Hello Porsche! Goodbye Prius (left in the dust at the line, goodbye). This isn’t a Prius on HGH (human growth hormone). This is the new Porsche 918 Spyder hybrid concept recently revealed at the Geneva Motor Show. The concept behind getting almost 80 mpg while maintaining the ability to be a street  legal race car that can almost top out at 200 mph with a 0-60 sub 3.5 seconds is similar to those of current hybrids like the Prius. It can alternate between using an electric powertrain and gas depending on the mode selected and driving conditions. This car’s conceptual specs and design have a drool factor of 100 out of 100 for eco-conscious motor enthusiasts. I wonder if it comes with a flower vase like the beetle, hmmm?

(Photo credit: Wayne Cunningham/CNET)

I have been bombarded, through recent experiences and readings, with thoughts and ideas that have me believe that the most immediate change we can create is with the power of the dollar and not the vote. Despite a progressive, positive, ambitious plan of the current administration, it is business as usual with gridlock and the lack of tangible and real results in policy that will create a sustainable change in our society for the greatest good of the populace.

As John Perkins, author of Confessions of an Economic Hit Man and Hoowinked, recently wrote in his newsletter, “Our president has little real power. In recent years, geopolitics have shifted; the corporatocracy rules. Democrats and Republicans alike fall under the thumb of the multinational corporations. We have entered a time of realignment…this time it is global; countries are becoming less relevant. The emerging rulers are corporate CEOs, members of the corporatocracy.

The good news: for the first time in history this new empire has been created not by military force, but through the sale of goods and services. And the marketplace is democratic—once we decide to see it as such. It is the ultimate polling booth. Corporations exist only because we vote for them in their stores, at the malls, and over the Internet.

It is up to us to decide which companies will succeed and which ones will fail.”

Start by doing some research. It’s quick and easy with the internet at your fingertips. Do a simple search on companies that you buy products or services from via their company website or by using a search engine like Google to research their social responsibility initiatives. If you can’t easily find information posted on their website or through a Google search, then you can come to the conclusion that either they don’t exist or they aren’t significant enough to warrant any merit.

If you want to help your community and make a real and immediate impact on improving the quality of life in your neighborhoods, invest in your community. Move your money from banks that aren’t heavily invested in supporting local businesses, organizations or programs that serve your community. A good place to start looking for banks is moveyourmoney.info where you can enter your zip code and it will return community banks in your area.

Buy groceries and other goods from your local farmers market. You can find one at localharvest.org. It’s a good way to connect with your community by meeting local vendors and being amongst your neighbors and it’s a good reason to get outside and spend time with family and/or friends.

Your dollar is the most important vote that you can cast on a daily basis that will create an immediate and sustainable impact on your community and the global community. Businesses have to adhere to the demands and wishes of its customers or they cease to exist. With more and more socially responsible companies vying for your money in virtually every marketplace, isn’t it time that you invest your money in companies that want to invest in your wellbeing?

Do I expect every purchase made to be a completely informed decision from a saint-like company? No. However, it isn’t impossible to think that corporate social responsibility will be the norm and not an exception to the rule in the not too distant future. Social responsibility will not only lead to a stronger economy, but a stronger society. My hope is that you begin to think about your role in creating a better world and future by asking yourself, “What steps can I easily and readily adopt into my normal routine that can benefit my community and my world?”

Why? (Be)cause corporations are trying to jump on the socially responsible bandwagon, so they partner with nonprofits and create some kind of marketing event to help raise awareness and funds for a cause, while building some goodwill of their own.

American Diabetes Association and Netflix
For every new sign up that happens through Monday, March 8, a donation of $20 will go to the American Diabetes Association.

I couldn’t come up with a better way to describe the premise behind these videos than the one used on thefuntheory.com so…

This site is dedicated to the thought that something as simple as fun is the easiest way to change people’s behaviour for the better. Be it for yourself, for the environment, or for something entirely different, the only thing that matters is that it’s change for the better.

These ideas and videos are an initiative of Volkswagen and take place in Sweden, I believe. They are amazing examples of generating a desired outcome through innovation, creativity and fun.

Bottle Bank Arcade Machine

Many of us return our plastic bottles and cans. Noticeably fewer recycle their glass. Maybe that’s because we don’t get any money in return, as we do for cans and plastic. Can we change this attitude by making recycling glass fun to do? So you are not just rewarded with a good conscience, you also get a smile. See the results here.

