If you’re in the San Francisco area this weekend and have an interest in the Philippines, check out this event being hosted by Ruby Veridiano.

The event is called Meeting of the Minds, San Francisco or #ManilaMinds on Twitter, and is co-sponsored by the Pilipino American Law Society (PALS) of UC Hastings & USF and Golden Gate University.

Details below:

What: Meeting of the Minds, San Francisco

When: Saturday, September 10, 2011 from 2:00 PM to 5:00 PM

Where: UC Hastings, Room A, 198 McAllister Street San Francisco, CA 94012

After two successful events in Manila and NYC, Meeting of the Minds comes to San Francisco!

Meeting of the Minds Manila is a dot-connecting movement to galvanize the Global Filipino community together to heal our home country. Aiming to unite our community’s brightest minds, it is a forum that seeks to connect the most influential movers and shakers in order to build progress around focused causes that directly benefit the Philippines. Meeting of the Minds  builds a bridge between global Filipinos and local Filipinos, building conversations and action to impact positive social change in the Philippines.

After connecting with Ruby over the phone last night having gone back and forth on Twitter the other day, it looks like I’ll be joining the panel of other international guests on Saturday afternoon via Skype, who themselves are also located around the world in New York, London, Switzerland and Manila.

I will be sharing my experience as a ‘Filipino’ having grown up in the UAE and then spending a number of years living, studying and working in Canada and Hungary; hoping to spark a discussion around the notions of self-identity and global citizenship. However, as I have noted in previous blog posts, the question of where Im from as well my own notion of self-identity is not as simple and straightforward as being a ‘Filipino’ growing up and living in different parts of the world.

For those of you that have known me for a while or have been a long-time reader of this blog, you will note that I also often talk about the Philippines and the vision of Filipinos, both in the Philippines and around the world, coming together to lift the country out of poverty in order to create a decent standard of living for fellow kababayans.

Because if we don’t, then who will?

It seems that this movement has already begun. However, it is certainly not too late to sign up and join as the party is just getting started.

You can sign up to attend Meeting of the Minds, San Francisco here.

TEDxAlAin, where x=independently organized event, will be Al Ain’s version of the much renowned TED conferences, and will showcase a number of local and international speakers.

Among the speakers line-up, include H.E. Mohammed Al Fahim, who, from what I understand, spent quite a lot of time with founding father Sheikh Zayed in the days before the formation of the United Arab Emirates; as well as Ross Bradley, CEO of STRATA, an advanced composite aerostructures company based in Al Ain that is certainly putting the city and the emirate of Abu Dhabi on the map as a world-class aerospace hub. Fellow Canadian and artist, Caterina Lo Mascolo, will also be speaking at TEDxAlAin. The full line-up of speakers can be found here.

From the website,

TEDxAlAin | Towards Tomorrow

As the birthplace of the founding father of the UAE, H.H. Sheikh Zayed, Al Ain has a more traditional Arabic atmosphere and thus, affords a more authentic experience to visitors and expats alike.

At TEDxAlAin, we hope to capture the cultural essence of Al Ain whilst showcasing the very best of the city in terms of innovation, art, history and culture. Al Ain is fast becoming a major hub in the UAE, where work is already underway on several major infrastructure developments. The city is also aiming to increase its focus on cultural heritage by restoring and promoting many of its existing historical buildings. In the near future, the city of Al Ain hopes to be listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site because of its rich history.

Please join us on May 7, 2011 at TEDxAlAin!

If you live in the United Arab Emirates and have not already done so, I would strongly encourage you to apply to attend TEDxAlAin today.

Be prepared to spend a full day immersed in ideas worth spreading, opening doors of possibilities!

Photo credit: Trevor Haldenby

On March 3, 2011, TEDxWaterloo | The Uncharted, with over 1,000 attendees and touted as one of the biggest TEDx events in North America, took place at the Centre in the Square in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada. Since I was not able to attend the event in person this year, I did the second best thing I could think of and caught the livestream of the entire event online, after following the #TEDxWaterloo stream on Twitter of course.

