Blog Updates and inspiration

Let’s talk about water. It is a basic necessity central to human existence and it may seem inconceivable to imagine living without it. But the UN reports that 783 million people do not have access to clean water and almost 2.5 billion do not have access to adequate sanitation. What? Since 1993 there has been […]

When Grant Oyston sat down to write a response to the Kony 2012 phenomenon he only expected a few dozen of his friends to read it. However like many things online, within a week his blog was read more than 2 million times. Despite his desire, Grant was perceived by many as a credible source in the case against KONY […]

A few weeks back, I ventured to Slab City with two other IC comm/art interns to explore the desert and see what life off the grid actually means. Slab City is a community who has decided to live differently. Named after the concrete slabs that were left after the deconstruction of a former army base, a […]

The kingdom of Bhutan – a small country nestled deep in the Himalayan mountains, has a unique approach to economics. While most countries focus extensively on Gross National Product, Bhutanese culture is rooted in Gross National Happiness. In the 1970s the Fourth King of Bhutan, Jigme Singye Wangchuck, adopted the idea. The approach seems to be working – in 2006 Business Week […]

Phiona Mutesi wasn’t always a jet-setting, child chess prodigy. The 16-year-old grew up in Katwe, a slum in Kampala. Her father died of AIDS when she was three and her sister met the same fate shortly thereafter. For Phiona, finding her next meal and caring for her brothers and sisters while her mother was working […]

In 2007, moments after Kenyan president Mwai Kibaki was re-elected, much of the East African country was immersed in bloodshed. Thousands poured into the streets, outraged by the results of the widely controversial election. According to New York Times columnist Jeffrey Gettleman, “Western observers said Kenya’s election commission ignored undeniable evidence of vote rigging to keep the government in […]

If the success of social enterprises in the past decade is any indication of what the future of commerce looks like, the possibilities of social change is endless. It’s a step toward shifting the idea of what commercial-based businesses could be built upon. Within our own social enterprise, Mend, we work directly with women affected by the LRA, providing […]

Conflict minerals are one of the most commonly overlooked social issues in the world today. For decades countries including the LRA-affected Democratic Republic of Congo have been ravaged for their vast wealth of natural resources in lieu of their most precious resources – people. Tin, tantalum, and tungsten in particular, are excavated from the mines of […]

A Ugandan newspaper, The Observer, recently published an article on Legacy Scholarship recipient and former Invisible Children Roadie, Grace Obalim. She discussed her past achievements, current responsibilities, and future ambitions. Nkumba’s iron lady lives for the afflicted “Grace is an achiever. She is so principled and if you are working on a policy and a […]

Millionaire and pioneering space tourist Dennis Tito dreams big. You could even say his ideas are out of this world. So much so that the 72 year-old has started the first 501(c)3 non-profit aimed at space exploration. According to its website, the Inspiration Mars Foundation believes in the exploration of space as a catalyst for growth, national […]