Gaia Community: Yvette's Blog

Has anyone else tried this?

http://culturalfusion.gaia.com — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 11:12:55 GMT

ripple dropplet

Have you listened to or considered being a guest on the Cultural Fusion Experience radio show?

I decided to give this Twitter app a try and wondered how many of you have tried it?

I just found this site that shows you a way of getting 1000's of new followers
on twitter, I just started using it myself.

http://tweetergetter.com/ydubel

We'll give the 30 day test. In other words, we''ll see how things are at that time.

"Ask nothing; want nothing in return. Give what you have to give; it will come back to you — but do not think of that now it will come back multiplied a thousandfold , but the attention must not be on that. Yet have the power to give: there it ends. "

Tags: twitter, tweetgetter, social media, yvette dubel, cultural fusion

Exploring the Circle of Breath

http://culturalfusion.gaia.com — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 16:35:28 GMT

This show expands on the topic of breath as life force with special emphasis applications to real life issues (i.e. security & identity). The participants are Desmond Green, author of Eyeology and Max Rodriguez, Founder & Publisher of QBR The Black Book Review/Harlem Book Fair/HBF Publishers.
Join us on the First and Last Sunday at 2pm EST Cultural Fusion Experience Radio

Listen to the discussion here

Tags: desmon green, breath, breathing, personal identity, self help, personal development, yvette dubel, cultural fusion

Happiness is Contagious!

http://culturalfusion.gaia.com — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 16:17:39 GMT

Did you know happiness is contagious?

Dynamic spread of happiness in a large social network: longitudinal analysis over 20 years in the Framingham Heart Study

Objectives To evaluate whether happiness can spread from personto person and whether niches of happiness form within socialnetworks.

Design Longitudinal social network analysis.

Setting Framingham Heart Study social network.

Participants 4739 individuals followed from 1983 to 2003.

Main outcome measures Happiness measured with validated fouritem scale; broad array of attributes of social networks anddiverse social ties.

Results Clusters of happy and unhappy people are visible inthe network, and the relationship between people’s happinessextends up to three degrees of separation (for example, to thefriends of one’s friends’ friends). People who aresurrounded by many happy people and those who are central inthe network are more likely to become happy in the future. Longitudinalstatistical models suggest that clusters of happiness resultfrom the spread of happiness and not just a tendency for peopleto associate with similar individuals. A friend who lives withina mile (about 1.6 km) and who becomes happy increases the probabilitythat a person is happy by 25% (95% confidence interval 1% to57%). Similar effects are seen in coresident spouses (8%, 0.2%to 16%), siblings who live within a mile (14%, 1% to 28%), andnext door neighbours (34%, 7% to 70%). Effects are not seenbetween coworkers. The effect decays with time and with geographicalseparation.

Conclusions People’s happiness depends on the happinessof others with whom they are connected. This provides furtherjustification for seeing happiness, like health, as a collectivephenomenon.

Source One
Source Two

Your are invited to spread some happiness

When I learned that a colleague of mine, Sherri Thompson of Viola's Babygirl's Ventures, LLC, had a project being released on December 11th I knew we had to celebrate! The fact that this project, a music CD distributed through children's hospitals, shared my birthday inspired me to share my Birthday Wish with anyone willing to accept a bit of magic birthday wishing dust. We'll also hear a few tracks from the Dream On! Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Tribute CD - which you may have heard discussed in the previous show. (If you haven't yet, do listen to that one) As the chance to have some other surprise call in guests took shape this show started to look more like an online party. Let's roll with that.....Join us for a Happy Birthday Celebration at 12pm EST

Tags: happiness, social, cultural fusion, radio, research, Yvette Dubel

Collaboration for Better Business

http://culturalfusion.gaia.com — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 14:42:42 GMT

Howard Rheingold: Way-new collaboration

I wanted to share this with you as it is a way to participate in the Cultural Fusion Experience and help promote your project, organization, etc. Also because I am using this as a way to scout for collaborators for the Cultural Fusion Tour....we can discuss that later if that is of interest to you. Of course, anyone else that is interested is also welcomed to contact me.

See my latest blog post or post to the forum about inviting people to contribute for the next video.

After much discussion about the branding of Cultural Fusion, Cherrie of Global Gia Marketing had a brainstorm session this past weekend and she came up with the concept.

I point this out because it could be a great way to start promoting various artists, events, and communities/organizations that are or will be participating.

Could you help introduce this opportunity to the artist community where you are?
My thinking is you could have a few or several artist shoot their clips in your national art museum or similar with their work in the background (2D work, performances, etc) or as part of the reading itself.

What do you think?

