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WINDOWS OF THE WORLD

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Windows Of the World! – An International Event

Katherine Barling-Team Melbourne, Australia T2, Completed

I’m in the middle of Melbourne’s grand civic square with a huge screen – it’s a world wide event focusing on the amazing creative projects that are happening now, creating a world that is environmentally sustainable, socially just and community focused. There’s a container painted all over with animals, bound for India, as an education centre. Another container stands nearby to be out-fitted as India’s 1st mobile medical centre of it’s kind, with equipment already donated. It is covered in artwork representing the schools that have also contributed. 1000’s of people are gathered to celebrate the world we live in, the communities we live in and the projects and activities we participate in to make this world a better place for all, for now and for future generations.

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Their attention is on the big screen, viewing cutting edge, short films representing many projects around the world that are making a difference. Guest presenters speak passionately of the project, answer questions and engage the audience for contribution of ideas, debate and collaboration. At café’s and restaurants around the square, excited discussions continue when the films are over.

That’s what I envisage for a few weeks away, 6 nights starting September 12, 2009. It’s taken a village of people to put this together – teams of collaborators, film-makers and editors, designers and artists, event coordinators to undertake calls and meetings, letters and follow up and invitations to indigenous elders, city dignitaries, heads of state, community leaders and members.

What the team has accomplished in less than 6 months is extraordinary! This is a world class event, focused on what is making a difference in the world now, beamed to 40 countries, with over 50 communities in Melbourne taking part, with leaders of different faith, meeting and working together to bring their communities to participate, supporting communities affected by the bush fires earlier this year, supporting indigenous communities and their art from across the country, witnessing the ancient art from war-torn lands, refugees re-create in an Australian context and more. Much more. And now these have been filmed and are screening centre stage.

In these challenging times of financial and environmental crisis, social upheaval and uncertainty, an event that gives people hope that the future that we want is indeed possible and achievable now.

The project has also created www.windowsoftheworld.com.au, which will be launched by 21 Aug 2009 where others projects around the world can link in, provide their films or let us know of their projects and teams can link up together.

Project initiated 3rd Quarter Team 2, 7 months ago, as the result of training in being an extraordinary communicator through teamwork. Project sparked by the indigenous people of Ecuador (Changing the Dream Symposium).

EXPRESS YOURSELF

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‘EXPRESS YOURSELF’

Georgia Bruton-Team Sydney, AustraliaT1, Q 2

Imagine not having access to the tools that allow us to create and the tools that allow us to be self-expressed. The tools that let us explore our talents and live lives we love. Unfortunately, there are hundreds of thousands of homeless Australian kids who do not have this opportunity and are just struggling to survive.

This was our inspiration in creating ‘EXPRESS YOURSELF,’ an exhibition to raise money for ‘Youth Off The Streets’ (YOTS).

Youth Off The Streets is a community organization whose mission is to “help disconnected young people discover greatness within by engaging, supporting and providing opportunities to encourage & facilitate positive life choices.”

For More information go to http://www.youthoffthestreets.com.au

The mission of this project is to educate and inspire people to be fully self-expressed in all areas of life.The goal of the project was to generate funds to supply an art program to underprivileged children in Australia so they can also have the opportunity to express themselves.

The vision for the project is to create a world where “every child has the tools to be self expressed.”

‘EXPRESS YOURSELF’ was a successful, exciting, fully self-expressed event by our team in the form of an art auction featuring a range of fantastic art pieces created for the event by both homeless kids and famous local Australians. It was held at Bondi Beach and included break-dancing and musical performances by incredibly talented homeless kids along with well known DJ’s and singers. The head auctioneer from a leading real-estate agency brought an extra flair to the auction. The header logo on this article is one of the images created for the event.

Over 150 people attended the high-energy event. Express Yourself generated a lot of good PR and over AUS$12,500 was raised to start an art program at the local YOTS schools, now in the process of being launched. Many of the homeless kids involved in Express Yourself are now inspired to include some form of creative expression in their future career choices. This event is now ready to be rolled out in Melbourne, Australia, and Auckland, New Zealand and is in the Sydney calendar as an annual event.

The vision of homeless kids, with the tools they need to be fully self-expressed, inspired, moved, and consistently motivated everyone on the Youth Off the Streets team to be in action creating an event that no one would forget.

