Cameron Sinclair, co-founder of Architecture for Humanityand the Open Architecture Network, writing from Davos (via the Huffington Post), speaks of the
moments (that) reassured me that I was not crazy in thinking that the power shift that is happening is actually an incredible opportunity for disruptive and agile leadership to emerge
Reporting on a panel that, in addition to Bill Clinton, Tony Blair and Bill Gates, Sinclair reserves his praise for
the refreshing honesty of Jet Li and Muhammad Yunus, that opened up the sense that there is (this) opportunity within disruption in the social sector.
Details after the fold, plus video in the comments (h/t webranding!).
Sinclair adds a few words of advice for Cinton and Gates:
Go talk to the president, one of you must have his number and you can call him from here. Let's devise a tax on corporate bonuses that is at the highest rate possible with one exception if you donate it to charitable causes then you are exempt from further punishment. This can be done overnight and by April 15 those who are in need most will receive up to $18B in supporting the real victims of the financial crisis. Let's turn a stupid, stupid decision into a great one in one pen stroke.
Describing his impressions of the day, Sinclair further singles out the
Sweetest moment:
Watching Jet Li personally talk to everyone without handlers and handing out business cards at a crowded party.
Since I haven't figured out how to embed video, even after reading the FAQ attentively, here is the link to Jet Li's Youtube message from Davos to the rest of us:
(..) Why I come to Davos? I start a foundation called "One". What is the "One"? People living on the Earth have different cultures, different religions, different languages, but we are human! That's the first "One". Second "One" is we have the same value(s) about the family. Mother, sister, brother, and younger brothers, so that's the value human beings stand (for). You know, everybody work very hard, why? Take care of family. When we talk about philanthropy, everybody talk about what? They talk money, money money. "If we have a lot of money we can solve a lot of problems." I think money is a great thing, you know, (to) have. But on the other hand, mentally, the heart, individuals, also very important. My belief is in... we're this global family, this Earth is our home. Everybody do a little bit to take care of this home. Rich people, they need to do their job. Governments need to do their job. (But) we're just normal human beings. We can do a little bit, like volunteer one hour per month, donate 1 yuan or 1 dollar per month, put in the pool, take care of this home, make sure this home, you know, fresh, healthy, maybe fifty years later, give this home for next generation. This I call a twenty-first century philanthropy culture. It's my belief. Everybody do, together. All the family, we're the "One". We change together. I hope you join me. One Foundation. One family. Thank you.
Since the Asian tsunami in 2004 that nearly cost him his life, along with that of his two youngest daughters and their nanny, Li, a follower of Tibetan Buddhism, has devoted his time and energies to pioneering charity work in China, creating a new kind of Chinese-based charity
which partners the Red Cross in China, (and) reflects Li’s idea of individual monthly donations of one renminbi (about US 15 cents) from every able person in China. A colossal fund could then be built up to aid non-governmental organisations working for various deserving causes.
Li's model, which he has worked hard to develop through tireless travel and consultation since his near-death experience in 2004, shares a lot of the same moral objectives as President Obama's successful election campaign and a major part of the governing agenda he has pursued since taking office. It's particularly heartening to hear him speak in terms that tie together the issues of alleviating poverty, building economic solidarity and protecting our planetary environment.
"We position the One Foundation as an engine to drive charitable activities in the 21st century. If we can accumulate one-dollar donations, we would be able to effectively address the natural disasters in the world."
Because in the wake of a major disaster, an initial outpouring of international donations can take days and weeks to reach the people most urgently in need of help, Li believes in storing up massive funds in hundreds of millions of tiny individual increments, to have in reserve when a disaster strikes somewhere in the world.
At the heart of Li’s philanthropic advocacy is his belief in the moral obligation of individuals as members of the human race.
"The One Foundation does not seek to raise awareness of social responsibility or corporate responsibility towards helping others, but rather we seek to raise awareness about our individual moral obligations as citizens of the world in helping others."
Li explains that as people need to be cared for when they are children and when they are old, they are therefore obliged to contribute to society when they are in their prime or in the ‘middle’ stages of their lives.
Even beyond contributions in terms of dollars and renminbi, Li, who jokes that he hopes to become the world’s "biggest beggar", is really mining for compassion.
"Actually what I’m really asking for is not money. Rather it’s the heart. What’s in your heart, your love, your kindness and your goodness. Everyone has it, but most of the time we just put that into our families, but I’m asking people to spread their kindness to others."