Want to change the world but not sure where to begin? This simple guide - The Creative Activist Toolkit - takes you step-by-step through the beginning stages of social innovation and helps you avoid common mistakes. (We will enable downloading when toolkit is finalized - sometime in May 2011.)
3. 1
Dan eldon never set out to be a
leader. He was just a regular teenager
who happened to love photography
and art. He also loved to go on safaris
in his adopted homeland of Kenya.
INTRODUCTION
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4. His mission: “To explore the unknown
and the familiar, distant and near, and
to record in details with the eyes of a
child, any beauty, horror, irony, traces
of utopia or Hell.”
On his journeys across Africa, he
learned to see the world as it really is.
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6. Along the way, he realized he could use
creativity to do much more - to change
lives and change the world.
E For a Kenyan girl, he raised money
to pay for her heart surgery.
E For refugees in Malawi, he brought
blankets and $17,000 in aid.
E For famine-stricken Somalia, he
used his photographs to get the
world to care.
Inspired, he took action and created impact.
Dan turned imagination into art,
reality into photography.
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7. This guide is for all who are inspired by Dan and other Creative
Activists, Changemakers, Social Entrepreneurs, and Visionaries.
It takes you step-by-step through the process of turning
INSPIRATION into ACTION so that the world can be a better place
because of you. Of course, we can’t teach you everything you need to
know. But this road map will get you off to a good start.
Change begins and ends with passionate individuals.
Like Dan. We call them Creative Activists.
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8. INSPIRATION1.
What fuels creative activism? In the beginning, it’s always
INSPIRATION.
Creative Activists are always inspired by someone or
something that calls them to do more and be more.
LISTEN TO THAT CALLING. THERE’S A REASON IT SPEAKS TO YOU.
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9. inspiration can come from many sources
E Your personal experience with an issue.
E An injustice you’ve seen or learned about.
E Someone you respect has called you to action.
E Your concerns about the future of our planet.
E Your desire for a better world.
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10. Excessive use of plastic bags.
Cruelty towards animals you eat.
High drop-out rate at your high school.
EXAMPLE
JJWrite Down three issues or problems that you feel connected to:
Issue 1 Issue 2 Issue 3
v Don’t worry about how much you know or don’t
know about each issue.
v Don’t focus too quickly on one issue. Keep your
mind open for now. Entertain three issues.
v Do focus on issues that have personally
affected you - either directly or indirectly.
TIPSTIPS
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11. Now that you’ve identified issues that speak to you in some
way, get to know each of them better. Read up on each
issue and talk to as many people as you can about them.
Take time to explore. As Dan liked to say, “There is little
difference between being lost and exploring.” Let your mind
wander. Enjoy the detours. SPEND TIME ON THIS STEP.
EXPLORATION2.
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12. 1) What is the root cause of the problem?
In other words, try to complete the sentence:
“The problem of X would not exist if ______________________________.”
2)Who do you need to help or benefit to make things better?
3) How do they need to be better off? What benefits do they need?
The problem of factory farms would not exist
if we consumers made compassionate choices and
bought more humane products.
EXAMPLE
JJWhen you feel you have a good grasp of the issues, try to answer
three questions for each:
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13. Issue 1 Issue 2 Issue 3
Root Cause
BEneficiaries
Benefits
issue: Too much plastic waste
Root cause: People buy too many bottled drinks
Beneficiaries: Help everyone at school buy fewer bottled drinks
Benefits: Provide convenient and stylish water bottles
EXAMPLE
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14. v Run your answers by potential
beneficiaries and people you consider
to be experts. But don’t just talk to one.
v To address a problem, you may need
to benefit different sets of people
but pick one group for each for now.
v Use Root Cause Analysis and Make It
Count toolkits if you want to gain a
deeper understanding of root causes
and outcomes. See page 30.
TIPSTIPS
Additional Notes:
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15. Now that you have a better sense of what benefits you need
to provide to whom to solve a problem, the fun part begins.
It’s time to brainstorm what YOU can do.
IMAGINATION3.
Ask yourself...What can you do with
what you have where you are?
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16. x
What you have includes:
People you know who can support you.
The skills you and your supporters have.
The organizations, including businesses,
you’re connected to.
The networks of people you can access
- both personal and professional.
JJList the resources you have under each column.
People: SKILLS: ORGANIZATIONS: NETWORKS:
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17. Benefit: Provide convenient and stylish
water bottles.
Solution: Sell limited edition water bottles
with custom artwork, school logo and mascot
and raise money for a good cause. Get local
businesses to sponsor you and subsidize cost.
EXAMPLE
JJStart combining different resources and see if any solutions Come
to mind. What could deliver the benefits you think are needed?
(from step 2) Solutions
TIPSTIPS
v Think less about what “the” solution
should be and more about what “your”
solution could be.
v Use Tao of MacGyver toolkit to identify
resources. See page 30.
v Perform this step with teammates or
people who will likely support you. 15
18. You now have three possible solutions you
can implement. Which one should you
move forward with?
Chances are, your gut instinct points you to
one above the rest. Perhaps it’s more creative,
easier to pull off, or maybe it has greater
potential for impact. Whatever the reason, your
gut instinct is probably right.
But you may want to poll others to see what
they think. Give them your three choices. Ask
them to vote.
SOLUTION4.
Additional Notes:
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19. Name:
Tagline:
JJ When you have decided on the solution to move forward with, give it
a name and a tagline, a short phrase that tells people what it’s about.
JJCreate an imaginary billboard for it. It helps you visualize your solution from other people’s
perspective. Write name and tagline on the billboard and sketch an image (it can be rough)
EXAMPLE
v Your billboard should emphasize the positive
rather than the negative, the solution rather than
the problem. Make it upbeat, not depressing.
v Give your solution a catchy name. Both the name
and tagline should be memorable.
v Use Project Profile toolkit to create a video
about your project that you can spread online.
