Tour of Free the Children

I had the opportunity to take a tour of the Free the Children facilities yesterday. My friend Beth got a job there a few months ago and I got her to give me the VIP tour of where they worked. I got the opportunity to ask a lot of questions and get a better understanding of the organizational structure and culture.

From the second I stepped in the building I got the feeling that it wasn't just another place of work. The receptionist was vibrant and kind, the surroundings were bright and colorful, and there was something in the air. Everybody smiled and introduced themselves on the way through, each time I entered a room everyone stopped what they were doing and made sure that I felt welcome. When I asked a question they were more than willing to tell me what the knew or tell me who would. You could tell that it was a very organic culture - unstructured but had grown and become informally formal - it was as if in an unspoken way everyone was a part of a greater good, a team of like-minded individuals with no agenda. Authenticity. Genuine.

From asking all the questions I did I got a feel for how new the organization really is. While it was started in 1995, it wasn't until the last 3 or 4 years that things really started to pick up. In the past 6-8 months they have hired 60 or more people, and they are continuing to grow. The average age of employees is an estimated 23. The Toronto head office is now over 100 people and with its many satellite offices in the countries it works in, that number is significantly higher. With so much youth and promise the organization has unlimited potential. They have started to create something that is far bigger than the sum of its parts.

Through its partnership with Oprah's Angel Network, FTC is in the process of developing a school chapter program throughout the US with a goal of 3000 schools participating. They were also developing material for an April episode of the Oprah show where they will officially launch the campaign. The partnership with Oprah would appear to be a significant boost to the reach of the organization, particularly as it expands into the US.

The program that has me most excited, however, is called Directors of Change. It is a film project where students who go on trips document their experience through video and then put together a documentary. The documentaries will be used in classrooms to help teach about international issues. The world as seen through youth eyes will be very interesting. It also happens to be one of the few programs they are developing in French as well as English. I think in the future in order to continue to engage young people to lead in the process of positive change, organizations are going to have to find new participating ways for youth to engage. In my estimation, social media will be a key in this.

The tour was a real eye opener. It is not everyday you get to see the inner workings of an organization such as FTC. I will continue to watch out for more exciting news as they announce it. If you would like to take a tour yourself, I believe that if you contact the organization then they give group tours all the time.

Me to We

Last week marked the beginning of the Year of Me to We. The kickoff event was held here in Toronto and broadcast all across the country. A day filled with incredible singers and speakers, it was incredibly inspirational. The energy that filled the building was like nothing you can imagine. 7500 students sharing one vision, for a better world, with the tag line "Be the Change You Wish to See in the World." This timeless quote comes from none other than Mahatma Ghandi, a truly remarkable facilitator of change. This student gathering was the beginning, of what I am not entirely sure, but it will be profound. I had the opportunity to see the many wide eyed students enter the building, and then also see these same students as they left. What happened inside that building will stay with these youths long after this week, month, year. It was life altering in some cases. Romeo Dallaire spoke with such conviction about looking a child in the eyes when he was in Rwanda during the genocide and seeing the same look in those eyes as he saw in his sons before leaving for Africa. Eyes can tell a story without saying a word. The eyes of these young adults as they left spoke volumes. I challenge those 7500 students, along with everyone else who wants to see change, to do one thing in the next year, whether small or big, to make a difference in their community. There is no measuring stick, no one to tell you it hasn't made a difference, because I guarantee you that by just doing something, anything, it will send a ripple throughout the world. Be the Change, Be the Difference.