First he survived for two months on $1 a day in Guatemala.

Soon after, he lived in a tent in a Syrian refugee camp, then spent 10 years documenting the journey of an undocumented boy in New York City.

Chris Temple is an award-winning filmmaker and activist who demystifies some of the world's most complex situations, leaving audiences more connected and empowered to make a difference.

In this conversation, Chris will share his journey as a filmmaker and changemaker, and the philosophy that has guided him through everything: actionable optimism, the idea that we all have the capacity to imagine and help manifest a more equitable and empathetic future.

Chris is a film director and the founder of Optimist, a non-profit studio in Los Angeles. He's best known for directing the feature documentaries Living On One Dollar, Salam Neighbor, and Five Years North.

His films have been released globally by Netflix, HBO, Hulu, and PBS, and have premiered at Tribeca, DOCNYC, Full Frame, AFI Docs, & MountainFilm. His work has helped raise over $91 million dollars for poverty alleviation and refugee support efforts. He's been honored with the 2016 Muslim Public Affairs Council Annual Media Award; recognized alongside Bill Gates and Angelina Jolie as one of the top 100 visionary leaders of 2015 by YPO's Real Leaders Magazine; and accepted by the U.S. State Department into the American Film Showcase. His work at Optimist has won 1 Gold Telly Award, 4 Shorty Awards, 2 ADDY Awards, 1 Webby Award, and 2 AVA Digital Awards. He was also recognized as one of the 40 under 40 top documentary filmmakers of 2023 by DOC NYC and HBO.

Chris recently directed the feature film This Is Not Financial Advice with XTR and Cinetic exploring the psychology of investing in the modern digital era. Currently, he is making an as-yet untitled feature film about Ethereum and its founder Vitalik Buterin.

You can find his full filmography on IMDB. He loves the outdoors and is a founding individual member of 1% for the Planet.

To learn more, go to:

Optimist's Website: https://optimist.co/

Join the Monthly Doc Club (think book club, but for documentaries!):

https://optimist.co/doc-club/

Review our 10-year Impact Report: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1JGUp_JKaQDm095x2n9HTnyS6ZYhBRx5W/view

Donate/Get Involved:

https://creative-visions.networkforgood.com/projects/207642-optimist

David Bobanick is the Executive Director of Harvest Against Hunger (HAH) and member of the Rotary Club of Seattle.

Since David joined HAH in 2001, the organization has continued to expand its impact at the local, national, and international levels, resulting in the delivery of more than half a billion healthy servings of produce for those in need.

Ripple Effect Mapping (REM) is an appreciative inquiry model that helps to reveal long-term impacts of programs and investments in communities.

Harvest Against Hunger, a program of Rotary District 5030, uses REM sessions to learn how to effectively leverage its programs and resources (Harvest VISTA, Farm to Community, Capacity-building grants, WA Gleaning Network and other collaborations) to create sustainable models to reduce hunger and food waste, while strengthening food systems across Washington state and beyond.

David Bobanick has led the creation and development of the national Harvest VISTA program, as well as innovative and award-winning programs focusing on shortening the connections from farm to community.

In addition, David and the HAH team continue to build and scale nationally recognized programs with partners like AmeriCorps, USDA, WSDA, Washington State University, the University of Washington and other partners to enhance food systems in communities across the United States.

David has a degree in communications from Penn State University and has studied at the Non-Profit Executive Leadership Institute at the University of Washington's Evans School of Public Policy and Governance, as well as the Non-Profit Management Institute at Stanford University.

David was also recently named a "Food Waste Innovator" by ReFED, served on the Rotary Zone 26/27 leadership team, and currently serves on the King County Regional Food Policy Advisory Council and as a board officer for four local, statewide, and regional non-profit organizations.

To learn more, go to:

https://www.harvestagainsthunger.org

https://www.rotary.org/en/farm-food-pantry

https://rotaryfirstharvest.sharepoint.com/:b:/g/EWV1zIMdBmRAiz-N-aIChOQB6cRe2bT0a-rYQlROb0Zmtw?e=J6Pvf9

This week, the District 5170 District Governor, Jill Duerig, will share some of her thoughts on how Rotary enriches our lives, and will explore with us examples of Rotary magic.