Piano Staircase

”Take the stairs instead of the escalator or elevator and feel better” is something we often hear or read in the Sunday papers. Few people actually follow that advice. Can we get more people to take the stairs over the escalator by making it fun to do? See the results here

The World’s Deepest Bin

To throw rubbish in the bin instead of onto the floor shouldn’t really be so hard. Many people still fail to do so. Can we get more people to throw rubbish into the bin, rather than onto the ground, by making it fun to do? See the results here.

The second company that I want to share with you is called MARCsMovement. I had the pleasure of meeting Brent Freeman, Co-founder, and was introduced to his website where you can ‘shop responsibly’. What’s unique about MARCsMovement is that they donate 5% of every purchase to the charity of your choice and offer discounted prices on all the products sold on their site. They make it easy for you to save money and donate to your favorite charity in one transaction. The acronym MARC stands for Moral And Responsible Company and on each product page there is a link to learn why that company is a MARC. They offer a wide breadth of products from pet products to digital cameras. The current depth of each product segment is still a work in process, but you can find some familiar brands such as Sony and be introduced to new socially and environmentally responsible brands such as Ethletic footwear.

I know they are diligently looking to improve their product offerings, site, and customer experience. I highly recommend a visit to their site and even if you don’t purchase something, take five minutes and send some feedback. These are the type of companies we need to support and that need our support. The ability for a business to sell discounted merchandise and still donate a portion of proceeds to a charity isn’t a common occurrence in the market place. Let’s help the idea become a phenomenon.

I recently attended a social entrepreneurship event hosted by The Marshall Alumni Association of USC’s Marshall School of Business. It was a tremendous event that included a keynote address from Arianna Huffington of The Huffington Post, a panel of executives from socially responsible companies such as Causecast, a collection of progressive people and thinkers, and a central theme of the importance of social entrepreneurs. Social entrepreneurs can provide the means to develop a better society and global community through the creation of socially responsible businesses (for profit or nonprofit); companies that have a social or environmental mission that is at the core of its business model and resonates through all of its business thought and action.

There were two entrepreneurs that I was introduced to who have created companies with socially responsible business models that integrate innovation and products that are deserving of your attention. The first is a company called Episencial.

Kim Walls, CEO and Founder of Episencial, spoke about her journey in starting her company and the current state of affairs of the company. What I immediately admired about her story was her honesty, passion, and commitment to her mission to provide organic, sustainable, high-quality, fun, skin care products that create an ‘actively healthy’ lifestyle.  In addition to providing all natural products from Sweet Dreams Bubble Bath to Sunny Sunscreen, they advocate for the creation of a Vivid Green Generation. As they put it, “Kids learn to take care of themselves at bath time in a fun and familiar way. Take that teachable moment and expand it to the care and cleansing of the planet and you’ve got the makings of something powerful — a Vivid Green Generation.” Also, they have partnered with famed children’s author Eric Carle of The Hungry Caterpillar and child photographer Anne Geddes. There is a wealth of information on their website Episencial.com and I invite you create an ‘actively healthy’ lifestyle and contribute to the creation of a Vivid Green Generation. I’m going to put together a gift basket with a collection of Episencial products and The Hungry Caterpillar book for a new baby joining our extended family.

(all trademarked and copyrighted material are owned by Episencial with all rights reserved)

Beginning, now, we will focus our site on sharing information about current issues, trends, and ideas that impact the social sector, the emergence of social responsibility in business, advocacy and public policy issues that matter to us, and sustainable practices to save the planet . We will accomplish this primarily though profiling various companies, organizations, groups, programs, and individuals that are utilizing innovation and creativity to achieve results locally, nationally and globally. We will also interject humor and entertainment to maintain sanity for all.

It really has been amazing to see what has transpired since the devastating earthquake hit Haiti. Both the immediate carnage and tragedy and the equally immediate response by the world to not let Haiti suffer alone. Across all media and mediums there has been a unified voice of care, concern, love and empathy for those suffering in Haiti. The telethon, the web ads, the tv commercials, the texting campaign, the mention of websites and phone numbers on all programming; it truly has been amazing how focused and unified the efforts have been. Even local communities are finding their own ways to help and add their voice of unity.

There is benefit concert called Love 4 Haiti in Ventura, CA at the Lodge. Put on by Zoey’s Cafe and VC Reporter. Fybut will be donating some shirts to the event. Tomorrow the 24th from 5-9 for $10 and there will be raffles and auctions of donated stuff. You can get tix by visiting www.zoeyscafe.com. All ages are welcome.

Today is World AIDS Day and I read an article on MSNBC regarding the status of AIDS around the world. Here are some excerpts.

