Commentary: On The 99%

By Jen Pradhan
Creativity + Social Change
University of Connecticut
12 October 2011

When I went on to the website for We Are The 99%, I was mesmerized (for lack of a better word) at everything that people had put up about themselves to take a stand. I was very moved and intrigued all at the same time to keep going. I almost felt morbid, but the sad truth is that its so real. I was flipping through the channels last night and Chelsea Lately (10/11/2011),touched upon how the media was focusing in on the young adults that are out there for sex and food rather than on the bigger picture. Why are they focused on the negative and hiding behind what’s really going on? Instead of standing by and supporting and making a change, the newscast picked the most unnecessary thing they could to report on.

What’s truly sad is that there are millions out there who are only going by what the news is telling them. I was one of those people that took the situation at face value, wondering to myself… “why are you complaining since you choose the job and the career you wanted. You made your bed and you have to lay in it.” I wasn’t thinking about all the other factors such as having a family to support, kids to feed, health deteriorating, debts and foreclosures that are going on with these individuals.

Reading and seeing the pictures of each one of the individuals was a reality check. Not everything is merry and not everybody has control of what they are doing… even if they do have a nice paying job or think they are getting  by. One thing I am learning from all this is you think you are ok now but tomorrow you can get into a car accident that can take you from your “comfortable” world (with enough in the bank for a rainy day) that you live in to one that’s going to have you feeling helpless and lost.  It’s depressing.

One thing that astonished me was an article that I came across on facebook. When I read it at first, I was agreeing and telling myself …”oh well, this individual should’ve known better. Its sad, but pick something better. It’s a land of opportunity.” But today I went back to read some of the comments that were left by the people that agree with the article just as I had. And I was shocked and disappointed to revisit the article.

The comment below saddened me the most:

obamas1goodyear: 10/08/11 18:13

A few years ago, I attended an open house at a fairly prestigious, and very expensive, university with my daughter who was evaluating various colleges. One of the programs we attended was a panel discussion featuring four or five of the students who were attending the school. During the student introductions, one girl on the panel proudly announced that she was majoring in Women's Studies. After the program adjourned I asked my daughter what she thought that particular girl was going to do with a degree in Women's Studies. She said, "Probably live with her parents." My guess is that she is one of the Wall Street protestors.

The problem is not student loans. It is what students do with the loans. If you are going to borrow and invest $200,000 in a college education, you better learn something useful. 

It made me wonder if the mother thought of America like we all or once did –“ the land of opportunity.” Its people like the young individual that was going to major in women studies… that once stood up for women’s rights a while ago when no one believed in us (females) to be equals. Its because of individuals who went for what they believed in to make a change that Obamas1goodyear is able to voice her opinion at all.

I am glad I chose to go over this website ... it’s the tragic truth that I believe everyone should hear and know. Because each one of us can relate and should be proud to be part of the 99% and stand up for our rights.

Commentary: On Occupy Wall Street and Leadership

By Eileen Ahlquist
Creativity + Social Change
University of Connecticut
12 October 2011

Commentary on "What Occupy Wall Street Demands of Our Leaders," Washington Post, October 11, 2011

I am only just learning (more) about Occupy Wall Street. I am not much of a news-watcher, because I feel that the media is constantly buying into and feeding fear. I am someone who is more focused on immediate surroundings and what I can do to directly affect who and what is around me. However, I have been feeling a little ignorant and out of the loop of this major event.  After reading the article “What Occupy Wall Street demands of our leaders”, it summarized a little more about what is being cried out for – hope, economic opportunity and the need for acts of bravery, integrity and responsibility from our leaders. The article also mentions the denial of the “American Dream” to young people. But, I extend that point and include ALL people. I am in my forties, not necessarily the “young” generation anymore. Like many others, I am in a process of career change, back in school, and I am treading the thin ice of creating school debt while the economy just seems to keep failing. As a self employed person who has been hit by the change in economy and being a student trying to monitor the debt I am enslaving myself to, it is starting to make me feel a little immobilized.

Also, I agree with other points of the demands that say we have to protect jobs in America and more importantly, highlighting the real problem of too much power in the corporations.  How is it that there needs to be some kind of attention to the fact large companies can hoard money & not divest and continue the flow of economy? As a student in social work classes, it is frustrating to notice I am in a community of people learning how to help and serve the world, while leaders are not displaying commitment to guarding the quality and integrity of lives as much as they are committed to guarding dollars. Social Workers are people who become professionals to serve the needs of people, to promote justice, protect dignity and worth of people and it feels like we are being sent to battle our leaders who really don’t care to see real change for people… they just keep enough band-aids around to keep people in their places. The great vision of this country seems to lie more in its people, not in its leaders.