Jill Duerig joined Rotary in 2003. Due to a change in jobs, she left the Scotts Valley Club and joined the Rotary Club of Livermore Valley in 2005, serving as its President in 2019-2020. She was an Assistant Governor for Area 4 in 2020-2021 and served as Lieutenant Governor (Avenues of Service) from 2021-2023.

Jill is a retired General Manager of Zone 7 Water Agency in Livermore and a former General Manager/Chief Engineer for Scotts Valley Water District.

It’s no surprise that her passion for potable water got her involved in the Haiti National Clean Water Sanitation and Hygiene Strategy (HANWASH, a partnership between Rotary’s WASH Rotary Action Group, other NGOs and the government of Haiti). She participates in HANWASH’s Steering Committee and chairs its Project & Technical Work Group. She is also a WASH ambassador and cadré member.

Her husband of fifty years, Tom, started out as her college sweetheart. They have three married children and six grandchildren. So even though her career and Rotary focus may be water, her love of family and her history as a soccer mom, cub den mother, girl scout leader, frequent school trip chaperone, Sunday school teacher, babysitter and grandma cookie maker demonstrates that she lives the motto "Family First."

To learn more about District 5170, go to

https://rotarydistrict5170.org/

To learn more about HANWASH, go to:

https://www.hanwash.org/

Engage and motivate students by connecting with their excitement about space!

You don't have to be a science teacher - or even a formal educator. Space education is important to everyone, and informal educators play a key role. Kids don't have to be science enthusiasts either, as space is for writers, artists, and athletes, too.

The talk also introduces elements of space philosophy that are critical to our shared future, including matters of ethics, governance, and sustainability. The space economy is booming and we can help the next generation make positive contributions to humanity's multiplanet future.

Dr Mark Wagner is CEO and co-founder of ARES Learning, a public benefit corporation dedicated to preparing students for humanity's future in space.

He serves as the Director of Education Partnerships at the nonprofit Aldrin Family Foundation, which is focused on inspiring the next generation of space explorers, and in a similar role with Slooh, which provides a platform for students to schedule time on telescopes around the world.

Mark has a Ph.D. in Educational Technology and a masters degree in Cross-Cultural Education. He also holds graduate certificates in Space Education and Space Philosophy.

He is the author of Space Education: Preparing Students for Humanity's Multi-Planet Future (2022), which explores both the current reality on Earth and the possibilities for teaching students on the Moon, on Mars, and in deep space habitats.

Outside his work, Mark loves playing hockey, practicing martial arts, and obsessing over his '62 beetle, which runs on an electric motor and Tesla batteries.

He is a certified health coach and biohacking enthusiast, who also enjoys songwriting, spending time in nature, and exploring the world with his friends and family.

To learn more, go to:

https://areslearning.com/course

https://areslearning.com/astrogeology

https://aldrinfoundation.org

https://slooh.com

https://www.spaceprize.org/

https://spaceforhumanity.org/

Mark's book on space education:

https://www.amazon.com/Space-Education-Preparing-Humanitys-Multi-Planet/dp/B0B7QDGYWB/

Adam Greene is an expert on loneliness and social connection, particularly regarding the experiences of older adults.

His work has led him to found Klaatch and develop the Social Quotient, a measure designed to quantify and assess social connection and loneliness, and has been informed by his collaborations with institutions such as the University of Pennsylvania, Johns Hopkins University, Quinnipiac University, and the University of Nebraska.

From Greene:

"In our hyper-connected digital age, loneliness has emerged as a paradoxical epidemic, particularly affecting older adults. The Social Quotient, developed by Klaatch, represents a revolutionary approach to quantifying and understanding the complex nature of loneliness.

