We've All Gone Gaga!

The 2010 TIME 100 list has recently come out and I personally feel it shows just how far we have come. The list is an accumulation of leaders, artists, icons or anyone really that are considered to be the most influential in the world. To be included on this is a great honor for anyone really, especially to be ranked # 1. In past years the # 1 most influential people have been individuals such as George W. Bush, Dalai Lama, Edward Kennedy, and various others. For 2010 the # 1 most influential person was Lady Gaga.

What does it say about our culture and ideologies that the most influential person to most is Lady Gaga....I don't think it says anything good at all. Our lives have become so consumed by media and image that I find myself wondering if we have really lost what is truly important in life. Don't get me wrong Lady Gaga's music is fantastic and extremely fun but is she something the ultimately governs what we do in life? Sarah Palin, Beyonce and Neil Patrick Harris all ranked above the Barack Obama, again I find myself simply wondering why? To me this simply shows how obsessed we are with fame and not with the world as a whole.

Outside of my personal influences (such as my parents) I believe that an influential person should be working towards a goal, be an inspiration for greatness or have created change for the better possibly? Not by being influential because of their obsession with fame (the reason behind Lady Gaga's greatness). Of course TIME has gotten around this by creating various TIME 100 lists for different categories (turning the most influential person into a popularity contest in my eyes). As great as the TIME 100 lists are I find it's really just become a fame list and is not longer as reputable as it once was. So, what influences you? Is it musicians? Politicians? Or maybe one of your professors? I am curious to know what it is that truly influences the people in my life.

An Indication of our Future?

Recently, evidence has been found of a land crab that existed 1,000 years ago and was wiped out by colonists. This particular crab was extremely unique with its ability to travel great distances inland. It was also believed to be important as a predator since it was an omnivore, acting as a control for the ecosystem. However, with the colonist came domesticated animals that the crab was unable to cope with, resulting in their extinction.

This is just one example of the human impact on ecosystems. There have been numerous species that met their "maker" and are now extinct as a result of us. Extinction is definitely part of life, however, humans have exponential increased that rate at which we are losing species. As a species ourselves we need to concerned with the damage we inflict on the various ecosystems that exist globally. This inland crab was important in controlling the number of pests, snails and small birds. The loss of this crab was not detrimental to the ecosystems function, but there are many species today that face extinction that are considered linchpins.

Currently, a quarter of the world's mammal population is facing extinction. But more shocking is that more then half of all mammals are showing declines in their population size.  If we continue with our current living habits these trends will only continue as well. These species are an indication of how far we have degraded our environment. Humans are somewhat a dominant species in the global setting and hold the fate of many species in their hands. We have a responsibility to various species to not deteriorate their environment or hinder their ability to survive.

We need to take responsibility and start altering our behaviour to help those who have no control in the matter, those who are impaired by our actions.

Entering the World of Social Entrepreneurs

While watching TV with a couple friends recently a commercial came on that made us all laugh as we made the connection to our own lives. The commercial started by simply defining entrepreneur as being, another way to say unemployed. Since all of us are in international development we are all aware of the various enterprises we have seen succeed as well as the many that have failed and how this can translate to unemployment. 

After sometime however I realized just how untrue this is. This term we have started taking a social entrepreneurship class which has opened my eyes to many things that I had previously been missing, such as the many great ideas that exist and "employ" entrepreneurs all over the world. One that stood out to me in particular was the idea of Playpumps. The idea behind Playpumps is simple, children are simultaneously playing on the roundabout borehole while pumping out of the ground. In theory the idea is brilliant-it brings on things that both young and old would enjoy, fun and clean water.

However, there are some flaws with the very basic model behind the Playpumps. One large issue is that it assumes children globally have the same idea of fun. Many children may not view the roundabout as a means of fun ultimately turning the Playpump into an extreme energy suck for many women and children to simply access safe drinking water. There is also the issue of needing to access water at various points throughout the day. So, even if the children originally believed the Playpump to be fun it often becomes a source a work for them that is not as enjoyable as intended.

Despite these flaws the ideals behind the Playpump are fantastic in my mind. These issues to me are really a result of the Playpump becoming too mainstream as well as the large number of donors wanting to support the idea. You wouldn't normally believe financial support from donors to be negative, but in this particular instance (and many others I am sure) it is. With large quantities of money being directed at the project, there was a decrease in ability to introduce the Playpumps at a local level and create them to suit each location based on the individuals who would be utilizing the Playpumps. As we have discussed in our social entrepreneurship class there is large amount of tension that exists when trying to create a social enterprise. In this case there is the conflict between needing money to continue the enterprise and creating a product to suit your clients.

To me this is just one example that has so much potential so long as we hold onto our core values. As I approach graduation with my classmates it is becoming increasingly prevalent that we will be the future social entrepreneurs of the world and we have the ability to invoke social change. There is still much we can learn from past and current entrepreneurs, hopefully we will step up and be the change we want to see.