If you are interested, or know anyone who is please join me at the Cultural Fusion Group Network because I will be using the group to coordinate this endeavor to make things easier (manageable).

All the best,
Yvette

Tags: cultural fusion, art, art as philosophy, yvette dubel, collaboration, artist, peace

Yes, We Can- So what will we do?

http://culturalfusion.gaia.com — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 15:27:33 GMT

Clay Shirky: Institutions vs. collaboration

See full post here

Currently I am inviting people, especially artists, to contribute to a new video that puts Cultural Fusion art sponsorships into context and helps define the project "brand"....where we move beyond selling people on an image of what a company/product/thing is and instead invite them to explore/help define what it is.

What is involved?
Each person that is selected will contribute a video clip reading one to three slides from a power point presentation. If you are an artist, I'd love to see your work included in the background of your clip....each presenter will be credited in subtitle, as well as an article with links to Cultural Fusion member profiles. Contributors will also be featured in upcoming radio shows, interview or feature in Oci Novosti magazine - new project publication launching later this month. (let me know if you'd like to help with that I have a mock up I did when I first started working on the idea) Oci Novosti is good news with an artist perspective. We will be featuring the good work and issues being addressed by individuals and communities around the globe. Instead of highlighting the problems, we'll be paying attention to the people that are solving them.

If you are or know of anyone that would be interested in participating please connect with me at the Cultural Fusion group network or via the Prospous Play Pod here - for next steps.

Thanks everyone for sharing and for the chance to share in return :-)

All the best!

Tags: cultural fusion, art, art as philosophy, yvette dubel, clay shirky, collaboration, artists, invitation

Understand the Difference between Liberals and Conservatives?

http://culturalfusion.gaia.com — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 14:43:56 GMT

Jonathan Haidt: The real difference between liberals and con

Tags: peace, liberal, conservatives, unity, understanding

Pass it on -- the NEW Cultural Fusion Widget!

http://culturalfusion.gaia.com — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 14:29:43 GMT

Labyrinth Series #1

To copy and post into your profile, blogs, etc. simply click the "share" link in the lower right hand corner. Then copy and paste the embed code into our website, blog, etc. Alternately, you can select one of the buttons showing the social network you wish to post the widget in and proceed as instructed.

Visit my blog post here to get the widget as this one doesn't support the embed code.

Tags: cultural fusion, art, art as philosophy, yvette dubel, widget

JUSTICE 4 PELTIER: A Documentary

http://culturalfusion.gaia.com — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 23:59:36 GMT

Recently, my friend Cherrie Richard Collazo of Gaia Global Marketing shared a documentary film treatment with me that warrents attention and discussion, but most importantly support for production. Because of this I wish to share excepts from it with you.

A Feature Length Documentary

It's easy to see that most Americans admire the idea of justice. After all, we make our kids pledge "…with liberty and justice for all" every day in school. Throw in equality and you've got three concepts that practically define our nation.

So what's going on with Leonard Peltier? Where are his liberty, justice and equality?

Leonard's a sixty-two year old Native American. He's been in maximum security prisons for thirty-one years. The reason? Two FBI agents died as a result of a fateful firefight on an Indian Reservation in June of 1975. Leonard was there. He's been convicted for alleged involvement in the agents' deaths. And he's been failed by the American Judicial system. Not just once, but over and over again. At least that's the hypothesis this documentary will seek to prove. Or if we're wrong, disprove.

There are a bunch of people who believe in Leonard's innocence so strongly that they've given up family, homes and jobs to fight for his freedom. But this isn't a film about them. There are high profile celebrities and world leaders like Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Nelson Mandela and the entire Belgian Parliament who have made convincing and regular pleas for Leonard's freedom. This isn't a film about them either. Our film also isn't about Leonard's guilt or innocence. In fact, it's not even exactly about Leonard. It's about the American judicial system; whether or not it acted ethically, impartially and legally in the case of Leonard Peltier. And it's about why we should care.

There are reasons most of us haven't been paying attention to Leonard. His prison story isn't the breezy water cooler conversation of Britney's 5150 hold or Paris' 45 day sentence. And even if we don't personally salivate over People Magazine articles, there are other causes that seduce us away from our own backyard: Repression in Burma, persecution in Rwanda, torture and rape in Uzbekistan. And if it's all too much to handle, we can switch to finding humor in the last through our clueless movie icon, Borat. But what about our own government's missteps and abuses? If only we were as obsessed with our U.S. Court judges as we are with Simon Cowell, well, we might just have less of those missteps and abuses. Most of us have grown up being fed whatever the media put in front of us, no questions asked. And many of us know a guy who knows a guy who was audited by the IRS forty-nine years straight for asking a question they didn't like. It's a shame -- our country wasn't founded on human rights complacency and it certainly wasn't founded on fear of the IRS. (Wasn't' there something about a Boston Tea Party in history class?)