Out of all the talks throughout the day-long event, the one talk that really captured my full attention and got me excited was the talk given by Jean-François Carrey, who on May 18th, 2006 at the age of 24, became the youngest Canadian to scale Mt. Everest.

Don’t get me wrong, there were certainly a number of very impressive speakers and individuals who took to the TEDxWaterloo stage this year, including Dr. Roberta Bondar, the world’s first neurologist in space; and Abby Sunderland, who at the age of 16 last year, attempted to become the youngest person to sail solo around the world. If you recall, Abby made headlines around the world when she set off two emergency beacons 2,000 miles west of Perth, Australia, and had to be rescued by a search and rescue team.

Going back to Jean-François, one of the main reasons why his talk captured my attention and imagination right away, was through his use of the word ‘adventure’. He used this particular word to describe his seemingly impossible dream of climbing the highest mountain in the world, and turning it into reality.

Every now and then, we find ourselves face to face with seemingly impossible tasks as a result, perhaps, of setting bold and ambitious personal goals for ourselves. This stems from a young age when oftentimes, we’re told by the entire world around us to “dream big” and “reach for the stars.” Somewhere along the way however, we ‘grow up’, and once the reality of the ‘real’ world sets in, we lose that childlike sense of innocence and curiosity, and scale back our dreams to merely what is within our reach.

Photo Credit: Jean-François Carrey – Crossing a deep and extremely dangerous crevice on Mt. Everest using an aluminum ladder

Q. “How do you eat an elephant?” A. “One bite at a time”

So how does one go about climbing the highest mountain in the world, raising money and support in order to accomplish the goal? Easy, it all comes down to a matter of perspective. There is an old adage that a journey of a 1,000 miles begins with a single step. Similarly, it is almost impossible to eat a whole elephant, yet, how do you go about eating one? One bite at a time.

“Passion is Contagious… just like H1N1″

If you are anything like Jean-François, you would put your goal of climbing the highest mountain in the world on a t-shirt for all the world to see. Of course, since your goal is now on a t-shirt, you are committed to making it happen.

Simply having the idea of achieving your goal is not enough though, as you need to have passion, focus and the determination to accomplish it. If you do, this passion is contagious, as attested by Jean-François as he went about training for 6 years, raising funds to the tune of $100,000 from corporate sponsors, and garnering moral support from close family and friends in the process, all in order to accomplish his goal.

Photo Credit: Jean-François Carrey – Heading towards the summit of Mt. Everest on May 18, 2006

“It is not about the destination, it is about the journey”

Keep these lessons in mind next time you set your sights on a very ambitious goal or project, including, perhaps, the next time you makes a pitch to a potential investor or partner for your start-up, non-profit organization or community event.

As it is often said, it is not about the destination, but the journey. Enjoy the ride!

As the season begins to change, I am reminded that the year is soon coming to a close and that Christmas is just around the corner. This year has been some kind of wonderful to me and the best part however, is that this adventure is not even close to being over, in fact, it has only just begun.

I look back and the one distinctive characteristic that sets this year apart from any other year is that I had finally found the courage within myself to make the decision to stop.

My life was getting way too busy back in Waterloo given my full-time day job at SiG, as well as my community involvement with TEDxWaterloo, Ignite Waterloo, We Move Media, Families & School Together, etc. The decision certainly wasn’t easy. In fact, it actually took a couple of months to sort it all out in my head, as well as through numerous discussions with close friends and trusted colleagues, before it became crystal clear that what I really needed to do was take the time to concentrate on myself.

And so I did.

