On January 12, 2010, a 7.0 magnitude earthquake rocked Haiti, killing
possibly thousands and leaving the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince in
ruins. The damage this disaster has caused is still unmeasurable as
friends and families around the globe try to contact loved ones while
thousands of others continue searching for ways to help.
The
Extraordinaries have created a support page to harness the power of
the crowd to help locate and identify missing persons with just a few
minutes of your time.
Via http://beextra.org/haiti, people can upload information about their loved ones or sort through news photos to help identify missing persons. Our team is working around the clock to build a facial recognition matching system that will allow the crowd to match photos of the missing with photos coming in from the ground in Haiti.
In just a few spare moments of time, people around the globe can reach out to those affected by the quake and help reconnect the missing with their families and friends!
MoveSmart.org fosters vibrant and diverse neighborhoods by empowering housing seekers to move to opportunity.
Until now, information on neighborhoods has been buried in the back of academic reports, pinned to community center bulletin boards, and locked in data sets only available to planners, inaccessible to those who would benefit from it the most: housing seekers looking for a better neighborhood. MoveSmart.org will leverage the power of this information by combining these and other data sources into a single mapping engine built into a full-featured site that includes guides, tools, calculators, forums, and social networks, all designed to foster racial and economic integration.
Previous integration initiatives have proven costly and focused on families receiving public aid. Housing seekers with unlimited funds have always had the luxury of living where they choose. But for millions of families who have limited resources, finding the right neighborhood is difficult. MoveSmart.org will educate housing seekers about the benefits of integrative moves while at the same time providing suggestions on where to move, guides on how to move, and information on how to get involved in their new neighborhoods, inspiring pride in a new community and putting them on a path to true integration.
HOW YOU CAN HELP
MoveSmart.org has called in The Extraordinaries to help them compile information about communities nationwide.
One Degree Solar was founded to help governments and aid organizations expand access to basic health and education services. Our staff and advisers have backgrounds in international public health and years of work experience in post-conflict countries. We came together with the primary objective to provide durable, affordable, and clean lighting and energy options in areas where people are dependent on candles, kerosene, and diesel fuel. To support these causes, we provide customers that use our products for a variety of activities with the option to buy online.
As an organization, we aim to keep a low-carbon footprint and maintain end-to-end business practices that minimize our impact on the environment. We ship with recycled packaging by USPS, the only Cradle to Cradle certified courier in the United States. We use only recycled packaging while manufacturing and recycled paper for marketing and office materials, in addition to using Energy-star office equipment and computers with a minimum Silver EPEAT rating.
Products and projects designed by One Degree Solar have been receiving positive press and recognition from development partners. Data from a recent project in the most remote villages of Liberia, West Africa, has shown that our Solar Headlamps Kit is helping to improve the quality of and access to healthcare. Our proposals for solar lighting initiatives in Liberia have been selected as finalists in the September 2009 Ideablob.com/Advanta Corporation Competition and the 2008 USAID Development 2.0 Challenge, and have also been nominated by USAID for a $50,000 cash grant from the Tech Awards. Our work is scheduled to be featured in articles by Voice of America, Devex.com, and Africa Investor Magazine.
We are driven by customer service, product quality, durability, international development, and sustainability. A percentage of all profits will go towards our projects in developing countries.
HOW YOU CAN HELP
One Degree Solar has called in The Extraordinaries to help them document the positive usage of solar energy in communities throughout the world.
Autism is a general term used to describe a group of complex developmental brain disorders known as Pervasive Developmental Disorders (PDD). The other pervasive developmental disorders are PDD-NOS (Pervasive Developmental Disorder – Not Otherwise Specified), Asperger's Syndrome, Rett Syndrome and Childhood Disintegrative Disorder. Many parents and professionals refer to this group as Autism Spectrum Disorders.
Today, it is estimated that one in every 150 children is diagnosed with autism, making it more common than childhood cancer, juvenile diabetes and pediatric AIDS combined. An estimated 1.5 million individuals in the U.S. and tens of millions worldwide are affected by autism. Government statistics suggest the prevalence rate of autism is increasing 10-17 percent annually. There is not established explanation for this increase, although improved diagnosis and environmental influences are two reasons often considered. Studies suggest boys are more likely than girls to develop autism and receive the diagnosis three to four times more frequently. Current estimates are that in the United States alone, one out of 94 boys is diagnosed with autism.