Okay, we aren't completely oblivious as a nation. We condemned the actions of our military at Abu Ghraib after seeing all those horrible pictures. But what about the wrong doings that aren't caught on camera? What about all those small breakdowns, intentional and unintentional, of our Judicial System? If they go unchecked and unchallenged, doesn't that leave the door open for our daughters, our brothers, maybe even ourselves to fall victim to an imperfect system which acts and reacts with no fear of reprisal?

We'd like to ignite some passion for justice again. And maybe stir up a little enthusiasm for liberty and equality too. No sensationalizing, no propagandizing, no soapboxes needed. The facts will speak for themselves.

Yes, Leonard is in prison for a conviction in the 1975 deaths of two FBI agents, but like almost everything about this case, the basis for his charges and conviction is also in dispute. Is he in prison for first degree murder or for aiding and abetting? Either way, he's been incarcerated now about twice as long as the law requires for the most severe version. The one area in this case that is undisputed is that the FBI and prosecutors behaved badly. They withheld evidence, fabricated testimony and presented conflicting arguments. Leonard maintains he's innocent of the charges against him and has done so consistently through times when a remorseful confession – even a fake one – might have gained him an early release, for which there are precedents in many less ambiguous cases. In fact, we came across unequivocal hands-on, first degree multiple murderers getting out in less time: Kenneth Allen McDuff received the death sentence in 1972 for a triple murder. He was paroled in 1989. Arthur Shawcross was convicted of strangling two kids. He was out in fifteen years. In 1973, Daniel Joe Hittle was found guilty of murdering his adoptive parents because their dog scratched his truck. He was paroled after 11 years. And Leonard, who has not been proven to have killed anyone? Well, he's still sits in prison after 31 years.

We're working under an agreement with Leonard and his defense committee, the LPDC. We have access to all their documents and to breaking news, both public and private. (Yes, there is still breaking news in the case). Leonard is up for parole for the second time at the end of 2008. A clemency petition was forwarded from President Clinton to President Bush, who will grant commutations before he leaves office in 2009. Our documentary can have a significant impact on these outcomes.

Through use of the latest forensic technology, extensive interviews and a compilation of compelling archival footage, we'll take on the judicial system through Leonard's story. We'll endeavor to answer objectively the myriad questions raised by the case, many of them a version of a recurrent theme: "How could a sane and just court have let this happen, reached that decision, or acted in that way?"

Based on Leonard's support roster, we'll also look to put together a powerful soundtrack for the movie. We're requesting musical contributions from Ben Harper, Stevie VanZandt, Rage Against the Machine, Stephen Earle, Rita Coolidge, Toad the Wet Sprocket, Jackson Browne, Mos Def, Willie Nelson, Indigo Girls, Buffy Sainte-Marie, Kris Kristofferson, Dead Prez, Robbie Robertson and Bono....

While America moved on with new interests since that devastating day on Pine Ridge, Leonard continued to fight the same seemingly endless legal battle. We discoed on roller blades, mimicked Farrah's hairstyle and poked fun at Billy Beer as Leonard fought his extradition, was tried and convicted, then sought a retrial. We moonwalked with Michael Jackson, lip synched to Madonna and learned who shot JR as Leonard fought on to win an appeal. And while Leonard was denied parole and his attorneys continued to fight to get access to FBI documents, America got absorbed with some other legal cases. We rallied behind or railed against Heidi Fleiss, the Hollywood Madam. Some say her jail sentence was unjust since her clients weren't prosecuted. And fifty-seven million of us were glued to the OJ Simpson trial. Of course, some say the system may have failed OJ in a different way. But those trials were a decade ago.

Let's get back to caring about the little guy whose plight could one day be close to home. Let's stop shrugging off as "just the way it is" our government's blunders and dubious motivations. Let's stop taking the media at face value. We may not have Judge Judy, but we do have a compelling opportunity to put our justice system on trial and see how it fares through the case of Leonard Peltier.

