:Michael Anuzis

What if the ambitious youth of developing countries had a better understanding of banking, finance, and physics than the typical adult in the developed world? We’ll see examples of such individuals emerge within five years… despite a lack of properly resourced educational institutions in their area.

What will they need?

1) Affordable/ubiquitous internet access (ETA 2010, see my last post)
2) A device capable of streaming online video (MIT’s $100 laptops may not be cheap enough, but mobile phones are proliferating all over the developed world… throw Android into the equation and we’re gold.)
3) Free educational videos covering all topics from basic kindergarten/first grade math up through calculus, linear algebra, finance, physics, etc.: Khan Academy

Access to high quality education is no longer a luxury for the affluent. It’s exciting to imagine the world of opportunity that will open to the coming generations of children & entrepreneurs in the developing world as the playing field levels…

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By now everyone knows Kiva.org is my favorite website on the internet. It’s where I go when I’m feeling great, feeling down, or feeling average. It’s pretty much perfect at all times.

I know I’ve written about Kiva many times in the past, but today feels special because it marks my one hundredth loan… sometimes it blows my mind to think about the amazing impact we can make as individuals…

The ability to take $1,000 and have a volunteer team distribute it to 40 different entrepreneurs in developing countries all over the world. To think of the entrepreneurs who don’t have the collateral to take out loans alone, who form groups and hold each other accountable to succeed together. Once the 40 entrepreneurs pay back their first $0.62 each, it makes another $25 which can be re-loaned immediately… to think this entire operation was started only 3 years ago… to think of it’s explosive success… to think it’s all been made so simple that I can manage my 100 loans from the comfort of my home in less than 5 minutes per week… is there anything cooler on the planet?

I don’t know… but Kiva sure amazes me…

Anyway, if you’ve read this far then you probably deserve a reward. I’m giving away $250 in free Kiva gift certificates to the first ten people who request one in the comments section. I did this once in the past with good success. The only thing you have to promise is to loan the money through Kiva at least once before withdrawing it for yourself.

My hope, of course, is that you get addicted to Kiva as well. There’s no need to promise that, though. I expect it will happen naturally.

If you don’t mind, I’d also love to hear comments or see links to the business you decide to support. Thanks!

By the way, if you’re curious: my lender page.

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It’s great to see a hardcore optimist using hard data to prove that humanity is entering decreasingly violent times.

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Sorry for the delay in posting – work has been quite busy. To make it up to you I’m giving out four $25 Kiva gift certificates to the first four people to claim them in a comment on this post. It’s basically $25 you can do what you want with, but I hope you will lend them out at least once before you choose to withdraw the money for yourself.

For those of you unfamiliar with Kiva, it’s a way to invest in an entrepreneur in a developing country. There’s a 97% likelihood they’ll pay you back, which is really great. When the entrepreneur pays you back, you can withdraw your money or re-lend it to another entrepreneur – whatever you want! Here’s a quick clip on Kiva for those interested:

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I could watch these talks on my last day to live & consider it time well spent – two more brilliant TED presentations:

1) UK astronomer, Sir Martin Rees – takes us from the big bang through 600 million years in the future of evolutionary life on Earth with creatures that are as different from us as we are from bacteria.

2) Robert Wright – on the acceleration of technological evolution as launched on the same trajectory as human evolution – discussed in the context of world peace & moral introspection.

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Entrepreneurial idea that hit me like a rock during this morning’s meditation. Recorded in under 5 minutes, seems like a solid way to motivate advancements in science, medicine, and technology. Feedback & critique appreciated!

 Advancing Science and Technology [3:24m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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This podcast shares an entrepreneurial idea that will revolutionize the world of politics by exposing the world’s most brilliant speakers on any given topic and empowering everyone to contribute meaningfully in a truly democratic system.

The podcast itself is preliminary and not intended for public adoption. I go deeper into theory than the general public would care to hear, and plan to release a video-cast in the future with the objective of inciting massive public demand.

First few minutes are informative and background – the meat of the idea comes middle to end. Feedback & critique appreciated!

 Building a People's Democracy [13:32m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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I hadn’t planned on a 3rd part to this series, but a team of U.N. researchers revealed an option within anyone’s power that has a bigger impact than switching to a hybrid Toyota Prius. Here are the highlights:

- the emissions generated by feeding, transporting, & slaughtering livestock exceeds that of all the world’s transportation combined
- animal agriculture takes up 70% of all agricultural land, 30% of the total land surface of the planet
- animal agriculture accounts for 37% of our methane emissions and a whopping 65% of our nitrous oxide, with 23 and 296 times more warming power than carbon dioxide, respectively

I quit red meat long ago, but with this I’m going the rest of the way. Thanks, Ted, for the article.

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Last month I committed to adopting a 1:1 sustainable lifestyle after learning it would take 2.3 planets to survive if everyone lived like me. I dug around for a while and am ready to share some findings with you.

I started with a book called “Worldchanging: A User’s Guide for the 21st Century“. Turns out this is one of those phenomenal books you wish everyone you know has read. (more on this in an upcoming post!)

Long story short, tracking your ecological footprint is harder than I expected, but I’ve come up with a few things that I’m pretty sure will put me at or below at 1:1 sustainability ratio.

First up, now that I’ve graduated it’s time to think about where to make a living. I used to think urban areas were rough on the environment, but it turns out their large infrastructures are way more efficient than suburbs on a per-person basis. Combine this with my fate to work at Google and my primary choices are San Francisco, Ann Arbor, and perhaps Dubai at some point in the future.

Second, living in an urban environment is possible without a car. In Ann Arbor it was natural to drive less than 10 minutes per week (only to shop at Trader Joe’s). I could walk anywhere. Back in the suburbs of Oakland County with my parents for a couple weeks, I drive at least 2-3 hours/week just from day-to-day activity, and I actually do less. Places are simply much farther apart. Put 2 and 2 together, & I’d like to live in a city where I can live without a car.

Third, I used to always gravitate towards the most foreign\exotic foods whenever I’d get groceries or eat out. If a fish was caught in Alaska, or a pomegranate imported from Europe, the sheer novelty of global commodities made them more desirable than local stuff. I never considered the energy required to ship that fruit overseas so I could eat it. Now, I choose local options whenever the opportunity presents itself.

It’d be fun to cut down on some massive need-more-stuff-mindset purchasing craze that I have, but I already buy pretty much nothing and am content with just my go board, Kung Fu, Tai Chi, a fat cat, and some internet access… Not much else to cut out.

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If everyone lived like me, we would need 2.3 planets. This is according to myfootprint.org, a site that estimates the sustainability of your lifestyle. Requiring 10 acres of biologically productive land to sustain my lifestyle, I come in under the U.S. average of 24. Worldwide, however, there are only 4.5 acres of biologically productive land available per person.

Whenever I discover vital information I wish the whole world would know I post it on my blog. As individuals we have two primary ways to make a difference 1) through our own actions 2) through empowering others with information we’ve acquired. I don’t know about you, but I find this knowledge difficult to ignore. I’ve committed to reducing my footprint to a 1:1 sustainable ratio by the end of the year. I haven’t yet figured out the details, but I will be sure to share what I learn. I hope someone will join me. For those interested, I’ve found a promising place to start…

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