We have moved the blog to our new open source website. We called it News - rather than blog as that is really what it is. We will leave this one here but new additions are at the site.
Please visit us there and sign up to the Salon which is replacing the earlier Salon google group.
Click here to get to The Cyrano Project website.
Friday, October 12, 2007
Tuesday, August 28, 2007
Nominate an Inspirational New Yorker
Here’s a unique opportunity to tell the city and the world about the great work your organization is doing. Tell us the most inspiring story you have – the story of an individual your organization has helped, who changed his or her world. If your story is chosen, a poster will be designed – absolutely free of charge – and displayed in a public exhibition of Inspirational New Yorkers, in NYC and in our online gallery. You will receive invitations to the opening of the exhibition, and, if your story is selected for a poster, the poster art will be yours to keep and use.
Submit your nominations at http://www.cyranoproject.org/InspirationalNewYorkers
Parsons School of Design students will each select the story that moves them. Their work will be guided by world-renowned South African graphic designer Garth Walker.
The Cyrano Project is offering an extra incentive to nominate an Inspirational New Yorker - a set of easy-to-use tools for adapting your story into compelling communications that will bring your mission to life.
Your nominations should be submitted by September 7th. Please use a separate form for each candidate. Here is the form to use for your nominations:
http://www.cyranoproject.org/InspirationalNewYorkers
Submit your nominations at http://www.cyranoproject.org/InspirationalNewYorkers
Parsons School of Design students will each select the story that moves them. Their work will be guided by world-renowned South African graphic designer Garth Walker.
The Cyrano Project is offering an extra incentive to nominate an Inspirational New Yorker - a set of easy-to-use tools for adapting your story into compelling communications that will bring your mission to life.
Your nominations should be submitted by September 7th. Please use a separate form for each candidate. Here is the form to use for your nominations:
http://www.cyranoproject.org/InspirationalNewYorkers
Tuesday, August 14, 2007
Share your wisdom and experience (you will be rewarded!)
The Cyrano Project Nonprofit Communication Study
Are you a nonprofit staffer, trustee, or volunteer? If you are, would you give ten minutes to help shape the future of nonprofit communications?
The Cyrano Project, which as you know is itself a nonprofit, is conducting a study to learn what is working, what is not working, and where help is needed in nonprofits' communications programs.
To do this we need the views of people like you who care about a nonprofit: whatever the cause, whatever your role, your opinion counts.
Take our Online Survey
Your point of view really does matter. Would you take just ten minutes to complete our online survey? The Study's findings will help guide nonprofit managers and inform those who can provide needed assistance.
Click here to begin.
Your reward
Your reward for completing the survey will be twofold. You can enter our "Thank You Drawing" for the chance to win $100 at Amazon.com (or $100 to donate to the nonprofit of your choice.) And you'll also be among the first to get a copy of the results when the Study is completed. This can give you valuable guidance by providing insights into the communication practice and needs of organizations like yours.
Just click the link to begin the survey:
http://www.cyranoproject.org/survey
Pass it on
And please tell your nonprofit friends and colleagues to participate - the more opinions we get, the more valuable the results will be.
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
Carissa and Homeless Youth Awareness Month
I just got the following note from the marketing department at Virgin Mobile regarding Carissa - see earlier blog posts. The note is from VM's Stacy Schwartz, who is herself a valued member of The Cyrano Project's Advisory Council.
"I wanted to touch base to let you know what a great move it was introducing my organization to the Carissa project. Not sure whether you heard that Virgin Mobile sponsored legislation that just passed, which designates November as Homeless Youth Awareness Month. We are a planning a bunch of awareness-raising events and programs for November, that we hope Carissa (and the formerly homeless singer, Jewel) will be part of."
Here is Carissa's account of her day in DC. http://www.carissaproject.com/blog/archives/24
The Cyrano Project is very proud to have been instrumental in making this possible.
"I wanted to touch base to let you know what a great move it was introducing my organization to the Carissa project. Not sure whether you heard that Virgin Mobile sponsored legislation that just passed, which designates November as Homeless Youth Awareness Month. We are a planning a bunch of awareness-raising events and programs for November, that we hope Carissa (and the formerly homeless singer, Jewel) will be part of."
Here is Carissa's account of her day in DC. http://www.carissaproject.com/blog/archives/24
The Cyrano Project is very proud to have been instrumental in making this possible.
Thursday, July 19, 2007
Carissa Project and Virgin Mobile
Excellent news from The Carissa Project. If you missed the story - click here.
Carissa tells me:
"Thanks so much for making the introduction to Virgin! We're both very happy with the relationship. Actually Ariel the director of the ReGeneration campaign was just in LA today and looked at some of the footage with David.
Thanks again for the connection...it was perfect!"
