Let us Dream 2020 Triennial International Online Conference

NEWSLETTER Volume 1 Issue 6

CONNECTING LOCAL COMMUNITIES AND SERVICE INITIATIVES THROUGH GLOBAL NETWORKING

NOVEMBER 20-22, 2020 7:00 PM - 9:30 PM IST "Unity is strength…when there is teamwork and collaboration, wonderful things can be achieved." - Mattie Stepanek

The world is always in need of change makers who are inspired to protect and advance the lives of others around them. We learn to adapt to the world around us, but must never stop dreaming of what can and needs to be done to better our local and global communities, as we collaborate with others to do so. Collaboration and unity are key to sparking change as we are living in a time with so much divisiveness and uncertainty about the state of our world.

I believe that creating sustainable and lasting change starts by coming together to address a topic and being open to the different perspectives, in order to create a plan and make a difference. Let Us Dream bridges the gap between research and real-world application by encouraging educators, practitioners, and agencies to come together to develop unique and impactful interventions that lead to successful outcomes. This year's conference alone highlights collaboration amongst several colleges and universities around the globe to share their experiences and ideas, which can accomplish this goal of bettering the lives of others. The dedication and sense of togetherness demonstrated in this movement is truly inspirational as it promotes compassion for others and the hope that change is possible.

Ms. Debbie Collett-O’Brien

Let Us Dream Core Committee, Executive Committee and Promotional Committee Binghamton University, Binghamton, New York, USA Let Us Dream Triennial International Conference ‘20

1 DAY 3 - SOCIAL PREVIEW

In this sixth newsletter of the Let us Dream 2020 Triennial International Conference, we highlight the importance of the power of social service. This newsletter introduces the following speakers:

Opening Keynote Speaker: Ms. Rashmi Misra, Founder & Chairperson, VIDYA Integrated Development for Youth and Adults, Mumbai, India

Social Panel 1 Social Panel 2 Social Panel 3

Critical Thinking and Impact of Coronavirus Animal Welfare and Information Literacy Pandemic on Community Environmental Moderator: Response Services Sustainability

Dr. Joshua Comer Moderator: Moderator: Dr. Myra Sabir Dr. Esther Delisle Panel Members: Dr. Dawn Panel Members: Panel Members: Anderson-Butcher Ms. Prarthana Kaul Dr. Erin Evans Dr. Martin Klein Ms. Donna Lloyd Mr. Michael Kaufman

Mr. Vishal Talreja Dr. Rajesh Tandon Mr. Ricky Kej

Closing Keynote Speaker: Mr. Bruce Siegmund, Executive Director, Destiny Malawi, Ruston, Louisiana, USA

2 Opening Keynote Speaker

Ms. Rashmi Misra Founder & Chairperson, VIDYA Integrated Development for Youth and Adults, Mumbai, India

Rashmi Misra is Founder & Chairperson of VIDYA, VIDYA is an acronym for Integrated Development for Youth and Adults, a 35-year-old grassroots NGO that helps to empower the youth and women and provides a complete spectrum of their educational and developmental needs. Rashmi Misra founded VIDYA in 1984 from IIT Delhi, starting with teaching five girls from a nearby slum, and grew this into a movement, now well known as "VIDYA". She has been constantly refining the organization's mission, processes and practices over the last three decades with the support of her tireless team. Today, VIDYA operates schools and social empowerment programmes all over the country, and has changed the lives of 3.50 lakh of under-served citizens.

She believes that women are the true source of change in India's social structure, as they are often not only the most disadvantaged, but also likely to have the most influence on a child's life, and by extension, on the prospects of the next generation of our country.

3 Social Panel 1 Critical Thinking and Information Literacy

Moderator: Dr. Joshua Comer Program Coordinator for Communication and Assistant Professor of Communication, School of Humanities, University of Louisiana, Monroe, Louisiana, USA

Dr. Joshua Comeris a Communication Program Director along with being a Professor of Communication at the University of Louisiana at Monroe. He has a scholarship that focuses on how people tell stories around information and various communication technologies.

