'Cloudhead' harnesses artistic creativity to contribute to community
Leigh Shulman and partner Noah Edelblum parlayed their love of travel, writing and art into an Argentina-based NGO which marries art, education, and technology to build community through art.
Cloudhead has taken the time to articulate their own principles of how they will conduct business and express the values they hold dear, and has found a lot of synergy with the Principles of Regenerative Business we've articulated so far.
Interesting too, how so many of us are out there so passionately engaged in our own unique expressions of what is ultimately the same underlying fundamental principle - How to maximize our positive impact upon the planet.
Photo: Leigh shows some of the kids in Hickman how to use the camera. They received their own cameras to use, but many used their big Nikon.
BeyondSustainabilitymag.net: How did 'Cloudhead' begin?
LS: We formed Cloudhead as a logical next step to what we were already doing. Noah and I traveled with our daughter Lila for three years and during that time, we couchsurfed, hosted people (whenever we had our own place) and volunteered with NGOs, institutes and schools.
We figured, why not turn what we love doing into a way we can support ourselves.
But how does one create a clear business with a well-defined product when working with so many different types of people and groups?
Photo:Noah working with the kids at Kickmann during their first visit.
BeyondSustainabilitymag.net: How are the principles of Regenerative Enterprise reflected in Cloudhead?
LS: People first. Profit later. This comes naturally. If we can host someone in our home or connect someone with a resource they need – great -- we’re happy to do it.
Business, though, doesn't come as naturally. It's strange to think of asking people to pay for things we’ve always done. As our project grows, though, we realize we need money to fund it. We pay for gas to drive up to the community where we're building a garden. We need to pay for server space for our website so we can market and make sales. We will need money to bring artists from the other side of planet to work with us in our communities.
It is because we believe in what we do, that we are truly doing something of benefit not just for ourselves but for the place we live and hopefully the world in general, that we can ask for money.
Our two main products-for-profit at the moment are the Wichi/H20 photos and our Summer Leadership program, but we believe in what we do beyond our ability to profit from it. That’s the only reason we are able to go out there and sell.
The Principles of Cloudhead:
Photo:This girl loved having her photo taken. Most were either shy. Or wanted to take photos. She was the only one who clealry wanted to pose.
Everyone Has Something Of Value
If travel has taught us anything, it’s that every person and place in the world has something to share with the rest of the world.
In more economically developed countries, there’s a surplus of technology and resources but often a lack of time and space. In places like Panama and the less developed regions of Argentina, time has a very different meaning. People don’t live by the clock and while there may be a paucity of resources, those that exist are used creatively and with less waste.
All places have art and culture, and in every place there are people curious to share their work and learn from others.
Photo: The Barrio Solidaridad class to be part of a Salta province wide education exchange of about 300 students. The idea was that working together, we can accomplish anything. This is a photo from one of the workshops.
Every Cloudhead project facilitates collaborative art and education. Through technology and social media, we create a dialogue between the different communities, paving the way for them to share resources and ideas.
We employ this same principle when marketing, publicizing and selling our products. It would be costly and time consuming for us to create our own Cloudhead community or e-commerce site. Instead, we connect with existing communities on Facebook, ArtSlant, Openhouse Gallery in NYC and others who are already selling or willing to market for us.
Photo: Student photos from an exhibit at Salta's Casa de la Cultura of the Hickmann kids' photos called Originarios. (Original People).
Nothing against charity. It is a wonderful thing to give selflessly and out of compassion, but no one can give endlessly. Charity, also, too often, leaves the recipient as passive instead of actively designing and creating a life he or she would prefer.
We believe there must be give and take, share and receive on both sides of a relationship in order for a lasting and workable exchange to exist.
In our Wichi/H20 project, we take donated digital cameras and put them in the hands of children in an indigenous Wichi community in NW Argentina.
The people donating the cameras are more than happy to see their old gear go to good use. The children, most of whom have never held a camera before, love taking photos of their lives.
The camera donors love seeing snapshots of children in an area they’ve never been, allowing them to take an active role in exploring another country even if they are not able to travel there.
The people who buy the photos receive a quality piece of artwork while simultaneously knowing all profit from their purchase goes to build a garden or provide clean water for the community in which the child who took the photo lives.
Photo: A couple of the artists behind the lens discuss their work.
Money is not the only currency.
What we give: Time and energy.
In our Jovenes Construyendo Con Jovenes program, we teach media studies and English in Barrio Solidaridad, an underserved neighborhood in the south of Salta. Our students learn skills that will allow them to effectively compete in a rapidly changing economy as Salta shifts from agricultural to tourism and technology.
What we receive: We are building a name, connections and credibility while we refine our methodology.
In return, we have made connections in the Argentine Ministry of Education and other areas of government, both vital when building any program or business in Argentina.
The Barrio Solidaridad students will also play a crucial role when we launch our Summer Leadership Program in June 2012. Students from the US will join us in Argentina to learn about art, photography and culture in part through a language exchange with our Salta students.
In addition, we have a platform where we test and research our program methods as we continue to develop them.
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