See page 30.
TIPSTIPS
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22. ACTION5.
Every solution assumes that if you take certain actions,
you will arrive at the results you want.
Action1 + Action2 + Action3 = RESULTS
Example:
Get water bottles made + Run contest to sell bottles + Get popular
classmates to promote bottles = 2,000 Bottles Sold
Write out your formula for change. In other words, map out your
journey. What actions will you need to take to achieve your results?
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23. water botTleS contest endorsements 2,000 bottles sold
JJCome up with at least two formulas and allow yourself to
experiment with both.
Ideally, you want to find an action plan that is repeatable and
scalable. The more you execute the plan, the more results you get. If
that’s the case, it means you know what you’re doing.
Put both of these plans into motion and
see which one is more effective.
Plan A:
Plan B:
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24. v Don’t lock yourself into one
way of doing something. Allow
experimentation.
.v Luck and chance are important but
that doesn’t mean you don’t need to
figure out a reliable process.
v Action always requires involvement
of others. Don’t plan or implement
actions by yourself.
TIPSTIPS
Additional Notes:
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25. So where is all this headed, really? What is the ultimate
destination of your journey?
You want to make sure that when all is said and done, you
have made an impact.
Don’t focus on what you do - number of screenings, page views,
DVDs sold, funds raised, etc.
Focus on how much better off your beneficiaries are. (Remember
the benefits you identified in Step 2?)
DESTINATION6.
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26. The question you want to answer,
at the very end, is “How are
people better off?” or “How is the
environment better off?”
E Do people have more knowledge, skills,
income, better health, etc.? Do they take
positive action for themselves?
E Is the environment cleaner, less polluted,
more biologically diverse, etc.?
Additional Notes:
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27. Metric 1 Metric 2 Metric 3
JJ COme up with 2 or 3 ways you can measure how Things are better off.
# bottles sold
% buyers who use reusable bottles every day
% buyers who have reduced purchase of
bottled drinks
# plastic bottles avoided per week
(you will need to collect emails to do
follow-up surveys)
EXAMPLE
v If you can’t measure it, you
can’t manage it.
.v Make sure your team agrees on
how to measure success.
v Use Make It Count toolkit to
develop your outcome metrics.
See page 30.
TIPSTIPS
These are the ultimate measures of your success, your ultimate destination. Let them guide
your actions. If you’re not seeing the results you want, modify your action plans in STEP 5.
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28. 7.
Just as you were inspired to take action, you can inspire others
to take action as well. Let your story be an inspiration to others.
k KEEP A “TRAVELOGUE.” Blog about what you do or
create short videos about the actions you take.
k CREATE A SHORT DOCUMENTARY ABOUT YOUR JOURNEY.
That means you need to document your project from
beginning to end.
k TELL YOUR STORY OFTEN.
k TEACH OTHERS HOW TO ACHIEVE SIMILAR SUCCESS.
This is how you can multiply your impact.
INSPIRATION
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29. AS DAN USED TO SAY,
DO IT ALL AGAIN! GEAR UP FOR THE NEXT JOURNEY!
“The journey is the destination.”
v Use Message with SUCCESs
toolkit to craft your
inspirational story. See page 30.
.v Watch some TED Talks to see
what inspirational stories look
and sound like.
v Give your own TEDx Talk. Use
guide at socialcreatives.org
TIPSTIPS
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30. There is little difference between
being lost and exploring. —Dan Eldon
31. b You have selected your team
with care.
b You are working on an issue that
personally affects you
- directly or indirectly.
b You are trying to address the
cause, not just the symptoms,
of a problem.
b You seriously considered several
solutions before choosing one.
THE CREATIVE ACTIVIST CHECKLIST
b Your solution relies mostly on your
assets - what you have - rather
than what you need.
b You are experimenting with
different actions to get at the
same results.
b You are measuring your success by
the real difference you make to
people and the environment.
b You have a plan To share your
journey and your story with others.
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32. Need more help? Use other toolkits to learn and apply the best
practices of creative activists.
THE CREATIVE ACTIVIST TOOLKITSTM
Root Cause Analysis
Address the cause, not the
symptom.
Project Profiles
Introduce yourself
through video.
Glorified Press Releases
Make your story stand out.
Make It Count
The art of creating
measurable change.
Message with SUCCESs
How to communicate
with impact.
The Tao of MacGyver
Do what you can with what
you have.
PerfectYour Pitch
How to present project
to funders.
Pitch Tempalate
Keynote and PowerPoint
Templates.
Download all the toolkits at CreativeVisions.org30
33. THE CREATIVE VISIONS FOUNDATION
Inspired by Dan Eldon, the Creative Visions
Foundation supports “Creative Activists,”
individuals who use the power of media and
arts to create positive change in the world.
Founded in 1998 by Kathy and Amy Eldon,
Creative Visions has provided funding,
mentorship and fiscal sponsorship to more than
85 creative activists whose projects reach and
impact millions around the world.
Visit CreativeVisions.org for tools, resources
and opportunities to connect
with creative activists.
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34. The Creative Activist ToolkitTM
was developed and written
by Charles Tsai, an educator and consultant to social
entrepreneurs. Charles speaks on social innovation and
faciliates workshops in social entrepreneurship at universities and
conferences around the world. Charles is the founder of Social
Creatives, an online resource that helps changemakers learn and
apply best practices of the social sector: www.socialcreatives.org
Designer: Jennifer Browning
The Creative Activist Toolkit is made possible by the generous
support of the Heineman Foundation.
CREDITS
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