Panel Members:

Dr. Dawn Anderson-Butcher College of Social Work, Executive Director of Teaching/Research, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA

Dr. Dawn Anderson-Butcher is a Professor in the College of Social Work at The Ohio State University and a Licensed Independent Social Worker in the State of Ohio, USA. She is the Director of the Community and Youth Collaborative Institute and the Executive Director of Teaching/Research of LiFEsports, a nationally recognized sports-based positive youth development initiative at Ohio State. Dr. Anderson-Butcher earned her BA in Psychology, BS in Exercise/Sport Sciences, and MS in Health/Sport Studies from Miami University, Ohio. She has a MSW and PhD in Exercise and Sport Psychology from the University of Utah. Her primary research interests focus on positive youth development in various social settings, including schools, afterschool programs, and youth sport and she also is interested in focusing on school-family-community partnerships and their role in supporting student learning, healthy development, and school success. She is an internationally renowned scholar, and has amassed over 100 publications over the course of her career. She is a Research Fellow in both the Society of Health and Physical Educators and the Society of Social Work Researchers and has received the 2020 Gary A. Shaffer Award for Academic Contributions to the Field of School Social Work from the School Social Work Association of America.

4 Dr. Martin Klein

Vice President, Catholic University of Applied Sciences, North Rhine-Westphalia, Cologne, Germany

Dr. Martin Klein is an educator at Hous Hall, a Caritas facility for disabled people and the elderly. After completing his studies in Social Work and Business Administration he has worked at several universities and organizations where he has held a number of prominent posts. Dr. Martin Klein has worked as a lecturer for work/employment and vocational qualification at Diakonisches Werk Westfalen, Pedagogical Head of Evanglische Jugendhilfe Münsterland, Steinfurt (a Protestant Association for youth welfare), Professor of Social Work Theories and Concepts at the Catholic University of Applied Sciences of North Rhine-Westphalia, at the Department in Münster, since 2012. He was Dean of the Faculty of Social Work at the Catholic University of Applied Sciences of North Rhine-Westphalia, at the Department in Münster, from 2015 until 2016 and Vice-Rector for Studies and Teaching at the Catholic University of Applied Sciences, at the Central Department in Cologne, since 2016. He has conducted a number of special activities at the Catholic University of Applied Sciences of North Rhine-Westphalia, some of which include accreditation of degree programme, development of new teaching and learning formats and digitisation.

Mr. Vishal Talreja

Co-founder, Dream a Dream, Bangalore, India

Mr. Vishal Talreja is a co-founder of Dream a Dream along with 11 others. Dream a Dream is a registered, charitable trust empowering children and young people from vulnerable backgrounds to overcome adversity and flourish in the 21st century using creative life skills. Currently, Dream a Dream works with 10,000 young people a year through two innovation labs – After School Life Skills Programme and Career Connect Programme and have trained over 8000 teachers/educators, impacting over 200,000 children and young people. They have also helped over one Million children through the Happiness Curriculum in partnership with the Delhi Government.

Vishal is an Ashoka Fellow, an Eisenhower Fellow and a Board Member at PYE Global. He was a Founder/Director of Unltd India and a Board Member of India Cares Foundation. He has been recognized as an “Architect of the Future '' by the Waldzell Institute in Austria and also works as an advisor and mentor to Reap Benefit. He is deeply committed to mentoring start-up NGOs and young social entrepreneurs. In 2018, he was awarded the ‘Heroes of Bengaluru’ award. More recently, he has been recognised as Innovator of the Year by HundrED.org which looks to identify and recognize 100 Global Innovations on K12 Education from across the world.