AIDS is still a global concern and a crisis in Africa.

World health officials say there’s some encouraging data on the HIV front — the number of people infected with the virus that causes AIDS seems to be mostly stable except for Africa.

The figure — about 33 million — has remained virtually unchanged for the last two years.

Officials say the global epidemic probably peaked in 1996. Last year, HIV infections in sub-Saharan Africa accounted for 72 percent of all 2.7 million new HIV cases worldwide.

There is a plan to fight the proliferation of HIV.

“It is very important we don’t continue to have 400,000 babies born with HIV in Africa every year,” Sidibe said.

“That is something that the world can deliver. That is why we are calling for virtual elimination of transmission from mother to child by 2015.”

Prevention programing is often off the mark and that if we do a better job of getting resources and programs to where they will make the most impact, quicker progress can be made and more lives saved

There is hope for the future.

Access to AIDS drugs is helping to cut the death rate. Earlier this year, the U.N. announced there are now 4 million people on lifesaving AIDS drugs

In sub-Saharan Africa, where the scourge of AIDS is most keenly felt, there were 400,000 fewer infections in 2008, or down 15 percent compared to 2001.

There is a way that you can help.

We donate $10 of every Red1 tee to Keep A Child Alive.

Also, there is a livestream of Alicia Keys in concert from New York to honor World AIDS Day beginning 8pm eastern today on youtube.

You can read the MSNBC article in its entirety by clicking here.
You can view an interactive map of AIDS worldwide by clicking here.
You can read another article about the effective treatment of HIV by clicking here.

Want to wish everyone a safe and sugary Halloween. I will be dressing up as a bat at the request of my god son. It is going to be epic with LED lights, mwah hahah. I was also a sheriff type for my god daughter’s Halloween Party. I created a wanted poster at www.glassgiant.com .

The devastation (worst flooding in 40 years) caused by the recent tropical storm in the Philippines has the country calling for aid that is critical to the relief efforts and I found a site that makes it easier to donate funds to the Philippine National Red Cross for those of us outside of the Philippines. You can go to www.philippineaid.com to make a donation and for more information. They are trying to raise $8000 by the end of October and are nearly at $5000. I am not sure if your donation will be tax deductible but I will contact them to find out.

If you are concerned about your donation being tax deductible, there is the Philippine Aid Society that is a 501(c)(3) organization that has set up their own relief fund. You can visit www.philippineaid.org to make a donation and for more info.

I just heard from my cousin Jenny in the Philippines and she was stranded in another city for 12 hours because of the storm but thankfully she is okay and their house is okay. However, she said there are more storms coming, so thoughts and prayers.

Today is the International Day of Peace and another opportunity to confirm your commitment to cultivating peace on this crazy earth that we live in. I was at Urban Outfitter last night and purchased this cool Peace One Day t-shirt that donates proceeds to the non profit Peace One Day. I didn’t realize that it was a woman’s tee till I put it on at home.

Although I look crazy sexy, it’s a bit too tight. I will either create some kind of peace project with it or will return it and donate the money directly to the organization. Please check out their organization and make your commitment for peace.

Alfredo shared this poignant documentary with me called Global Voices: T-Shirt Travels. It’s a story that follows a young African man who sells secondhand clothes at his local market. The clothes are distinctly non native and somewhat disturbingly American. Clothes that we have decidedly given up on and donate to charity are then sold by these charities to companies that export them to Africa. Bundles of clothes are sold at wholesale to individuals, such as Luka (whom the story revolves around) who inturns sells them at the market, in hope of bringing in enough money to repeat the process. If he is lucky he can put a miniscule amount away to be saved.

The filmmaker, Shantha Bloeman, uses this micro example to shed light on macro problems surrounding the economy of Africa and Zambia in this particular instance.  This country’s problems are unfortunately thematic with many other impoverished countries across the globe. If you watch this documenatary and would like to futher explore how a Coporatocracy looks to advance its cause at the expense of people in great need, please read Confessions of an Economic Hitman by John Perkins. It was a book that had a tremendous impact on my outlook on life and how I see the world and the countries controlling the world.  It offers a perspective that is not openly talked about but one that I feel is imperative to be aware of and to understand.

This documentary makes one realize how we are all connected in this world and how we impact eachother without even thinking or knowing about it. It is important to be reminded of this and to live life with this in our conscience and consciousness so we make sure that the “how” is positive and beneficial for all and not for a select few.

