Profits Follow Good Ethics

Posted on June 29, 2009 by zoeweil

In the world of business, profit is everything, so when a study reveals that doing good is more profitable, all of us who are trying to make a difference in the world should cheer.

From the recent article, “Sustainable Success”:

“But here’s a lesson many executives have yet to learn: A commitment to improving social and environmental conditions in the developing countries where a company operates is the key to maximizing the profits and growth of those operations. That’s the conclusion we drew after studying more than 200 companies. As a group, the companies most engaged in social and environmental sustainability are also the most profitable.”

You can read the whole article here.

~ Zoe

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Teaching Our Children Common Sense Should Be…Common Sense

Posted on June 26, 2009 by zoeweil

After running up our local mountain, my husband suggested we stop at our co-op to get some cereal. Since I didn’t know when we’d be back in town, I decided to stock up on other things as well, including two bottles of wine. The cashier was eighteen and legally can’t ring up wine so she called another employee to okay the purchase. I jokingly said I’d be happy to be carded since that would make me feel like I still looked young(ish). She turned to my husband instead and asked if he had an ID. He didn’t, because I was the one who was driving, so he hadn’t brought his wallet for our morning run; but he wasn’t buying the wine anyway. I was. So I pulled out my ID to show her (not that she asked me, mind you, but the whole thing seemed pretty funny, and I wanted to comply and feel younger at the same time — which could be the topic of another blog post). Just so you know I’m about to turn 48 and my husband is 51. Now he’s a very young looking 51, but there’s no way to mistake him for a twenty-year-old. The woman became somewhat agitated. She said that she was required to check his ID if we were together. This seemed crazy to us, given that I can buy wine when my 15-year-old son is with me, but she was pretty insistent. The cashier tried to be the voice of reason and suggested that they could use their common sense, but the woman was still uneasy and uncomfortable about me buying the wine. She did allow it, but reluctantly, and with the comment that she shouldn’t let me buy it, but she would this time. Our exchange about carding a middle-aged woman had suddenly turned surreal.

I later clarified the policy at our co-op and researched the Maine laws on carding, and while it’s within the rights of an employee to card people who are with someone who’s purchasing alcohol (let’s say you have a bunch of young looking people hanging around the beer cooler handing the buyer six packs – you can ask to see everyone’s ID in the group), it’s not a law that you must card people who are with the purchaser. You can exercise your judgment.

Which leads me to common sense. Rob Shetterly’s commencement speech was a clarion call for common sense. It is common sense not to despoil the ecosystems that support your own life (or it should be). It is common sense to seek nonviolent resolutions to conflict before going to war (or it should be). It is common sense not to use up limited resources (or it should be). It is common sense not to spend money you don’t have and can’t be confident you’ll acquire (or it should be).

I think that our common sense, while innate, is curiously diminished in school. We are asked to memorize names and dates of battles and fill in circles on standardized tests to demonstrate that we’ve followed these rules, yet commonsense might suggest that such learning and acquisition of facts isn’t really useful and that our time could be better spent. It is common sense to finish a thought, a paragraph, a sentence or a discussion, but when the bell rings in school, students are taught to respond like robots rather than learners and immediately get up and move to the next class. It is common sense to eat healthy, tasty and nutritious foods, but our school cafeterias by and large serve foods that are anything but. It is commonsense to allow children to move their energetic bodies, but our schools confine them in hard chairs the vast majority of their days and are taking away or lessening the time for recess.

After years of learning to suppress their common sense, is it any wonder that we have learned not to trust ourselves and our good minds? Common sense tells us we should foster our children’s common sense as they grow up, and cultivate their capacity to think clearly and act wisely (or it should be).

