Launching The Evolver Social Movement
Dear Evolver community,
We have reached a critical juncture in the life of this project, and need your support in order to continue. As many of you know, it has become extremely difficult to find funding for independent media that offers an alternative perspective on the world. In the US and many places abroad, corporations dominate the mainstream media, controlling mass consciousness and turning ideas into meaningless sound bites. We believe it is imperative that real alternatives exist. Through Reality Sandwich, we have created such an alternative, featuring a selection of content seen nowhere else, some of it quite radical. Through Evolver.net, we created a tangible way for our community to find each other and build a movement together.
For the last three years, we have published Reality Sandwich and Evolver.net on a shoestring budget. Advertising revenues have dried up on the web, while most investors seek investments that will bring about a quick high-yield return. Finally, we have reached a point where we can no longer pay our basic costs or minimal salaries for our team and infrastructure. Ironically, this has happened at a time when the value of what we are doing has only become more clear. We are seeing local Evolver groups popping up all over the US and abroad, while the more established ones continue to attract larger audiences to their monthly events.
To overcome our society's current blockages, we believe there needs to be a vibrant alternative media as well as a network of communities who are building a conscious, sustainable culture that includes practical solutions to today's problems. We created the Evolver Social Movement, as well as our web magazine Reality Sandwich and our social network, Evolver.net, to help accomplish this. Now we need your help in order to survive.
Please become a charter member of the Evolver Social Movement and support our ongoing initiatives: Evolver.net, Reality Sandwich, and the Evolver Regionals, with over 30 chapters currently in operation both in the US and abroad. We are asking for contributions of $10 a month, but would appreciate whatever you can afford. With community support, we will work with you to build a new model of interdependent media, and spread the seeds of an alternative culture as wide as we possibly can.
We know that many of you will have questions about what our plan is and how we intend to carry it out. This is explained in some detail on our page for joining the Evolver Social Movement, which is reproduced below. Jonathan Talat Phillips and I will also be fielding your questions on a free conference call open to anyone in the community, next Wednesday night, at 9 pm EST.
If what we are doing with Evolver and Reality Sandwich matters to you and has value for you, please join the Evolver Social Movement and make a small monthly contribution.
We look forward to building this movement with you. (More below)
Reasons to Join the Evolver Social Movement
Join the Evolution!
When you join the Evolver Social Movement, you contribute directly to a transparent organization that combines visionary principles with practical solutions. We spread the seeds of an alternative culture, one devoted to rebalancing the human relationship with the earth and making a world that works for everyone.
Evolver is a mission-driven company that supports the emergence of a new planetary culture based on ecological values, creative collaboration, and conscious evolution. We're now launching the Evolver SocialMovement (E+SM). As a member, you help us publish Reality Sandwich, the leading web magazine for consciousness culture, and develop Evolver.net, the social network that brings our community together. E+SM also coordinates the 30 Regional Evolver groups that meet together each month, with many more coming soon.
With your help, Evolver will grow into a movement capable of influencing debate on important issues of the moment, such as climate change, corporate overreach, the war on drugs, economic disparity, renewable energy, preservation of wilderness, and much more. It's our world to change, and we are reaching out to you now, because without your immediate assistance, this project will not continue.
Please support E+SM by becoming a member. We are asking for contributions of $10 per month. If you can contribute more, please do so; if less, we understand. (After signing up, you can cancel at any time through your RS account page.) Evolver has reached a turning point. The radical nature of this project makes it difficult to attract traditional forms of investment,grants or sponsorship. We believe we provide a crucial social utility and a much-needed alternative at a time of corporate media dominance.
What we now propose is a new compact with our community, a new model of "interdependent media." Your membership will allow us to continue our operations, give voice to the ideas and issues that you care about, and develop the larger movement able to turn idealist visions into practical solutions. In return, we will listen to your voice and put our memberships' best ideas into immediate action.
Our goal is to sign up 2,000 E+SM members by April 30.Please ensure that Evolver and Reality Sandwich have a vital future by joining now.
