It’s either the most wonderful time of the year, or the least wonderful time of the year, depending on which type of Austinite you are–it’s SXSW time. Like it or not, we are mere days away from 320,000 visitors who will flood the streets and venues of our city to check out live music, preview films and learn about the newest innovative ideas at the Interactive convention. We’ve compiled a list of the things we’re most excited to see at SXSW this year: POTUS and FLOTUS make a few appearances This is the first time a U.S. president has stopped at SXSW and he is making it count. On March 11th, President Obama will sit down with Evan Smith, CEO and Editor-in-Chief of The Texas Tribune, to discuss civic engagement in the 21st Century and to ask the audience to apply their ideas and talents to “make technology work for us – especially when it comes to tackling big challenges like increasing participation in the political process and fighting climate change.” First Lady Michelle Obama will speak on March 16th about the Let Girls Learn initiative, which aims to break barriers for the 62 million girls around the world who are not in school today. No matter your political alliances, how many times will you have the chance to hear a president speak at SXSW? Panel: Building a Philanthropic Fashion Empire: Do Good Local fashion designer and philanthropist, Kendra Scott, will share her views of the importance of corporate social responsibility in a […]
Read MoreThe Best Of SXSW Interactive 2015
It’s that time of year again–happy SXSW everyone! Whether you fully immerse yourself in the madness, or purposely plan your vacation during the weeklong event each year, there’s no escaping the excitement and innovation that overflows from downtown Austin onto social media. We attended SXSW Interactive this year in hopes of learning better ways to share our mission, finding new supporters and thank existing ones, and learning about the latest tools to better engage the community. Here are some of our favorite things we saw at this year’s event: 1. DoSomething.org As part of our mission, we believe everyone can be a philanthropist and aim to create opportunities for locals to do so. DoSomething.org shares this mission, and offers extremely innovative ways to give back where you are, whether you are 8 or 80 years old. Check out DoSomething.org for easy ways to get inspired, whether it’s creating 5 minute shower playlists for your friends to encourage saving water or hosting a clothing recycling party. 2. The Social Good Hub The Social Good Hub, hosted by United Nations, was our favorite place to relax and mingle with nonprofit representatives from all over the world. We spoke to staff from Libraries Without Boarders about IdeaBox, portable multi-media educational kits to bring fun and learning to refugee and other vulnerable populations. Each box unfolds into a library, complete with its own power sources, internet, 15 tablets and 4 laptops, 5 HD cameras, 200 films and a projector, and more than 5,000 books. 3. The Global Happy Party […]
Read MoreSaatchi & Saatchi Donates to UWATX During SXSW Panel
Saatchi & Saatchi don’t just talk the talk. They hosted a SXSW panel on Sunday titled “Do Good. Feel Good: The Science of Altruistic Acts,” and showed the audience firsthand exactly how doing good can make you feel good–by ending the panel with a check presentation of $1,000 to UWATX! Saatchi & Saatchi is an international global communications and advertising agency network with 140 offices in 76 countries. S&S’s global chief creative officer, Kathy Delaney, sat on the panel along with Devon Eyer of Johnson & Johnson, Michael Norton of Harvard Business School and Sebastian Buck of Enso. UWATX development officer and Young Leaders Society manager, Keith Richardson, accepted the check on behalf of United Way. The $1,000 will be put toward the YLS $180K Challenge to provide full-time service coordinators at three local middle schools. Keith’s perspective of the panel: “When first hearing the title of the panel, “Do Good. Feel Good: The Science of Altruistic Acts,” I knew I would be impacted by the content. As the manager for YLS, I’m always looking for ways to engage our donors more with our work, so linking volunteerism to positive physical effects hit home. The panel discussion began when moderator Kathy Delaney welcomed everyone in attendance by introducing the topic as a “different kind of wellness.” Kathy’s opening statement, “If you want to be happier and healthier, giving back or doing good is essential,” truly set the tone for the panel. The first part of the panel focused on examples […]
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