When I actually sat down and thought about it, I realized that I actually hadn’t ever given myself any breathing space since graduating from high school back in 2002. That’s eight long years of being on the go, go, go. That period of my life (2002) was trying enough, with the passing away of my beautiful younger sister Loren due to a car accident; where she was announced brain dead upon arrival at the hospital, spent two weeks in a coma before passing away on January 21, 2002. To this day, I still remember everything that happened very clearly, and yet, a big part of me wants to forget.

Looking back, it seems I was always afraid to confront the reality of it all. Hence, the reason I immersed myself in extracurricular activities and academics at UW. Ok, who am I kidding… the math program at UW was not for me and was never for me right from the start. Two years later, I made the switch to the faculty of arts and into the economics/political science program. This was probably one of the best (academic) decisions I’ve ever made, aside from deciding to come to Kőszeg for the MA program in international economic relations. However, that particular decision only came after two years or being on my own in Canada having barely turned 19 (I had just turned 17 when I first arrived in Canada in 2002), living halfway around the world from my family, not to mention the countless therapy and academic counselling sessions that I went through.

The road to the present day certainly wasn’t easy. And yet back then, I kept on pushing myself to keep on going because I figured that if I ever stopped, the pain and numbness of the reality I once knew would come flooding back. I was very happy, content even, living in my own little university bubble before moving onto my Kitchener-Waterloo-Toronto bubble, thank you very much. It seems that I was afraid of what the rest of the world had to offer.

At the end of the day however, the long list of organizations and activities on my CV really doesn’t matter, nor should it really for yours. The number of Facebook friends or Twitter followers, or the number of RT’s or comments on your blog don’t even matter. What really matters the most are the relationships that you’ve built with people as a result of shared experiences in your life, perhaps as a result of being involved with these organizations and activities. What really matters the most in life are your family, close friends and your loved ones (as well as those acquaintances who eventually go on to become your close friends).

It really doesn’t matter if you are a “big deal” to the rest of the world, if you’re not a big deal to those that matter the most in life.

Keep Going Until We Stop

With all of this in mind, this is probably why when I watched Scott Stratten‘s talk from the recent TEDxOakville, I had tears in my eyes. I’m not afraid to admit it.

If you have 15 minutes to spare today, I would highly encourage you to sit down, and take the time to watch it. Given how busy we are in life, we sometimes miss out on some of the most important things because we are too busy chasing the trivial and the mundane.

Sometimes, you just need to stop, take a moment, and just breathe. Thanks so much for sharing your story Scott, you’ve inspired me to share mine.

heARTS for Pakistan raises an incredible $23,088* for Humanitarian Coalition

Dear Friends & Supporters of heARTS for Pakistan,

A BIG thank you for making heARTS for Pakistan a success!  Due to your generosity, our silent art auction & fundraiser, held on October 18th, raised an incredible $23,088*, in support of the Humanitarian Coalition members – CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada.

View photographs of the event here.

By coming together under one banner, the Humanitarian Coalition members have been able to better assist the population of Pakistan, reducing fundraising costs and increasing the impact of Canadian donations where it is needed. Every dollar donated to the Coalition is tracked to ensure that it directly contributes to providing shelter, food and healthcare to those people worst affected by the crisis. For those of you who would like to support the Humanitarian Coalition’s ongoing flood relief efforts in Pakistan, you can still donate online here.

On behalf of our organizing committee, we thank you for helping to make a difference to such an important cause and we appreciate your commitment to the Pakistani people as they recover from this disaster and rebuild their future.

With appreciation,

Saba & Saman

heARTS for Pakistan, Co-Chairs

*Net raised: $17,948 + $5,140 matched by CIDA (for donations received in advance of Oct 3 deadline)

heARTS for Pakistan Article on The Daily Challenge blog

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Announcements

If you enjoyed heARTS for Pakistan, you may also enjoy other ART events that support flood relief efforts in Pakistan:

• Rumi Fest, Oct. 24: Rumi Fest features performances by: Coleman Barks with Brenda Muller on cello, Whirling Dervishes (Canadian Sufi Cultural Center) with sufi music, Sohbat by Anwar Khurshid and Amir Amiri. A portion of the proceeds from this event will be donated to the victims of the flooding in Pakistan (website)

• JoSH: Had a chance to meet Q, singer from popular fusion band, JoSH, at the heARTS for Pakistan event? JoSH has a new single and is donating proceeds to support flood relief efforts in Pakistan.  More details can be found on their website soon.