"This innovative metric goes beyond simply measuring the degree of social isolation; it identifies specific dimensions contributing to an individual's loneliness, whether stemming from the loss of a spouse, retirement-related identity shifts, or physical limitations. By providing this nuanced assessment, the Social Quotient offers a powerful tool to prove the effectiveness of interventions in reducing loneliness and, more importantly, to understand for whom these interventions work best.

"The significance of this measurement tool extends far beyond individual interventions. As our global population ages, with more people over 65 than under 5 for the first time in history, the societal and economic impacts of loneliness are set to escalate dramatically. The Social Quotient empowers intervention creators, healthcare providers, and policymakers with valuable feedback, driving continuous improvement and innovation in addressing loneliness.

"This data-driven approach not only promises to enhance the quality of life for individuals but also has the potential to significantly reduce the billions spent on healthcare costs associated with social isolation. By fostering a cycle of measurement, improvement, and innovation, we're not just combating loneliness; we're paving the way for a more connected, compassionate, and economically sustainable future for our aging population."

To read from a collection of blogs about our approach and perspective on loneliness among older adults:

https://www.klaatch.com/what-we-think-about

A video on how Klaatch works:

https://vimeo.com/754839553

How to use analytics to redesign community space to foster social connection:

https://www.klaatch.com/space-optimization-for-social-connection

Rotarian Joyce Mercado is author of the book "Save the Planet in Your Spare Time – A Climate Protection Handbook for the Busy Person."

The book chronicles Joyce's journey to becoming a climate protection leader in Alameda so others can learn from her experience. Joyce's work covers reducing emissions, writing for the local press, partnerships, and maintaining one's optimism.

Leaders influencing others in their communities to protect the climate, community by community, is an essential element in fighting climate change. Rotarians can be an effective part of the solution to the climate crisis with the guidance in this handbook. Anyone can be such a leader, even those with a busy life.

Joyce Mercado has been a climate activist in her community of Alameda for the last twenty years even while holding a full-time job as a Technical Sales Manager for IBM and raising two children with her husband David.

She is a monthly climate protection columnist for the local press, an Al Gore program-trained Climate Reality Project Leader who has given dozens of presentations on climate protection, a member of many climate protection organizations, creator of the Alameda Climate Protection Checklist and Resource List with 70 actions individuals can take and has been recognized by the City of Alameda for her climate protection leadership.

The climate emergency prompted her to write a book when she retired so others could learn from her experience to become climate leaders in their communities.

Joyce is a proud Rotarian having served as Community Service Chair and President of the Rotary Club of Alameda. Joyce has a Bachelor of Science in Physics from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo. Joyce went to graduate school at Princeton University to study plasma (electrically charged gas) physics for two years. Deciding that plasma physics was not for her, she attended her first on-campus interview, and got a job at IBM, which she kept for the next 35 years. Joyce lives in Alameda, California with her husband David.

To find the book, go to:

https://www.amazon.com/Save-Planet-Your-Spare-Time/dp/B0D3MY1XSR

To get the Climate Protection Checklist, go to: https://casa-alameda.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/CASA-Climate-Protection-Checklist-March-2022.pdf

Some other recordings referenced in this talk:

Klara Noray Moradkhan - Durable and Sustainable Pavement Coating (Cool Pavement)

https://youtu.be/-dkRXXATbZM

Seema Lindskog and Rod Sinks - Using Solar Power To Benefit Nonprofits and the Planet

https://youtu.be/0CZrrlRHRt8

Carling Spelhaug - Applying Artificial Intelligence to Modernize our Recycling Infrastructure

https://youtu.be/hIjToyrv6Vs

Nate Salpeter - Education, Inspiration, & Innovation - How Sweet Farm Impacts More, with Less

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tEUcMrqYtvk

The California Farmworker Foundation (CFF) is a nonprofit organization based in Delano dedicated to empowering farmworkers to have a voice in their communities.

The organization's core mission is to enhance the quality of life for California farmworkers through tailored programs and services. Operating at the grassroots level, CFF employs a user-centered approach to customize its offerings to meet the specific needs of farmworkers.

