Humane Edge E-News February 2009

In This Issue:

• HUMANE 2.0: USING SOCIAL MEDIA FOR HUMANE EDUCATION
  
• 7 WAYS TO SHOW IHE SOME LOVE (THAT DON'T COST YOU A CENT)
  
• FEATURED ACTIVITY: WHO AM I? EXPLORING COMMONALITIES IN HUMANS, COWS, PIGS AND CHICKENS
  
• JOIN THE NATIONAL TEACH-IN FOR GLOBAL WARMING
  
• FEATURED RESOURCE: THE NEW HEROES
  
• HUMANE EDUCATION IN ACTION: ENGAGING STUDENTS & TEACHERS
  
• FEATURED GRADUATE: DANIELLA HY DENNENBERG
  

HUMANE 2.0: USING SOCIAL MEDIA FOR HUMANE EDUCATION

 The last election saw unprecedented online engagement, especially for Obama’s campaign, and such online activism is expected to continue. A recent article reporting that about 1 in 200 kids in the U.S. are now vegetarian mentioned that some young people attributed their change of heart to online videos they’d seen about animal cruelty. Non-profit groups are maintaining a presence and launching campaigns via Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, and other social networking sites. People are using these same types of sites to connect and share with friends, family, and people who have a shared interest in causes. With a new era of positive change on the lips of many people worldwide, much of that change is being facilitated via social media. And humane educators and citizen activists are starting to make use of the social media scene to get word out about their work and to connect and share with others.

Several IHE students and graduates are taking advantage of social media communities and tools to connect and share. Here are a few examples:

One of the common ways for people to connect online is through blogs. Kelly Coyle DiNorcia has focused her work on humane parenting and has used her blog and website to reach out to other parents. She says,

“As a busy mother of two young children, I find that blogging has taken the place of some of the more involved writing and reading that I used to do.  I enjoy tying the everyday moments of motherhood in with the bigger picture issues that are so important to me, and I've connected with some interesting people through the different blogs that I write and contribute to.  I also find that reading other bloggers' work helps me to stay educated; I have a few favorites that I check every day, and I always appreciate that they do the research for me and point me in the right direction to stay on top of current thought in fields related to humane education.”

Christopher Greenslate has also used blogging to connect people with his One Dollar Diet Project, which has gained a great deal of national attention and has inspired others to think about their food choices. Additionally, in 2008 Christopher’s high school social justice students created a video (about dumping plastic water bottles for reusable ones) that they entered into a social media contest focused on positive global solutions. Their video won second place and gained them -- and their cause -- positive attention.


Roberto Giannicola launched his own business, Provokare, to inspire businesses and their employees to become more socially responsible. Roberto has already taken advantage of a couple of tools. He says,

“I've been using social media for the short clip on my website using Animoto.  Animoto allows you to put together a quick and lively animation that will follow the beat of the music you chose to go along. It's a quick and easy way to create video clips and tweak them according to the audience that you want to reach. I also used Slideshare.net to post a short PowerPoint presentation to broadcast a message about humane living. If done well, these presentations can reach thousands of people across the world. The "You Can" slideshare I created last year received over 25,000 hits from over 60 countries in half a year, and was embedded in various blogs and websites.”

Creating and sharing video has also become a popular social media tool. Sophia Erlsten and her colleagues created a video to promote humane education and the work that they did for the Central Florida VegFest and posted it on YouTube. Susan Hargreaves did a promotional video about humane education and her work promoting compassion and care for animals and the environment.


Michel Estopinan isn't an IHE student or grad, but he's a colleague of ours and deeply passionate about humane education. As a teacher, Michel has seen first-hand the power of social media to reach young people, and he has made use of their e-obsession to help educate and connect them with humane issues. He says,  

"Social networking has become a cyber-social-phenomenon. Most of the teenagers today in America use one or more online social networks to keep up with friends and connect with hundreds of people throughout the networks. By analyzing some of my students’ profiles, I realized that they are wasting a great opportunity to spread a positive message among their friends; I recommended them to join me in a form of ‘social network revolution’ to raise awareness about the most pressing issues of our time. Many students responded favorably and they started to include videos, pictures, news -- some even created new social networks exclusively to cover an issue, joined causes, and wrote blogs, etc., about the causes they identified with.