This project was created and completed by Georgia Bruton as part of the Team Management Leadership Program. The project not only provided funding for YOTS and homeless kids. It allowed Georgia to get back in touch with her own artistic self-expression. This project allowed her to both work with what she loves and to make a difference in ways that mattered to her and others on her team. With this training in managing teams, Georgia now has the freedom and ease to expand her own work and foster more projects that contribute to her community and the world.

MICHELANGELO'S GROUP

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Terry Mottinger- Team Cincinnati, Team 1, Quarter 1 

Terry Mottinger is an art teacher who has a special charge. She teaches kids to love art. She works in an inner city school in Columbus, Ohio. She always loved kids but recently discovered a special passion for them. She dreams of creating artists for the future; giving them real training in the arts world so children can become whatever they want in life–kids following their dreams. 

A professional artist herself, Michelangelo was always Terry’s favorite artist. He did the kind of art that inspires Terry, spontaneous and inspired. Since she pictured the children in her classes learning art the same way, she decided that Michelangelo’s Group would be a great name. 

The kids of Michelangelo’s Group create all kinds of art, from decorating the school dance to making jewelry to throwing pots to painting to dancing. Her group is waiting to hear if they’ve been invited to show their work at the Student Art Show of the Columbus Museum of Art, a prestigious invitation. 

So far the response to Michelangelo’s Group has been an overflow of enthusiasm; parents so excited they turn up at school to find out what’s happening, kids dropping by at any moment, other teachers asking what’s going on. The school principal loves Michelangelo’s Group and the kids feel honored to be part of a special group. Everyone wants to be part of Michelangelo’s Group. 

Terry says so far she hasn’t been stopped by problems and now her Game in the World is getting bigger and bigger. She’s excited by the possibility of expansion and adding team members. Terry says the only thing she’d have done differently in starting Michelangelo’s Group would have been to be more confident and playing a bigger game from the very beginning.  

The next steps for Michelangelo’s Group are to push it out into the community further–to executives in the arts organizations such as the Greater Columbus Arts Council and to professionals who can share their gifts at low or no cost with the kids. 

What if the world started playing the game of Michelangelo’s Group with Terry and her kids? She believes we would all live in a world with every person in touch with creativity, in touch with humanity and in touch with the art spirit. 

A NEW LEASE ON LIFE

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Don Murphy- Team Cincinnati, Team 1, Quarter 3

Have you ever wanted to have a second chance at something?  For many ex-felons, they want just that, but they rarely get a second chance. This is where Don Murphy and his Game in the World, A New Lease on Life, stepped in.

 

Don began formulating A New Lease on Life in October 2008, when he got excited an idea that the re-entry process for ex-felons could be transformed.  As a public defender, he had firsthand experience of the criminal justice system and didn’t like what he saw –a constant stream of low-income felons entering and re-entering the prisons, people stuck in a cycle without a support structure to change anything. Don dreamed about creating a safety net for ex-felons, a program that would provide inspiration, completion, and an opportunity for service. A New Lease on Life would give them a second chance where they could discover ways to not only survive outside of prison but make a contribution to their communities.

 

Typically, when felons are released from prison, they are given a little money and sent out into the real world.   In many cases they have no job, no shelter, and no food—and little chance to succeed.  Companies don’t want to hire ex-felons and apartment owners don’t want to rent to them. Some ex-felons are even ineligible for any Federal assistance programs. To get by, some resort to old habits and commit crimes, while others violate parole simply due to lack of transportation to attend required meetings. With the cards stacked against them, a high percentage of ex-felons end up back in prison.

 

A New Lease on Life is out to break that cycle.  The program’s mission is to provide ex-felons with opportunities for employment and self-sufficiency; in fact they get a new lease on life. Participating in the program, they have an opportunity to, not only reverse the high recidivism rates for prisons, but to go out and make a difference for themselves and their communities.

 

To accomplish his mission, Don partnered with Jesus House, a halfway house, with a goal of providing food, shelter, and transportation to parolees. The ex-felons are able to stop worrying about basic necessities and start speculating on what they can accomplish in their lives. Jesus House already has a successful model, with an 87% success rate in keeping ex-felons from re-entering the prison system.  Now, Don and his team are in the process of improving upon that success rate by creating a series of classes teaching ex-felons life skills, things like how to write a resume and how to interview for a job.  A New Lease on Life is also creating a safe space for the ex-felons to discuss what stops them from being able to reach their goals. 