What We Do
Through Evolver, people who want to build an alternative culture connect with each other, share their knowledge and resources, and collaborate on projects that are models for change that others may follow. YourE+SM membership supports our current initiatives:
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Reality Sandwich: The leading web magazine for transformative culture reaches more than 100,000 readers each month from around the globe. New articles, videos, and news items are published daily, and are available for free. Your membership will cover our basic expenses, allow us to develop new content and features, produce multimedia (including news and interview shows), and promote RS content to the world so consciousness-expanding memes and stories reach an increasingly wide audience.
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Evolver.net: Our social network for conscious collaboration enables our international community to express itself, find one another, share news, plan events, and work together on projects. Participation is free. By becoming a paying member, you help Evolver.net add new features that will make the site more user friendly - make it competitive with Facebook, Ning, and other popular social networking sites - and assist in empowering this growing network.
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Evolver Regionals: The Evolver Social Movement currently has over 30 regional chapters that produce themed events, called Evolver Spores, every month. The Spores bring communities together, educate people on new perspectives and critical issues, and facilitate the sharing of local resources. Regionals have already organized Evolver-themed festivals, permaculture gardens, community spaces, and other projects. Your contributions will help us develop Spores in new locales, and to fund projects and initiatives undertaken by Regional groups.
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Media and Event Production: Evolver publishes books in partnership with Tarcher/Penguin, and produces teleseminars, which we call Evolver Intensives. Last year we produced two remarkable Reality Sandwich retreats in south central Utah at the Boulder Mountain Guest Ranch, and we plan more large events and retreats in the future. Your contributions will help to build these programs so they can reach more people and become healthy revenue streams to support Evolver's ongoing operations. With membership dues we will create scholarships for people who can't afford tickets and plane fare.
Future Projects
Beyond these existing initiatives, member support will be used to develop new projects:
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Complementary Currency and Evolver Exchange: Future plans for Evolver.net include building a platform for alternative exchanges, time-shares, and barter arrangements, as well as an Evolver Exchange, for Evolvers to share their goods and services with the community.
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Evolver Festivals and Conferences: Evolver will bring together inspirational writers, thought leaders and creative impresarios at live events, festivals and conferences. For those who cannot attend, Evolver will broadcast panels and workshops out to the community, and far beyond.
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Partnerships: We will increase collaborations with organizations involved in the protection of the Amazon jungle, the rainforest of Guatemala, and other threatened bioregions, as well as with institutions like the Buckminster Fuller Institute, Burners without Borders, Institute of Noetic Sciences, Dr. Stanislav Grof's Transpersonal Training Institute, MAPS, the Beckley Foundation, and more.
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Community Projects: As E+SM grows, a percentage of revenues will be put toward projects that gain the most impassioned support from the Evolver community, which will have the opportunity to vote and comment on what it would like to see manifest.
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Peace2012: In Conjunction with EarthDance, Evolver supports Peace2012, an initiative to create a synchronized world peace meditation on December, 21, 2012, the last day of a 5,125-year Mayan Long Count Calendar. Scientific studies have shown that prayer and meditation have measurable effects, increasing resonance and coherence. A globally synchronized peace meditation - whether on December 21, 2012, or at another time - could bring about a new level of coherence for our evolving planetary consciousness.
Member Benefits
E+SM members will be invited to participate in monthly calls with Reality Sandwich writers and community leaders where you can ask questions and engage your favorite transformational provocateur in dialogue. You can join periodic conference calls with the Evolver team to discuss what we're doing and what is coming up next. And you will receive discounts to events and Evolver Intensives teleseminars.
Community Participation
Evolver's achievements are largely due to the active participation of hundreds of dedicated volunteers around the globe. The coming together of this community has been Evolver's most inspiring success, and it sets us apart from other media companies or not-for-profit efforts, offering a tremendous opportunity to innovate a new model of " interdependent media."
With the launch of E+SM, we will engage the community we servein a deliberate and thoughtful dialog, keeping it informed, maintaining transparent operations, responding to suggestions and feedback, and collaborating on future projects. Everyone who has ever taken part in Evolver has "invested" in this project and is a stakeholder. As part of an ongoing experiment to create a new kind of socially responsible company, and to provide a model for others to follow, we are committed to increasing community involvement in our operations as we grow in the future.