5 Social Panel 2 Impact of Coronavirus Pandemic on Community Response Services Moderator:

Dr. Myra Sabir Associate Professor and Narrative Psychologist, Department of Human Development, College of Community and Public Affairs, Binghamton University, Binghamton, New York, USA

Dr. Myra Sabir is an Associate Professor and Narrative Psychologist in the Department of Human Development in the College of Community and Public Affairs at Binghamton University. She earned a Master’s degree in Theology and Human Development from Emory University in 1996 and a Ph.D. in Human Development and Family Studies from Cornell University in 2004. She served as Assistant Dean in the College of Arts and Sciences at Cornell University for 5 years and as Associate Dean in the College of Community and Public Affairs at Binghamton University for one year. Dr. Myra Sabir is also the author of The Life Writing Workbook: How to Work Through Your Life’s Unresolved Emotional Experiences under the pseudonym, Aihi. Since arriving at Binghamton University, she has facilitated an intervention called “Life Writing” for homeless men living at the YMCA, single mothers in Binghamton, female Binghamton University students, and others. She is currently writing a book on the relevance of such interventions for generative culture in the United States and is also working on developing a program to train others to facilitate such interventions in communities across the United States.

6 Panel Members:

Ms. Prarthana Kaul

Co-Founder & Director, GiftAbled, Bangalore, India

Ms. Prarthana Kaul is Co-Founder and Director of GiftAbled, an award-winning social enterprise that strives to create an ecosystem of like-minded individuals to collectively build an inclusive society. Supported livelihoods of thousands of people with disability and the underprivileged across India through supply chain diversity. She is a cause marketer, motivational trainer and has been a consultant in the space of disability inclusion to many multinational organizations. Ms. Prarthana has conducted numerous sensitization workshops on evolving as Disability Confident Company, Sign Language, Braille, Volunteer Management, and Employee Engagement across India. She has engaged with ten thousand plus volunteers and hundreds of nonprofits across the country on various causes. Her efforts and contribution towards the empowerment of people with disabilities, has won her various awards and accolades, including Social Entrepreneur of the Year by Namma Bengaluru Foundation (2015), Community Service Award by Rotary Bangalore Centennial (2017), Best Social Entrepreneur Award by Hand in Hand (2018), Top three social enterprise in the country by IIM Calcutta Innovation Park as part of Tata Social Enterprise Challenge. She has also served as a Board Member of non-profit entities like Om Ashram and was a life skill trainer for students of Cheshire Home. Prarthana has led various workshops for corporates to embrace diversity and promote inclusion.

Ms. Donna Lloyd

Executive Director, Comfort House, Corydon, Indiana, USA

Ms. Donna Lloyd, after graduating from Indiana University Southeast with a degree in Business, went on to pursue her Masters of Taxation from the University of Denver. She has worked for a number of years in public accounting before accepting the leadership role with Comfort House Child Advocacy Centre in 2006. Ms. Donna Lloyd has over 14 years of experience working with child abuse investigations as a forensic interviewer and as the executive director of the Comfort House Child Advocacy Centre in Corydon, Indiana. She works collaboratively with law enforcement, prosecutors, the Department of Child Services, victim advocates, medical and mental health professionals, to ensure that children are not further traumatized by the interventions intended to protect them. In 2011 she received an award from the Indiana Coalition against sexual assault for outstanding work as both a volunteer and a professional in the area of child abuse. She was later presented with the 2015 Indiana Attorney General’s Voices for Victims Award for her outstanding service and dedication to victims and survivors of child abuse.

