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“To pay attention. This is our endless and proper work.” -- Mary Oliver
When we pay attention to what we truly care about, especially in times of great change or uncertainty, it grounds us in courage and creativity. In schools, we revisit a teacher's unique exercise that was created after the 1999 Columbine school shooting to curb violence. In the arts, a concert held by Coldplay is made possible, in part, through the energy and excitement of fans. And in business, a company’s private equity owner decided to share the money from the sale of the company with ALL the employees, changing the lives of so many. Amid the difficult things happening in the world, our hearts expand with renewed attention towards how we really are a creative, resourceful, and compassionate people. Wishing you a week filled with peace.
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Feliphe Schiarolli | Unsplash
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It goes like this: every Friday, Chase's fifth grade teacher asks students to write down four classmates' names next to whom they'd like to sit the following week. They know their selections may or may not be honored. Each student also nominates one classmate, who they believe has been an exceptional classroom citizen that week. All ballots are submitted privately. After the students go home, Chase's teacher goes through the ballots: "Who is not getting requested by anyone else? Who can't think of anyone to request? Who never gets noticed enough to be nominated? Who had a million friends last week and none this week?" Instead of seating chart ideas or model classmates, what this educator looks for are isolated and lonely students. "Whose gifts are going unnoticed by their peers? Who is being bullied, and who is doing the bullying?" Ever since the 1999 Columbine school shooting in Colorado, U.S., Chase's teacher has practiced this weekly exercise. From a simple weekly vote, Chase's teacher leans into her classroom of 10 and 11 year-old's patterns of disconnection, and finds ways to redirect them towards understanding and love. [Editor's Note: This story was originallypublished in 2014.]
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Rick Scuteri/Invision | AP
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It is often said that fans at a live concert give the band a jolt of electricity; Coldplay wants to literally harness that. The pop superstars have added kinetic dance floors and energy-storing stationary bikes to their latest world tour, encouraging fans to help power the show as they dance or spin. It's part of a larger push to make the tour more environmentally friendly. The band has pledged to be as sustainable and low-carbon as possible, hoping to cut their carbon emissions by 50%. The artists are reflecting an overall push in the entertainment spherefrom sports teams to toy manufacturers to reduce their carbon footprints. A study by Live Nation found that 82% of music goers say they strive to maintain an environmentally sustainable lifestyle. "The more this is out there and the more people are taking initiative and coming up with new ideas, the quicker it becomes industry standard. When that tips to the point it's a no-brainer because it costs the same or less than traditional ways of doing it, that's when the floodgates open and then we make significant change," said the band's drummer Will Champion.
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Rene Paulesich | Unsplash
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In a world-first initiative, visitors to the remote West Pacific island nation of Palau will be offered exclusive experiences based on how they treat the environment and culture, not by how much they spend. Nicknamed "the underwater Serengeti" for its remote white-sand beaches and wildlife-rich dive spots, Palau is offering points to those who make sustainable decisions like using reef-safe sunscreen, visiting culturally important sites and eating sustainably sourced local food. Guests can use those points to unlock cultural and nature-based experiences normally reserved for Palauans and their close friends, such as taking an unmarked hike, swimming at a secret cave, sharing a meal with locals and elders or casting a reel in a secluded fishing spot. The program is called "Ol'au Palau," which means inviting a friend into your space, explains Laura Clarke, who co-founded the Palau Legacy Project in 2020. Palau re-opened in April 2022 to fully vaccinated travelers.
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Micheile-Dot-Com | Unsplash
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In the otherwise-sleepy town of Arthur, Illinois, US, this week brought a life-changing surprise for hundreds of workers at locally based garage-door maker, C.H.I. Overhead Door. The company's private equity owner, KKR, is selling the company to steel manufacturer Nucor in a $3 billion deal. The sale is generating a massive windfall for both the firm and -- uniquely -- C.H.I.'s employees, from truck drivers to factory workers. On average, hourly workers will receive $175,000 in a payout, with the most-tenured earning more than $750,000 as a result of the sale. The idea of giving rank-and-file workers equity grants in a sale is the brainchild of Pete Stavros, KKR's co-head of US Private Equity; Stavros said he became interested in employee ownership at a young age due to his father's work experience as an hourly employee working in the construction field. Stavros has been experimenting with employee ownership models since he came into a leadership position in KKR. Now, the firm uses an employee ownership model in all of its US buyouts and it's hoping to convince its peers to do the same.
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Pavel Danilyuk | Pexels
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Elizabeth Bonker, a nonspeaking student at Rollins College in Florida, was chosen by her peers to deliver this year's commencement speech, reports ABC News. Bonker, who has been unable to speak since she was 15 months old because of autism, called upon her fellow classmates to use their voices. "God gave you a voice. Use it. And no, the irony of a nonspeaking-autistic encouraging you to use your voice is not lost on me. Because if you can see the worth in me, then you can see the worth in everyone you meet," she said in her typed speech. She created a nonprofit organization called Communication 4 ALL to help other non-speakers with autism gain greater access to communication and education. "Sometimes, it is the people no one imagines anything of who do the things no one can imagine. Be those people. Be the light," she states in her powerful 6-minute speech.
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