The Hurt Locker - Smashing gender sterotypes
The Hurt Locker, big winner at the Oscar's last night, explores more than war...
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Every time you see this ad, you're raising money for your cause!
Thanks everyone for your feedback on the site so far - I wanted to address a concern i've heard from a few of our members; the worry is that some people may be getting points illegitimately to get into the top 20 supporters list.
I want to assure everyone that we're watching all activity on this site and will be disqualifying any members who gain points in ways that are not according to the "Books To Better The World" contest rules .
I am so excited to announce our newest charity partner, Trickle Up, a US-based organization dedicated to empowering people living on less than $1 a day to take the first steps out of poverty.
Thanks to the hard work of the BTW team, i'm proud to announce our new site is up and running!
Some of the major changes that you'll notice are:
1. Points update real-time (yay), you don't need to wait a day to see changes anymore.
2. You can track your points through the new user dashboard
3. You get points for a variety of different tasks - see the TAKE ACTION page to see what you can do; we've added a new Facebook badge functionality, and there are some great things coming in the coming months!
4. View top supporters every month; participate and win prizes!
In the coming weeks you will see changes to the browser sidebar, as well as new features for you to take action on.
Heads up, the May contest for a Macbook is coming! Our new BTW site version 1.3 will be launching tomorrow, and so we'll need to take the site down for a bit starting 10pm EST tomorrow.
During this time, you won't have access to the site, and I'm not 100% sure whether the sidebar will work correctly - it should, but i don't want to guarantee that just in case :)
When it's back online, you'll see quite a few changes - we hope you like them!
Hi guys, due to some difficulties with Google's licensing policy, we've had to take down the search functionality for the time being :(
For now you can continue to use the search tool just as you did before, it just will take you directly to search results on Google.com - so if you have the search tool installed, there is no need to change anything.
We'll get this updated in the near future and let you know once we have a new offering ready. Sorry for the inconvenience!
We actually have quite a few ads in the system now, so if you're seeing the same 2-3 ads all the time, it could be because you don't have the latest version of the sidebar. Currently we're on version 1.0.6 for Firefox users, and version 0.65 for Internet Explorer users.
To check this, IE users use the menu bar (hit ALT) and select "Tools > Toolbars > Explorer Bar" to check your version.
For Firefox users, check the FireFox menu "Tools > Add-ons".
If you don't have the latest version, please take 2 minutes to upgrade your sidebar at http://www.bettertheworld.com/download
We're currently working to get an auto-update service in there so that you won't need to manually upgrade in the future. Thanks for your patience in the meantime, and for your help to better the world!
For users of Internet Explorer (IE), we've just upgraded the latest version of the sidebar to v.0.65. This version addresses some stability issues. If you use IE, please download this latest version.
We're also still getting some questions re: people losing track of their sidebar in IE, as the BTW icon is sometimes hidden off to the right.
A problem we've been seeing is amongst some of our members is that they can't see ads in the sidebar once they've installed it and set it up. Although there are a number of reasons why they're not showing up, one common problem we've seen is from ad-blockers. Popular anti-virus software such as Kaspersky or the Ad-Block plus plug-in for Firefox will block ads coming from Better The World, so you'll need to shut them off if you want it to work.
Click for instructions on how to turn them off.
We've just made a batch of updates across the site, including fixes to the spread the word email functionality, an updated Firefox sidebar to address some stability issues for Firefox 2.0 users, and finally a new HELP section that we will be updating with videos and other helpful content for those that need help setting up their sidebar.
Thanks again for your help in reporting any bugs/instability you see on our site. We have some great features planned in the coming months that i'm sure you'll love!
Stay tuned.
In January Better The World had the opportunity to attend the Investors Circle Mixer and SOCAP Mixer held by Good Capital and B-Corp in San Francisco. It was amazing to see how optimistic the attendees were given the existing economic climate. There is a definite sense that the Obama administration and the current demand for social innovation is setting the stage for triple bottom line, social ventures to become mainstream in 2009.
The diversity of the attendees ranged from social media start-ups, social investors looking for sustainable returns, environmentally friendly products and services to non-profits using business strategies to increase their social impact. The common thread among the crowd was a willingness to share their experiences, and openly explore opportunities to collaborate with others.
Getting onto the Obama bandwagon isn't hard to do, nor is it unique. But given the excitement about the new US President and everyone around the globe watching his first steps so very closely, I thought it might be interesting to keep a little commentary going on what he's doing to better the world.