A dear friend of both Alfredo and I recently launched a blog venture called Magpie Chic. She describes it as follows: “Magpie Chic– it’s not about opulence, but more about brilliance in all contexts of the word. Here to inspire you to polish your life one spark at a time and make it shine.” She shares her experiences and knowledge as a designer, lover of art and culture, and her innate rad-ness, to shine some light on inspired fashion, design, art, music…life. Share your passion. It’s never a bad idea.

There has been a lot on my mind and on the world’s collective minds and hearts; I am sure. These last couple weeks have been filled with tumultuous events both locally and globally. With all the turmoil, it becomes overwhelming at times to even think straight but having to work through the chaos and go through a process of finding peace and even purpose is an opportunity to create a greater good within yourself and for others.

The injustices and tragedies that have transpired and continue in Iran, since the election on June 12, has made an impact on me and strengthens my growth with global and humanitarian awareness. It was important for me, personally, to take some time to reflect on what the protests in Iran meant and especially, the death of Neda—a symbol of ultimate sacrifice and blatant injustice for these protests. I am writing a eulogy of sorts because I wanted to let it be known that her voice and the collective voices of all who stood in opposition to the oppressive actions of the Iranian government were not muted. I not only heard it but I felt it. It is a tribute and record of their courageous fight for truth and a greater good.

There was also an article in the LA Times about a week ago that I wanted to share about Neda and those that knew and loved her as a family member and friend. I encourage anyone who took notice of the events in Iran to read it.

Here in the US there is a monumental decision to be made about health care. I have not made any donations of the political nature since my donation to Obama’s Presidential campaign; however, I truly believe the debate on health care is one that has to be at the forefront of our minds and I made a recent donation of $50 to aid our President and colleagues in forming that discussion and pushing his plan on health care. I have been severely injured without having insurance and am consequently in a class action lawsuit for being charged in excess of 35% for my hospital fees that I had to struggle to pay with a personal credit card loan. I have seen loved ones have to jump through red tape and hoops instead of focus on getting better. It is time that the system is changed even if we don’t get it right the first time. Status quo is no longer an option.

I leave you with the words and thoughts of the immortal Michael Jackson, “Heal the world. Make it a better place.” I aim to take his words to heart and fybut was created in that spirit and I am terribly proud of what we have accomplished and how much we have grown through this venture with your help and participation. I am even more optimistic about the future and the importance of this journey.

There was a recent psa contest with Keep A Child Alive and the two winning submissions would earn a trip of a life to time to Africa to see first hand the struggles and the truimphs first hand. I really wanted to participate but couldn’t muster up a worthy submission in time. Hopefully, they do it again next year. Well here are the two winning and most excellent submissions.

We are into Summer 2009 now and I wish that we had more to share with you right this very moment but patience is a virtue, so I hear. I am still formulating the action plan that will take fybut from the present into the future. I will have that formulated this summer and will share it when it is complete. I still want to execute, at least one fybut philanthropic endeavor this summer. I have a couple organizations that I have targeted and I am putting together some ideas on how we can work with them to further their missions.

I recently designed a tee for a friend of mine that participated in the Walk United 2009 with United Way and The Anaheim Angels. It was a nice opportunity to do some designing for a good cause.  I hope to be in touch again soon with more developments. Thanks for checking in and much love.

This is the night that Keep a Child Alive will be featured on American Idol. Check your local listings for time and please consider texting “alive” to 90999 and donate $5. If you do, you will get a confirmation text where you will need to reply with a “yes” to process the donation. You will also receive a follow up text alert where you will have the opportunity to opt out of receiving subsequent text alerts regarding KCA by replying “stop”, which I did because I stay informed other ways. Thank you as always for any and all help offered during these difficult times for many around the world.

There is some exciting news regarding KCA that I wanted to share with you. Read on…

ATTENTION KCA Community!

Learn more about the KCA Texting Challenge at our online community:

I just sent a text myself and hope that you can make a $5 donation by sending a life giving text today. Fyi, once you text ‘Alive’ to 90999, you will receive a text back requiring confirmation of your donation by replying with a “yes.”

How come music class wasn’t like this when I was a kid?

This is why we need to support amazing teachers in public education.

Our first step forward in the new direction is to make all the designs available for fundraising*.  If you purchase a tee online, we will donate $10 of your purchase to a charitable organization of your choice. Simply email us at thefybut@fybut.com after you have placed your order to instruct us where you want the funds donated and we will take care of the rest. We are committed towards becoming a philanthropic endeavor and this is a significant step towards making that happen. In the coming days, weeks, and months, we will continue to immerse ourselves and verse ourselves in charity. We have  a ways to go to arrive at our desired destination, but we feel that we couldn’t have taken a better first step then this one and we hope you feel the same way. There will be much more as it all comes together and we look forward to sharing it all with you.