~ Zoe

Filed under: critical thinking, education, humane education | Tagged: , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments »

Hostility Toward Good: Don’t Criticize a Good Deed — Go Do One

Posted on June 24, 2009 by zoeweil

David Ashby, a 14-year-old boy from Orlando, Florida, is walking from his home to Washington, D.C. to raise awareness about homeless children. You can read about this remarkable young man here. Then read the comments. They begin with such venom and vitriol, it’s hard to imagine that the authors of these criticisms read the same article I did — about a boy who cares enough to dedicate his summer to walking 1,100 (southern!) miles, without knowing where he’ll sleep or what he’ll eat each day. When I read such comments I always feel so sad and frustrated, but I am not surprised by them. Unfortunately, finding fault with good deeds is all too common. People who work to protect animals are often criticized by others for “not caring about people” or “wasting time on animals.” People who give money, rather than food, to those who are homeless are criticized for aiding and abetting their potential cigarette, alcohol or drug habits. Recently, brilliant and inspiring humane educator Christopher Greenslate , who has changed the lives of his high school students and helped them to become effective and engaged change agents, was criticized for sending his students a ‘bad message’ because of his tattoos and piercings.

Sometimes our critiques are important, as in the case with the well thought-out commentary on cause marketing I mentioned in a previous post. They help us make wiser, more efficacious choices about how to make a difference. But too often they are just mean-spirited, as in these few comments about David Ashby. One of the criticisms of David is that he could do more for homeless children by getting a summer job and donating his earnings directly to them. But I don’t believe this is true. Were he to work all summer and donate his earnings to the homeless he would do something good, certainly, but the contribution would be minor compared to what might ensue from his walk. Gaining media attention for the travesty of child homelessness in the richest nation on earth has the potential to do so much more than a summer job ever could. It has the potential to influence changes in systems that perpetuate homelessness among children. Thank goodness for kids like David. Thank goodness that they think of creative ways to draw attention to pervasive problems so that we can solve them at their roots.

How much easier to criticize others than to plunge into good work ourselves. If ever you find yourself ready to criticize a good deed, go do a good deed instead. Take that energy and make a positive difference.

~ Zoe

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New Reviews for Zoe’s Books

Posted on June 23, 2009 by zoeweil

Recently, a couple new reviews of two of Zoe’s books have been published.

The July/August 2009 issue of VegNews was just published, and they include a great review of Zoe’s newest book, Most Good, Least Harm: A Simple Principle for a Better World and Meaningful Life. Here’s an excerpt:

“Most Good, Least Harm is a self-reflective read, one that will leave you empowered, educated, and hopeful. It conveys a wealth of information, and excellent resource list, and is a welcome complement to the growing library of books that offer hope of healing the world — one individual, and one decision, at a time.”
~ VegNews, July/August 2009, p. 76.



And, Beth H., from the blog Smart Family Tips just posted a great review of Zoe’s Book Above All, Be Kind: Raising a Humane Child in Challenging Times. Here are a couple of excerpts:

“Chapter 3 encourages parents to focus on their own lives for a bit and the extent to which we teach by example. One of the most resounding ideas from this book, for me, comes from this chapter. Weil mentions that a reporter once asked Mahatma Gandhi what his message was and he responded, ‘My life is my message,’ which is the title of this chapter. I find myself thinking over and over about the extent to which my life is (or is not) reflective of the message I wish to convey.”

“I came away from reading Above All, Be Kind: Raising a Humane Child in Challenging Times feeling like I had useful tools to help my children (and myself) become people who think about the consequences of their actions and who are more fully aware of the world around us. There’s no question that we live in ‘challenging times,’ but Zoe Weil makes that journey a little easier.”

Read the complete review.

(Posted by Marsha Rakestraw, IHE’s Web Content/Community Manager)

Filed under: books, humane parenting, keys to MOGO, MOGO (Most Good), Zoe Weil appearances | Tagged: , , , , , | Comments Off

UC Irvine Starts New Minor in Community Changemaking

Posted on June 22, 2009 by zoeweil

The University of California at Irvine has launched a new undergraduate minor in Civics and Community Engagement. Students will participate in changemaking within their community for environmental sustainability, global citizenship, service to others and more. Students will be able to combine volunteer work with academic study and receive credit for making a difference. Read more here.

~ Zoe

Image courtesy of stevendamron via Creative Commons.

