[Music]
to save a life I have drunk
three-day-old urine of an elderly
grandmother so what do I do for nearly
20 years I’ve been boots on the ground
international humanitarian aid worker
I’ve seen and learnt many many things
I drank urine with a Tibetan medicine
doctor he was using his taste buds as a
diagnostic tool and so did I but during
this time on the frontline
I really have learnt and seen many
things the big one is it is time to take
the best and brightest brains to solve
the world’s most critical social and
environmental problems it’s time to flip
our traditional model of social change
right on its head change the players
change the model and change the approach
we live in a world full of compassionate
people charitable giving grows
year-on-year so why is this outpouring
of money not reflected in the outcomes
why is a glance at the state of our
world like Groundhog Day in a horror
movie we are failing People and Planet
trying to do good is not good enough so
who are these new players they’re
business people they’re University
students and what is this new model it’s
a sustainable business model well
researched outcome driven with
timelines and what is the new approach
let’s throw out the doom and gloom
let’s bring in fun our lifes are
stressful enough in any case so I say
let’s bring in a fun virtual competitive
game I call it the race for good so let
me tell you how I came this revelation
I’ve been a frontline worker for nearly
20 years I’ve worked in Africa Asia and
South America the snowy Himalayas the
Sahara Desert and the Amazonian jungles
I’ve worked in war-torn areas I’ve
worked in refugee camps and post many
many catastrophic disasters Asian
tsunami Pakistan earthquake Philippine
typhoon and currently I am in Nepal
after the earthquake I love what I do so
much 18 years ago I sold everything I
owned can you believe it and to this day
I only have one suitcase I sold my house
my car my games my paintings everything
I was lucky enough early on in my career
to have the most amazing mentor Prince
Charles I was working in a Tibetan
refugee camp just outside of Delhi and
Prince Charles came to visit me and I
was sharing with him my passion to
involve business leaders in humanitarian
work and he said to me I totally agree
but when they go to give you this big
fat check leave it on the table to which
I replied why would I do that but to
this day his response has stayed with me
forever
he said the check is for the moment the
jewel is them
their business skills their
entrepreneurial skills their creativity
their innovation their heart their soul
so this model our have used until this
very day but it wasn’t until the Asian
tsunami that I started to put this
concept into reality what I saw when I
reached Kao lack in Thailand in 2004
will stay with me forever
cars thrown on tops of houses resorts
crumbled like matchboxes glass and
debris everywhere and these huge heavy
navy boats thrown miles inland and that
lingering smell of death and I rushed to
the first-aid tent because I’m also a
nurse and I started to help can you
imagine being hit by a washing machine
coming at you at 70 miles an hour
horrific injuries but while I was there
this woman came up to me with
outstretched hands and she said Linda
please take my baby and I looked back at
her and I said no I will not take your
baby I will not feed your baby a hand
out is a slippery slope to dependency so
I looked at her eyes and I said I
promise I will empower you to feed your
own baby I knew I had to do something
quickly so I ran up to Bangkok and I
asked a British ambassador to throw a
party for international business leaders
they came and I said I have a challenge
for you we have hundreds of Thai people
who have lost everything
loved ones homes livelihood and they
need to earn money now who’s going to
come with me and help arm shut up so
they came with me to the frontline they
looked around they took talk to the
people they
went back to Bangkok within a week they
called me and they said we have a
solution
I was excited and nervous would it work
when I got there they had researched and
seen that lining the coast where the
wave hit were acres and acres of rubber
trees business viable for 20 years how
much will it cost well all they need is
a coconut shell a knife to scour the
tree in a rubber mangle total cost for
four people for families for livelihood
250 US dollars I ran down to the people
and said do you know how to harvest
rubber is that of course we do our
grandparents did within four months they
were earning three times the money
they ever earned in the hotel industry
it wasn’t my idea I was the broker i
facilitated these great business vines
to come up with this solution
contribution is the greatest human need
and we all want to do good we all want
to help we all want to give back but
it’s hard our day-to-day lives were busy
some days we can hardly do the school
lunch pay the mortgage and manage our
relationships so when we’re running for
a quick coffee at lunchtime and we’re
here at in rattling we pop in a few
coins we don’t know where it’s going or
what it’s doing but we’ve done our bit
our guilt is Arce waged and year on year
the same images the African child
bloated stomach flies all over it
nothing changes and the organization set
up to manage these situations are often
weighed down with bureaucracy their
hands tied tight budgets tight ream it’s
and do the best and brightest brains run
to working charities no they go to where
they’re rewarded
and recognized they go to virgin Tesla
Facebook and yet we continue to throw
money at these organizations and think
we can change the world it’s time to
stop it’s time to stop being charitable
and start being capable of giving of our
skills and that is why after 20 years of
aid work I have come up with this
virtual suspects game anyone can do it
anywhere
doesn’t matter what skill you have and
there’s no excuse is virtual you can do
it right from your armchair
and when you give of yourself like this
you reconnect with your oppression and
also you home your business leadership
skills it’s a win win and we love a win
win so I say to you what is your skill
you had accountant you in communication
you and engineer construction
what is the burning issue in your
community that you are tired of hearing
about develop your own race for good the
passionate young the mature old the
university students the business leaders
solve your problem as preached child
said it’s not about money it’s about
intellect critical analysis heart and
soul remember my tie business leaders
who came out with that brilliant rubber
project so I say to you it’s time for a
new game game changes don’t look for
heroes be one how do you want to be
remembered thank you
[Applause]
[Music]
[Music]
to save a life I have drunk