• heARTS for Pakistan Filmraiser, Nov. 18, 7:10pm: heARTS for Pakistan is partnering with Filmraiser to present the 7:10pm showing of Summerhood at AMC Yonge & Dundas. 30% of box office sales will go towards the Humanitarian Coalition’s flood relief efforts on behalf of heARTS for Pakistan (website)

Originally posted: Tuesday, October 19, 2010

heARTS for Pakistan successfully pledges support towards the worst humanitarian tragedy

Toronto, ON – Over 200 Torontonians came together at heARTS for Pakistan this Monday, October 18, 2010 at the Gladstone Hotel in Toronto, where over $15,000 was raised, with approximately $5000 matched by CIDA and the Canadian government, for survivors of the Pakistani floods which devastated the country back in August.

Partnered with the Humanitarian Coalition, heARTS for Pakistan, a silent art auction and fundraiser, successfully engaged the Toronto community and provided an opportunity for the arts community across Canada to collaboratively support international efforts to bring relief to victims of the floods in Pakistan.

The worst humanitarian tragedy of the decade according to the United Nations, the Pakistani floods have affected one-fifth of Pakistan and have left over 20 million people displaced. As governments around the world struggle to assist survivors of the floods, the UN has requested international donors to come together to raise the hundreds of millions of dollars now required in aid. The most vulnerable now face twin perils of hunger and disease as food supplies have been devastated and sources of clean water severely contaminated.

Among others, speakers at the event included Scarborough MP Jim Karygiannis, who has accompanied doctors to Pakistan since the floods and spoke about the heartfelt plea of the Pakistani people. He encouraged people to open their hearts and their wallets and in an impromptu on-stage bidding, collected $780 in donations in under five minutes, for the cause.

The silent art auction sold 70 of the generously donated art pieces, while providing the Toronto community a chance to bid on beautiful art work, serving as lasting reminders of an effort to help flood survivors re-build their lives in Pakistan, well beyond the event.

The night came together with special guest appearances by strong supporters of the arts including Toronto’s Deputy Mayor, Joe Pantalone; MP for Scarborough, Jim Karygiannis; Mrs Pakistan World, Tehmena Bokhari; Miss India Canada, Anchal Sharma; singer from popular pop/rock band JoSH, Q; along with community dignitaries, business leaders, and of course Canadian artists.

“A crisis can build a community and show us at our best. This is definitely the case for heARTS for Pakistan, who brought together volunteers, artists, sponsors and supporters to raise critically-needed funds for Humanitarian Coalition members’ Pakistan flood-relief efforts” said Humanitarian Coalition spokesperson, Denise Koulis. “The money raised by heARTS for Pakistan will save lives and help rebuild communities.”

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About H4PK: Building on the success of heARTS for Haiti in Vancouver, heARTS for Pakistan was a silent art auction and fundraiser held on Monday, October 18 at the Gladstone Hotel in Toronto, to raise money and awareness for the victims of the floods in Pakistan back in August. 100% of the proceeds went to support the Humanitarian Coalition’s flood relief efforts in Pakistan. For more information, please visit: www.hearts4pakistan.com

About Humanitarian Coalition: Four of Canada’s leading aid organizations have founded the Humanitarian Coalition: CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada. The members of the Humanitarian Coalition work together to increase the impact of Canadian humanitarian responses and reduce administrative costs. For more information, please visit: www.thehumanitariancoalition.ca

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Event Photographs: http://picasaweb.google.com/hearts4pakistan/HeARTSForPakistan#

After two months of planning, heARTS for Pakistan, the silent art auction fundraiser to raise money and awareness for the victims of the devastating floods which hit Pakistan back in August, is finally around the corner and will take place this coming Monday, October 18 at the Gladstone Hotel in Toronto.

