How will you celebrate end of summer? http://socialimpactbirthday.eventbrite.com/
I'm heading to my end of summer, end of August birthday, grateful for opportunity to do great work, make a difference, continually learn & grow from inspiring teachers: my children, the seasons, my backyard garden, courageous & bold colleagues, wise & kind strangers, my own mistakes, my most audacious dreams. Who/what are your best teachers?
Monday, August 15, 2011
Friday, July 15, 2011
FFF Midsummer Night's Mixer Musings
NYC Changemakers: Join us @FFF's NYC Social Impact Cocktail Crawl, co-sponsored by FAIR, the 1st fair trade spirits company:...
Under the full moon in the middle of summer, can't help but notice how much we want to get outside, get together, and get going with social innovator friends in NYC. Seems like "mixers" are sprouting up all over the place. Go figure. What a great way to spend a summer evening! Mixers let us connect with our tribe, deepen relationships, advance projects, flex our social change muscles, get inspired to invest in each other and commit to our vision for progressive social change.
If you're in NYC 7/19, come to a DON"T MISS gathering of NYC's spectacular social changemakers! Connect with peers, mentors, investors, and co-conspirators to enhance your impact and have a joyous evening. Half price cocktails, full value spirits.
7:00 pm Green Square Tavern
8:00 pm Rye Bar
If you're in Boston, check out our friends from Criterion Ventures & City Light Capital as they co-host New Mix Drinks at Rattlesnake Bar & Grill!
If you're in Brooklyn, check out Shoe Town to Brew Town event at Brooklyn Brewery
Mix it up to fast forward social impact this summer!
Under the full moon in the middle of summer, can't help but notice how much we want to get outside, get together, and get going with social innovator friends in NYC. Seems like "mixers" are sprouting up all over the place. Go figure. What a great way to spend a summer evening! Mixers let us connect with our tribe, deepen relationships, advance projects, flex our social change muscles, get inspired to invest in each other and commit to our vision for progressive social change.
If you're in NYC 7/19, come to a DON"T MISS gathering of NYC's spectacular social changemakers! Connect with peers, mentors, investors, and co-conspirators to enhance your impact and have a joyous evening. Half price cocktails, full value spirits.
7:00 pm Green Square Tavern
8:00 pm Rye Bar
If you're in Boston, check out our friends from Criterion Ventures & City Light Capital as they co-host New Mix Drinks at Rattlesnake Bar & Grill!
If you're in Brooklyn, check out Shoe Town to Brew Town event at Brooklyn Brewery
Mix it up to fast forward social impact this summer!
A Blessed Living
I am honored to share with you a MUST READ for all mortals: "A Blessed Dying", by my amazing Mom who exemplifies "A Blessed Living". What makes life a blessing for you? how do you feel blessed? what would it mean for you to live "a blessed life"? How can we consider life's passages, including and especially the painful ones, in a blessed way?
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
FFF Honored by The Generation Project
Fast Forward Fund is thrilled to be honored by The Generation Project as it celebrates it's 1st pilot year making a difference in public schools across the US! Through multiple city events, TGP will honor supporters in each of the 6 regions where they work. COME JOIN US FOR EXCLUSIVE NYC EVENT JUNE 9th!
How will you fast forward social change this summer?
How will you fast forward social change this summer?
Monday, January 31, 2011
Core Beliefs on a Snowy Day
Getting ready to let the love flow on Valentine's Day? Me too! For me, Feb 14 is not just a day to exchange chocolate (though why not? all chocolate gifts welcome!)...it's the 2 yr anniversary of Fast Forward Fund's launch. As I anticipate our re-launch and learn lessons from 1st phase of our start-up, I've been wrestling with hard questions and reinvigorated by the enduring vision and growth of this venture. Going back to basics, I still stand by FFF's core beliefs driving social change:
* Investment activism. We all make a difference with our daily financial choices. Investing is action.
* Leveraged impact. Investing in a collective social fund allows young people to leverage relatively small individual resources into large-scale impact.
* Accelerated change. More inclusive, expansive philanthropic models enable youth to accelerate, or fast forward, their participation as social investors advancing innovative solutions to global challenges.
* Lifelong Giving. Cultivating philanthropic social investment among young adults creates lifelong givers and engaged global citizens.
Given these core beliefs, how do we (re)design our structure to optimize impact? How do we recharge, and reframe, strategy to achieve results? What occasions inspire you to (re)examine your core beliefs? How can you reconnect with your core beliefs to drive social change? In the spirit of Valentine's Day, let's dedicate the next two weeks to showing some love for social innovators!
The stark beauty of NY's incessant snowfalls this January reminds us to find value in reflective hibernation, to slow down (like it or not), bundle up, and remember all growing things under earth lay dormant awaiting their perfect moment for birth, rebirth, and renewal. Green sprouts will appear and reappear in their time, and until then, each mesmerizing snowflake offers its own prism of reflection, refraction and light.
* Investment activism. We all make a difference with our daily financial choices. Investing is action.
* Leveraged impact. Investing in a collective social fund allows young people to leverage relatively small individual resources into large-scale impact.
* Accelerated change. More inclusive, expansive philanthropic models enable youth to accelerate, or fast forward, their participation as social investors advancing innovative solutions to global challenges.