Click here to learn about Virgin Mobile's Re*Generation Project
Carissa tells me:
"Thanks so much for making the introduction to Virgin! We're both very happy with the relationship. Actually Ariel the director of the ReGeneration campaign was just in LA today and looked at some of the footage with David.
Thanks again for the connection...it was perfect!"
Click here to learn about Virgin Mobile's Re*Generation Project
Monday, July 9, 2007
But is Cyrano sexy?
I was reading the wonderful Vanity Fair Special African edition (July 07). Guest editor Bono. I thought I would just skim it quickly – but I got sucked right in. The stories are honest and really well told – not in the least woo-woo – they’re surprising and irreverent (the Chris Rock satire was harsh, brilliant and insightful). They’re about actual people doing what they can to get along. The stories give me a whole new way of looking at Africa, they make me want to do something to help – drill a well for clean water, carry Jeff Sachs’ bags.
Cyrano too is working to get understanding and help. But is Cyrano’s a sexy story? We are not getting the help directly to those Africans with big smiles and flies on their faces, or drawing drinking water from stinking cesspools - we aim to help those who do help them.
Where are our cover stories of the under-resourced volunteers, the inspired but penniless choreographers, the over-worked and under-paid executive directors and the hair-tearing development directors? If we had those pictures would they move anyone? But they all need the help to get their good work done. And we can help them tell their stories effectively so that they can get more resources and do more and do it better.
A dollar spent on Cyrano will be multiplied geometrically when we can provide all of them with the tools to get more of what they need to do more of their good work. That dollar won’t just go to one organization – it will go to 1.5 million. That’s how many nonprofits there are in the US. They will all get to use it. How’s that for leveraging!
There are over 25,000 nonprofits in New York City, 750 in my zip code alone. You have heard of Amnesty International, The New York City Ballet and The American Red Cross. But there are hundreds of thousands – yes hundreds of thousands you haven’t heard of. Good people doing good work. Look them up on Guidestar.org – they are all there.
Most of them are doing humanitarian work feeding the hungry, fixing education, curing disease; they are working to lift people out of poverty, many of them are working to save our natural environment – a humanitarian effort surely – and many are working to expand our minds and our understanding of ourselves and our world through music, dance, theater – perhaps the most humanitarian of all.
So what is Cyrano doing? We are here to give them the tools to tell their stories more effectively – so they can strengthen the impact of their work. We are here to give them the leverage to take their passion and have it make more of a difference, by getting more of the stories of all these good works told so that they will move people – just as this Vanity Fair moved me. They can’t all be cover stories – but they don’t all have to be. Sometimes the right story just needs to be told to the right one or two people to make the difference.
Cyrano too is working to get understanding and help. But is Cyrano’s a sexy story? We are not getting the help directly to those Africans with big smiles and flies on their faces, or drawing drinking water from stinking cesspools - we aim to help those who do help them.
Where are our cover stories of the under-resourced volunteers, the inspired but penniless choreographers, the over-worked and under-paid executive directors and the hair-tearing development directors? If we had those pictures would they move anyone? But they all need the help to get their good work done. And we can help them tell their stories effectively so that they can get more resources and do more and do it better.
A dollar spent on Cyrano will be multiplied geometrically when we can provide all of them with the tools to get more of what they need to do more of their good work. That dollar won’t just go to one organization – it will go to 1.5 million. That’s how many nonprofits there are in the US. They will all get to use it. How’s that for leveraging!
There are over 25,000 nonprofits in New York City, 750 in my zip code alone. You have heard of Amnesty International, The New York City Ballet and The American Red Cross. But there are hundreds of thousands – yes hundreds of thousands you haven’t heard of. Good people doing good work. Look them up on Guidestar.org – they are all there.
Most of them are doing humanitarian work feeding the hungry, fixing education, curing disease; they are working to lift people out of poverty, many of them are working to save our natural environment – a humanitarian effort surely – and many are working to expand our minds and our understanding of ourselves and our world through music, dance, theater – perhaps the most humanitarian of all.
So what is Cyrano doing? We are here to give them the tools to tell their stories more effectively – so they can strengthen the impact of their work. We are here to give them the leverage to take their passion and have it make more of a difference, by getting more of the stories of all these good works told so that they will move people – just as this Vanity Fair moved me. They can’t all be cover stories – but they don’t all have to be. Sometimes the right story just needs to be told to the right one or two people to make the difference.
Tuesday, June 12, 2007
Design and Language
I wrote earlier of the design exhibit Cyrano is developing with Nada Ray.
Here is a wonderful little film that Nada made about Pentagram designer Paula Scher and how she designed a calendar in a language she knew nothing about. It's called Gobbledy Gook
http://youtube.com/watch?v=j1gvDOtwLgU
Here is a wonderful little film that Nada made about Pentagram designer Paula Scher and how she designed a calendar in a language she knew nothing about. It's called Gobbledy Gook
http://youtube.com/watch?v=j1gvDOtwLgU
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