Times like these I wish I was still back in the KW/Toronto area, as this event promises to be a great evening of art & music. If you haven’t already bought your ticket, you can still purchase tickets online here, they cost $20 and include appetizers (a cash bar will be available on-site). Tickets at the door will cost $25 and there will only be a limited number sold.

I would also be bidding on the stunning black & white Marilyn Monroe piece generously donated by artist Jenny Sullivan; my second choice would be this beautiful colour portrait, currently untitled, by artist Wahab Jaffer.

It’s amazing the show of support that we’ve received from the art community across Canada and from the United States, for this fundraiser, where 100% of the proceeds from this event will go towards the Humanitarian Coalition‘s flood relief efforts in Pakistan. Over 75 pieces of art have been donated by artists, ranging in value from $100 to $2,000.

More photos of art up for grabs at heARTS for Pakistan this coming Monday, Oct 18, can be found here.

More information about the event can be found at www.hearts4pakistan.com

I’m sure by now, many of you have heard the statistics where the United Nations estimates 20 million people have been affected, including 4 million people who have been made homeless due to the floods. You’ve probably also seen pictures of the devastation and desperation of the people in the country given the situation on the ground (see Boston.com The Big Picture – Continuing Pakistani Floods).

If you were wondering to yourself whether there was a way for you to do something about the dire situation in Pakistan, and are located in or around the Kitchener-Waterloo/Toronto area, perhaps there is a way you can help directly.

If you’re not located in either KW or Toronto but do feel the strong need to do something about the situation in Pakistan, please feel free to take the idea proposed below and replicate it in your own community.

Silent Art Auction in Toronto for Pakistani Flood Victims

Inspired by a similar and very successful event called Hearts for Haiti in Vancouver, where the money raised went to the victims of the earthquake that devastated Haiti earlier this year, a small group of us are looking to put together a silent art auction in Toronto scheduled for the week of October 4th (depending on the venue), with a target of 150-250 people in attendance, and 50-75 art pieces to be auctioned off.

Keep in mind that we are still at the very early stages of planning for this event, and there is certainly a lot of room on the team if you are willing to help.

How YOU Can Help - Call for Volunteers, Artists & Sponsors

With that said, in order to make the maximum impact ($ raised), we’re looking for a lot of in-kind donations and could use your help for suggestions and connections to make it happen:

I found the video above of a recent lecture given by Antony Bugg-Levine of the Rockefeller Foundation, when he came to visit MaRS in Toronto back in early April, to be one of the most insightful and compelling talks on impact investing and social finance that I have come across.

If you are currently working in the private capital investment sector or perhaps with a non-profit or charity organization, interested in social enterprise and sustainable revenue generating models, I would highly encourage you to take some time out of your day to watch this video. It may change your perspective on the traditional view of only using the for-profit model to make money, while only using the charity and non-profit model to address social problems.

In this day and age, where the problems we are facing are accelerating at a pace and complexity never before seen in history, it is evident that we require new approaches and tools that will enable us to tackle these problems at their scale and level of complexity. In the coming decades, experts have noted that we will begin to see rapid systemic changes on many levels, from the weakening of national public institutions, widening gaps between rich and poor, increasing scarcity of energy, and worsening damage of our environment as a result of climate change.

With this in mind, how are we to tackle many of these emerging globally complex problems, given the traditional models of charitable giving and our reliance on government to solve these issues for us?

The simple answer is that we cannot, given the current tools that we have at our disposal.