If you can assist in getting this film made please conact:

R.J Joseph

www.moccasinpathproductions.com

Tags: native american, indian, Leonard Peltier, Cherrie Richard Collazo, Gaia Global Marketing, moccasin path productions

New Bill Creates NATIVE AMERICAN HERITAGE DAY 2008

http://culturalfusion.gaia.com — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 14:40:46 GMT

The Medicine Wheel

PRESIDENT SIGNS BACA BILL CREATING NATIVE AMERICAN HERITAGE DAY 2008

Friday After Thanksgiving Will Now Be Designated as Day of Tribute

Washington, DC – Earlier this week President Bush signed into law legislation introduced by Congressman Joe Baca (D-Rialto), to designate the Friday after Thanksgiving as Native American Heritage Day. The Native American Heritage Day Bill, H.J. Res. 62, is supported by the National Indian Gaming Association (NIGA) and 184 federally recognized tribes, and designates Friday, November 28, 2008, as a day to pay tribute to Native Americans for their many contributions to the United States.

"I am pleased the President took quick action on signing this legislation, which recognizes the importance of Native Americans to our history and culture," said Rep. Baca. "It is critical we honor the contributions of Native Americans and ensure all Americans are properly educated on their heritage and many achievements."

The Native American Heritage Day Bill encourages Americans of all backgrounds to observe Friday, November 28, as Native American Heritage Day, through appropriate ceremonies and activities. It also encourages public elementary and secondary schools to enhance student understanding of Native Americans by providing classroom instruction focusing on their history, achievements, and contributions. As a state Assemblyman, Rep. Baca introduced the legislation that established the fourth Friday of September as Native American Day in California – which became state law in 1998.

H.J. Res. 62 was originally passed by the House of Representatives on November 13, 2007. The bill was passed with technical adjustments by unanimous consent in the U.S. Senate on September 22, 2008. Then, on September 26, 2008, the House of Representatives unanimously voted to pass the legislation again, this time including the adjustments from the Senate. The legislation was signed into public law by the President on October 8, 2008.

"This law will help to preserve the great history and legacy of Native Americans," added Rep. Baca. "Native Americans and their ancestors have played a vital role in the formation of our nation. They have fought with valor and died in every American war dating back to the Revolutionary War, and deserve this special acknowledgement."

"Since my time in the California State Legislature, I have fought to ensure Native Americans receive the recognition they deserve," continued Rep. Baca. "After introducing the legislation that established Native American Day in California, I am proud to have introduced and passed the legislation that creates a national day of recognition. I thank my good friend James Ramos, now Chairman of the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians, for standing with me from the beginning on this long journey to ensure the contributions of Native Americans are recognized and appreciated by all."

Tags: cultural fusion, art, art as philosophy, native america, heritage, culture

Peace Today, Abundance For All ---

http://culturalfusion.gaia.com — Sun, 12 Oct 2008 18:21:19 GMT

Cultural Fusion Introduction 101

Official Level

This video is an introduction to Cultural Fusion Art as Philosophy origin, concepts, projects, etc with the two primary metaphors I have been using for the model- galaxy formation (inclusion) and recipes/cooking from the heart (integration of the intuitive and abundance). This is another step in the documentation of the creative process from hope to realization.

cfAaP is a flexible bridge between good will and economic opportunities through Art. And so this is another component to advance the dialogue with you who are engaged. (To whom it may concern: new website, and cfAaPNetwork broadcasting are in pre-launch-let me know if you want to contribute)

Moving through this creates the context for developing cultures of peace and exploring alternatives to economies based on scarcity and instead invite you to join in creating an economy of abundance.

If you are interested in joining us to take this video or project series to the next level let's talk!

See CRM Strategy white paper for more information about social capital.
http://webantiphon.com/Knowledge-Bank...

Personal level

Originally, I had planned to only share these videos internally with the core team I have been working with, but I changed my mind. One of the reasons I decided to share them although it doesn't perfectly reflect my vision is that this series is largely inspired by my own issues with perfectionism....breaking an old pattern to learn about self-acceptance. This is major issue in creating peace, as the lack of it in the world is a reflection of the same lack in each of us as individuals.

If we can not accept ourselves then we can accept someone else and this leads to the need to be judgmental, blame, and even punish others.

The opportunity to be loss makes it worth the risk for my ego to share this imperfect video and I see that if I didn't I would miss the chance to be the first or one of the first to chart this new territory.

In addition, this is how space is made for other people to join in. This There has to be room for others to join and express the best of themselves and that means they need to see the change their contribution makes in really clear ways. If I waited until I covered all the pieces myself or just hired professional firms then the chance to engage people at the grassroots level in the most meaningful ways would be loss.

Creatively Social Level

That is fundamental to the concept, expressed ideally in "stone soup" story.

In this case, I show up with an idea and a pot--- Ron was the first to pay attention, which led to everyone else that followed having something to pay attention or contribute to - intangible assets (knowledge, talent, etc.) or physical resources (money, technology, etc.) expressed in the SoulFood model as the vegetables, meat, spices and that is how the meals (aka projects) come to be....we then can document with these videos and artworks that Cultural Fusion process and see how it take shape in a way that to me seems more honest than if it was just written as an article, paper, etc in retrospect.