I am waking up and claiming: I AM THE 99 PERCENT! While my business has remained with some consistency, the trickle of work is slow and “just getting by” seems to feel like a blessing when I look around me. I am in the process of furthering my education and shifting into a new career, but have reservations if the job will be there when I am ready. I own a small house and every month, I have gratitude that I was able to pay the mortgage. Sometimes, when the responsibility feels too large, I don’t even have the option to sell, because I would not sell it for what I still owe on it ... so, sometimes it can be immobilizing. However, as Occupy Wall Street has grown and continues to spread, the hopelessness can start to shift. First, having connection and unity with others feeds the spirit and then feeling some restoration of power as people band together and demand what is needed.  I am grateful to be learning more in-depth about what is going on in this movement and I am grateful for the people who have spent their time and energy getting this message going. If the pulse continues, it can continue to wake up and inspire people like me, who have been feeling untrusting of the future yet lacking power. The more voices, the louder the message  ... and the more people, the more power.

We Are The 99% - #OccupyWallStreet

Mothers, Fathers, Daughters, Sons, Sisters, Brothers, Students, Doctors, Lawyers, Cops, Black, White, Latino, Asian, LGBT, Straight, Young, Old, We Are The 99%.

Filmed By: Kristopher Rae
Edited By: Kristopher Rae & Nicky Eyebrows
Music "We Are Your Friends" - Justice & Simian

Nobody Can Predict The Moment Of Revolution - #OccupyWallStreet

"We want to share insights into the formation of a new social movement as it is still taking shape in real time. The video was shot during the 5th and 6th day of the occupation. This idea to occupy the financial district in New York City was inspired by recent uprisings in Spain, Greece, Egypt, and Tunisia which most of us were following online. Despite of the corporate media's effort to silence the protests, and Yahoo's attempt to to censor it in e-mail communication, the occupation is growing in numbers and spreading to other cities in the US and abroad. ... Please forward our video to likeminded people via email, facebook, twitter - and make the voices of dissent circulate. ... Find the latest news, learn how to participate and support: occupywallst.org"

Creativity at Heart of Society ... An Irish Presidency Vision

By Steven Dahlberg

Why I Should Be President ... The Irish Times recently asked the seven candidates hoping to succeed Irish President Mary McAleese to outline why they believe they would make a good president.

In a statement of a mere 700 words, Labour Party candidate Michael D. Higgins put creativity at the heart of his vision for society, citizenship and development. Higgins also is the former Irish Minister for Arts, Culture and the Gaeltacht.

• The vision I am offering is of inclusive citizenship in a creative society, as we build a real Republic that makes us proud to be Irish in the world.
• Everyone has a contribution to make – whatever their religion, capacity, origin, orientation or income – and inclusion also means shared responsibility, to each other and to generations yet to come. As president, I would also promote a creative society, combining the best of tradition with the spark of innovation and opening up possibilities in every area of life from education to science to business.
• I would encourage creativity in practical ways, something I did as Ireland’s first minister for the arts in the 1990s, establishing TG4 and a network of local arts venues, and helping transform Irish film from an €11 million into a €186 million industry.
• I see the same potential today in creative industries from games development to artisan foods. However, creativity is, most importantly, a vital part of citizenship and needs to be supported from the ground up, in our communities and schools. As president, I would encourage access to art, music and self-development for every child.

Rare is a politician who truly understands -- beyond lip service -- that the creative imagination, ideas and engagement of every citizen is the raw material that builds community, develops the economy and shapes the political process. Higgins, whose self-description includes "poet,"  deeply understands that developing and expressing one's creative self in society is how one meaningfully engages in learning, work and community. He is a prime example of this personally.

Would that the 2012 United States presidential campaign season would include such a dialogue ...

What role does/should creativity play in engaging U.S. citizens in society? How does Michael D. Higgins' vision inspire you? Is there any connection between such a vision for a creative society and what is happening with #OccupyWallStreet?

Sir Ken Robinson Live Friday at 12EDT

As we celebrate our one-year anniversary this month on “Creativity in Play,” we are pleased to welcome back our very first guest – Sir Ken Robinson. Sir Ken is one of the leading thinkers on the role of creativity in education, work and society. His TED Talks have been viewed by millions and millions of people who care about making education a more-meaningful experience, as well as how creativity can engage people in purposeful learning, work and life. He is the author of The Element and Out of Our Minds. How has Sir Ken inspired your thinking about creativity and education?

