I mentioned yesterday I’d be staying local for an event in San Francisco to announce winners in the Move Your App! Developer Challenge we’re cosponsoring with our friends at Snaptic. Great day, lots of fun – and there’s more to come! Read on for event photos, news on the winners, how HopeLab got involved, and what’s next.
For the past year, a few folks at HopeLab have been obsessing over the quirky-fun sing-along TV hit Glee, just as work on our gDitty product kicked into high gear. So, when we were looking for a way to get audiences up to speed on gDitty development, we took inspiration from the rapid-fire “here’s what you missed” synopsis that opens each Glee episode.
By now, most Americans have experienced the impact of obesity and sedentary behavior in our young people – we’ve watched stories on our local news, we hear it from our kids’ doctors, we see it walking down the streets in our communities. Childhood obesity is a tough problem. And tough problems usually require bold solutions.
Today First Lady of the United States (FLOTUS) Michelle Obama announced details of the Let’s Move campaign, with the goal of solving the challenge of childhood obesity within a generation. The campaign aims to coordinate partnerships across all sectors of society to give schools, families and communities access to the tools that will help kids’ live healthier, more active lives. A key part of the initiative is the establishment of the Partnership for a Healthier America, a new independent foundation to help facilitate new collaborations and accelerate new efforts targeting obesity. It’s ambitious, it’s bold – and it’s an opportunity for all of us to engage.
Our president and CEO Pat Christen was in the audience at the White House event to launch the initiative, along with a host of nonprofit colleagues and collaborators that included KaBOOM!, Playworks, Save the Children, Fitness Forward and others.
Following the event, Pat had this to say:
“The First Lady’s plan to fight child obesity is ambitious, multifaceted, and offers a new approach to an urgent problem. The challenge of obesity and sedentary behavior in our kids is of national importance, and Mrs. Obama’s personal engagement and commitment were clearly felt in the room.
“I applaud Mrs. Obama’s call to action to philanthropies, industry and government to work together on innovative solutions to this intractable problem. I also appreciate her compassion for the challenges families face. Mrs. Obama’s pragmatism in the face of such a complex challenge is inspiring. My hope is that what we’ve heard today inspires each of us to roll up our sleeves and contribute our time, energy and insights to finding solutions that really work.“
To effectively fight obesity, we’ll need new ideas and a collective commitment from all parts of society – public institutions, private businesses, philanthropic organizations and grassroots movements. We’re looking to leverage all of these sectors in our work with gDitty, and we’re looking forward to seeing how the Let’s Move campaign might bring together new partners to help solve the obesity problem in America.
As Mrs. Obama said in her remarks today, “We know what we need to do to solve [the obesity problem]. We just have to make the commitment to do it.”
Let’s move, people!
Read the news from the White House on today’s event here, or view the event video below.
A special post from Pat Christen, HopeLab’s President & CEO
The year past was a roller-coaster ride, full of stomach-jolting ups and downs for many of us. For me, there were a number of special, positive moments at HopeLab that stand out: passing the milestone of 150,000 copies of Re-Mission distributed, the exciting progress in our research and development of gDitty, and an unexpected and moving visit to the White House and Oval Office to speak with President Obama about HopeLab as an innovative social enterprise at the launch of the Office of Social Innovation and Civic Participation.
Looking forward, 2010 promises to be another year of courageous experimentation at HopeLab. I recently came across this delightful quote from chemist and former Harvard University presidentJames Bryant Conant:
“Behold the turtle. He makes progress only when he sticks his neck out.”
In that spirit, we have a number of exciting plans for 2010 harnessing the power and appeal of technology to improve kids’ health as a way to further our mission.
For those of you who follow HopeLab, I’d like to offer a preview of the year ahead and invite you to watch our progress, ask us questions, and share your insights and expertise along the way! Here’s some of what we have in store: Read More »
Just before the rush of the holidays set in last week, we received word that Pam Omidyar, HopeLab’s founder and board chair, and her husband Pierre had been named by Barron’s magazine as the No. 1 “Best Philanthropists” on a list of 25 notable givers dedicated to improving the world. Pam was in the office for meetings when the news came to us, and as we discussed the list, she offered a personal perspective on how meaningful impact is achieved through philanthropy.
One question the editors had posed as they prepared their profile of Pam and Pierre and their philanthropic work was, “What’s the secret ingredient that makes a particular project or initiative ‘high impact’?” Pam responded:
“We like to think big. We want to impact many people, in profound and meaningful ways, all over the world. The secret ingredient has nothing to do with us – it’s the courage and talent of untapped individuals that is unleashed through opportunity. We believe everyone is inherently capable but not everyone has equal opportunity. We’re looking to find ways to empower and engage people to ignite transformative change. If we inspire others to join us along the way, that’s even better.”
What stands out most for me about how Pam and Pierre operate are two simple but remarkably powerful things, both reflected in that quote: their deep humility and their consistent focus on the individuals they aim to serve. These qualities they share are deeply embedded in the culture of the organizations they’ve founded – HopeLab, Omidyar Network, Humanity United, and the Ulupono Initiative. In my time at HopeLab, I’ve seen how their values-based approach can do as much, if not more, to drive change than monetary resources alone. An example: Re-Mission is a success, not only because of the vision and resources behind it but because we sought out and incorporated the direct input of young cancer patients throughout the development of the product. Rather than presuming we knew best, we focused on the customer and created something that both appealed to the them and met their needs. That approach has become a hallmark of all our work at HopeLab.
Recognition of the Omidyars’ philantrhopic work is a well-deserved honor, certainly, but I couldn’t help but reflect on how challenging it can be to have measurable impact on some of today’s most intractable problems. Disease, poverty, slavery – all continue to be devastating issues in spite of the advancements of our modern world. The work Pam and Pierre are investing in has potential to improve millions of lives, but change rarely happens over night. Lasting, long-term impact on tough problems requires visionary thinking and patient capital. The Omidyars have been generous with both.
I recently asked some of my colleagues to share with me what books are currently on their nightstand and how those books inform the work they do at HopeLab. I thought it might be fun to share a snippet of good reads you might consider.
Book roll please….
Grown Up Digital by Don Tapscott
“The key insights into the ‘net generation’ (11-30 year olds) including how they view the world and the revolutionary ways they interact, work and interact with products is extremely relevant to our work to developing products for this population.”
Recommended by Fred, Director of Product Development
The 86% Solution by Vijay Mahajan, Kamini Banga
“Innovation is the ability to see change as an opportunity – not a threat.” – Anonymous
Recommended by Seamus, Controller
Theory U: Leading from the future as it emerges by Otto Scharmer
“An interesting read about how we, as leaders can open our minds, emotions, and will to moments of discovery and mutual understanding. It’s akin to a mindfulness practice but with leadership implications. I am fascinated by this and how staff, not only leaders, can learn to let go of the past and be fully open to discovering the future.”
Recommended by Chris, VP of Staff Development, Learning and Innovation
Don’t Bring it to Workby Sylvia Laflair
“The book has a powerful core message – it talks about work life balance, and how we bring family dynamics from childhood and even from our parents to work, how to change these patterns that have been keeping us from reaching our highest potential.”
Recommended by Rosa, Office Manager/HR
What are you currently reading and how does it inform the work you do? Post a comment, let us know!
I mentioned yesterday I’d be staying local for an event in San Francisco to announce winners in the Move Your App! Developer Challenge we’re cosponsoring with our friends at Snaptic. Great day, lots of fun – and there’s more to come! Read on for event photos, news on the winners, how HopeLab got involved, and what’s next. 
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