Beyond monetary contributions, we are also interested in other ways you would like to engage in the movement. We will create a system that will allow people to participate as members by contributing their ideas, skills, energy, and time -- giving their gift in the best way possible for them. While E+SM actively seeks paying members to sustain and intensify the range of our activities, both Evolver.net and Reality Sandwich will remain available to everyone free of cost.
Learn more about Evolver's mission, our current operations and future plans.
We live at a time of accelerating change, increasing threat,and extraordinary opportunity. Currently, mainstream media and social networks tend to keep their viewers and users distracted and detached. Rather than alienate people further,the Evolver Social Movement seeks to reconnect people to their local communities and their native earth, and rebuild the basic trust necessary for society to function. We intend to use the extraordinary capacities of our communications networks to get people away from their computers and back in the world, collaborating to bring about the more beautiful and peaceful world we deserve to attain.
We hope you will be inspired by what is possible here, and contribute generously to the Evolver Social Movement, a conscious community that reflects your values and your ideals.
Join the Evolution!
- 3-19-10
- Daniel Pinchbeck's blog
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Sprouting Seeds of Evolution
The seeds of a new planetary culture are already spreading in the form of our Evolver Spores. As mentioned above, there are now more than 30 Evolver Regionals that host these monthly community gatherings for cultural incubation and local activation. Here's a couple of regional testimonials to give you a taste of what the Evolver Social Movement is up to (along with publishing Reality Sandwich and Evolver.net). With your support, we believe we can quickly double the cities hosting these transformational events, as well as provide more support for our current regional communities. Also, if you'd like to start up a Spore in your area, just send me an email through my profile page. Just to reiterate what Daniel was saying -- to keep building this transformational network, we need your help now, so please chip in what you can.
Evolver Atlanta
-- Maya Lemberg
Evolver has changed my life in every single way imaginable. Like many, I've always been craving a community to help facilitate my spiritual evolution, and to quite literally, commune with. The occasional deep conversation at a party just wasn't doing it, and online interaction can only do so much. Before Evolver even launched, I hooked up with a few other Atlantans that were passionate about Reality Sandwich and all the ideals it stands for. So we started organizing local events, garnering a community, meeting new people, and expanding minds. Now 1.5 years passed, Evolver Atlanta has a solid name in the local community, a large, vibrant circle of supporters, consciousness shifting gatherings and a plethora of ideas brewing for the future. This has not only been revolutionary in the lives of all of the Evolver Atlanta regional coordinators, but for the lives of the hundreds of people that attend our events. People come to connect with kindred spirits, learn and grow from each other while exploring vital topics concerning us all in this rapidly shifting era. The local Evolver community rave about our events to their inner circle, wait anxiously for the next one, and feel a sense of lightness and connection when they come. This is what it's all about. Our local tagline is Art, Ideas, Action, Evolution. With a growing, passionate community like our own, mountains can be moved, hearts opened, perceptions expanded and paradigms shifted. We are all honored to be involved in the Evolver Social Movement and thankful for its conception and evolution.
Evolver Philadelphia
-- Robert Garvan Snyder
For several years, I have found unique contributions on Reality Sandwich, and felt a kinship with others drawn to that site. It was refreshing to know that a growing number of souls also included a helping of open-mindedness, visionary creativity, and unbranded hope in their daily diet of media. When I learned that the creators of that site were launching a new project, Evolver, to ignite the organization of local communities to gather and share, I knew I would play a part. Philadelphia did not yet have a Evolver Spore, as these gatherings are known, and I offered to host it myself. Each month, we have forged connection with local authors, reporters, activists, therapists, artists, event planners, & organizers. Collaborative relationships continue to evolve at a fearsome pace between each Spore. In a few short months, seeds planted in the Spore have grown into film screenings, an epic rave, a healing circle, employment opportunities, a women’s new moon circle, and more. And we are just getting started. From our first gathering last July, I have been astounded and astounded again by the openness, creativity, gifts and vision that participants bring to the table. After each Spore, I leave as a more hopeful person, knowing that communities in cities around the globe are having similar conversations.