As founder and sponsor of The Humane School Initiative, we created a social network at Ning.com where the Humane Alternative Club members could express themselves through forums, and blogs, and share news, videos, pictures, and websites that relate with their causes. In the social network they have committee groups where they plan upcoming activities and events to implement in their schools. The social network has turned into a community organizing tool; parents and community members have also joined our group through our social network and have participated in different community presentations.

President Obama is known for mobilizing millions of people through the use of the different tools of the Web 2.0, including social networking. I firmly believe that social networks are a powerful tool to spread 'the power and promise of humane education.'"

Here are some of Michel's social network projects:

• The Humane Foundation
• Hialeah High Humane Alternative Club
• Michel's MySpace page
• The HUMANE Foundation & the HUMANE Alternative Clubs Facebook page

Of course, IHE as an organization is making its way into the social media scene to connect with others and share information and resources about humane education and humane living. In addition to our website and blog, we have pages on sites such as Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, Change.org and WiserEarth, and we also use tools such as Digg. As we build relationships and content, we’ll continue to expand into other social media in order to increase the reach of humane education. And, we’re already launching our new online courses, through which participants will be able to connect and share via online forums and blogs.

Whatever your focus for educating others about humane issues, social media is a great tool for increasing your reach, connecting with others and spreading the world about creating a humane world.

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7 WAYS TO SHOW IHE SOME LOVE (THAT DON'T COST YOU A CENT)

We at IHE are always appreciative of financial support; we count on donations to be able to train new humane educators and to educate and empower citizens to live a MOGO life. But there are also numerous ways to support humane education and IHE without spending a penny. Here are 7 that focus on making use of social media:

1. Become a Fan
You’ll find us on places like Facebook, Twitter, Change.org, Flickr, WiserEarth, etc. Become a fan or friend of our pages there, contribute your own ideas and resources, and let your own contacts know about us and the work we’re doing.

2. Leave Your Mark
Our blog, Humane Connection, is much stronger and more useful when you leave comments and give us suggestions for posts you’d like to see there. (And, when you tell others about what you've found there that you like.)


3. Digg Us
Do you like our blog posts, e-news articles or other media? Share them with others by using social media tools such as Digg, Reddit, Stumble Upon, Newsvine, Delicious, and others, so that more people can learn about IHE, humane education and humane living.


4. Talk About Us
Word of mouth (WOM) is one of the most powerful means of sharing information and influencing others. In your on- and offline conversations, talk about the power of humane education (and what IHE can offer) to teachers, administrators, groups that address one or more humane issues, friends, changemakers, legislators, anyone, everyone! Use your blog, social networking pages, website, wiki page, podcast or other online forum to promote humane education and IHE.


5. Make Us Your Cause
Make IHE a cause celeb on your Facebook page, or on Change.org or other social media sites (like Six Degrees) that let you create badges, encourage others to raise funds, etc.


6. Search Us Out
Go to GoodSearch and choose the Institute for Humane Education as “Who Do You GoodSearch for?” and then conduct your web searches. Every time you use GoodSearch as your web search engine (after you’ve selected us), you’ll generate funds for IHE. (Each search raises about a penny; so if you spread the word, that means more pennies generated!)


7. Feed Us
One of the most valuable actions you can take for us (in addition to spreading the word about us) is to give us your feedback. We want to provide the best ideas, information and resources to everyone interested in creating a humane world, and we can only get better with your help. Let us know what you like, and what you’d like to see. You can start by emailing us at info@humaneeducation.org or by connecting with us on one of our social networking sites.

 
Brick "I love you" wall image courtesy of lunchtimemama via Creative Commons.

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FEATURED ACTIVITY: WHO AM I? EXPLORING COMMONALITIES IN HUMANS, COWS, PIGS AND CHICKENS

Many people know that pigs root around in the ground, that cows have four stomachs, and that chickens have wings, but some of these beings also make friends, remember faces, can play video games, and exhibit other characteristics that people often attribute only to humans. This activity for grades 2-5 serves as a great introduction to thinking about the commonalities that humans, cows, pigs and chickens share and why we treat "farmed" animals the way we do. Download Who Am I?

