In this Ideation Talk, JR Kerr of The Curation Group interviews social entrepreneur Tyler Merrick, the Founder of Project7 about his journey and lessons learned in launching his company.

This is one of several Ideation Talks that will be posted from this year’s 2011 Ideation Conference. You’re invited to watch and share this with your network! Also, be sure to visit our website for information our 2012 conference in Chicago May 7-9, 2012. Registration opens January 1st.

Post by Charles Lee

Registration for the Ideation Conference officially opens today!

As mentioned in a previous post, we will be hosting our annual conference in Chicago next May 7-9, 2012. You can now check out some of the presenters (with several more to be announced in the next few weeks!), venue (absolutely stunning!), and schedule for the conference on our website.

What’s New for the Conference?

Our team has added some new experiences for next year’s event including:

• New Pre-Conference Intensives on May 7th
  • As a conference focused on sharing and implementing ideas well, we felt it was important to add an extra day to the event for those who want to dive deeper into a relevant topic in the area of social good. This is why we are excited to introduce pre-conference intensives that will be led by thought leaders and practitioners in a 6 hour format. Yes, six hours!
  • We are offering 5-6 key intensives that will provide companies and organizations relevant knowledge, emerging perspectives, and practical skill-sets for developing social good in our world.
  • You may add this to your conference registration that will allow you to participate in all three days of the event or register solely for one of the pre-conference intensives.
• New Networking Gatherings
  • One of the main highlights of our conference each year is the networking of participants. Well, we’ve been working on new ways to better facilitate connections during our event! Our hope is that you will walk away with several new relationships that will lead to further friendship and collaborative opportunities in between our events. As always, our team will be available to make introductions for you with other great companies and organizations seeking to collaborate in your passions.
• New Interactive Workshop Experiences
  • Over the first two years of our event, participants have given us great insights into making workshops better. We’ve listened to your input and will be rolling out improved ways to engage the presenters and others attending the workshops. We think the workshop experience will be unlike another conference you’ve attended. Yes, we are working hard to make it remarkable!

We have no doubt that Ideation Conference 2012 will be an amazing event!

Our team has been deeply moved by the overwhelming support, exposure, and buy-in from influencers, leading brands & organizations, and people all over the world. Over the next few weeks, we will be announcing some exciting partnerships, sponsors, and new opportunities for those participating in the event. Stay tuned!

Personal Note: I see next year’s event as the fruit of much collaborative effort over the past several years among multiple individuals, brands, and organizations. It will be a beautiful expression of the hope we possess in making our world a better place.

Don’t miss out next year! I’d love to see you in Chicago. Be sure to register by January 20th to take full advantage of our lowest registration prices while supplies last! I promise that you won’t regret it!

In this Ideation Talk, Rob Morris, Co-Founder & President of Love146, shares insights from his journey towards launching an effort to end slavery.

This is one of several Ideation Talks that will be posted from this year’s 2011 Ideation Conference. You’re invited to watch and share this with your network! Also, be sure to visit our website for information our 2012 conference in Chicago May 7-9, 2012. Registration opens January 1st.

In this 2011 Ideation Talk by Jeff Shinabarger, Founder of Plywood People & Gift Card Giver, he explores and challenges us to consider, “What is enough?”

This is the first of several Ideation Talks that will be posted from this year’s 2011 Ideation Conference. You’re invited to watch and share this with your network! Also, be sure to visit our website for information our 2012 conference in Chicago May 7-9, 2012. Registration opens January 1st.

The Ideation Conference will be going to Chicago next year May 7-9, 2012!

We will be updating this site in the next few weeks with details. Please stay tuned!

We are thrilled to announce the addition of Joshua Dubois to our list of speakers for the Ideation Conference!  Joshua helps direct the Obama Administration’s engagement of faith-based and other nonprofit organizations around the country.  One of President Obama’s longest serving aides, Joshua previously served in then-Senator Obama’s legislative office, and he led the Religious Affairs Department for the 2008 Obama presidential campaign.  Joshua is a noted expert on the intersection of religion and public life, and his work has been profiled in The New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, CNN and elsewhere.  He came to the Obama world after having worked on Capitol Hill, and was an Associate Pastor at a small church in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He received a Masters in Public Affairs from Princeton University’s Woodrow Wilson School and a Bachelor’s degree from Boston University. Joshua was raised in Nashville, Tennessee.  Don’t miss out on your chance to connect with Josh at the Ideation Conference this year!

Here’s a quick video of Josh at the National Prayer Breakfast with President Obama.  In this video Josh describes the work of the White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships.