Evolver Los Angeles
-- Erin Shaw
My role in Evolver Los Angeles was a natural progression from my contributions as a newswriter for Reality Sandwich. Both RS and Evolver have greatly expanded my ideas of what's possible, but Evolver LA has revealed a strong network of collaborators that I didn't know existed all around me. From green-thumb activists to crisis recovery specialists, polyamory coaches, to savvy business consultants, lucid dreamers and soul retrievers, the Evolver network is the nexus of transformative thought for Los Angeles. The city's evolution is steadily actualizing in form of sheet mulching workshops, sound
healing ceremonies, alternative currency learn-ins, blessings of the Los Angeles river, and the community garden starting at the Evolver LA space with more channels for evolution to come. In that way, the Evolver network has more than fulfilled its mission to provide a platform to discover and share what will change our lives.
If you really feel that way,
Non-Profit
Evolver plans to partner with not-for-profit organizations on projects in the future, where that approach makes the most sense. But I'm not sure what the advantage of turning Evolver into a not-for-profit would be.
To receive not-for-profit status from the IRS, you need to state your organization's mission in a very narrow way, and make sure that all initiatives stay within those parameters, otherwise the IRS will penalize you. As a result, not-for-profit orgs tend to introduce new initiatives very slowly, and can't respond on a dime to new opportunities. And there's a lot of paperwork involved in justifying operations to the IRS.
Businesses have a lot more flexibility in the kinds of activities they can do. As a mission-driven, socially responsible business, Evolver can introduce new projects quickly, in response to the interest of the community. As films like The Corporation make clear, laws are written to empower companies to act effectively and efficiently to reach their goals. Evolver's mission is clear, and we aim to serve the transformational community with the tools at our collective disposal.
Why do you think Evolver should go the not-for-profit route?
non-profit
hi jbla,
i am increasingly thinking that we will make part of the venture non-profit in the near future.
We have not had the mindspace available to work through all of the issues here and find a fiscal sponsor or create our own 501-C-3 . Partially, I must say that I have always had suspicions about the non-profit world, as even nonprofits end up controlled by their major donors, or by the foundation that supports them. Also the whole model of charity has always bothered me - it suggests that you are doing wrong in some area and then compensating in another, rather than using your resources to make the proper systemic change from the beginning.
I am now realizing that this may be a psychological blockage I have had around this area. Over the next monts we will, I think, seek out a good fiscal sponsor and figure out which part of our operations can be nonprofit (perhaps the social network itself, with things like a discount card for members being for-profit).
I promise in all transparency to let you know how this develops. At the moment, we are hoping people will contribute to the llc - you can change your contributions at any time, or stop them, so as soon as we announce a nonprofit affiliate, people will be able to choose to have their continutions as tax-free donations instead.
At the moment we don't have the money to send postcards out to our Evolver Regionals so we certainly don't have the funds to do more legal paperwork.
I hope this clarifies and I am happy to discuss it further, and hear more input from the membership.
yours,
daniel
"Will the transformation."-Rilke
Thanks Daniel! I don't
Thanks Daniel!
I don't think it will be as hard as you're fearing - http://www.irs.gov/charities/article/0%2C%2Cid%3D96590%2C00.html , and I think that being organized as a non-profit would get people and organizations more excited about providing financial support. Plus, you can always use many of the same income generating activities you're currently engaged in to broaden the reach / effect of your endeavors.
Good Luck!
non profit reality check
Daniel,
There are wonderful benefits about having a non-profit, one of them is having a team and board who share a vision for the project, thereby helping to acquire the kind of funds to provide for maximum impact.
Understandably you're reaching out towards alternative strategies and a 501c3 might not be the route you seek as you begin to explore alternative currencies.
Until the time comes when alternative currencies are recognized and utilized en masse, you will find that having a 501c3 may generate more opportunities because most of your funds will not come from corporate or government funding as you seem to suggest, but from individual donors. Consider that on average, 90% of the funds will come from individuals. Not only that, but people will be able to write off their donations on their taxes (for those who pay taxes).
Another benefit, is that you can raise funds for specific tax-deductible events in which the money you make from merchandising does not have to go through the non-profit. As long as you pay yourself and your partners something reasonable, by IRS standards, and remain transparent, you will probably find that a 501c3 will work very well for you.
OB
non-profit works!