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JOIN THE NATIONAL TEACH-IN FOR GLOBAL WARMING

On February 5, 2009, join the schools, faith groups, community organizations and businesses around the U.S. who are hosting educational events as part of the National Teach-In on Global Warming Solutions.

The lengths and types of events will vary, but the goal is to educate, engage, and collaborate in order to promote positive policy recommendations and to cultivate dialogue with political leaders.

There’s also a webcast that can be shown -- “The First 100 Days” -- which features global warming advocates discussing solutions for the Obama Administration’s first 100 days in office. The website has a variety of useful resources, so check for events in your area and get involved!

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FEATURED RESOURCE: THE NEW HEROES

 
Many people hear about child slavery or child prostitution or poverty or other social ills and shake their heads and feel bad…and then go on about their lives, not sure what they can do to make a difference. The 2005 PBS series The New Heroes features changemakers who have stepped up and taken positive action to help those in need. Hosted by Robert Redford, the 4-hour series profiles 12 social entrepreneurs from around the world who are making a positive difference for others. Those featured include:

Albina Ruiz was devastated by the health and environmental problems caused by garbage in Peru. She decided to take action and is now working to revolutionize waste management, helping create jobs, promote sustainability and protect people and the planet.

Muhammad Yunus was teaching economics in Bangladesh when he became aware of the crushing poverty all around him. He started asking poor people what they needed, and ended up creating the Grameen Bank, which lends microcredit to the poor, asking for no collateral and inspiring and empowering thousands.

Kailash Satyarthi has dedicated his life to helping free the millions of people — many of them children — who have been forced into slavery. Satyarthi conducts raids to free slaves, has established an Ashram so that freed slaves have a place of safety to begin again, has worked to develop child-friendly villages that support, educate and nurture their children, and established the Rugmark system, so that people can be assured of buying slave-free rugs.

Through the Delancey Street Foundation, Mimi Silbert has created a means for substance abusers, former felons, and other troubled people to turn their lives around through their own efforts. The foundation is funded in large part through the many businesses operated by residents in the program, who do good for the community while learning marketable and important living skills.

The companion website includes profiles of the featured changemakers, as well as lesson plans for teachers to use in their classrooms and tips for parents to help them raise caring, compassionate, committed citizens.


It’s easy to become depressed and pessimistic about the state of the world, but seeing these new heroes in action can uplift your spirits and infuse you with new hope, passion and commitment. Be sure to check it out!

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HUMANE EDUCATION IN ACTION: ENGAGING STUDENTS AND TEACHERS

After years of being an activist, IHE M.Ed. graduate Kristina Hulvershorn turned to humane education in the classroom as a way to engage and empower young people to think critically and to become vital, powerful members of the local and global communities. Kristina continues to reach out to students as a special education teacher, and she's working to partner with teachers through her new non-profit organization, The Ethic Project. Read our interview with Kristina.

Quick Facts About Kristina:

Current hometown: Chicago, Illinois (USA)
IHE fan since: 2004 (Liberation Now Conference in Berkley)
Current job: Lead Special Education Consultant for the Chicago Public Schools Turnaround Team and Executive Director of The Ethic Project
Your hero:  Alice Walker
Book/movie that changed your life: This one is a stretch, but when I first contemplated veganism, and the Internet was brand new, I read an animal rights Frequently Asked Questions online, and it blew my mind.  The answers articulately laid to rest all of the excuses I had accepted for our species’ treatment of non-human animals. It really woke me up and paved the way for me to be psychologically open to reading other works like Animal Liberation and Diet for A New America.
Guilty pleasure: Cooking television shows!
Inspired by:  The stories of everyday people making changes and taking a stand for the good of others.
Love about yourself: My sense of humor. 
One of your strengths: Finding the good in others.
Desired epitaph or tagline: She showed us all that living a compassionate life is possible.


IHE: What led you to the path of humane education?