7 Dr. Rajesh Tandon

Founder & President, Participatory Research in Asia (PRIA), Delhi, India

Dr Rajesh Tandon is an internationally acclaimed leader and practitioner of Participatory Research and Development. He is the Founder and President of Participatory Research in Asia (PRIA), a global centre for participatory research & training since 1982. He is also Co-Chair of the UNESCO, Chair on Community Based Research and Social Responsibility in Higher Education since 2012. The UNESCO Chair supports UNESCO’s global lead to play ‘a key role in assisting countries to build knowledge societies’. Dr. Rajesh Tandon has given new meaning to academic research by redefining the relationship between the researcher and the researched. He has championed the cause of building organisations and capacities of the marginalised through their knowledge, learning and empowerment, contributing to the emergence of several local, national, international groups and initiatives to promote authentic and participatory development of societies. He has served on numerous expert committees in the Government of India, UGC, UN, Commonwealth and World Bank. In 2015, the Indian Adult Education Association (IAEA) awarded him the Nehru Literacy Award. The Government of India honoured him with the Award in Social Justice in March 2007 for his distinguished work on gender issues. The University of Victoria, Canada, awarded Dr Rajesh Tandon the degree of Doctor of Law (Honoris Causa) in June 2008. He is the first Indian to be inducted to the International Adult and Continuing Education (IACE) Hall of Fame (class of 2011) and was also the first Indian scholar to be inducted in Academy of Engagement Scholarship in 2019.

8 Social Panel 3

Animal Welfare and Environmental Sustainability

Moderator

Dr Esther Delisle Founder & President, Canadian Institute of Animal-Assisted Interventions, Montreal, Quebec, Canada

Dr. Esther Delisle has a Ph.D. in Political Science from Laval University in Canada. During her doctoral studies, she studied 3 years at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Her postdoctoral fellowship was at the History department of McGill University, Canada. She has published articles in scholarly revues and four books on the history of Quebec. She has also acquired 28 years of experience in distance and online learning at Teluq University, Canada. Dr. Esther Delisle established the Canadian Institute of Animal-Assisted Interventions in 2018. It is a non-profit organization whose goal is to educate and inform the general public and the specialists about Animal-Assisted Interventions. It does so through its bilingual English and French website. In 2004, she became a certified animal-assisted therapy. She worked with people suffering from Alzheimer's, Dementia, mental retardation, and others who received end-of-life care. She established and implemented two bilingual (French and English) programs of Animal-Assisted Learning in three elementary schools in Montreal. She published an article about that experience in Childhood Education International. She has also attended many international conferences on Animal-Assisted Interventions and Human-Animal Interactions either as an attendee or a presenter.

Panel Members: Dr. Erin Evans

Assistant Professor, Sociology, San Diego Mesa College, Chair, Animals & Society Section, American Sociological Association, San Diego, California, USA

Dr. Erin Evans is an Assistant Professor of Sociology at the San Diego Mesa College. Her teaching and research programs are anchored to her background as a grassroots activist and focus on social movements, animal rights, and institutionalization. Dr. Evans is interested in the larger repercussions of institutionalizing movement demands, specifically the effects of incremental policy reform that is used as a strategy by activists. Her courses have a solutions-based nature like Social Movements, Political Sociology, and Comparative Revolutions. Dr. Erin Evans’s works can be found in Social Movement Studies, Sociological Perspectives, Society & Animals, and edited volumes such as The Handbook for Political Citizenship, Animals in Human Society, and The Routledge Handbook of Animal Ethics.

9 Mr. Michael Kaufman

Director, Green Chimneys Farm and Wildlife Center, Sam and Myra Ross Institute, Brewster, New York, USA

Mr. Michael Kaufmann started his career as a humane educator at the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) in New York City and continued at the American Humane Association (AHA), a national child and animal protection organization that promotes the highest standards of competence among child welfare and animal care and control professionals. Subsequently, he represented the North American Riding for the Handicapped Association (NARHA) as Director of Education and Communication and Editor of the national magazine STRIDES. He now focuses on Green Care, the concept of working with animals, plants, and nature to enhance human environments and lives. He continues to lead and facilitate workshops and seminars internationally and edits and contributes to various defining publications in the field of nature-based education, therapy and activities. In 2005 he joined Green Chimneys Children’s Services as Farm and Wildlife Director and in 2012 was named Director of the Sam and Myra Ross Institute at Green Chimneys, a program dedicated to education and research on the human connection to animals and the natural world. From childhood, growing up in Switzerland, the beneficial relationship between people, animals and the natural world has shaped Michael Kaufmann’s life. He has been actively involved in Human/Animal Interaction Programs, Animal Welfare, and Humane Education for 25 years.

