Conscious Capital

07/14/2018

On this day nearly 60 years ago, Dr. Goodall first stepped foot on the shores of Lake Tanganyika, Tanzania, and encountered the amazing chimpanzees of Gombe. Her findings and bond with these extraordinary beings changed our relationship to the rest of the animal kingdom.

Today, for the first World Chimpanzee Day, Jane shares her reflections on that most beautiful time with the chimpanzees, all that is worth celebrating about our closest living relatives, and that we much each take action to protect chimpanzees in the wild, and in captivity, before it is too late.

Together, through the efforts of the Jane Goodall Institute, JGI global chapters, international NGOs, accredited zoos and sanctuaries, we're standing up for chimpanzees. Together we can do something to save them. Read (and share) Dr. Goodall's statement here: https://bit.ly/2NMTPgN

It is now 58 years to the day since I arrived for the very first time in what I then referred to, in my letters home, as “Chimpanzee Land”. At the time it was the Gombe Stream Chimpanzee Reserve in what was then Tanganyika – a British Protectorate. Today, of course, it is the GombeRead More

04/30/2018

More than 40 million people from every part of the globe are living as modern day slaves. Human trafficking is the world’s fastest growing criminal enterprise, with an estimated $150 billion in annual earnings for exploiters. At least one of every two of the world’s children have experienced violence. This cannot be the world we share.

Conscious Giving, Inc., a 501c3 public benefit corporation, is pleased to launch The Give Freedom Fund, a portfolio structured within a donor-advised fund of early and mid-stage nonprofit organizations focused on ending modern slavery, human trafficking with an emphasis on s*x trafficking, and violence against women and children.

The Give Freedom Fund is designed for wealthy individuals who wish to advance the well-being of humankind through their philanthropy but may not have the time to diligence organizations or consider their allocations too large for the capacity of early stage organizations.

One of the organizations in the fund that we are pleased to feature is Too Young To Wed, which is focused on ending child marriage.

Today, we live in a world where every two seconds, a girl is married against her will. When a child becomes a bride at such a young age, she loses the right to go to school, the right to make decisions about her health and the right to determine her own future. In the worst of cases, girls that are married under the age of 15 years old are five times more likely to die during child birth.

This first picture is of a young girl meeting her husband for the first time.

Over the past 15 years, Too Young To Wed’s founder Stephanie Sinclair, a National Geographic photographer and winner of the Pulitzer Prize, has been working on the issue of ending child marriage by showing the world through her lens the stark realities of forced child marriage in Africa and the Middle East. She and her team have been hopeful that the right people would see not just with their eyes but their hearts and be part of needed and welcome change.

Too Young To Wed has introduced a new belief to help change the view of the community members of girls who have been abducted. The organization is taking a holistic approach to development and launching programs in Nigeria, where most of the girls that have been abducted have one outfit. One outfit that they may wear for two years, and one outfit that while they clean, they risk being r***d.

The simple act of offering clothing can instantly change a girl’s life. A new set of clothing starts the process of healing as it allows each girl a new start, as she is able to “look like a normal girl,” as Ya Kaka, a Boko Haram survivor, told TYTW in March. “[She has] lost that bad identity.”

For $3500 (market price), the girls supported by the organization can make 100 outfits for 100 girls. This breaks down to $35 per outfit of which materials cost $25, and the girls receive $10.

The outfits will give the young women self-confidence, dignity and a sense of a purpose in the community. A new belief will be introduced to their families and community members when they have a positive image of freed women in the work force. This holistic approach will strengthen the girls’ independence within their families and have a stronger voice/role in the community.

Learn more: https://www.consciouscapital.us/

04/11/2018

"If trends seen since the 2008 financial crash were to continue, then the top 1% will hold 64% of the world’s wealth by 2030."

While in California, we heard a stat that 60% of the U.S. population could not come up with $2,000 in 30 days.

Globally, nearly 800 million people live on less than $1.90 a day.

The work we are doing at Conscious Capital is to move energy, that is money, from one place (those who control trillions of wealth) to another (those who do exceptional things or suffer).

Learn more: www.icvgroup.org

World leaders urged to act as anger over inequality reaches a ‘tipping point’

03/08/2018

On March 12-23, the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) will unite representatives of government, civil society, women’s and youth organizations and the private sector to address the challenges and opportunities in achieving gender equality and the empowerment of rural women and girls.

During CSW 2018, there will be events held at the United Nations and throughout NYC to create a positive difference for women and girls, to make gender equality a reality and to attain the Sustainable Development Goals.