Plus, we add theme music to the show today -- "Kindergarten," composed and performed by one of our previous guests, Jonathan Batiste.

The Creative Brain: Tonight on Charlie Rose

Tonight a rebroadcast of the Charlie Rose Brain Series Episode Twelve: the Creative Brain (10/28/10), a discussion about creativity with artists Richard Serra and Chuck Close, neurologist Oliver Sacks, Ann Temkin, chief curator of painting and sculpture at The Museum of Modern Art and Eric Kandel of Columbia University . [September 5 , 2011 - Charlie Rose - More]

Irish Poet in Creativity Workshops in Arts and Ideas Fest

The International Centre for Creativity and Imagination will be hosting Anne F. O'Reilly, a poet from Dublin, Ireland. O'Reilly's readings and performances will be featured in three experiential creativity workshops during the International Festival of Arts & Ideas in New Haven, Connecticut.

The public is invited to register now for the "Unleash Your Creativity" workshop series, which includes the themes of "Embodying Creativity: Engaging Creative Collaboration Through Movement and Play" on June 18, "Creativity in the Workplace: Engaging Creativity, Design and Innovation in Organizations" on June 21, and "Composing a Creative Life on Purpose: Engaging Meaning in Life and Work" on June 25. Details and registration information can be found online at <http://www.appliedimagination.org/artidea>.

The workshops will help participants explore their creativity, learn tools for new ways of thinking and problem solving, find alternatives, get unstuck, discover others who value creativity, and engage creativity in the workplace. O'Reilly will use her own poetry, as well as others', as a tool to help participants explore and understand the creative process and their own creativity.

In her book, Sacred Play: Soul-Journeys in Contemporary Irish Theatre, O'Reilly writes: "The truly liberating space is that of play, which can turn the world upside down, and enable a new imagining."

In the "Embodying Creativity" workshop on June 18, O'Reilly will share how play creates the space for creativity and transformation in individuals, in organizations and in communities. Participants will experience several play- and movement-based explorations of personal and group creativity with facilitators leading the Pilobolus method, InterPlay, the Alexander Technique and Developmental Transformations.

O'Reilly also is the author a book of poetry, Singing from the Belly of the Whale and a CD of her poems, "Breathsong." For more than 30 years, she has been teaching and facilitating workshops in spirituality, creative writing and sacred poetry. She was a senior lecturer in religious studies in St Patrick's College Drumcondra until 2008, when she took early retirement and began working as a performance poet, celebrating the healing and transforming power of poetry. She brings to this work many years' training with voice, poetry by heart, sacred clowning, drama and meditation. O'Reilly's participation in the Festival is supported by Imagine Ireland, an initiative of Culture Ireland celebrating a year of Irish arts in America 2011.

Additional facilitators in the "Unleash Your Creativity" workshop series include Renee Jaworski, Pilobolus dancer and associate artistic director; Lisa Laing, Certified InterPlay Leader; L'Ana Burton, director of CDC Creative Dance Continuum and teaching artist for the Connecticut Commission on Culture and Tourism; Rachel Bernsen, Certified Teacher of The Alexander Technique; Carol Pollard, associate director of the Yale Interdisciplinary Center for Bioethics; Dorie Shallcross, author of Intuition: An Inner Way of Knowing; Lisa Furman, artist and associate professor, Albertus Magnus College; Evie Lindemann, assistant professor/clinical coordinator master of arts in art therapy program, Albertus Magnus College; and Alice Forrester, executive director, Clifford Beers Child Guidance Clinic.

===

The "Unleash Your Creativity" series is curated by Steven Dahlberg, who heads the Connecticut-based International Centre for Creativity and Imagination and teaches "Creativity + Social Change" at the University of Connecticut. The centre is dedicated to applying creativity to improve the well-being of individuals, organizations and communities.

The series is presented by the International Centre for Creativity and Imagination, Albertus Magnus College, the Yale Interdisciplinary Center for Bioethics, AIGA Connecticut, and Connecticut Creates, in partnership with International Festival of Arts & Ideas. Additional support comes from Imagine Ireland.

The mission of the International Festival of Arts & Ideas is to create an internationally renowned festival in New Haven, Conn., of the highest quality with world-class artists, thinkers and leaders, attracting and engaging a broad and diverse audience celebrating and building community and advancing economic development.