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“Obama the Socialist”? It’s Time to Stop Name-Calling

Posted on June 19, 2009 by zoeweil

I have a friend who identifies himself as a libertarian-leaning Republican. We engaged in many heated debates during the election season, and he’s not happy with Obama’s presidency thus far. He keeps calling Obama a socialist. And I keep asking him to quit it with the name-calling. Name-calling is knee jerk. It stops conversations and limits our capacity to work together and create solutions. And it’s childish, too. President Obama is called a socialist because he wants to prevent our economy from collapsing into a depression and thus is investing taxpayer money into what has previously been privately funded. It’s legitimate to challenge this, and we should do so. But name-calling isn’t a challenge, and it doesn’t further answers. It’s small-minded, and carries no vision. President Obama is called a socialist because he wants to provide health insurance to all Americans. It’s legitimate to challenge health care in the U.S., too. Our health care system is replete with so many problems, and whether health care is a right is a topic that should be debated, but we get nowhere when we hurl a charged expletive and take sides based on a word. Obama is called a socialist often simply because he’s progressive-minded. Or he’s called a socialist because it’s a bad name to many, and some people have gotten on the bad-name-bandwagon because they don’t like Obama.

Next time you hear any name-calling, challenge it. Ask the name-callers questions. Challenge them to think more deeply and to come up with better answers to the actions they’re criticizing. Do it without judgment or hostility. Do it as a humane educator eliciting critical and creative thinking.

~ Zoe

Image courtesy of purpleslog via Creative Commons.

Filed under: compassionate communication, critical thinking, politics | Tagged: , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments »

For All You Activists and Caregivers Who Face Compassion Fatigue

Posted on June 17, 2009 by zoeweil

In our M.Ed. and Humane Education Certificate Programs, students often struggle with the content of the courses in human rights, animal protection, and environmental preservation. In order to teach about the problems we face and to perpetuate and foster creative solutions and consciouschoicemakers among our students, we must expose ourselves to the atrocities and grave challenges in the world. This is painful. And the people who are drawn to our programs usually already come with a hefty dose of empathy. It’s part of why they enroll in our program,  versus other M.Ed. programs. But some find exposing themselves to cruelty, injustice, and destruction overwhelming.

Here’s a powerful, beautiful and important speech on compassion fatigue. It inspires, enlightens, and plumbs the depths of human kindness, even as it reveals human evil; and, it offers ideas for those caregivers — and I would include activists — who face the challenges of compassion fatigue in their work.

~ Zoe

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Rob Shetterly’s Excellent Graduation Speech

Posted on June 16, 2009 by zoeweil

Robert Shetterly, Americans Who Tell the Truth portrait series artist, delivered a brilliant commencement address at George Stevens Academy in Blue Hill, Maine, on June 14.

Here are some excerpts:

“We want our children well educated not for success as it is usually defined in terms of jobs and money but because the success of our communities and our democracy depends on well educated, critical thinking, creative, fun loving people, people who seek truth and see through propaganda and advertising, people who understand that personal success is only meaningful in the context of the common good. Today your community celebrates with you and makes two seemingly contradictory offerings: a new sense of personal freedom and a new awareness of personal responsibility….”

“What I ask from all of us is an awareness of our fundamental reality, and then the necessary citizenship — for our communities and the world — to live our lives in accordance with that reality. This is not a chore or a punishment. It’s a privilege and a joy. It’s a life of meaning rather than consumption. It’s a life in harmony with reality. I suspect that all of you appreciate commonsense, but the habits of our lives, our consumptive desires, and the forces that profit from those habits and desires are not based in commonsense. But they can be. Commonsense is closely related to the common good and the common welfare and simply to protecting the idea of the commons. But to live by commonsense will take a great quantity of common courage from all of us. It will take courage because our status quo is the enemy of commonsense. But everything good takes courage.

I want your success — but no more or no less than I want the success of every other species on earth. Because for you to truly succeed, all the others must, too.”

You can read the whole speech at Rob’s website.

