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Empathy Educators
New initiatives are enabling everyday citizens to
cultivate a broader, more empathetic outlook:
•
Mindful: Launched in the US in February
2013, this bi-monthly magazine’s initial print
run of 90,000 sold out within a few weeks. Its
manifesto states: “We see the emergence of
a quiet revolution – a historic opportunity
for social change. Mindful is here to support
the heroic efforts of those who are working
hard to bring benefit to others through
mindfulness, awareness, kindness,
and compassion.”
•
Start Empathy: Launched in March 2012, this
initiative by US-based social entrepreneurship
network Ashoka helps educational institutions
promote empathy as a skill in the classroom. It
teaches children to be “changemakers” in a
world where traditional hierarchies are being
replaced by fluid, open-access systems.
•
Pivot: Targeted at 15- to 34-year-olds, this
new US cable channel adopts the slogan:
“It’s Your Turn”. Created by American film
and television company Participant Media
and US music and pop culture magazine
Rolling Stone, Pivot addresses topical issues
through films, talk shows and documentaries,
its website TakePart.com, and its Pivot app.
“We designed Pivot for this generation
because we believe they are destined
to change the world,” says Evan Shapiro,
president of Pivot. “They have inherited
enormous challenges not of their own making,
yet remain optimistic about the future.”
•
Upworthy: Launched in March 2012,
Upworthy is a news stream of worthwhile
stories written in a “shareable” voice,
encouraging internet users to repost them.
The site has clocked more than six
million users.
•
Oxfam – Live Below The Line: Spearheaded
by the UK-based charity and now in its fourth
year, this global campaign is an authentic
exercise in empathy: sponsored participants
live below the poverty line for five days.
Mindful
©Mindful magazine
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"We see the
emergence of a
quiet revolution
– a historic
opportunity for
social change."
Mindful Magazine