three-day-old urine of an elderly
grandmother so what do I do for nearly
20 years I’ve been boots on the ground
international humanitarian aid worker
I’ve seen and learnt many many things
I drank urine with a Tibetan medicine
doctor he was using his taste buds as a
diagnostic tool and so did I but during
this time on the frontline
I really have learnt and seen many
things the big one is it is time to take
the best and brightest brains to solve
the world’s most critical social and
environmental problems it’s time to flip
our traditional model of social change
right on its head change the players
change the model and change the approach
we live in a world full of compassionate
people charitable giving grows
year-on-year so why is this outpouring
of money not reflected in the outcomes
why is a glance at the state of our
world like Groundhog Day in a horror
movie we are failing People and Planet
trying to do good is not good enough so
who are these new players they’re
business people they’re University
students and what is this new model it’s
a sustainable business model well
researched outcome driven with
timelines and what is the new approach
let’s throw out the doom and gloom
let’s bring in fun our lifes are
stressful enough in any case so I say
let’s bring in a fun virtual competitive
game I call it the race for good so let
me tell you how I came this revelation
I’ve been a frontline worker for nearly
20 years I’ve worked in Africa Asia and
South America the snowy Himalayas the
Sahara Desert and the Amazonian jungles
I’ve worked in war-torn areas I’ve
worked in refugee camps and post many
many catastrophic disasters Asian
tsunami Pakistan earthquake Philippine
typhoon and currently I am in Nepal
after the earthquake I love what I do so
much 18 years ago I sold everything I
owned can you believe it and to this day
I only have one suitcase I sold my house
my car my games my paintings everything
I was lucky enough early on in my career
to have the most amazing mentor Prince
Charles I was working in a Tibetan
refugee camp just outside of Delhi and
Prince Charles came to visit me and I
was sharing with him my passion to
involve business leaders in humanitarian
work and he said to me I totally agree
but when they go to give you this big
fat check leave it on the table to which
I replied why would I do that but to
this day his response has stayed with me
forever
he said the check is for the moment the
jewel is them
their business skills their
entrepreneurial skills their creativity
their innovation their heart their soul
so this model our have used until this
very day but it wasn’t until the Asian
tsunami that I started to put this
concept into reality what I saw when I
reached Kao lack in Thailand in 2004
will stay with me forever
cars thrown on tops of houses resorts
crumbled like matchboxes glass and
debris everywhere and these huge heavy
navy boats thrown miles inland and that
lingering smell of death and I rushed to
the first-aid tent because I’m also a
nurse and I started to help can you
imagine being hit by a washing machine
coming at you at 70 miles an hour
horrific injuries but while I was there
this woman came up to me with
outstretched hands and she said Linda
please take my baby and I looked back at
her and I said no I will not take your
baby I will not feed your baby a hand
out is a slippery slope to dependency so
I looked at her eyes and I said I
promise I will empower you to feed your
own baby I knew I had to do something
quickly so I ran up to Bangkok and I
asked a British ambassador to throw a
party for international business leaders
they came and I said I have a challenge
for you we have hundreds of Thai people
who have lost everything
loved ones homes livelihood and they
need to earn money now who’s going to
come with me and help arm shut up so
they came with me to the frontline they
looked around they took talk to the
people they
went back to Bangkok within a week they
called me and they said we have a
solution
I was excited and nervous would it work
when I got there they had researched and
seen that lining the coast where the
wave hit were acres and acres of rubber
trees business viable for 20 years how
much will it cost well all they need is
a coconut shell a knife to scour the
tree in a rubber mangle total cost for
four people for families for livelihood
250 US dollars I ran down to the people
and said do you know how to harvest
rubber is that of course we do our
grandparents did within four months they
were earning three times the money
they ever earned in the hotel industry
it wasn’t my idea I was the broker i
facilitated these great business vines
to come up with this solution
contribution is the greatest human need
and we all want to do good we all want
to help we all want to give back but
it’s hard our day-to-day lives were busy
some days we can hardly do the school
lunch pay the mortgage and manage our
relationships so when we’re running for
a quick coffee at lunchtime and we’re
here at in rattling we pop in a few
coins we don’t know where it’s going or
what it’s doing but we’ve done our bit
our guilt is Arce waged and year on year
the same images the African child
bloated stomach flies all over it
nothing changes and the organization set
up to manage these situations are often
weighed down with bureaucracy their
hands tied tight budgets tight ream it’s
and do the best and brightest brains run
to working charities no they go to where
they’re rewarded
and recognized they go to virgin Tesla
Facebook and yet we continue to throw
money at these organizations and think
we can change the world it’s time to
stop it’s time to stop being charitable
and start being capable of giving of our
skills and that is why after 20 years of
aid work I have come up with this
virtual suspects game anyone can do it
anywhere
doesn’t matter what skill you have and
there’s no excuse is virtual you can do
it right from your armchair
and when you give of yourself like this
you reconnect with your oppression and
also you home your business leadership
skills it’s a win win and we love a win
win so I say to you what is your skill
you had accountant you in communication
you and engineer construction
what is the burning issue in your
community that you are tired of hearing
about develop your own race for good the
passionate young the mature old the
university students the business leaders
solve your problem as preached child
said it’s not about money it’s about
intellect critical analysis heart and
soul remember my tie business leaders
who came out with that brilliant rubber
project so I say to you it’s time for a
new game game changes don’t look for
heroes be one how do you want to be
remembered thank you
[Applause]
[Music]
[Music]
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