I agree with Oni Baba and jbla on the benefits of having a non-profit. Just like there are many businesses large and small, the same goes for NPs. They are not all the same.
If a group of 40+ artists can form a cooperative non-profit and function without getting in trouble with the IRS, then I'm sure E+SM can. Our mission statement is broad and inclusive. We have a working (non-paid) board elected by the membership and 3 PT staff people (I am one of them.) Our financial statements are open and shared with the membership at the monthly meetings. Everyone who shows up votes on initiatives proposed, and all activities of the gallery. We were incorporated in 1990 and own our building, a former historic church in an old New England city. We have many sources of income, from sales, donations, rental of facility and from private and public foundations. Our community outreach projects qualify for state funding. Check us out at www.galleryx.org. I'd be happy to share more specifics with you privately.
I understand your desire not to relinquish ownership of this special project and it's future potential for profit, but it appears that as individuals you have all profited from the success of RS/Evolver. If RS/ E+SM became a sustainable transparent organization, your careers would also continue to grow and flourish.
non-profit plus for-profit
hi evoluna,
thanks for your thoughts. as i said, i believe in the next months we will find a fiscal sponsor and go through the necessary review process so that people can donate to us as a non-profit. I see us developing a hybrid non-profit for-profit model, with certain pieces such as the network being held in trust as a non-profit.
in the meantime, we seek contributions to continue our operations, and I really hope people won't wait until we have established 501c3 status to contribute, as by then it may be too late for this. Once we have a fiscal sponsor or a non-profit arm, people will be able to switch their contributions to tax-free donations, if they want.
yours,
daniel
"Will the transformation."-Rilke
Daniel I worked for an
exactly
Hi Drew,
Yes I feel you have clearly enunciated some of the reasons that I don't feel particularly convinced by or connected with the nonprofit sector. It seems there are a lot of limitations here and just as much if not more potential for control over the activities of the organization.
I really hope that people will not wait until we have a fiscal sponsor to join the ESM but will do it now, as otherwise we may not survive or only in an extremely skeletal form. As soon as a fiscal sponsor is in place, you will be able to shift your monthly contributions so they are tax-free donations.
Yours,
Daniel
"Will the transformation."-Rilke
Payment options
annual vs monthly
Hi Psytranscience,
I can sympathize with your situation.
It was a big push for our techies who are also now working without pay to get up the system as we now have it. You can cancel at any time from your account settings page. You could for instance cancel every month if you want - do a donation now for what feels right, then cancel your membership, then sign back up again next month if you have the scratch and it still feels like the right move for you.
Yours,
Daniel
"Will the transformation."-Rilke
Why Joining?
I'm in
Cooperative
What about a Cooperative? Everyone who contributes becomes an equal member/owner? Seems like this is most in the spirit of the Evolver movement to me.
http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/rbs/pub/cir7/cir7rpt.htm
http://www.cdi.coop/
Cooperatives
Hi Shibalba,
We are definitely interested in exploring models like that in the future. I would see a situation where we turn the network over to the community through a co-op. I think we need to build the network first however.
My thought right now is that we will make certain aspects of the company into a non-profit structure - especially Evolver.net which is built on Drupal, an opensource publishing platform. But honestly until we get over this hurdle, we can't really undertake any other changes or new initiatives. Morale is down, manpower is shrinking.
If you want to study the coop model and write a prospectus about how we would operate evolver in that way I would definitely read it and consider it - we can also see how the community responds.
One thing I have to say honestly is that I have not seen consensus decisionmaking structures work well. I like the organization of a company where the CEO or a few people have the ability to make quick decisions. I already feel that the decisionmaking gets bogged down with four of us making most decisions. I can't imagine how it would work to involve the entire community in all decisions. It seems highly impractical to me.
It might be possible to launch an experiment within Evolver, setting up a coop model for a certain piece or part of the operation and see if it succeeds. For instance, we have a commerce platform that we have never gotten the funds to launch, Evolver Exchange. Would you see a way that the community could manage a marketplace as a co-op? Would you want to take the time to oversee and organize such an endeavor? There are many other ideas that might lend themselves to this experiment.
But honestly at the moment we truly need what we are currently proposing to work before we will have the energy to undertake further changes .