Also joining our list of speakers for the Ideation Conference this month is Sean Carasso!  An avid adventurer, Sean traveled the world with John Paul DeJoria and with every step wanted to see more. In 2008 he went to South Africa on a TOMS Shoe Drop and traveled north into the Democratic Republic of Congo. There he learned of children sent to the front lines of war, armed with only a whistle.

That night he wrote a small journal called Falling Whistles that was forwarded around the world. He received thousands of emails asking, what can we do? The Falling Whistles campaign was born with a simple response – make their weapon your voice and be a whistleblower for peace.  Out of his garage-office in Venice California, FW has partnered with local leaders in Congo to rehabilitate children and is creating a global coalition for peace in our world’s deadliest war.

Also recently added to our lineup of speakers for the Ideation Conference will be Carina Cristiano! Carina serves as Project Director for the Atlantic Corridor Project or more commonly known as the Connected Corridor, a John S. and James L. Knight Foundation transformation project made possible by the Long Beach Community Foundation. This is a project that connects people with people and people with resources on every level of community capacity building by breaking down silos. She received the 2010 Centro CHA Image Award for Community Leader.

Carina is also known for being a catalyst in the highly successful First Fridays, a neighborhood event that units small business owners with artists the first Friday of every month. She teaches social media for CSULB College of Continuing and Professional Education, but her newest curriculum is driven towards educating unemployed people on social media as a communication tool hence giving them a voice in their industry even if they do not presently work in it. She serves on the Board Chair for the Fairfield YMCA, is an original member for LB TEC and SO CAL Tedx, and is the Committee Chair for the Knight Foundation Community Advisory Committee. A graduate of USC, CSULB, and Pepperdine, Carina is a lifelong learner and her highly driven work ethics and personal integrity have earned her high praise among community leaders, neighborhood groups, nonprofits, and her small business peers.

Take a minute to view the work of the Atlantic Avenue Corridor Project on their site below.
http://connectedcorridor.org/

We are so excited that Kohl Crecelius of Krochet Kids has been added to our list of speakers for the Ideation Conference!  Kohl and his team of close friends are on a journey to revolutionize what it means to do business and do good.  In 2007 they founded Krochet Kids intl. (KKi) – a non-profit lifestyle brand focused on empowering communities and engaging customers to make a sustainable impact on global poverty.  KKi is a leader in producing and selling products made in Africa.  They employ over 100 people in Northern Uganda through the production of their handmade headwear and fashion accessories, and have recently started a new program in Peru.  Now spanning three continents, their work connects the producer with the customer through a hand-signed label that accompanies every product.

Yes, Kohl does crochet.  He also has a variety of other interests that keep him grounded, including surfing, skateboarding, and blogging. You can normally find him wearing a KKi beanie and occasionally sporting a mustache.

Take a minute to check out this video highlighting the work and people of Krochet Kids International.

We are so excited to announce the addition of Michael Cory Davis to our list of speakers for the Ideation Conference.  While acting in SyFy channel films in Bulgaria in 2003, Michael became involved in the fight to end modern day slavery and became a Goodwill Ambassador for Face to Face Bulgaria, through which he met countless victims. Michael wrote, directed and produced the award-winning film, Svetlana’s Journey, based on one girl’s story. In 2005, the film aired on Bulgaria’s national television station and here in the U.S., it won at the Hollywood Film Festival and the HD Film Festival. The work Michael did throughout Bulgaria in 2003-2007 brought positive attention to Bulgaria by spotlighting the countries efforts to combat human trafficking while applying for entry in the EU. Michael helped bridge the gap between non-profits and corporations in Bulgaria, helping to spear-head a number of initiatives to encourage good corporate citizenship to support Bulgarian children in orphanages and later was part of the Inauguration ceremony for the first ever Commission to Combat Trafficking in Persons in Bulgaria with the US EMBASSY in 2007.

Michael’s second film, Cargo: Innocence Lost, is a documentary focusing on sex trafficking in the United States. Michael has spoken all over the world and has collaborated with legislators, royalty, celebrities, and corporations to create social awareness. He is the recipient of the prestigious People to People International (founded by Dwight Eisenhower) Make a Difference award and has been covered by various broadcast and print media outlets bringing light to the issue including ABC World News, CNN, Tyra Banks, KNBC, KTLA and most recently featured in AOL’s Top Ten Cutest Guys Doing Good article. Michael has recently been seen in Tyler Perry’s For Colored Girls, CSI NY, Community, and Law & Order Los Angeles.

Take a minute to check out some videos and other media of Michael on his site below.

http://www.michaelcorydavis.com/MCD_html/MCD_all.html