So have been watching the TV show, The Philanthropist (Wed., 10pm, NBC) inspired by Bobby Sager, a real life social entrepreneur.
The show's main character, Teddy Rist, was your basic rich businessman until he loses his son and starts thinking about others. In the last epsiode, he tries to help heal a fractured community (similar to work Bobby Sager does in Rwanda, where he has brought together women whose husbands are in jail for committing murder in the genocide of 1994 with women whose husbands were murdered in the genocide to start a business together weaving baskets, making jewelry and such like and then he helps them sell those goods on the world market.)
Sager believes:It's not only bad business to give a man a fish, as all he has at the end of the day is a fish, it's also bad business to simply give a man a pole with which to fish, because at the end of the day he still only has some fish. What is really sustainable is to teach that man how to package, market and sell that fish so that he can buy potatoes and chicken and maybe even educate his children so that real progress with his family is made.
Of course, this assumes you agree that marketing is 'real progress' and there's something wrong with just living. But what does this have to do w/anything we're doing? This show seems somewhat innovative to me (or maybe I'm just naive to other shows).
It seems a little like a social entrepreneur venture.
It's trying to be profitable via the tv entertainment route & internet site. The site has your basic tv website where you can watch missed episodes and chat w/ viewers & such. It must have a deal w/Mac as it lists all the songs in its shows via iTunes store links. It also sells the usual stuff and has plenty of ads.
But then it has this help change social issues side. Each episode deals w/a social issue, though they are realistic fiction, not accurate news stories. The site has has 'games' (somewhat educational -a quiz about what are considered professional business practices, and -a quiz on survival skills). Then it has a whole section on outreach & resources on philanthropy.
How could we do this with our art? With our school? Are we going to open this blog up to other staff members? I just googled 'philanthropy icon' in hopes of finding a visual picture and it came up w/the name
Russell Simmons who started the Rush Philantropic Arts Foundation It never ends...
Hi Judy,
ReplyDeleteIn response to your question about social philanthropy through art at Rooftop, I would say that Rooftop has been doing this all along. I believe idea is strongly embedded in the DNA of the school, but perhaps people need to put on the right lenses to see that it's been there all along. From the early days of the school's founding, people at Rooftop have had that pioneering spirit and always looked for a better way. Aiko sold kid's art in the cafeteria for the first time to fund art instruction — there was no money for materials — and now with today's Rooftop Auction, the art is still used philanthropically to benefit all programs, all kids. We've had students create art to actively address the world's needs with responses to natural disasters like tsunamis and cyclones, and man made disasters like September 11 and lead poisoning in New Orleans. And Rooftop has a tradition of helping closer to home - think of how an artist like Shannon steps up to perform to raise money to help a friend in need.
I think that it is all in how you tell the story, so people can see and feel the truth.
As far as opening the blog goes, I would recommend that we make sure that the committee is comfortable and ready to try this out. Right now, people can read, but they can not write unless invited. It is fairly easy to invite people to add, the blog can have as many as 100 authors.