This article by HEART Senior Program Director Kim Korona gives us a look into how educators can shift their anti-racist perspectives into action. A must read!

Fast forward six years from our last blog, and Natalie's been busy with work, community, home life, and, since 2018, completing a doctorate in Managing Organizational Systems, with a specialization in Humane Education! 

Since 2016, humane education has been fervently working toward bringing its mission to public, private, and independent schools, while simultaneously working across systems to connect humane educators and humane education organizations, and establishing its scholarly journal, IJHE (International Journal of Humane Education). 

heARTnight took a seat while Natalie worked to support her entire community, committing to three nonprofit board of directors and contributing to several charitable events that benefit the environment, animals, and human beings. 

Currently in her PhD work, Natalie is researching the experience of an educator leader who chose to implement humane education across her entire school district. With a potential impact of nearly 100,000 students, this innovative work is worth exploring and sharing. Natalie will continue her scholarly practice to further explore the educator experience, hoping to contribute to the field of education and impact the entire system through sustainable transformation.

Take a look at what Natalie's been up to, and get a current, refreshing snapshot of some of humane education's efforts!

Social enterprises may seem relatively new, but they've been around for longer than you'd think. Stores like Goodwill and your neighborhood Humane Society are long-standing examples, but the idea of social enterprises is evolving at a rapid pace. I've created a bit of a lesson to explain the concept and to motivate people to start one of their own. Take a peek at the Prezi presentation below!

This month is Media Literacy Month. No, not really. But what time is better than the present to work on one's awareness of advertising and marketing strategies?

I've posted the survey below to collect information about consumption of products and services explicitly displaying advertisements or company logos, otherwise known as branding. Collecting this information  helps me to better understand consumer motivation for purchasing products containing name brands.

Please take the survey, it will only take a moment!

For more information about heARTnight, visit the Facebook page, or email its founder and host Natalie Krivas at natkrivas@gmail.com

In his article, "Ta-Nehisi Coates' Surprising Explanation of Climate Change", Ryan Cooper sheds some light on Ta-Nehisi's view on climate change. In his book, Ta-Nehisi gives some interesting input on the matter when he writes:

                            "[T]he damming of the seas for voltage, the extraction of coal, the transmuting of oil into food, 
                          have enabled an expansion in plunder with no known precedent. And this revolution has freed 
                          the Dreamers to plunder not just the bodies of humans but the body of the Earth itself... Some-
                          thing more fierce than Marcus Garvey is riding on the whirlwind. " (For more, click here)

Ta-Nehisi Coates' eloquent demeanor invites us to listen more closely and focus more deeply on his message. I enjoyed learning about his observations, opinions, and experiences because he spoke calmly but passionately and without condescension. I look forward to hearing more from him.

At the end of the day, we cannot simply ignore the ongoing issues of injustice in our world. Racism does exist, and yes, even on American soil. So do slavery and child labor, among others. In a brief mention of the Confederate Flag, Coates points out both the stark racism that exists in larger numbers than we think, and our dominating state of denial. Sometimes seems as though our country is made up of two majorities: those who discriminate and those in denial. Of course, this sweeping generalization does not account for the thousands, if not, millions of global citizens who stand tall against acts of discrimination and social injustice, but the fact remains that not many systemic, concrete actions have been made to permanently abolish such acts.

If you wish to read just a snip-it of Cohen's book, check out the first chapter, "Elementary Forms of Denial". It will leave you feeling extremely informed, and most likely push you to look inside yourself -  if not just a little - to discover some denial of your own. Fear not! We all live with some form of denial, now and then. Being aware of it and actively working against act as the proof of our best efforts to maintain a life of compassion and dignity for all.


Sources;

Cohen, S. (2001). Elementary forms of denial. States of denial: Knowing about atrocities and suffering. Cambridge, MA:                 Polity Press. 1-20.

Hamm, M. (2003). Book review: States of denial: Knowing about atrocities and suffering. In Critical Criminology. Retrieved           from: http://www.observatoriodeseguranca.org/files/state%20of%20denial.pdf

The Daily Show. (2015). Complete interview: Jon Stewart interviews Ta-Nehisi Coates on the Daily Show. Retrieved 
        from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RhMYYr6_dh8

Cooper, R. (2015). Ta-Nehisi Coates' surprising explanation of climate change. In The Week. Retrieved from 
        http://theweek.com/articles/568210/tanehisi-coates-surprising-explanation-climate-change


NK2015

In this TEDx Talk, Sally Taylor describes her history around Consenses, where the physical world meets the digital, in a virtual game of "Telephone". Sally's development of Consenses has grown to involved educators, students, adults, and youth to create art using countless mediums of art; dance, sculpture, painting, and music are just a few examples. 

I look forward to introducing this engaging project with my students and watching how far down the creative rabbit hole we fly.

Despite the ugly curtain that humanity can cause, I have never felt more proud to be human. Malala Yousafzai speaks eloquently to the UN in one of the most inspiring speeches of our modern day. Her words of peace and affirmative demeanor demand confidence that ruptures within me a growing voice of action. "There was a time when woman social activists asked men to stand up  for their rights . But this time, we will do it by ourselves."