HOW YOU CAN HELP
Autism Speaks has called in The Extraordinaries to help them document and raise autism awareness in communities around the world.
Nature Abounds educates and empowers citizens to sustain their community through environmental stewardship such as watershed protection, conservation of native flora and fauna, and overall "going green".
Nature Abounds takes a two-tier approach to achieving our goals. For example, while educating citizens of all ages about "going green" and "environmental stewardship" on the national level, we also work with local officials overseeing public lands, such as national and state forest areas and designated waterways, on preserving our local environment through community involvement.
HOW YOU CAN HELP
Nature Abounds has called in The Extraordinaries to help raise awareness and create more sustainable, environmentally conscious communities
voiceofsandiego.org is a nonprofit, independent and insightful online newspaper focused on issues impacting the San Diego region.
Our mission is to consistently deliver ground-breaking investigative journalism for the San Diego region. To increase civic participation by giving citizens the knowledge and in-depth analysis necessary to become advocates for good government and social progress.
voiceofsandiego.org is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. We are the only professionally staffed, nonprofit online news site in the state focused on local news and issues. We will continue to operate with the support of individuals, foundations and businesses which, like you, recognize the importance of local news from an independent perspective.
HOW YOU CAN HELP
voiceofsandiego.org has called in The Extraordinaries to help them track government waste and abuse of precious water resources during the San Diego water crisis.
Breakthrough aims to “build human rights culture” to foster an
understanding and celebration of our racial and ethnic differences and
to end discrimination and violence.
In current times, in order to have a broader public dialogue around
racial justice, we must look towards the creation of an immigration
policy that upholds due process and human rights.
We produce media, toolkits and events that emphasize the need to build connections across our many concerns and identities.
HOW YOU CAN HELP
Breakthrough.tv has called in The Extraordinaries to help tell immigration stories, so that Congress can begin to restore fairness to the system. Has immigration touched your life somehow? Take action now.
Not
so long ago, at a time when Santa Monica Bay
was treated daily as a dump site, a small group
of concerned people took it upon themselves
to heal this troubled part of the world.
They
did it for those who simply wanted to swim,
fish or surf safely in clean water. And they
did it for the marine life that was suffering
from some of the highest levels of contamination
found anywhere along our nation's coastline.
That
small group swelled into an organization and
movement that has done more to recover the
Bay's coastal environment than anyone could
have expected. But in the process, they did
more than that. They showed us that it's not
too late for Southern California, that no agency
is too big to fight and win, that we can heal
our environment and that we can heal our Bay.
The
First Fight
It was 1985, and a handful of people learned
that the City of Los Angeles was dumping barely
treated sewage into Santa Monica Bay. They learned
that the pollution from sewage and storm drains
had led to a decrease in the number and quality
of fish in the Bay, dolphins that had reproductive
problems and were full of tumors, a large patch
of the bottom of the Bay was essentially lifeless,
and people who swam and surfed in the Bay complained
about infections and other illnesses. This handful
of people, led by founding president Dorothy Green, got
angry and they got organized. Heal the Bay was
born.
At
this time, the City of L.A.'s Hyperion Sewage
Treatment Plant was a disaster, breaking the
law on several counts, and dumping barely treated
sewage and sewage sludge into Santa Monica
Bay. Heal the Bay attacked on many fronts.
We signed up members at tables along the coast
and sold t-shirts at Venice Beach. We held
rallies at the beach and got the media to inform
the public of what was happening. We packed
hearing rooms and testified before regulatory
agencies. And we joined the Environmental Protection
Agency lawsuit already pending against the
City of L.A.
The
First Victory
Because of these actions, the City consented
to comply with the Clean Water Act. Plans were
developed to totally rebuild Hyperion to provide
full secondary treatment by December 31, 1998,
and replace a major sewer line that was regularly
causing raw sewage overflows into Ballona Creek.
We were granted Friends of the Court status in
this consent decree and met quarterly with the
City to ensure their compliance with the agreement.
The
Bay is getting better...and with your help,
the goal of a year-round swimmable and
fishable Santa Monica Bay can be a reality!
Since
that 1985 decision, Hyperion has become a world-class
treatment facility. Sludge stopped flowing
into the Bay in November 1987, and Hyperion
met their rebuilding deadline one month ahead
of schedule to provide full secondary treatment.
