Google has a famously simple slogan: ''Don't be evil.'' With its One Today app, Google has ventured into ''doing good'' territory. Google's One Today app is also simple -- donate one dollar a day to a featured cause, get friends involved, and see exactly how much impact you've created.
The more times you donate, the better the app gets at featuring non-profits and causes that matter to you. You can also match donations from others, up to a preset total. The app also presents huge improvements in personal impact tracking as it places impact measurement and tracking front and center. We had a chance to try out the app in its Android pilot and are incredibly excited at just how catalytic One Today could turn out to be.
One-for-one, or BOGO (Buy One, Give One), social businesses have been popping up everywhere covering a myriad of products. As socially conscious consumers, we are becoming accustomed to the business model and a BOGO campaign, while still great, does not highlight a company's dedication to social change like it used to.
It's time for some progress. At CraveGood we plan in the next couple of articles to look at some companies and products that are embracing the BOGO model, but are pushing it forward to create longer-lasting, effective impact. Kicking off our BOGO Series is STATE, a backpack company that donates a backpack to poverty-stricken children in America for every bag sold.
However, unlike most BOGO companies, STATE is not just donating a product. They have created an entire initiative around personally connecting with these kids through rallies where backpacks are handed out along with messages of hope. STATE is showing the social enterprise world just how much further BOGO can go.
Every once in a while, we come across an idea that not only creates change, but also encourages others to do so as well. The ideas behind a catalytic changemaker usually have two important attributes: one, they are simple, and two, they stay with us on a personal level. Alex Sheen's "Because I said I would" movement encapsulates both those features in a great concept: the promise card.
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Honey is a great way to sweeten teas. It's natural, delicious, and a great alternative to the high-fructose corn syrup that dominates supermarket shelves. Honeydrop figured this out in 2009 and started selling a line of teas and juices sweetened with a spoonful of honey in every bottle.
However, the source of all this honey, bees, is in danger. Honeydrop isn't just sitting by and letting the diminishing bee population threaten the environment and its business model. Its Buy a Bottle -- Save a Bee initiative dedicates a portion of its proceeds from every sale to help local beekeepers maintain the honey bee population.
Honeydrop is a company that's truly aligned their business strategy with the cause they are trying to champion.
Ms. Maria Rosa Reifler is a fifth grade teacher at Wilcox Elementary School in East Los Angeles. It's a tough place to grow up and requires a special type of teacher to get the best out of its students. Ms. Reifler seems to be that kind of teacher.
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