As this was conceived as an alternative to Protest Art and I have been from the start interested in solutions and models that support transparency each part of the process is a revelation in how these intentions can be realized.

Tags: cultural fusion, art, art as philosophy, yvette dubel, peace, economy, economics, business, social enterprise, social entrepreneurs

Volunteer Opportunity

http://culturalfusion.gaia.com — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 16:28:50 GMT

Dianne Lang Foundation Home for Children

Location: Eastern Cape, South Africa, 6015, South Africa Organization: The Dianne Lang Foundation
Start date: October 4, 2008 Sex: All are welcome Skill(s): cooking, tutoring	End date: October 4, 2010 Age: Seniors (65 and over), Adults (18-64) Language(s): Xhosa, Afrikaans, English

Description:

Volunteers are invited to spend 3 weeks to 6 months with us. Accommodation and African food is provided.

What is needed are people who can share skills, read stories, change a diaper, or just comfort a child. We need project managers, maintenance people, chef, teachers...

We require volunteers who are over the age of 18 years and who have had some experience of working with children, who would like an adventure in real Africa and who would like to experience life in it's rawness.

How to Apply:

Telephone: +27 49 842 1616 Fax: +27 49 842 4414 Mobile +27 82 659 3087
E- Mail : dianne.lang1@googlemail.com
Registration No: IT578-2002 Non Profit Organisation 027-093NPO
29 Smid Street, Middelburg, Eastern Cape, 5900 South Africa PO Box 10548, Linton Grange, 6015, Port Elizabeth, S.A

Tags: culturalfusion, volunteering, children, volunteer opportunity, dianne lang foundation, orphans, south africa

Art and Politics- An Alternative to Protest Art

http://culturalfusion.gaia.com — Sun, 05 Oct 2008 16:35:25 GMT

HBO_SPECIAL_Hacking_Democracy.avi

I have long been an advocate for end user led innovation, especially in IT. Currently private vendors and a select group of insiders are the only ones privy to the inner workings of voter tabulation software, both its processes and disconcerting loopholes.

Recently I have been pondering connections between our failed check and balances in U.S. political arena. I generally don't get into politics here but because we have only traveled further down this road I feel I have an obligation to at least put some questions and information forward. It is hard for me to believe that Americans don't care, and it seems that those outside the States may be completely unaware of what is happening.

I feel the Open Source movement and community could well be key. The open source standards stand to help restore credibility to our political process by working with it to develop a better solution that people can openly participate in and comment on.

Also, with my interest in social capital this has been a primary instance that I have been paying attention to for a number of years. For several years, I have asserted that this decline in social capital would have economic consequences and I feel the market crash is an indicator of this.

Cultural Fusion has emerged from my interest in finding an alternative to Protest Art because as an artist we have an responsibility/choice to comment on the times we live in as we see/experience them.....and even better, Cultural Fusion intends to be part of solutions. Obviously, I like to keep things as positive and proactive as possible and this is no exception.

Key questions I have about the process are:

Did the Gonzales firings in the Dept. of Justice thwart investigations into voter fraud or irregularities?

Why did Kerry concede the election when he knew that not doing so would have supported checks and balances working to investigate questionable results?

Why are the people shut out of the process of selecting voting machines and operating software?

Given that these issues have gone largely unaddressed what is the point of the Presidential campaign where no one pays attention to such a fundamental usurping of political credibility?

Will ignoring this problem yield results similar to what we have seen on Wall Street?

Key questions I have in relation to the potential of Open Source as a solution:

Can this approach give us a review panel that is not invested in political partisanship?

How can the Open Source community be convened and partnered with the county elections boards?

How can such a movement take shape from the bottom up?

What are the benefits and downside of Open Source software for voter tabulation?

AND what does that mean for you?

For up to the minute info on this issue see Black Box Voting
If you have not seen it already, please watch and share this video

Tags: art, black, box, culturalfusion, democracy, hacking, politics, voting

Alternative to Economic Collapse

http://culturalfusion.gaia.com — Wed, 01 Oct 2008 18:01:34 GMT

This is the first Blog Talk Radio show we have done and aside from a the delay at the beginning it seems to have come out OK.

Current Events and Insights

Are you ready for Economic Transformation as an alternative to economic collapse? What does economics have to do with peer to peer and open currency systems. We will touch on the economic fiasco and insights into what it reveals about the real value in regional and global economies, the value of intangible assets and the role of art in economic recovery and sustainability.