At the Human Resources Professional Association (HRPA) Conference that was recently held in Toronto, Canadian Staffing firm Ian Martin Ltd. and The 500 partnered with Better The World to take an innovative approach with their Conference marketing efforts. Instead of giving away regular “logo” based promotional items (tchotchkes) like pens, mugs or key chains, they decided to use their budget to make a real difference and support the community.
One of the main fixes this week has been getting goal bars running - they're now reporting the total amount raised for each of the causes, and will continue to tick away as long as you keep the sidebar open; you don't have to click on the ad, just simply have it serve ads to you as you surf the web.
Is the question on everyone's mind once they've signed up. We're currently working on a section of the site that will address this question more formally, but the short answer for now is that 1 point = 1 ad shown to you, which in turn raises money for your cause. At this point you may ask... why points?
I've be scouring the internet over the past couple of months, searching for blog postings that are interesting and incorporating them onto our site...
And I came across this one:
It's quite possible that after you've installed your sidebar, you might of shut it off and now want to turn it back on again. Here's how.
Going through usability sessions with Jeff has been a great experience; it's amazing how far off one can be making assumptions about web design.
Probably the greatest insight that i have gotten out of this experience is seeing how others would describe our program. The term "donate space" has failed miserably, but in that i've seen how others would call our service - it's a way to help a cause by simply doing what you do everyday. We all surf the web, we all search for things, and we all use our phones.
This morning i read an article about a U.K. study that says consumers spend over 10 billion British pounds on food that is simply thrown away. This is equivalent to over 200 million kg of food. Given the world's rising food prices, this study puts a sharp focus on how wasteful first world nations are while many worldwide are still going hungry. The real kicker is that some of this food is imported from those poorer countries that could use it.
Today I’m going to talk about the idea of a "Do Right Network" – which was inspired by a friend of mine who has led a timeless campaign to stand up for what is right. His stories are about intervention - taking small actions every day that support and enforce the standards of our communities and of humankind. His stories are often very humorous, entertaining and inspiring. They range from busting city workers who litter, to demanding that people refrain from loud personal conversations on cell phones while in public spaces (like packed Streetcars). My friend is not alone in his "do right" campaign. I’ve also heard stories from others who take action – whether it’s asking people to turn down their iPods, to buying a meal for a homeless person.
While the actions typically occur locally, the philosophy of upholding community and humanitarian standards should be applied across our globe. There are many great places to read about doing right: the good news broadcast , good magazine , do good books , there's even a Facebook Group (of course).
In the spirit of "doing right", I’d like to share my story..
A lot has been written lately on social marketing - and as a category, social marketing seems to be exploding. Many people have hypothesized on the root cause of the sudden growth - the general consensus being that a variety of forces are responsible. The forces include a change in demographic, an increase in social awareness, political pressure on developed nations, economic prosperity and the reach/comprehensiveness of technology (the internet). These forces are converging and driving a new behaviour from corporations and their ad/public relations agencies. As a top cause marketing agency put it "like never before, corporate, nonprofit, political and entertainment leaders are rallying around key social and environmental issues to influence audiences and drive change globally."
So what exactly is "social marketing" - let's take a look.
Recently, blogs and articles have abounded on the latest and greatest trend - social innovation. Many of us have yet to truly define this nascent category of innovation - but for simplistic purposes, let's refer to it as "new developments that meet social needs of all kinds and better our world ". What sparks the development of a new category of innovation like this? I have some theories of my own.
If it weren't for André Picard, Public Health Reporter for The Globe and Mail, this year's International AIDS Conference (in Mexico City in August) would have gone largely, or perhaps entirely, unnoticed.
Together, could we accomplish a lot? If we could efficiently capture these efforts and focus them towards leading issues, could we make a real difference in the world? These are some of the guiding principles in designing Better the World.
What were the key pieces in putting this together? We had to have a great idea, lots of people who care, a compelling way to attract revenue and organizations that can make a real impact. And of course, the internet and a great team also help
Officially, we’ve started our mission. What does this mean? We're an incorporated entity; we have 5 people working full-time, an office, and we’re developing our platform. A unique platform that will support the BTW network. Unofficially, the story began in May 2007. A group of driven Ivey MBA students working on a project, while simultaneously taking the time for introspection; evaluating our lives and accomplishments thus far. This journey is well encapsulated in a famous quotation:
"You will recognize your own path when you come upon it, because you will suddenly have all the energy and imagination you will ever need." - Jerry Gillies.
I believe all of us (on the BTW team) have found our path...
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