With a significant expansion in personnel and coverage across six counties, CFF's Outreach Specialists engage with thousands of farmworkers weekly in California, reaching a total of over 90,000 individuals in 2023. During this presentation, you will learn about the ongoing initiatives undertaken by CFF to address farmworkers' needs and provide essential solutions to enhance their overall well-being.

Our speaker, Diana Silva, holds the position of Communication Director at the California Farmworker Foundation (CFF). With her family roots deeply connected to the farm-working community, she draws inspiration from her grandparents who were farmworkers after immigrating from Mexico.

Being the first in her family to earn a college degree, Diana graduated with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Agricultural Communication from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. Her dedication to agriculture, community service, and the desire to carry on generational progress motivated her to join CFF in 2021.

To learn more, go to:

https://californiafarmworkers.org/

Make a difference at:

https://givebutter.com/CAfarmworkers

MakeGood is on a mission to bridge the gap in adaptive design.

With over a billion people living with disabilities daily, it’s time to reimagine our built environment for a more equitable society.

We’re a collective of creators, designers, and innovators dedicated to cutting-edge assistive technology. By empowering all voices, we pioneer innovations that benefit everyone. Our design projects prioritize the need-knower, harnessing digital tools to enhance the built world for all.

Noam Platt, is an American College of Healthcare Architects certified healthcare architect and founder of Make Good INC, a 501(c)(3) organization that designs and fabricates assistive technology for people globally.

Noam is an award winning specialist in designing and producing novel technology for the disabled community. His goal is to bring people together to engage in curiosity and adaptive design to create a flourishing community of makers and need-knowers.

He is inspired by the families and friends who reach out to MakeGood for help bringing independence into their lives.

To learn more, go to:

https://makegood.design/

https://www.instagram.com/makegoodnola/

https://TOMglobal.org

https://ebcore.io

https://testa-seat.com

This presentation on YouTube: https://youtu.be/nm47rvvYTT4

Doctoral candidate Afrah Abdullah discusses the value of heritage tourism in West Africa and the influence such experiences have on cultural and spiritual development of travelers.

Afrah shares interesting findings from a pilot field study she recently conducted in which American travelers visited Senegal and Gambia and offered insight about ways the trip deepened their connection to Africa, inspired a sense of purpose and love for service, expanded their cultural identity, and deepened their faith.

Afrah Abdullah is a teacher, traveler, wife, mother, community volunteer, and current doctoral candidate at St. Mary's College of California School of Education.

Afrah recently completed all of her doctoral coursework and plans to expand this presentation for her dissertation research proposal. She's excited to share her research interests with her Rotary community.

To learn more about Bayan Tours, go to:

https://www.bayantours.org/senegal

Imagine walking into a classroom and…you are under a tree. Branches, leaves and the sun bursting through, the feeling of being outside.

Forty plus years of empirical science developed at the University of Michigan teaches us, viewing trees or images of trees calms us and helps us focus.

Nature In The Classroom is a nonprofit bringing this science to life by installing ceiling murals of trees in classrooms. Tree ceilings are installed in fourteen school districts in California, Colorado, Utah, and Pennsylvania, serving 8,000 students.

The feedback from teachers and students is consistent with the scientific findings. Teachers express that students are more focused, happier and the trees create a greater sense of community in the classroom.

Students are saying the trees are calming, make them feel creative and want to help the environment.

Our speaker this week, Ernesto Rodriguez. Ernesto provided psychological services for US State Department Schools in Colombia and Saudi Arabia. He founded ER Photo in 1988, commercial and fine art photography, and his work is in the Curator’s Collection at MoMA NY and on exhibit in the Smithsonian.

In 2002 Ernesto founded Sereneview®, to bring the science of viewing calming nature landscapes to the hospital patient bedside.

Sereneview curtains are installed in over 3,500 hospitals in the US, Europe and Australia. He is the Founder and Executive Director of Nature In The Classroom®, a 501(c)(3) to bring the science and benefits of nature views to education settings.

The link offer articles, podcasts and media:

https://www.natureintheclassroom.org/media--articles.html

YouTube video: https://youtu.be/zAnmvwQwNOs