It is good to give

And it's wise to know how your money is spent. As 2008 closes, check out Charitywatch.org, run by the American Institute of Philanthropy, to see how the charities you give to rate.

'Daniel Borochoff created AIP in 1992 to address the continuing need for thoughtful information regarding the financial efficiency, accountability, governance and fundraising practices of charities. Charity financial reporting is often inconsistent, unclear, and sometimes unethical and even fraudulent. AIP carefully analyzes charity financial documents to identify the charities that are financially efficient--and the ones that are not--and publishes its findings. AIP encourages donors to give to charities that will allocate most of their contributions to program services that benefit the people and causes donors wish to support. AIP also promotes charity accountability and transparency through its research on the rapidly changing nonprofit field.'

This list of top CEO compensation packages is also scary! http://charitywatch.org/Top25.html

The past does not repeat itself, but it rhymes...

...Thanks Mark Twain. What can we learn from the past about water issues? Something, I hope. This article focuses on China and connects hydrogen&oxygen to fables, engineering, and water shortages in Beijing.

There's a piece of land that's out there

Follow the Title link to an article about Moonstone Farms (a certain person's idea of the American dream :) and enjoy the Uglysuits' tune about other lovely dreams.

Goodbye, Morning Show

One-of-a-kind Place of Mat
Originally uploaded by cy_mn

We trekked to downtown St. Paul in the wee hours of the morning to salute a Minnesotan Institution (Hey, they got a proclamation from the Mayor today!) We watched the last broadcast of the morning show from the overflow church (6:30AM was too late for premium seats! Linda and Brad, at the Fitz at 5:30, enjoyed it very much.) We did have first dibs on the breakfast, though, which included this place mat.
Overall it was a great celebration of great music and community!

Ag Updates

Photo from SARE.org
Oh, the small joys for working in agriculture!

• A small grains extension agent signs his emails "Sin-cereal-y"

• I get emails from the amazing Will Allen at the fantastic urban justice growing center, Growing Power :)

• A professor I had plans to bike from Cairo to South Africa to look at food systems this semester.

A Little Reason....

....In The Season. It is so good to see a regular-old-researcher speaking TRUTH into our culture.

There are so many awesome opportunities (and reasons) for giving!
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U professor Bill Doherty works to help families recapture the deeper spirit of the holidays

In the midst of what has become the season of American hyper-consumption, Bill Doherty is helping people say, "Enough is enough."

Doherty's research and public engagement efforts at the University of Minnesota, where he's a family social science professor in the College of Education and Human Development, focus on making families stronger and making society's culture more family-friendly. Some of his past work has involved helping families slow down and simplifying birthday parties. This time, he's leading a group to challenge the frantic pace of life as the nation and world rev up for the holiday season.

"We are all bombarded with messages to buy more and bigger, and we run ourselves ragged during the holidays," says Doherty. "This group is a laboratory for seeking more balance in all of our lives—something that our society sorely needs in the midst of today's challenges."

"This [initiative] is a vanguard to reclaim the season ... [and] ... an effort to address the cultural challenges we face," says Doherty. "A lot of people I talk to don't feel like the season is fully consistent with their core values. They end up getting their kids more, or grandparents get kids more, and their kids become little customers, and entitled customers, at this time."

Watch avideo of Bill Doherty talking about how to take back what is important about the holidays and find alternatives to the culture of consumerism.

The group is staging a "countercultural event" (see details below) on what Doherty calls the "'holy day' of our consuming culture." That day, of course, is Black Friday—a day of mad shopping (retailers hope), and the one that follows the still relatively uncommercialized celebration of Thanksgiving.

Doherty says research shows that most people value their relationships, a sense of inner harmony between their actions and their behavior, and their communities far more than material things. "But you don't see that advertised very much.

"[During this season] it's a good idea to ask what your values are, not necessarily what you feel driven to do," Doherty says. "And maybe to take advantage of the fact that this year the economy isn't that good. Instead of apologizing to your children [for not getting enough presents], use this year, and this day of Black Friday, to [explore] what's most important about this season ... Most of us who grew up with Christmas don't remember a single present we ever got, but we remember the lights, the sounds, we remember the meals, we remember driving through the neighborhood and seeing the lights. Try to emphasize what is really magical ..."

Doherty doesn't recommend cutting out presents, especially for children, but to open a family conversation about what this special time means and how best to celebrate.

From: http://www1.umn.edu/news/features/UR_CONTENT_059143.html

Inclusive Science

I'm pasting an interesting idea I found from the U of M Women's Center. They posted an announcement of a NWSA Journal call for articles. It seems that lately (or always?) the definition of what science is has been open for interpretation, and has been manipulated for politics. I think the questions (highlighted in blue, below) are really valid and necessary. Especially as resources for funding scientific research dry up.... I hope that the economic pinch will force people and institutions to be more critical of where dollars are going, and in turn the quality of science will be improved.
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It is no secret that there is a national crisis in STEM fields (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics), particularly in terms of the involvement of women and people of color. A great deal of effort has been exerted in the past few years to patch the “leaky pipeline” – the educational and experiential pathway which leads to careers in the sciences. However, critics of science, often feminists, have pointed out that “it’s not just enough to add women [or people of color] and stir” (C. Bunch, adapted) – we must look at how science and scientists are portrayed, who gets to ask the questions, what questions are asked, what methods are used, and how data are interpreted and used. We must also teach all of our students, particularly women and those in under-represented groups, that the process of science is open to all and that, in fact, without a diversity of investigators and approaches, our sciences are incomplete. To this end, we convened a national conference this summer at the College of St. Catherine to address these issues which are critical to the success of Science, Mathematics, and Technology programs across the country. The conference brought together keynote speakers: Dr. Marlene Zuk, Dr. Sue Rosser, and Dr. Beverly Daniel Tatum along with scholars in and of STEM and Women’s Studies who shared their knowledge and ideas in the areas of theory, pedagogy and activism.

To encourage dissemination of these and other ideas to a broad audience, we call for papers for a special cluster in the National Women’s Studies Association Journal with the theme: “Inclusive Science: Articulating Theory, Practice, and Action”. We will specifically consider articles which address the following intersections of science and feminism:

1. Multiple frameworks: critiques of science from multiple perspectives including gender, race and ethnicity, and class;
2. Pedagogies that engage women, students of color, and students from a variety of social classes in the sciences, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM); and
3. Transformation: putting theory into action; changing the way we do, learn and teach science.

Guest Editors: Cynthia G. Norton and Deborah D. Wygal, Department of Biology and Women’s Studies, College of St. Catherine, St. Paul, MN