Antony, who leads the Harnessing the Power of Impact Investing initiative at the Rockefeller Foundation in New York, argues that through impact investing–generating a viable social and environmental return while requiring a market-rate risk-adjusted financial return–we are no longer limited to giving money away to charity or waiting for government to take care of the problem, impact investing has given us a third and complimentary tool for solving social problems. He showcased the promise of impact investing by sharing the compelling stories of people from the slums of Hyderabad to farmers in the Congo, and even close to home in Toronto, who now have opportunities at a better quality of life made possible through the use of for-profit investment.

However, Antony also identified a number of challenges that need to be overcome, including advocacy and awareness building of impact investing, if we are to get to a point where it is considered both economically feasible and morally acceptable to tackle a social problem with a for-profit investment.

Until such a time when there is a major shift in cultural beliefs around using for-profit investment for social impact, as well as the emergence of the basic infrastructure (including intermediaries) that will allow actors from all levels (e.g. private investors to pension funds) to engage in impact investing, online platforms such as SocialFinance.ca and organizations such as Causeway and SiG, can continue to inform, convene and organize debates and discussions around this emerging sector and the possibilities that impact investing holds.

Why I am supporting my friend and former colleague Jeff Henry, for Waterloo City Council

From the website campaign testimonial page:

“During my time as the Vice-President, Administration and Finance for the University of Waterloo’s Federation of Students, I worked closely with Jeff Henry, and can attest firsthand to his skilled leadership and collaborative approach. Among Jeff’s broad set of advocacy skills, his in-depth knowledge of municipal affairs helped to ensure an optimal outcome when we worked with the Region of Waterloo to provide a universal transit pass for University of Waterloo undergraduate students. Thanks to Jeff’s leadership and teamwork skills, more than 24,000 students now have access to affordable and reliable transit that connects them more closely with the Waterloo community.

Even during the more challenging executive experiences that arose during our time working together – and there were many – Jeff showed an even temperament, well thought-out arguments, a team-focused mindset, and capable leadership. I am pleased to support him in his bid for city council, and believe he would serve as an excellent bridge between the community and university students.”

Please visit www.jeffhenry.ca to learn more about Jeff and the issues surrounding Central-Columbia Ward 6 in the City of Waterloo.

Join the Facebook fan page, follow Jeff on Twitter, or subscribe to the campaign blog RSS feed to keep updated on the campaign as it progresses.

Paul Saltzman is a rather remarkable person, who gave a talk at TEDxWaterloo last February sharing his insight on life and describing his personal journey and magical encounter with The Beatles in India back in the late 1960′s.

This TEDxWaterloo Talk in particular, has emerged as one of my favourites from the one-day event that we organized and held at the Gig Music Hall in Kitchener last February 25.

Paul’s remarkable story of traveling to India on a whim and his chance encounter with the Beatles, was told in a very compelling manner that I find myself watching this particular talk over and over again even after the fact. I remember sitting in the audience at TEDxWaterloo and hanging on to his every word as he shared his insight on humility and the notion of not making yourself small, but understanding your size in the universe.

This life lesson was passed on to him by George Harrison of the Beatles, who was 24 years old and the same age as Paul at the time, who put things into perspective by saying

“We’re the Beatles after all aren’t we? We have all the money you could ever dream of, we have all the fame you could ever wish for, but it isn’t love, it isn’t health, it isn’t peace inside.”

At the end of the day, Paul concluded that John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr were ordinary people just like him, who were leading very extraordinary lives.

Paul mentioned the word ‘magic’ several times throughout his presentation, defining magic as ‘that which is real, but as yet we do not understand’. This term was set within the context of ‘magical’ coincidences and opportunities that he has had in his life, simply by virtue of paying attention to the broader universe and what it was telling and compelling him to do, even if he did not quite fully understand it at the time.

Perhaps this is one of the major reasons why Paul’s talk at TEDxWaterloo speaks very loudly to me at this point in my life. There are times where I do feel that I don’t know where I am going, but I get the sense and the occasional reassurance that I am on my way there.

Exciting times ahead.