 

With new hope, the ex-felons are also participating in creating the career fair by recruiting potential employers.  Others in the community are getting involved, creating “suit drives” to provide these ex-felons with suits for their job interview.   A New Lease on Life also wants to raise $10,000 for Jesus House by the end of 2009. 

 

People in the community are starting to take notice. An Indiana University criminal justice professor has begun an independent evaluation of the program that will allow Don and Jesus House to apply for grants to fund programs and expand Jesus House to other cities. 

 

While it’s predictable for released felons to be trapped by the circumstances of criminal activity they find themselves in, Don and his team are committed altering their circumstances and giving each of them a chance to have their dreams fulfilled. 

 

If you would like to join Don in his mission or contribute to A New Lease on Life, you can email him at DSMurphy@iquest.net.

THE RICHMOND STREET SCHOOL ART PROJECT

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richmondLast year the Richmond Street School lost their art program, but artist and photographer Jon Barber was having none of that. With only $1,000 in funding for the arts remaining in the school’s budget, (less than $2 per student for a year of art supplies and classes) and with his 4th grade son no longer having regular classroom art lessons nor an art teacher, Jon saw a need.

Jon began writing letters sharing his feelings and opinions about the loss of the art program. Then, he had a realization; he could make a difference here with his Game in the World. And so The Richmond Street School Art Project was born.

Also known as Studio 109 after the room number where the art classes are held, The Richmond Street School Art Project is a volunteer-based art program for the students of Richmond Street School.

Jon is excited about what’s been happening with the kids at his son’s school. On a weekly basis with the assistance of parent volunteers, the students are experiencing and creating art in their classrooms. The school has in place a visiting artist program, where professional artists volunteer their time and talent to share art at the schools lunch break with students. The kindergarten class recently created an amazing pastel animal project. The 4th grade class recently created masks in accordance with learning about Day of the Dead.

There was an art fair on February 12th where all the students of Richmond Street School displayed their framed artwork in an exhibition. The kids got to be honored, loud and proud. The parents and his team got to contribute to their kids and to know they were making something unpredictable happen.

Jon also saw that by starting the project, other schools might discover they didn’t have to worry about not having enough money and manpower to provide art education to their kids. Jon recognized that the Richard Street School Art Program provided an opportunity for people not only on his local team, but in his community as well. Where before, something was missing in his town, by sharing The Richard Street School Art Project, Jon now sees it as a place where people come together and create something beautiful.
Jon Barber, Team Los Angeles

A WALK IN THE PARK

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walkinparkRob Hubbard loves the park. Rob is inspired by contribution. Put those two together and you have Rob’s Game in the World—A Walk in the Park.

Rob is establishing a group of volunteers who will walk the various parks and trails around Cincinnati and report back to park administrators on a regular basis any problems or concerns. The outcome of A Walk in the Park will be an ongoing team of volunteers who recruit, train and coordinate efforts to keep the parks in great shape. The added benefit, or maybe incentive, is they actually get to take walks in the parks.

Rob designed this game because walking in the park means a lot to him. He sees how it would benefit people to be in the park with a specific purpose of contributing to their community.

But it wasn’t always a ‘walk in the park’ for Rob to get his game going. Some of the park administrators were excited about it, but at first, some were discouraging. Rob didn’t let that stop him. He says that his advice for people creating a game for the world is to not rush into making up something just to get it done, but instead to keep having conversations with others until you discover a game that inspires you. He is surprised and excited to discover he can make something happen in his community. In fact, he says “I don’t have to convince people, but instead I see it’s an opportunity.”

His long-term vision for A Walk in the Park is that it spreads out to other communities. He asserts walking in the park is something that feeds the human spirit, makes people aware of the beauty in nature, promotes well being, serenity and peacefulness and has the added benefit of contributing to the community.

He plans to expand A Walk in the Park in the future to include volunteer organizations who put on cross country sporting meets, along with businesses, social groups, churches and individuals who live within the vicinity of the parks.

Ultimately, for Rob, through A Walk in the Park he’s discovered he’s someone who can inspire and move people, someone who can be a contribution to individuals and to communities.
Rob Hubbard, Team 1, Quarter 2, Team Cincinnati

Bailey Takes on Global Clean Water

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Donavan Bailey’s game in the world in Landmark’s TMLP program was ambitious – He has taken on providing clean water to the world anywhere that it is wanted and needed. To that end, he has created a Global Clean Water organization, and has begun to undertake projects in the developing world.