With kind regards,
Daniel
"Will the transformation."-Rilke
Daniel, I am grateful for
Daniel,
I am grateful for how clear you have made the present situation to everyone who reads and is a part of reality sandwich/evolver and it is because of this that I have "joined" the Evolver Social Movement on a subscription basis, something I was reticent to do at first.
I do hope that you (we) are able to navigate the financial crunch of the present move towards a sustainable future.
Creating a "sister" nonprofit is a good place to begin, you will see an increase in funds through donations. I remember talking to one of the founders of the Rainforest Action Network about the traps that nonprofits often fall into where they become dependent on big donors and end up having to alter their ideals as they chase these funds. I'm sure that problem seems like the kind of problem that would be welcome at this moment.
A cooperative that is owned by its members does not have to follow a consensus decision making model. I have been a member of a few food co-ops in my life and I've never participated in any decision making beyond periodically electing the officers and/or board members.
I will take this opportunity to dig deeper into the Co-op model and get back to you with a more detailed proposal.
I'm not sure I fully understand what the Evolver Exchange concept is, it seems like some sort of Barter Exchange which is something altogether different. I do know that Barter Exchange's are valid in the eyes of the IRS (I think they may even be protected by the constitution) and I used one extensively to make my first film. Maybe after I get done with the Co-op proposal I'll look into Barter Exchanges.
All the best,
Eric
Evolver has changed every
the mainstreaming of
look at me! (the
look at me!
(the captcha just asked me to type in the words "weakling union" to post this comment. computer generated poetry?)
what do you mean?
What do you mean?
"Will the transformation."-Rilke
unity from des moines, iowa spore helping the world evolve
turn on, tune in, pony up
The more that this process of making Evolver financially viable unfolds, the more obvious the mission statement becomes (at least in my mind). I hope that this practice in self definition yields the results we all hope for. At least it gives people a chance of understanding the necessity of having a movement that knives through the jaded, unproductive, self-indulgent malaise to which, many of our peers and even ourselves may occasionally succumb.
The existence of a backbone of positive "cultural creatives" that respond to the direness of our condition in the affirmative is an absolute boon to our society, especially those who are seeking and looking to outreach and latch on to a group which they may have not yet encountered in their own physical interactions. Likewise, it can only amplify and focus those collaborations already ongoing by the conscious community. Evolver can be key to the emergence of a more connected, self-aware culture of conscious beings.
As for those that have beef with the employment of a capitalistic model in the attempt for Evolver to make impact, take heed that even Tim Leary eventually changed his mantra to "Turn On, Tune In, and Boot Up". We must put aside childish notions of achieving real change through pseudo- TAZ's and recognize that simple resistance for it's own sake is ultimately self defeating. True courage in "modern" society is recognizing your dharma, your particular set of circumstances, and harnessing them to your advantage in a way that benefits all of our relations. We were not born into this swoon of techno-capitalism to simply become a set of non factors. Since the beginnings of the counter cultural insurgence until now, this much should be obvious.
We are all lucky Evolver Social Movement is not something that is being driven by ego, or desire to be a figurehead and gatekeeper; this movement runs much deeper than that. As a personal commitment, I will continue to increase energy into this project and to focus prayers around it in assurance that the doors continue to open, the obstacles removed, and the evolution receives the blessings due from the hard work, dedication, and the efforts of everyone involved.
Non-profit does not equal
Non-profit does not equal "non factor".
Techno-capitalism is still capitalism.
There's nothing wrong with that, and I have no beef with capitalism, but if you're going to be a capitalist, you should be selling a product/service at a profit instead of asking for handouts. Or, failing that, you should be seeking investors, who would get shares of the company as well as gratitude.
If you can't do that, you aren't a new paradigm, you are a failed business.
Most people are happy to pay for well-made goods and services, but most don't want to be part of a "social movement" that's a private, for-profit enterprise, no matter how sustainable that enterprise may be.
If you really trust that the ideas have value, and will be supported by the community, spend the $5-10k to have a lawyer fill out the forms and establish a non-profit (which you can then get reimbursed via tax-deductible contributions). It wouldn't take a single "fiscal sponsor" to keep things going, but the donations from community members. (You might even be able to get research grants as well, for joint RS / university research into various facets of "consciousness evolution").