*some restrictions apply, as noted on the store pages of this site.

We created a profile on the KCA College website that I wanted to share with you. There are lots of significant changes in the works for fybut, so I encourage you to join us there, especially if you are interested in our KCA endeavors. More to come in the coming days, weeks, and months.

the future of fybut from the fybut on Vimeo.

2008 was a very good year thanks to you. we hope to see more, do more and be more in 2009.

fybut in review 2008 from the fybut on Vimeo.

The following was originally posted in April of last year and with the juxtaposition of MLK Day today and the historical inauguration of President Elect Obama tomorrow, I wanted to revisit it. It truly is part of the dream coming true and the fact that we have elected and will inaugurate our first African American President is truly amazing. I personally believe this brings the dawning of a new age, not only in American politics but also for American Culture and the history of our nation and the world. It reminds me of the importance of fighting for equality whether it is race, religion, gender, age, or sexual orientation because all good and decent people share common dreams and they should not be derailed or broken or dismissed for reasons of hate, ignorance or self-righteousness. There is no better or more poignant time, ever, to make a difference in our lives than today and that is always an unspoken truth.

“today is the 4oth anniversary of the death of martin luther king jr. (jan. 15, 1929 – april 4, 1968) and i am not sure if today is a more appropriate day or poignant day to share his dream or if everyday should be a day of remembrance, until his dream comes true; nonetheless, today is an important day. although i didn’t live during his time and we as a society and a people have made changes for the better, things are not yet better. there is still racism in all shapes and colors. there is still injustices toward our fellowman. there is still homelessness for sons and daughters. there is still indifference towards suffering. there are still children who have no reason to smile. there is still greed that compromises right from wrong. but there is still hope. there is still love. there are still opportunities to make dreams come true.

martin luther king made the ultimate sacrifice. not because he was actually shot and killed for a cause he believed in, but because he decided to dedicate his life to that cause knowing the risks involved. we are not all called to make this ultimate sacrifice yet there are opportunities everyday to help our fellowman. it can be as simple as acknowledging the existence of someone, a neighbor, a co-worker, a friend, an acquaintance, a family member by saying, “hello” and asking the simple question “how are you doing today?”

i believe that caring is sharing but we have to start by sharing our hearts and our love and only then can things become truly better.

let’s make things better.”

As the Whos would say, we are here.  I can’t believe that my last post was on Christmas and we are half way through January. I was on vacation as I normally am for the holidays and new year and have been fighting some ailments that also seem to be part of the tradition.  I wanted to say welcome to 2009 (mostly to myself) and that although I haven’t posted in a while, fybut is always stirring around in my head. I have an ambitious agenda for 2009 with brand new developments and plans and direction and improvements on what we accomplished, learned, loved and pondered during our inaugural six months of existing.

I will be putting together some vids to reminisce on last year and to share my thoughts on the future of this ever evolving dream. Please stay tuned and know that we are in fact here and that I have learned a lot in the last six months of operating fybut through our efforts and the efforts of those we have met. I feel a coming out party, a Quinceaneara, a Bar Mitzvah, a Debut, a Confirmation, an Inauguration, if you will, is entirely in order but much needs to be done to get us there. However, when we get there, we will be all grown up and ready to do what we were meant to do.

I also wanted to share that we raised another $80 during December for Keep A Child Alive, so a personal thank you to those that thought of us and KCA during the holiday season and I couldn’t think of a better way to start the NEW YEAR.

A little Christmas photo care of my dog Enzo. Merry Christmas and have a lovely day today doing whatever with whomever.

We wanted to wish everyone a very warm and fuzzy holiday season.   Tis the season to show some ‘Santa Love.’

Here is one idea of how to show some love this season. There are those that continue to serve our country overseas, as part of the armed forces and Xerox is doing something pretty special for them. You can go to www.letssaythanks.com and send a free card to a serviceman/woman that would brighten and strengthen their holiday spirit during a time when they cannot be home with loved ones.

Retired Army General Eric Shinseki has been picked by President-elect Obama to head the Department of Veteran Affairs.

Anh “Joseph” Cao (pictured above) has won the 2nd Congressional District in Louisiana, becoming the first Vietnamese-American elected to the US Congress. Read more here:

http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/12/07/louisiana.cao/index.html

http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2008-12-07-noelection_N.htm