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/culturalfusion-WRLU

WRLU is in its infancy so we are actively open to a community team to help define what it is to be. If you feel inclined to contribute please feel welcomed. It is an experiment in bottom up instead of top down organization building and managment. More specifically we are focused on building an educational organization that is self organizing and supports self referencing creativity applied for the individual and greater good (i.e. Source Arts)

As another "problem context" for the above podcast I share this video talk from Eve Ensler:

Tags: cultural fusion, art, art as philosophy, desmondgreen, reverence for life, economic turmoil, economic alternative, economy, crash, connection

Home vs. Place of Origin

http://culturalfusion.gaia.com — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 18:31:33 GMT

Home vs Place of Origin

An experimental documentary of a personal and creative journey.

Tags: cultural fusion, art, art as philosophy, yvette dubel

When Art, Business, and Community Converge

http://culturalfusion.gaia.com — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 00:54:24 GMT

Do you have an interest in open inquiry into bridging business needs with those related to sustainability? If so, I would love to hear from you. The Cultural Fusion groups now have hundreds of members on various social networks and the numbers continue to grow.

I have been working with the IFOSSFoundation to develop the IT research concepts for this series (if you in the IT industry and have an interest in the commercial potential contact me), and G-Squared is assisting me to develop the ideas for our metaverse concept for <a href="http://comfusion.pbwiki.com/Comfusion">ComFusion,</a> a ring galaxy evolving from the genesis of the series collaboration. The immersive virtual worlds are a path to engage communities globally to address regional economic development from the bottom up, while also integrating the needs of established businesses (need for meaningful marketing, R&D of new products/concepts, new approaches to branding based on cultivating social capital as part of customer retention strategies and CSR program).

I have assembled the conceptual framework for corporate sponsorships that regard sponsors as collaborators in the series or artwork to be sponsored. Since it is unlike traditional event sponsorships in some aspects, it does require some sponsorship expertise to take it to the next level.

The sponsorships are central to monetizing the concepts to launch the demonstration projects on the ground so that the virtual reality and installation art components operate as the links they are intended to be.

Currently I am working with children homes in Ethiopia, India, South Africa and the community served by the Reverence for Life Foundation in Kingston Jamaica. I am especially interested in homes meeting the needs of AIDS orphans.

The big question I am looking for help with is this:Who can identify the businesses that are seeking to invest resources (time, attention, sponsorship support, technology, etc.) in this series or a single project as a viable, yet innovative solution that advances global social responsibility while also addressing their needs?

Having asked the question I would add that I am working on a new video that introduces the series in relation to these kinds of business issues specific to branding and economic consequences of failing to address the BIG CHALLENGES.

Here is some info to introduce the project:

Cultural Fusion 101

Installation as Happening venue

CF Installation Garden (integrating game as performance art) starts as a venue for World Reverence for Life University, conceptual & process art series framework within Cultural Fusion art series collaboration with Reverence for Life Foundation. It is the first virtual "gallery" and another studio space. It is also a bit magical, in that it is a trans-portal where people can access specific resources to be located in Cultural Fusion-Hotel Infinity (focusing on Room concept here), an art installation and digital artwork inspired by the story explaining the mathematical concept. When turn-of-the-century mathematician Georg Cantor approached the subject of infinity with mathematical rigor, he encountered many paradoxes. Hotel Infinity, or the story of it, expresses these paradoxes.

The game begins with World Reverence for Life University , which was inspired by my study of the history of installation art. Although not Fluxus Art per se, this is was a big inspiration for me in that at a time when I felt a bit insecure about what I wanted to do and was doing because so few people seemed to get it. Fluxus Art helped me see there was some historical precedent for the type of work I wanted to create, in essence reassuring me that I had the right to pursue my art as legitimate evolution into the area of art with purpose aka Cultural Fusion-Art as Philosophy.

See: http://www.fluxus.org/
"An art movement begun in 1961/1962, which flourished throughout the 1960s, and into the 1970s. Characterized by a strongly Dadaist attitude, Fluxus promoted artistic experimentation mixed with social and political activism, an often celebrated anarchistic change. Although Germany was its principal location, Fluxus was an international avant-garde movement active in major Dutch, English, French, Swedish, and American cities. Its participants were a divergent group of individualists whose most common theme was their delight in spontaneity and humor. Fluxus members avoided any limiting art theories, and spurned pure aesthetic objectives, producing such mixed-media works as found poems, mail art, silent orchestras, and collages of such readily available materials as scavanged posters, newspapers, and other ephemera. Their activities resulted in many events or situations, often called "Aktions" — works challenging definitions of art as focused on objects -- performances, guerilla or street theater, concerts of electronic music — many of them similar to what in America were known as Happenings."