Experiential Creativity Workshop Series at Arts & Ideas Festival - June in New Haven, Conn.

The International Festival of Arts and Ideas will feature “Unleash Your Creativity,” a series of three, experiential creativity workshops. The Festival runs from June 11 to 25, 2011, in New Haven, Conn. The workshops are June 18, 21 and 25.
The workshops will help participants explore their creativity, learn tools for new ways of thinking, find alternatives, get unstuck, discover others who value creativity, and engage creativity in the workplace. This series links the creativity of others with an in-depth opportunity to (re)discover and engage one’s own creativity and its applications to organizations and society. Full details about each workshop and its facilitators, along with registration information, can be found online (register here) or by email. The three workshops include:

• At Albertus Magnus College: “Embodying Creativity: Engaging Creative Collaboration Through Movement and Play,” 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sat., June 18. This workshop features facilitators from Pilobolus Dance Theatre, InterPlay Connecticut, Clifford Beers Child Guidance Clinic, and the Alexander Technique, as well as Irish poet Anne O’Reilly who will explore how play creates the space for creativity and transformation. No previous dance experience is necessary to participate in this day, but be prepared to move. This workshop is $99 and includes the all-day workshop, lunch and a ticket to Susan Marshall Dance Company’s “Adamantine” at 5 p.m. on June 18. MORE
• At Yale University School of Art: “Creativity in the Workplace: Engaging Creativity, Design and Innovation in Organizations,” 12 to 4 p.m. on Tues., June 21. This workshop features AIGA Connecticut President Rich Hollant, International Centre for Creativity and Imagination Director Steven Dahlberg, and Irish poet Anne O’Reilly. This workshop is $99 and includes the half-day workshop, a reception, Paul Bloom’s “Ideas: How Pleasure Works” lecture at 5:30 p.m., and a ticket to Jack Hitt’s “Making Up the Truth” at 8 p.m. on June 21. MORE
• At Albertus Magnus College: “Composing a Creative Life on Purpose: Engaging Meaning in Life and Work,” 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sat., June 25. This workshop features facilitators who will lead hands-on experiences – in arts therapy, education, creativity, art, spirituality and intuition – that will help participants engage their creativity on purpose and for purpose. This workshop is $99 and includes the all-day workshop, lunch and a ticket to David T. Little’s “Soldier Songs” at 5 p.m. on June 25.  MORE

O’Reilly is a special guest from Dublin, Ireland, whose readings and performances will be uniquely featured in all three workshops. Her participation is supported by Imagine Ireland. O’Reilly is the author of the book, Sacred Play: Soul Journeys in Contemporary Irish Theatre; a book of poetry, Singing from the Belly of the Whale; and a CD of her poems, Breathsong.

Additional facilitators include Renee Jaworski, Pilobolus dancer and associate artistic director; Lisa Laing, Certified InterPlay Leader; L'Ana Burton, director of CDC Creative Dance Continuum and teaching artist for the Connecticut Commission on Culture and Tourism; Rachel Bernsen, Certified Teacher of The Alexander Technique; Carol Pollard, associate director of the Yale Interdisciplinary Center for Bioethics; Dorie Shallcross, author of Intuition: An Inner Way of Knowing; Lisa Furman, artist and associate professor, Albertus Magnus College; Evie Lindemann, assistant professor/clinical coordinator master of arts in art therapy program, Albertus Magnus College; and Alice Forrester, executive director, Clifford Beers Child Guidance Clinic.

The “Unleashing Your Creativity” Series is curated by Steven Dahlberg, who heads the Connecticut-based International Centre for Creativity and Imagination and teaches “Creativity + Social Change” at the University of Connecticut. The centre is dedicated to applying creativity to improve the well-being of individuals, organizations and communities.

The series is presented by the International Centre for Creativity and Imagination, Albertus Magnus College, the Yale Interdisciplinary Center for Bioethics, and Connecticut Creates, in partnership with International Festival of Arts & Ideas.

The mission of the International Festival of Arts and Ideas is to create an internationally renowned festival in New Haven, Conn., of the highest quality with world-class artists, thinkers and leaders, attracting and engaging a broad and diverse audience celebrating and building community and advancing economic development.

Is Creativity a Bad Trait for a Senior Leader?

Thinking outside the box could keep you out of top management, this paper warns. Because of conflicting stereotypes about creativity and leadership, supporters of the status quo -- not the creative types -- are seen as more effective. [10 June 2011 - strategy+business - More]