* Lifelong Giving. Cultivating philanthropic social investment among young adults creates lifelong givers and engaged global citizens.
Given these core beliefs, how do we (re)design our structure to optimize impact? How do we recharge, and reframe, strategy to achieve results? What occasions inspire you to (re)examine your core beliefs? How can you reconnect with your core beliefs to drive social change? In the spirit of Valentine's Day, let's dedicate the next two weeks to showing some love for social innovators!
The stark beauty of NY's incessant snowfalls this January reminds us to find value in reflective hibernation, to slow down (like it or not), bundle up, and remember all growing things under earth lay dormant awaiting their perfect moment for birth, rebirth, and renewal. Green sprouts will appear and reappear in their time, and until then, each mesmerizing snowflake offers its own prism of reflection, refraction and light.
Friday, December 31, 2010
Give long and prosper in 2011!
As 2010 comes to a close, I want to thank everyone for the friendship, support and partnerships that have sustained FFF over the past year. On behalf of Fast Forward, I am most grateful for the blessings and lessons gained from our amazing network. I value the integral role each one plays in shaping the future of Fast Forward, enhancing the social impact of our work, and advancing efforts to make this world a better place through innovative philanthropy and strategic giving.
FFF friends have truly touched my life and taught me more than I would've imagined. A heartfelt thank you to all for sharing such generosity, insights, fellowship, and vision.
Wishing all a peaceful, fruitful, & joyful New Year.
Diana
FFF friends have truly touched my life and taught me more than I would've imagined. A heartfelt thank you to all for sharing such generosity, insights, fellowship, and vision.
Wishing all a peaceful, fruitful, & joyful New Year.
Diana
Thursday, December 16, 2010
Solstice Reflections: 2010 Gratitude invites 2011 Abundance
Winter Solstice. The long, dark night grants an annual opportunity to turn inward, become reflective, introspective. Although this blog's focus and my vision is to Fast Forward social change, I am taking a moment to look back and count my blessings from this past year. Despite whatever challenges we face, whatever hardships we endure, we all, every one of us, have so much to be grateful for. If gratitude is the gateway to abundance, let me unlock the latch and usher in a New Year of abundance by sharing some of what inspired me in 2010.
First and foremost: LOVE. I am most grateful for the many facets of love that graced my life this year. My children, waking up and going to sleep warm and safe in our home, crossing awesome & awkward thresholds of childhood, growing one day older every day. My parents' 50th wedding anniversary celebration. Three angel strangers who stopped alongside a highway at rush hour on a cold March night, staying with me until all the emergency vehicles left, my overturned car was towed away, and the ambulance transported me to the nearest ER where many white-coated professionals confirmed I was miraculously alive and well, without so much as a scratch. My sweet & steadfast mate with whom I've shared nearly two decades of the surprisingly tender, tenuous and fundamental moments that comprise our marriage. Life-long, brand new, and deeply cherished friendships infusing life with joy, trust, intimacy, companionship. Feeling my heart beat. How has love graced your life?
I am grateful for lessons offered by obstacles, stumbling blocks, unflattering mirrors, harsh light, professional setbacks, financial struggle, unexpected turns, turbulent storms, mundane disappointments. These teachers reminded me to embrace values of humility, flexibility, resiliency, detachment, compassion, faith, patience, and renewal of hope. For what life lessons are you most grateful?
I am grateful for giving generously. I've been privileged this year to give, receive, facilitate, and witness tremendous generosity. Now more than ever is truly the giving season. There is so much need and opportunity for our giving to make a difference. Every giving act matters. Give generously! Give sweetly! Give boldly! How can you give generously today?
Reflecting back on 2010, I am preparing myself for 2011 with renewed commitment to gratitude, renewed commitment to receive & share the blessings of love, life lessons, and generous giving.
First and foremost: LOVE. I am most grateful for the many facets of love that graced my life this year. My children, waking up and going to sleep warm and safe in our home, crossing awesome & awkward thresholds of childhood, growing one day older every day. My parents' 50th wedding anniversary celebration. Three angel strangers who stopped alongside a highway at rush hour on a cold March night, staying with me until all the emergency vehicles left, my overturned car was towed away, and the ambulance transported me to the nearest ER where many white-coated professionals confirmed I was miraculously alive and well, without so much as a scratch. My sweet & steadfast mate with whom I've shared nearly two decades of the surprisingly tender, tenuous and fundamental moments that comprise our marriage. Life-long, brand new, and deeply cherished friendships infusing life with joy, trust, intimacy, companionship. Feeling my heart beat. How has love graced your life?
I am grateful for lessons offered by obstacles, stumbling blocks, unflattering mirrors, harsh light, professional setbacks, financial struggle, unexpected turns, turbulent storms, mundane disappointments. These teachers reminded me to embrace values of humility, flexibility, resiliency, detachment, compassion, faith, patience, and renewal of hope. For what life lessons are you most grateful?
I am grateful for giving generously. I've been privileged this year to give, receive, facilitate, and witness tremendous generosity. Now more than ever is truly the giving season. There is so much need and opportunity for our giving to make a difference. Every giving act matters. Give generously! Give sweetly! Give boldly! How can you give generously today?
Reflecting back on 2010, I am preparing myself for 2011 with renewed commitment to gratitude, renewed commitment to receive & share the blessings of love, life lessons, and generous giving.
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