So, in the tradition of "Happenings" the courses at World Reverence for Life operate similarly, echoing the tradition of institutional critique as a sub-genre of installation art further contributing to the evolution of both.

"In more technical terms, Institutional Critique is an artistic term meant as a commentary of the various institutions and assumed normalities of art and/or a radical disarticulation of the institution of art (radical is linguistically understood in its relation to radix which means to get to the root of something)."

In addition this work also serves the practical function of cultivating the best in participants by delivering a real program which is Reverence for Life aka The Practice 101. Thereby operating as a community intervention program which enhances the idea of the Cultural Fusion Installation Game (garden) as feng shui for communities.

Although the focus has been on delivering this as a context for intervention programs for communities in developing countries, we are addressing root causes for challenges facing communities around the world....systemic corruption and lack of community empowerment are core issues that directly impact those issues associated with poverty, economic sustainability, social cohesion and environmental degradation.

This is my concept for an art based solution that addresses sustainability plus a multitude of symptomatic issues effecting commercial and community enterprises.

Interested?

Tags: CSR, cultural fusion, art, art as philosophy, children, AIDS orhpans, social responsibility, yvette dubel

Sir Richard Branson and the Butter Joke

http://culturalfusion.gaia.com — Sun, 31 Aug 2008 14:35:46 GMT

Sir Richard Charles Nicholas Branson (born 18 July 1950) is an English business magnate, best known for his Virgin brand of over 360 companies. Branson's first successful business venture was at age 16, when he published a magazine called Student.[1] He then set up a record mail-order business in 1970. In 1972, he opened a chain of record stores, Virgin Records, later known as Virgin Megastores and rebranded as zavvi in late 2007. With his flamboyant and competitive style, Branson's Virgin brand grew rapidly during the 1980s - as he set up Virgin Atlantic Airways and expanded the Virgin Records music label. Richard Branson is the 245th richest person according to Forbes' 2008 list of billionaires as he has an estimated net worth of approximately $2.8 billion USD.[2]

Pasted from <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sir_Richard_Branson>

Does he define British contemporary culture? Probably his success has less to do with his culture in that sense, as much as it is fueled by his unique Personal Culture. That is why his vision is one that leads because instead of following the same people his competitors are paying attention to, he is being inspired by someone in a completely different world (enterprise circle). He knows how to spot other people who have a personal culture that can be leveraged by others for profit and he starts a new business, defines or puts a new market on the charts that his competitors are paying attention to.

http://en.wikipedia.org

He signed a song no one wanted and those with conditional interest wanted to add lyrics. That song became the theme for the Exorcist and sold millions of copies. What did he hear and feel in those songs that became Tubular Bells, the album from a previously unknown artist Mike Oldfield?

I find it interesting that he seems to be able to mitigate his risk because he is paying attention to what inspires him. Does that in fact hone one's intution because the destination is not what many watching may have assumed? Is it possible that Branson has defined success by is own terms and has found the freedom not only of wealth, but having been liberated from the limitations of those who don't yet know what they don't know they know.

Why has his journey into social enterprise positioned him to dramatically increase his own wealth and at the same time positioned him as a strong brand in emerging markets in clean/renewable energy? It is not just the positioning of brand leader on both ends of a market (supplier and retailer) it is that his entry into the social enterprise brings a distinctive vibe with it. That is not to say whether it is good or bad- or that it is the only one, but today it got my attention and has prompted my consideration more than once.

I notice that it is distinctive and there is no substitute for it- know one else you could mistake it for because it has an actual vibe that successfully holds his companies together. (or so it feels)

And what defines your brand?

How people feel about it. It doesn't matter what you say it is, or what your logo and tag line says it is.

What allows some people to create charismatic brands while others struggle to define their brand? I believe it is connected to the issues associated with Personal Culture.

Now while everyone is looking there, following Sir Richard and others, what new opportunities are they completely overlooking?

And the cool part of that question is that you don't know what you don't know until you know it. At which point it is no longer what you don't know because that has been replaced with something else that you don't know that you know.

Twitter is a great example of how most people understand these kinds of issues connecting what is known to what is waiting to be known (discovered).

Follow me and Get a Clue HERE

Then just for the fun of it have a laugh....

Vicar of dibley (I cant believe its not butter)

Tags: Branson Richard, vicar of dibley, yvette dubel, cultural fusion, socal enterprise, social capital, branding, business, thought leaders, CSR

LIVE IN LOVE

http://culturalfusion.gaia.com — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 15:57:42 GMT

New Day

We always have options of how we experience our lives but the most advantageous selection is to live in love. That’s all well and good you might say but the pressures of life are so many. To live in love is a choice to replace fear. To select love over frustration is a choice for your good health. To develop loving attitudes over bitterness, resentment and jealousy creates joy in your life. To live in love is to choose life over death.