(I could be wrong though. Burning Man takes in $10 million worth of revenue in ticket sales each year, which is pretty impressive for a festival where cash transactions are prohibited. http://articles.sfgate.com/2007-08-19/news/17258805_1_black-rock-arts-fo...)
for-profit vs non-profit
hi jbla,
i don't really agree with you.
I enumerated some responses to many of your points in previous posts. First of all, this is a fairly radical enterprise that is seeking to popularize very innovative ideas and content - you usually suffer for that, looking back historically. Second of all, it used to be recognized that independent media ventures were different as investment opportunities from Hello Kitty decal factories or financial plays involving margin calls on Third World currencies, let's say. A venture like the Village Voice took 7 - 10 years to reach profitability. Investors used to see the value - what the sociologist Pierre Bourdieu called "culture capital" - that came from helping to support a new media vision or championing a good cause. This is now less and less the case because of the distortions caused by our current financial system, which as we can see is rapidly becoming untenable on a global level.
Instead of having a reasonable time to experiment and explore different revenue models (as companies like YouTube and Facebook for instance had), lack of investment capital has left us semi-strapped from the outset. We probably made some mistakes in how we allocated funds based on expectations of more investment that had been guaranteed to us, but we also have had nearly a zero margin with which to play. As everyone knows, you generally need money to make money, unless you are Bernie Madoff.
Personally, the distinction between for-profit or non-profit is a bit beside the point. Non profits are generally just as much misused and dominated by their major funders as for-profits, as Drew Hempel discussed in an earlier post. I think the "B Corp" stipulations we will adhere to are good proof of our commitment. We are most interested in whatever gets the job done at this point. Since the Non profit thing seems to matter to people, we will find a fiscal sponsor and offer donations as an option.
As for the $ 5 - 10,000 it would take, obviously we don't have that - we don't even have money to send out postcards to all the Spores. If you want to donate that money for that specific purpose, I would be happy to discuss it with you.
Yours,
Daniel
"Will the transformation."-Rilke
I think that this
I think that this crowd-sourcing of funding is a good response to the challenges that Reality Sandwich/ Evolver.net is facing in terms of funds to continue to support people working the good work. I don't think the issue is really for-proift or non-profit, especially when we are talking about 501c3 the IRS, boards and a lot of legal ramifications. Just because they are a for-rpofit doesn't mean that anyone is making a lot of money and there are a lot of non-profits that simply act as the non-profit industrial complex (basically seeking funds and working to get #'s together to support those funds.)
As far as finding a fiscal sponsor that shouldn't be too challenging and might be a good way to acquire large donations from individuals that would benefit from the tax write-off to certain purposes. I certainly appreciate reality sandwich and the community that has evolved around the evolver. We are trying to tie in some of the concepts into our local radical community here in Columbus, Ohio and I appreciate the spiritual/conscious edge that RS puts into things. It actually helped me break out of a personal rut that I had gotten into in terms of my world-view and I know that it's worth a monthly contribution to help it stay afloat. When I compare the amount that it would cost to help support RS vs. any of the other number of bills that I end up paying I have no problem paying and I hope that others can as well.
On the other hand there is a much bigger conversation that is happening all of the time and needs to be integrated into all of our lives as how to evolve beyond the capitalist financial system that continues as a huge cherade to dupe people out of their homes to put money into the hands of bankers such as Madoff and even the less crooked one.I hope that some of the positive work that RS has done can continue and that this initiative is succesful, and hopefully serve as the impetus to transition away from a world built upon debt, credit and oppression.
Another quick comment/response about consensus. Consensus is not a pancea and can also be very difficult to work with. Many people put it on a pedastal as the only way to make decisions. So really without a well thought out shared visioning and shared purpose consensus will get hung up pretty easily on individuals egos and an inability to focus energy. But it can be a benefical way of inclusive decision making processes. I don't think think I've seen it work on a organizational structure that is based upon electronic communications either. Well I appreciate this project and I wanted to share some thoughts.
Robbt from the Arawak City - aka Columbus, Ohio Evolver Spore
RS Backstage
I just recently paid 30 dollars for the backstage pass.