On March 13, Together for Girls, Women Deliver and Girl UP have organized Violence Knows No Borders, an event that will bring visibility to the global pandemic that affects girls in every country: s*xual violence.

High-level speakers of this special event include The Honourable Maryam Monsef, Minister of Status of Women, Government of Canada; Shehu Abubakar, Executive Editor, Daily Trust (Nigeria); Dr. Natalia Kanem, Executive Director of UNFPA; Dr. Daniela Ligiero, CEO of Together for Girls; Dr. Howard Taylor, Incoming Executive Director of the Global Partnership to End Violence Against Children Against Children; and, Nahla Valji, Senior Gender Advisor to the UN Secretary-General.

Through the generous support of a philanthropist in the ICV community and the commitment of Jamie Dougherty and Manoj Gautam of New Era World Model (http://www.icvgroup.org/event/new-era-world-model/), the high-level speakers of Violence Knows No Borders and speakers at events hosted at the United Nations and throughout New York City will wear CSW Lanyards, which were handwoven by eighteen Nepalese women as part of our overall effort to lift women from poverty by providing training, comprehensive empowerment and financial assistance.

By taking part in this effort to create the CSW Lanyards, women from disadvantaged, marginalized and poor communities received schooling, stipends for their children’s education, and financial assistance to help feed their families.

The CSW Lanyards represent a compelling story of gender equality and women’s empowerment. A story of how every action, every effort – big or small – plays an important role to help achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.

As part of Agenda 2030, the world’s governments have set ambitious targets to end violence by 2030, in order to deliver the vision of a world where all children – girls and boys alike – grow up free from violence and exploitation.

During CSW 2018, let’s use every platform we have to build awareness and help to prevent s*xual violence. Let’s elevate the spirits of women, girls and boys around the world and give them confidence that there is strength in numbers!



ICV is proud to support Together for Girls (https://www.togetherforgirls.org), a global public-private partnership dedicated to ending violence against children, with a particular focus on s*xual violence against girls. Founded in 2009, the Together for Girls partnership brings together national governments, UN agencies and private sector organizations to prevent and respond to violence, as a fundamental step to achieving individual rights and well-being, gender equality, and sustainable development.

ICV is a proud member of the Global Partnership to End Violence Against Children (http://www.end-violence.org). Together, we must change the statistics: Every five minutes, a child dies as a result of violence. An estimated 120 million girls and 73 million boys have been victims of s*xual violence, and almost one billion children are subjected to physical punishment on a regular basis.

01/23/2018

“Together as one we can accomplish anything.” - Ndaba Mandela, grandson of Nelson Mandela.

Catalyzing blended investment in innovations to drive transformational aid for development.

Learn more at http://www.icvgroup.org/event/icv-geneva-2018/

01/08/2018

This Thursdsay: San Francisco at UCSF, Speakers Added.

Innovative research is leading to breakthroughs in medicines, therapies, devices, and technologies which will define the future of healthcare. There will be new treatments capable of curing a myriad of illnesses, thus helping people to live longer, with less pain. Through careful investing, countles...

12/04/2017

Conscious Capital is proud to support the Chaeli Foundation, established in July 2017 through the collaboration of like-minded community and business leaders whose common goal is to grow more inclusive and empowered communities, especially through the inclusion of children, youth and adults with disabilities.

The Chaeli Foundation is inspired by the work of The Chaeli Campaign and works in partnership with the Campaign on a local, national and global level to advocate for communities that grow capacity, empower and provide opportunities for children, youth and adults with disabilities to implement meaningful societal change.

Chaeli Mycroft was a keynote speaker at the Conscious Capital Philadelphia 2017: Healthcare Innovation Forum.
Stay tuned for future events, where we will proudly feature Ms. Mycroft.

To learn more, please visit http://chaelicampaign.co.za.

To make a donation to the Chaeli Foundation in the U.S., please email [email protected]. The website for the Foundation will be launched soon, but this will not delay your generous giving.

The International Children's Peace Prize is awarded annually to an exceptional child, whose courageous or otherwise remarkable actions have made a difference...

09/20/2017

On September 20, ICV will host one of its most impactful events to date, ICV Investing in African Health Systems, where we will convene Ministers of Health of five countries, Heads of UN Agencies, Philanthropists, Investors and Innovators to create sustainable health systems for Africa.

Speakers include:

Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization
Kerry Kennedy of Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights
Dr. Alaa Murabit, Global Goals Advocate
Dr. Stephen Klasko, President of Thomas Jefferson University and Jefferson Health
Les Funtleyder of E Squared Asset Management
Gary Magnant of Triple Sharp Venture Engineering
Bart Weetjens, Founder of APOPO and Co-lead of The Wellbeing Project
Sande Hart, Director of Women and Girls at the Charter for Compassion International

http://www.icvgroup.org/event/icv-african-health/

Over the past 20 years, the world has taken unprecedented steps to improve and save lives.

