campaign on StartEngine and has already raised over $130,000. He’s hoping now to raise over $1 million. Be a hero! By choosing to become a hero, you can ensure that videos like this can continue to be shared! Visit heroes4good.org to become a hero.

Never miss another interview! Join Devin here: http://bit.ly/joindevin. Abby Levin and Lexi Thomas have devoted themselves to their nonprofit, Flowers for Powers, delivering flowers to people who need a lift. Inspired by the loss of both her grandmothers ten years ago, Abby and Lexi decided to spread joy. Jumping on a trampoline in the backyard, they spotted flowers, crystallizing an idea. With donated flowers and low-cost vases, they deliver sunshine, most often to seniors, people in hospice care and others with grave diseases. Their flowers bring joy but not because the flowers are so beautiful, it’s because they remind the recipient of the beautiful smiles of two remarkable girls who delivered them. Check out my free webinar where I share the secrets of successful nonprofit crowdfunding at http://crowdfundingforsocialgood.org.

Never miss another interview! Join Devin here: http://bit.ly/joindevin. Read the full Forbes article and watch the interview here: http://bit.ly/2x7dcuq. Crowdfunding is no longer a novelty. It is part of the fabric of the global economy. Within that fabric, one of the brightly colored threads is Indiegogo, having helped entrepreneurs to raise over $1.5 billion. As I’ve followed the company and its work over the years, I’ve had some favorite social impact projects. One stands out: Solar Roadways. Scott and Julie Brusaw of Sandpoint, Idaho—as small and remote a town as you might imagine—came up with the idea to make solar panels rugged enough to drive on, while incorporating a variety of features like snow melting and LED lighting that would allow an operator to change traffic patterns. The idea was too novel (read, crazy) for any traditional investor, the sort of person the Brusaws had likely never met, anyway. So, in 2014, they launched a campaign on Indiegogo and raised $2,284,774. Today, the solar panel

Never miss another interview! Join Devin here: http://bit.ly/joindevin. Read the full Forbes article and watch the interview here: http://bit.ly/2N1lRZf. Kestrel Linder, now 34, and his friends got chatting about how successful they were as they reached their 30s and yet were still not giving back to their alma maters. “That seemed odd to us,” he said. “We had high paying jobs few of us had debt and if we did have debt paying off the debt was not a particularly big challenge for us and we all loved school or schools that we went to,” he continued. So, he did some research and found that over the past 20 years, a declining percentage of people in virtually every demographic have been giving to educational institutions. “That struck us as a pretty big problem,” he said, as he described his motivation for creating GiveCampus, a “digital fundraising” platform as he calls it; the users interviewed for this article all describe it as a crowdfunding platform. Semantics aside, he and his team wanted to increase g