As a result of improved sewage treatment at
Hyperion, we have been overjoyed to see the
return of plant and animal life to previous "dead" zones
in the Bay.
Our
first big victory taught us a crucial thing:
that a small group of people can change their
world, can literally "fight city hall" and
win. We also learned that most problems can
be solved without bringing them into the courtroom,
and that most agencies respond much better
to offers of help than to threats of lawsuits.
Not
so long ago, the Bay was a different place.
In a short time, Heal the Bay has made it better.
Our greatest hope is that we will continue
our amazing progress through our second decade
as we continue to fight for workable solutions
to the problems threatening Santa Monica Bay
and all of Southern California's coastal waters.
We
are halfway to healing the Bay, and we don't
intend to stop now!
HOW YOU CAN HELP
Heal The Bay has called in The Extraordinaries to help track illegal dump sites and waterway pollution. Let's keep Southern California coasts clean and healthy!
If you suffer from cardiac arrest, help is only a 911 call away.
Paramedics can use defibrillators to shock your heart back to a normal
rhythm. But unfortunately, every minute you spend waiting for their
arrival reduces your chance of survival by 10%. Help may soon be closer
than your local paramedic and it may come from an unlikely source —
someone without medical expertise.
Until recently,
witnesses to someone having a cardiac arrest were limited in the help
they could provide — calling 911 and performing CPR (cardiopulmonary
resuscitation). Now, portable automated defibrillators about the size
of a laptop computer are available. These devices not only deliver a
shock to restore a regular heartbeat, they also determine whether a
shock is really needed, making it possible and safe for people without
medical training to use.
A recent study placed the automated defibrillators in roughly 1,000
public locations in 24 cities, including shopping centers, sports
facilities, office buildings, community centers, factories,
entertainment venues, apartment buildings, and schools*. Volunteers who
worked in these locations were trained to perform CPR or trained to
perform CPR and use the automated defibrillator. After two years and
292 resuscitation attempts, the overall survival rate for the study was
still very low, 15%, but the use of automated defibrillators saved
almost twice as many lives as CPR alone. This shows automated
defibrillators can save lives when used by common people trained to
operate the equipment.
Nearly 250,000 Americans die from cardiac arrest every year. Although
most of these deaths occur in the home, approximately 20% occur in
public. So automated defibrillators in public places could save a
substantial number of lives. The equipment may become commonplace
someday, especially in locations where senior citizens are likely to
spend time, as this population is most at risk for cardiac arrest. In
the future, automated defibrillators may even be found in the homes of
people who have suffered a heart attack.
HOW YOU CAN HELP
First Aid Corp is mapping a global database of AEDs to help people find
the closest one in the event of an emergency. They have called in The Extraordinaries to help them build this database. You never know, this
service might just save someone you love!
Right now, across the country, scores of organizations, leaders and
everyday citizens are ready to tackle global warming and transition to
a new clean economy. The movement is building at an astonishing
pace—but to bring about the truly revolutionary change that's needed,
we have to come together.
1Sky was created in 2007 to focus the power of millions of concerned
Americans on a single goal: bold federal action by 2010 that can stem
global warming. The 1Sky Solutions are grounded in scientific
necessity—they are the bottom line of what's needed to dramatically
reduce carbon emissions while maximizing energy efficiency, renewable
energy and breakthrough technologies. They also represent significant
economic promise. By pivoting to a clean energy economy, we can relieve
our dependence on foreign oil, unlock the potential of sustainable
industry and usher in a new era of prosperity and green jobs.
Americans are building support for the 1Sky Solutions in key
Congressional districts on a non-partisan basis, using cutting-edge
communications, Internet and old-fashioned neighbor-to-neighbor
outreach. To get our leaders to take action, the 1Sky community is
bringing together an incredibly diverse range of individuals and
organizations in a collaborative effort. With the help of many leaders
and groups, 1Sky has already gained the support of elected officials,
student and business groups, and faith-based institutions, as well as
organizations focused on health, civil society and the environment—and now we need you.
Together, we can convince our leaders to chart a new direction—away
from the catastrophes of global warming and toward a new era of
economic prosperity. This is your chance to change the course of
history, soget involved today!
HOW YOU CAN HELP In Congressional districts across the country, 1Sky is working to build support, and tell members of Congress why they should care about climate change. 1Sky has called in The Extraordinaries to help tell the American story of why people should care about climate change. Are you ready to accept this mission?