KH: After years of being an activist and still hungering for a richer way to create change, humane education fell into my lap at a conference. Dani Dennenberg presented a workshop outlining humane education and it just clicked both in my heart and my mind.  I was already an elementary school special education teacher and immediately saw the significance of humane education for my classroom and beyond.  I knew that it was work that not only fit my skill set and personality but it was work that was capable of making widespread and profound change that the world needs.  For about a year I waited to apply to IHE's M.Ed. program, then I did and the rest is history!


IHE: One of the ways that you’ve manifested humane education is through your classroom teaching. Tell us about that experience. What have you done, what has been the impact, what have you learned?

KH: I have worked to incorporate humane education into my current teaching practice to mesh with existing standards and expectations.  I had the most luck when I was teaching math at the high school level.  We learned about percentages, ratios, and proportions through a study of prison populations.  The students were immediately fascinated, then repulsed, then hungry for ways to address this problem in their own lives.  As some of my students were pulled towards gangs and drugs, we then had a way to focus our conversations around their self-imposed responsibilities to not become one of the statistics we had learned about.  What I noticed most was the increased sense of responsibility they had for themselves.  Once offered humane education-centered lessons, students could see themselves as part of the local and global community rather than the self-obsessed teenagers our culture often perceives them to be. 

We did specific studies of the corporations they favored and learned how to create algebraic expressions for the income of the factory workers as compared to that of the CEOs.  Throughout a physics curriculum we wove in discussions of ethics and responsibility, especially when it came to nuclear physics.  The infusion of humane education not only made the material more interesting and relevant but it allowed the students to comprehend difficult subjects that they likely would not have otherwise understood. 

In all of my attempts at integrating humane education into the curriculum, I have learned that almost all of my fears were unfounded.  I never had a student in tears, an angry parent on the phone, or administrators breathing down my neck. Instead I found students interested in coming to class, engaged in ways I had never seen, and truly passionate about the issues before them.  It was less difficult that I imagined to keep my own views at bay.  Students were interested in knowing my opinions but were given the space to consider these ideas and draw their own conclusions.  In all, humane education has been the most invigorating supplement to my teaching I have encountered.


IHE: Currently you’re teaching special education students. How are you finding ways to integrate humane education?

KH: First, let me explain that most of the students I work with have learning disabilities.  These students, cognitively, are at the same level as students without disabilities but may have some difficulties receiving or expressing ideas and directives. They don’t appear any different than any other student and are often full of clever insights.  That being said, most people with disabilities have at least some experience with feeling marginalized. I would posit that this experience enables them to have a greater degree of sympathy for other marginalized entities, whether animals, the environment, or other humans.  All of the activities I previously mentioned are ones I've used with students with and without disabilities. I would say that appealing to emotion and creativity acts as an equalizer for students. I say this because students who may struggle with logical/mathematical reasoning may excel in skills requiring empathy.  Further, kids who learn differently often think differently.  They are familiar with being the one person in the room who perceives things differently from anyone else.  As we know, being comfortable being the black sheep is one of the initial challenges when thinking like a compassionate person in a sometimes harsh world.  These students have perceptive ideas that are often discounted by their families and communities but that make sense when considered from a humane framework. 

I have also worked with students with autism and emotional and behavioral disabilities.  I loved focusing our learning around things familiar to them, most often food.  We would often cook in our classroom and learn about the sources, preparation, and nutrition related to the food we cooked.  The mere exposure to healthy, more compassionate food choices affected these students in profound ways.  With these younger students (K-6) it was easiest to start small and really allow students to understand the elements immediately connected to their lives.  When efforts to convey theoretical or “big picture” ideas are not working, it is always helpful to try to link the ideas to more concrete and real-world ideas to ease the students into understanding the overarching idea.  For example, talking about world hunger would not have been successful until we tied it to a sample meal quantity in the third world for these students.  This is also a good way to engage students who are hesitant to connect with the curriculum. 


IHE: You’re also creating a non-profit called The Ethic Project. Tell us about that. What are your goals? What services and programs will you offer?