~ Zoe

Filed under: changemakers, citizen activism, education, integrity, responsibility | Tagged: , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments »

Zoe Weil Guest Post on The Good Human: How to Be a Good Human

Posted on June 16, 2009 by zoeweil

Institute for Humane Education President, Zoe Weil, had a guest post on The Good Human blog yesterday, called How to Be a Good Human. Here are a couple of excerpts:

“We know a good human when we see one. An act of heroism? Good human. Donated a kidney to a stranger? Good human. Launched a non-profit to end human slavery? Good human. Dalai Lama? Good human. Adolf Hitler? Evil human.

“But it’s not so simple. Most of us are neither the Dalai Lama nor Hitler. We try to be good, but we are ignorant of many of the effects of our choices on others, and sometimes we get lazy and greedy. Often our desires and perceived needs compete with our values, leading us to buy products that cause harm to the environment (e.g. electronics), or were made in sweatshops (e.g. most clothes produced overseas), or may have been tainted with human slavery (e.g. much chocolate) or animal suffering and cruelty (e.g. almost all meat, dairy, eggs, fur, leather).

“So how can we be consistently good humans? We can do so by endeavoring to the greatest degree possible to bring what I call the 3 I’s of inquiry, introspection, and integrity to our life choices, whether these are daily decisions about what products, foods, or clothing to buy, or larger decisions about our work, activism, volunteerism, and involvement in change-making.”

Read the full post here.

(Posted by IHE staff.)

Filed under: Blogs, citizen activism, MOGO (Most Good), Zoe Weil appearances | Tagged: , , , , , , , | Comments Off

What’s Missing in the Debate on Cause Marketing

Posted on June 15, 2009 by zoeweil

Angela Eikenberry has written a compelling critique of “cause marketing” in the Stanford Social Innovation Review. Cause marketing refers to those products you buy for which a small percentage of the purchase price supports a cause like breast cancer research. Such products have become ubiquitous, and they raise an awful lot of money for charities, but Eikenberry’s case against them is very thought-provoking; rather than elucidate her excellent points, I encourage you to just read her essay in its entirety.

Then you can read the post “Defending Cause Marketing” at the blog, Selfish Giving, because this post is thought-provoking as well; and, by the end, you may think that Eikenberry has a good point, but the world being the way it is, you might as well use your credit card to support your favorite non-profit.

As the president of a non-profit, the Institute for Humane Education, we would probably do well to hook up with cause marketing and get some of those tens of millions of dollars that are generated by chocolate bars and cans of soup, but we haven’t done this. Many people urge us to get ourselves some fair trade, organic cotton T-shirts to sell with our awesome logo and great tag line (The World Becomes What You Teach), but we haven’t done that either. Once we got organic cotton and hemp tote bags with our logo, and they sold out pretty fast, but we didn’t get more. Something about it didn’t seem right.

Why? Because we want people to question consumption. We want people to learn how to create better, healthier, more humane, and sustainable systems. Cans of chicken soup and chocolate bars are not the path to a humane, sustainable, and healthy world. Stuff is part of the problem; it can never be the solution. Until we’ve created systems of mining, production, transportation, energy, and disposal that are truly restorative, we’re largely participating in greenwashing if we suggest that buying a product will help the world.

Yet, our organization need funds as much as every cause, and our e-appeals (far greener than our print ones) bring in virtually nothing. Maybe many people believe they’ve already done their part by buying their donates-five-percent-of-profits yogurt, as Eikenberry suggests, so that they’re less likely to support non-profits directly. How much better it would be if they made their soup from scratch and didn’t buy a single-use, disposable yogurt container, and used all the money they would save from eating a non-processed food diet to generously support those organizations, like ours, that go to the root cause of all our grave challenges and try to solve them.

Hey, prove that this is possible! Feel free to donate to the Institute for Humane Education here :)

~ Zoe

Image courtesy of JoeG2007 via Creative Commons.

Filed under: critical thinking, Cultural Issues, MOGO (Most Good), systemic change, third side thinking | Tagged: , , , , , , | 3 Comments »

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