Maternal mortality rates have fallen by almost half.

In Eastern Asia, Northern Africa and Southern Asia, maternal mortality has declined by around two-thirds.

Hundreds of millions of people have emerged from extreme poverty.

In 46 countries, women now hold more than 30% of seats in national parliament in at least one chamber.

For the world’s wealthiest, real net worth has increased from $1 trillion to almost $7 trillion.

And, over the next twenty years, the world’s wealthiest are expected to transfer more than $30 trillion to their children and grandchildren.

Despite determined global progress,

Four out of every five deaths of children under age five occur in these regions.

Every two minutes, a woman dies in childbirth.

In sub-Saharan Africa, women are 136 times more likely to die than in developed countries.

More than six million children still die before their fifth birthday each year.

At the end of 2013, there were an estimated 35 million people living with HIV, and 240,000 children were newly infected.

HIV is the leading cause of death for women of reproductive age worldwide.

AIDS is now the leading cause of death among adolescents (aged 10–19) in Africa and the second most common cause of death among adolescents globally.

This cannot be the world we share.

A measure of a civilization is how it treats its most vulnerable. We can do more. We can create positive change in our lifetimes.

With the involvement of multiple stakeholders, we can work together to catalyze responsible business growth and unlock innovative forms of financing at an unprecedented scale.

In the next 20 years, the brightest minds and breakthrough innovators will leverage their collective resources and shared aspirations to create companies that will reshape traditional industries.

There has never been a greater time in history when capital is being allocated to companies and investors focused on social impact. Therefore, the opportunity to do well by doing good is unprecedented.

Join us on September 20 to bridge the gap between political and financial worlds to drive development through 2030 and beyond.

09/17/2017

An Open Letter by 12 Nobel Laureates and 22 Eminent Global Citizens to United Nations Security Council to end the Rohingya crisis
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Rohingya Crisis is Deteriorating Very Fast

AN OPEN LETTER TO UN SECURITY COUNCIL TO INTERVENE TO END THE HUMAN CRISIS IN RAKHINE, MYANMAR

Date: 13 September, 2017

Dear President and Members of the Security Council,
Thank you for holding the UNSC meeting on Rohingya crisis most likely on September 13.

The human tragedy and crimes against humanity unfolding in the Arakan region of Myanmar need your immediate intervention. This is one of the moments when bold and decisive actions are needed.

According to different organizations, recent military offensive by the Myanmar Army in Rakhine State has led to the killing of hundreds of Rohingya people. Hundreds of thousands of people have been displaced. Complete villages have been burned, women r***d, many civilians arbitrarily arrested, and children killed. Crucially, humanitarian aid organisations have been almost completely denied access, creating an appalling humanitarian crisis in an area already extremely poor.

According to UN sources, around 300,000 people have fled to Bangladesh during the last two weeks. Human misery created by such massive displacement of men, women and children under the threat of death is getting worse every day.
Some of us denounced the previous spate of violence late last year and wrote to you to intervene. However, the situation has not improved. We urge you to take decisive actions to stop the violence against innocent civilians and bring permanent peace in Rakhine state.

We call on UNSC to intervene immediately by using all available means. We request you to take immediate action for cessation of indiscriminate military attack on innocent civilians that is forcing them to leave their home and flee country to turn into stateless people.

The arguments that the Myanmar government is using to deny Rohingyas their citizenship are ludicrous, to say the least. At independence of Burma from the British in 1948 and under successive governments, Burma recognized the people of all ethnicities within its border, including the Rohingyas, as full citizens, having representation in the parliament.

The military juntas in the 1980s decided that Rohingyas are not Burmese. Accordingly, they stripped the Rohingyas of their citizenship. They used military and political means to make sure that the Rohingyas leave the country. Systematic persecution aiming at ethnic and religious cleansing began.

We join the Secretary General of the United Nations in re-emphasizing that, "The grievances and unresolved plight of the Rohingya have festered for far too long and are becoming an undeniable factor in regional destabilization. The authorities in Myanmar must take determined action to put an end to this vicious cycle of violence and to provide security and assistance to all those in need.”