According to the site, pilot projects will focus on scouting for rural villages in need of a long term clean water supply. These villages will be selected when a meeting has taken place with the local head of the village and he agrees that the new water supply will benefit the village. Then a well will be drilled using the local labor supply. GCW will then place a hand pump at the well drill site. Training on hand pump maintenance will be ongoing as well as sanitation education. Assistance will be given in order to build a latrine and hand-washing station. Maintenance on the pumps will be conducted by the local village women and the bathrooms will be maintained by the children.

Bailey is just now heading to India to start setting up those projects – Look for an update from Team Leadership down the road!

Gift of Life

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My game in the world is called “The Gift of Life” and it is a blood drive. This game is a gift that keeps giving. The blood drive has a special meaning for me and my family. From May 16, 2005, through May 27th, 2005, my daughter, Amanda (now 13) received transfusions totaling 21 pints of blood. Community Blood Center was the center in charge for Amanda to receive Directed/Designated donations from family and friends, and it was also the center in charge of providing blood transfusions from strangers. It was reassuring to know that my daughter was able to get her family and friends blood transfused into her and just as reassuring was to know that because of unselfish strangers who gave of themselves through blood donations, my daughter had all the blood she needed. I was there living in the hospital for over four weeks with my daughter, other patients and their family. I witnessed and experience how precious blood is.

I can remember vividly how much Amanda’s little body needed blood to survive surgery. I can remember when Amanda was the first time in intensive care and how much her little body needed blood to sustain and survive. I remember how every that blood that was in a bag hanging next to her was been transfused into her body and giving her body what she needed.

How important it is to have Blood Drives and get the community involved in them! I contacted one of the directors from Community Blood Centers. His name is Luis and I asked him to be on my team. Then we set a date, created our team, and played.

I said I wanted to contribute and assist in a way that I could give back to my community and the world. I wanted to say thank you to God, to life, to the world for all that was provided to Amanda to her friends and family. I wanted to say thank you to all the lives I saw that were saved by a pint of blood.

This pint of blood didn’t stop giving once transfused it kept giving and giving and it still is.
My Amanda is living proof that a blood donation is a “Gift of Life” and it continues to live on.
By unselfishly giving one pint of blood, one person assures another person or even three that they will get through.

So it’s a game that touches, moves, and inspires me and inspires me to play for the world!

— Maria Perez, Team Florico

Sweetwaters

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Sweetwaters is a South African community dying of AIDS. Currently 196 homes housing in excess of 500 children are parentless and without adult supervision. These orphaned children live in a culture being shredded by AIDS.

Love Is All We Need is a charity committed to diverting what will be a catastrophic outcome for children, communities, a country.

The Hope Centre is a haven that houses children affected and infected with AIDS and reaches out into the Sweetwaters community taking measures to care for these children.

Presently these children are being raped and robbed, living in homes ill equipped to meet their needs and struggling to survive. They are unable to attend school due to lack of funds for fees and uniforms putting their futures in jeopardy.

At present The Hope Centre has set up a mobile mother scheme where 8 local women between them visit 90 homes a day. They earn a box of food and the equivalent of £10 a month.

Sponsor-a-mother is a project being set up to fund the existing mobile mothers and 12 more in the next 2 months. The aim is for these mothers to be earning the equivalent of £70 a month which is a decent wage (for 1 year initially).

Other immediate projects that Love Is All We Need is taking on for this community include a campaign to have 500 children in school in January 2008 and to provide each home with a small, safe cooker.

Ultimately we are in the process of working towards building a village inside the community that we believe is a long term solution for restoring the foundations of hope, love and security in a devastated community.

— Jo Lawrence, Team London

CAST Stands for Peace

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CAST is an organization created by graduates of the Landmark Forum in Oklahoma through taking the Team Management Leadership program. The organization supports a variety of programs that support peace in different communities. First CAST supported Pinwheels for Peace, where thousands of students across Oklahoman made pinwheels to celebrate peace and cause peace within themselves. Another project undertaken by CAST was to raise awareness and money for Invisible Children, an organization that has been helping refugees and bringing peace to Uganda, where the war between the Lord’s Resistance Army and the Ugandan Army has displaced an estimated 1.4 million people. The money raised has gone directly to a school in Northern Uganda. Later CAST took on the World Neighbors Hunger Banquet. World Neighbors is an organization working to end hunger, disease and poverty in developing countries. The group has also supported a multi-cultural fair and April’s earth day recyclathon.

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