Love is the highest most enlightened alternative you always have. It is you changing the world one enlightened choice at a time. You can see chaos or you can choose love. You can denounce war or you can demonstrate love. You can detest violence or you can add love. You can experience a recession or you can intend loving solutions.

It’s always up to YOU not me. It’s YOU that is in your world. Your world is about your energy, your passions, your vision and your choices. Any choice other than a choice to live in love is like toxic waste for the planet. When we experience love the planet feels it. Feeling vibrations spread out in a never ending pulsation through the universe and loop back to support or threaten us.

Attention distribution courtesy of Dawn Vaz Green

Tags: balance, creting peace, live with love, dawn vaz green, yvette dubel, cultural fusion

Fill Your Life with Fun & Laughter

http://culturalfusion.gaia.com — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 00:17:46 GMT

Happiness is...

Fill your life with as much fun and laughter as you can and feel how sweet you are, Throw caution to the wind and proclaim yourself as heaven's brightest earthly star, For it is those who awaken to their truths and choose to celebrate fully now and here, Who also experience all of life's pleasures and passions free from regret and fear..

Attention distribution courtesy of Desmond Green's blog

Tags: cultural fusion, breath fusion, yvette dubel, meaningful marketing, desmond green, love, healing, laughter therapy

Clarity 2.2 to be released

http://culturalfusion.gaia.com — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 14:05:03 GMT

Home vs Place of Origin with dog

Sitting outside enjoying the morning with my animal companions including a few visitng birds, my attention was fixed on my decision to re-visit a software I had actually forgotten about until I stumbled upon in a folder. The funny thing was this captured my attentiobn when I was actually pondering something I thought was completely unrelated....the recent death of my father.

You see, I am in process of updating my Clarity: Relationship Valuation Analysis software. Originally, it sold for around $50 but version 2.2 is going to be distributed for free! I am approaching this as my official move into the realm of software art
as I do have other plans for it that include making it available to as many people as possible who can benefit AND using it in an art installation and performance pieces I have been developing with Desmond and Ron.

Yes, I am going to be giving it away. Why? Well that I will share with you in my Source Artist blog shortly. I was working on the revision until around 2am this morning because it is clear to me the program, and its supporting services can be a great service to others. What are the supportive services? The personal coaching via podcasts, teleconferences, and hotline services (phone and online) AND some special retreats we're developing for Jamaica. We will work out a way for anyone who need these services to access them, so stay tuned. I will not post the access numbers in public, so those who are interested will need to contact us to get subscription info which includes those access numbers.

You can contact me through this site or any of my others if you do not have my personal email address and I will reply ASAP. For now, however, we have provided these services to only a personal network of friends but now it is being offered to you.

Visit this Cultural Fusion community for more info

Tags: cultural fusion, yvette dubel, software, source artist, philanthropy, art as philosophy, software art, personal development software

Hot off the Presses!

http://culturalfusion.gaia.com — Mon, 12 May 2008 09:27:09 GMT

A MAN FOR MOTHER AND DAUGHTER-LASTVERSION copy

Ok, not exactly.....

The Novella for the Footsteps for Life benefit has been sent off to the printers. This means you can place your advance order now!

The story conveys a metaphoric tale. It trust you to be capable of and willing to open your mind to understand the lives and ways of thinking/being that may not be like your own.

In collaborating on this project I was touched and transformed in an unexpected way. You see, I accepted the project initially on principal of supporting the cause of assisting HIV/AIDS orphans. However in working with on the project I came to understand far more profound…the mind of another in a way that helped me understand the human drama behind the HIV/AIDS crisis. Furthermore, it opened my eyes to the opportunity for transformation to create a brighter future by empowering women and orphans as expressed through Chinye; as well as the redemption exemplified by Tina.

I recommend this book to you because it shines an important light on the plight that too many of these children face without being sentimentalizing the issues that are intertwined to make it what it is.

How do you get this book?

You order it through ufp books ;

ufp.management@gmail.com

47 Wyfold House, Wolvercote Road, London SE 2 9TJ, UK

Costs: Hard copy $16 [including postage], Download $7

Time of delivery: [UK 5days; 10days overseas from the day order is confirmed]

Stay tuned and we will provide the Amazon link ASAP.

Tags: cultural fusion, footsteps for life, FSFL, a man for mother and daughter, bonny umeadi, HIV, AIDS, orphans