How will this apply to me?
backstage conversion
We will convert your backstage to a membership for a year. Obviously you can contribute more if you want (kind of the Vipassana model) in order to help us out.
i am not sure yet how we will work out exclusive to non-exclusive content but we will figure that out in the next few weeks.
yours,
daniel
"Will the transformation."-Rilke
I've been endlessly inspired
I've been endlessly inspired and enriched by my connection to RS and Evolver. Time and again, I've come to realize it is a defining factor in my life -- and an ever-evolving vision of what bigger, more beautiful things are possible. What began as a web magazine soon came to signify much more, as an international readership congregated around RS and established an online community of forward-thinking, visionary people and ideas.
As the magazine grew, so did my sense that this virtual community was a symbol of something powerful and transformational brewing in the global psyche, at a time when it is so badly needed. The launch of Evolver.net and the success of the Evolver Regionals have harnessed this gathering energy, which it turns out is being felt by thousands of people all over the world. We've been hosting Evolver gatherings in Atlanta since November of 2008, and this energy keeps building at every turn. After nearly every event, someone approaches me to express their sincere gratitude for what we are doing. This is something that may people have been looking for, and are very grateful to have found. I can't say that I know where it's going, or what will happen next, but just through this process of outreach and connection truly amazing things have come to pass. Sometimes it feels like we're preaching to our choir... but the choir gets bigger by the minute, and the singing gets louder all the time.
As RS/Evolver have reached this unfortunate impasse with financing, it makes sense that the solution wouldn't be so simple as to merely ask for donations. This is an opportunity to define and advance the work we've been doing as something larger than our own isolated efforts. It's about evolution, pushing things forward again. The Evolver Social Movement isn't a club, a political faction, or a personality cult -- it's a grass-roots, heart-centered clarion call to humanity to wake up to our responsibilities to our planet, our people, and ourselves.
Keep Evolving
cutting edge
Hi Zavier,
Ummm ok. How would you suggest we fund the building of "more cutting edge social networking tech" for your anarchist revolution? You don't want to pay for it. But you will use it when we do all the work and find all the money to make it happen?
"Will the transformation."-Rilke
how about keeping things
how about keeping things simple and not focusing on making it more cutting edge? Humility in a social movement would be a nice change of pace...
There are many free internet services... look at face book, social networking and its free... how did they do it?
craigs list... doesnt cost me anything to use it.
tribe.net
myspace
linked in...
and so on...
you can pay for additional services sure... but those folsk that run those companies still make mulla from it with out charging for the basic principle service.
People use all of those sites while other people do all the work and find ways of paying themselves and making it happen, and it works out for them.
If and I am not saying this is the case... but if this social movement is how folks at E+RS wish to make a living... well you might think of other strategies. A social movment that people have to subscribe to monitarily is pretty weak... and it makes it look like your capitailizing off of peoples desire for change. Note I said it looks like... not that that is what is happening. appearences can be decieving.
I started a social/ecological/spiritual movement that is global and includes over 600 people and constantly growing... for free and never asked for anything but some simple donations... and now we dont even do that. I empowered people to do what they need to do and gave them the tools to do it... and never have I ever made a dime in doing so, not even to support the work I do... this is humble service, I do other things for my community to make a living...
Take it from me, a fellow non-joiner : )
The appeal of the Evolver Social Movement for me is its unapologetic divergence from "default reality." I credit Reality Sandwich and Evolver with introducing me to alternative currencies, network culture, urban farming, Transition Towns, open source politics and numerous other ways to affirmatively free myself from the norm. I have long known what to rail against (the Federal Reserve, corporatocracy, centralized food supplies, fossil fuels . . .) but Evolver puts forth something to work toward (time banking, gift culture, community gardens, localized food, self-generation of power, all topics covered in the spores). E+SM is sure to be an extension of the slowly-materializing alternative culture. It offers something to say yes to, and serves as an avenue for me to be more principled and less subject to the status quo. So I gladly contribute $10 a month to be part of the creative response.
$10
If you have a job, and a somewhat stable lifestyle, then join
Gratitude Unexpressed is not Gratitude
I have a suspition that if
No you do not