We urge you to persuade Myanmar government to take immediate steps to implement the recommendations of the Rakhine Advisory Commission which the Myanmar government established in 2016 under the pressure of international community. The Commission, mostly comprised of Myanmar citizens, chaired by Kofi Annan, recommended providing citizenship to the Rohingyas, to allow them freedom of movement, rights and equality before the law, to ensure communal representation, lack of which affects Muslims disproportionately, to facilitate UN assistance in ensuring safety and security of returning people. The fear became reality through the attack on Myanmar security forces by the militants. Unless, constructive effort to build lasting peace is taken, the situation will get worse which in turn may pose serious security threat to the neighbouring countries.

To implement the Commission recommendations we suggest the following preparatory steps:

1. Reappoint the Commission members immediately to constitute an Implementation Committee to oversee the implementation of the recommendations,
2. Take immediate steps to stop the outflow of refugees,
3.Invite international observers to visit vulnerable areas on a regular basis,
4.Invite back the refugees who already left the country,
5.Build camps within Myanmar for the returning refugees to facilitate their rehabilitation with UN financing and supervision,
6.Give them the citizenship as prescribed in the Commission Report under the exclusive authority of the Implementation Committee and
7.Ensure political freedom and freedom of movement.

A bold change in approach is needed by United Nations and the international community if there is to be an end to the cycle of violence against the Rohingyas. The government of Myanmar needs to be told that international support and finance is conditional on a major change in policy towards the Rohingya. Propaganda and incitement of hatred and all violence, particularly state violence against Rohingyas must stop, discriminatory laws and policies must go, the recommendations of Kofi Annan's commission must be implemented immediately.

The world is anxiously waiting to see that UNSC is playing its role to bring end to a humanitarian catastrophe and build peace in the region.

Sincerely yours,

Professor Muhammad Yunus
2006 Nobel Peace Laureate

Máiread Maguire
1976 Nobel Peace Laureate

Betty Williams
1976 Nobel Peace Laureate

Archbishop Desmond Tutu
1984 Nobel Peace Laureate

Oscar Arias
1987 Nobel Peace Laureate

Jody Williams
1997 Nobel Peace Laureate

Shirin Ebadi
2003 Nobel Peace Laureate

Leymah Gbowee
2011 Nobel Peace Laureate

Tawakkol Karman
2011 Nobel Peace Laureate

Malala Yousafzai
2014 Nobel Peace Laureate

Sir Richard J. Roberts
1993 Nobel Laureate in Physiology or Medicine

Elizabeth Blackburn
2009 Nobel Laureate in Physiology or Medicine

Javed Akhtar
Poet and Lyricist

Syed Hamid Albar
Former Malaysian Minister for Foreign Affairs

Shabana Azmi
Actor and Activist

Emma Bonino
Former Italian Foreign Minister

Bono
Musician and Activist

Sir Richard Branson
Business Leader and Philanthropist

Gro Harlem Brundtland
Former Prime Minister of Norway

Richard Curtis
Film Director, SDG Advocate

Mo Ibrahim
Entrepreneur and Philanthropist

Asma Jahangir
Former Chair Human Rights Commission of Pakistan

Kerry Kennedy
Human Rights Activist

Salman Khan
Educationist

Alaa Murabit
Voice of Libyan Women, SDG Advocate

Narayana Murthy
Business Leader

Kasit Piromya
Former Thai Foreign Minister

Surin Pitsuwan
Former Secretary-General of ASEAN

Paul Polman
Business Leader, SDG Advocate

Mary Robinson
Former President of Ireland

Jeffrey D. Sachs
Director of the UN Sustainable
Development Solutions Network

Jimmy Wales
Internet Entrepreneur

Forest Whitaker
Actor, SDG Advocate

Jochen Zeitz
Business Leader and Philanthropist

09/13/2017

Last chance for complimentary registration:

The ICV Global Youth Summit on September 15 at the United Nations Headquarters.

Join us for a day of inspiration and insight from tomorrow’s leaders.

http://www.icvgroup.org/event/icv-global-youth-summit/

09/12/2017

Last chance: A Conversation with Jane Goodall this Sunday at The Franklin Institute (main event at 12:00 pm, VIP brunch at 10:30am). Details and registration: http://www.icvgroup.org/event/icv-jane-goodall/

07/25/2017

ICV is pleased to announce it has joined the growing group of companies that provide vital support to the UN Global Compact and its work to drive the global corporate sustainability movement. As a participant in the UN Global Compact, ICV has implemented the Ten Principles as part of its strategy, culture and operations to engage in collaborative projects which advance the broader development goals of the United Nations, particularly the SDGs.

http://www.icvgroup.org/mission/

Derived from the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the Ten Principles takes into account the fundamental responsibilities of business in the areas of human rights, labour, environment and anti-corruption.