KH: The Ethic Project’s activities, to some degree, will depend on the clientele we serve.  We hope to forge relationships with schools, other non-profits, and individuals who are initially drawn to our mission.  We will offer a portfolio of workshops and activities, as well as the option to work with teachers on infusing existing curriculum with humane education.   Because of this approach, much of what we do will depend on the needs and wishes of our partners.  Generally, however, we would like to offer workshops illuminating animal, environmental, social, and local issues, specializing in ways to address these issues through our own choices and actions. 

Because of my familiarity with schools I would love to also focus on curricular supplements centered around perpetuating kindness and compassion.  Teachers are ready for ways to engage students and to make their curriculum more relevant, so finding opportunities to work with teachers is welcomed.

We would also love to create not only lesson plans and classroom activities but also stories, games, and literature for kids.  We are also envisioning materials for adults that help organize and facilitate positive choices, such as checklists, resources, and statistics that can be geared toward the needs of various people and groups.   I also love the idea of creating calendars and planners with meaningful information that can be delivered over time.  These ideas are still in their infancy but we enjoy the challenge of delivering relevant ideas in new and meaningful ways so look forward to this challenge!


IHE: How will your organization be funded?

KH: We will be seeking grants, holding fundraisers, facilitating private donations, and possibly selling handmade goods to fund the organization.  It is very important to us to be able to provide humane education to interested parties regardless of their ability to compensate us.  For that reason, we may offer presentations on a sliding scale or offer discounts to schools and other organizations without the ability to pay.  To make up for this, we will need to find other means of financing these endeavors.  Likely we will incorporate a “sponsor a classroom” or “sponsor a school” approach to ensure the availability of our programs to deserving groups.


IHE: What are some of your biggest challenges in your humane ed work?

KH: Finding ways to teach it!  It is simple to find a captive audience for one or two presentations, but to forge meaningful, long term relationships with students takes some careful planning.  It is also difficult to explain to people what it is that we do and get them to think beyond the, “So you bring your dogs to the class and teach kids how to be kind to animals?” idea. 


IHE: Share a success story. What has helped encourage you?

KH: This is a success story that I thankfully keep watching unfold before me.  In my everyday encounters with friends, family, co-workers, and acquaintances I, truthfully, hardly notice the small conversations we have around issues of compassion.  Nonetheless, I can’t tell you how many times people have come to me weeks, months, or sometimes even years later, explaining how meaningful a simple interaction was to them.  People often recount conversations or actions that subtly encouraged them to change something in their own lives.  People often tell me that it is more about the confidence I have in my own choices, my lack of judgment, or my willingness to explain things to them that enables them to think about making these changes for themselves.  Hearing this is beyond encouraging.  It inspires me and thrills me to witness the ripple effect of kindness.


IHE: What are your thoughts about the power of humane education to positively transform the world?

KH: Humane education engages people at a far deeper level than other activism or outreach can.  It also becomes more about their own thinking and less about propaganda and prescribed solutions to problems.  I think that a population that is allowed to interact with ideas and is inspired to do the good that they can do is a population that is prepared to deal with range of complex problems that await us.  It is the most dependable vehicle for change I have found and am so grateful to be a part of it.


IHE: Any future plans, dreams or projects?

KH: Absolutely! The Ethic Project is just the beginning of a pursuit of finding meaningful ways to connect with others surrounding issues related to empathy and compassion.  I am also particularly drawn to children’s books and Internet resources to inspire and engage others.  Networking with existing organizations to magnify the impact of our collective work is tremendously exciting to me as well.  The reality that each of our possibilities are limited only by our creativity is thrilling to me.  Change and “doing good” should be joyful, invigorating, and affirming. Knowing this inspires me to embrace the creativity that I need to feed the work that I will continue to do.

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FEATURED GRADUATE: DANIELLA HY DENNENBERG

Dani Dennenberg was the first person in the U.S. to graduate with a Master of Education in Humane Education and served as a faculty member for IHE for more than 4 years. From learning to stand up for justice when she was young, Dani's journey has led her on a variety of paths connected to humane education, and she has a bright, joyful vision of the humane world that's already being created.

Read more about Dani.

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