Mr. Ricky Kej

Grammy Award Winning Composer & Environmentalist, Bangalore, India

Mr. Ricky Kej is an internationally acclaimed Grammy Award Winning Music Composer, US Billboard Number 1 Artist, Environmentalist, UNESCO “Ambassador for Kindness”, and an Ambassador for UNICEF and Earth Day Network. Mr. Ricky Kej has won over 100 music awards in over 20 countries and performed his music live in concerts to audiences worldwide in over 25 countries. He is a Youth Icon in India and has been named as one of the 100 real leaders who inspire the future. He is the ambassador to Earth Day Network. He has dedicated his life and music to creating awareness of the environment, and positive social impact. He has performed at prestigious venues in over 25 countries, including the United Nations Headquarters in New York and Geneva. He composed and produced his album “Shanti Samsara”, which was launched by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and French President Francois Hollande in the presence of World Leaders at the United Nations COP21 Climate Change Conference in Paris. For Shanti Samsara, he collaborated with over 500 musicians from over 40 countries. His past repertoire of work includes 16 studio albums released internationally, over 3500 commercials, and 4 feature films, including the natural history documentary “Wild Karnataka” narrated by Sir David Attenborough.

10 Closing Keynote Speaker

Mr. Bruce Siegmund Executive Director, Destiny Malawi, Ruston, Louisiana, USA

Bruce Siegmund is founder and director of Destiny Malawi, a non-profit organization created to help change the destiny of the people that live in Malawi. Destiny Malawi projects include building homes and schools in the refugee camp and in the poor, rural village along Lake Malawi. With a focus on intellectual, physical, and spiritual growth, Destiny Malawi engages in community improvement initiatives designed to help inspire and empower Malawian children, youth, and adults to envision their own respective destinies. Bruce has earned a Master of Business Administration in Marketing from Louisiana Tech University and has taught marketing courses at Grambling State University for nineteen years. Currently, he is a real estate agent and a member of the city council in Ruston, Louisiana, USA.

11 TESTIMONIAL

As the world is always changing and growing in new ways, Let Us Dream continues to promote learning, education, and research to adjust to these changes and Last year, in 2019, when the local Let create better outcomes for all. Last year, I attended the Let Us Dream Conference was hosted in Us Dream Conference at Binghamton University as an Bangalore, India, I had the good undergraduate student and I was in awe of the event. It fortune to be the moderator for the was an awesome event, not only because it had experts Education Panel. I am a special from the community and around the country who were educator and I educate children with able to speak about innovative ways to promote positive special needs and different abilities. change, but also due to the outpouring of support from the The Let Us Dream conference gave community, which was amazing to see. Many local me the platform to initiate a discussion agencies set up to present the work they were doing for on the need to encourage inclusion in the betterment of the Binghamton community. Listening to our schools with more respect for the inspiring work being done across the globe diverse abilities. Something I love demonstrated that we all are capable of making a about the Let Us Dream conference is difference in the lives of others. that it brings people together for the I feel honoured to have assisted in coordinating last year's common good of the society by event as the youth representative. I am equally honoured encouraging action that gains strength to serve at this year’s event as a member of the by numbers. I look forward to the promotional team and I look forward to the knowledge years ahead when this community, that will be shared at the Let Us Dream 2020 Triennial working together under the banner of International Virtual Conference. This is especially Let Us Dream, creates a positive important at a time when the world needs changemakers impact like a ripple in the water that now more than ever before. I believe that this event is the reaches far across all lands. first step to energize a movement of change, in which we Ms. Anita Eipe can make a positive difference in the lives of many! Managing Trustee Tyler Conzone Samatha Learning Center Graduate Assistant Bangalore, Karnataka, India Binghamton University, Binghamton, New York, USA Host Conference Chair, Promotional Team Member - Let Us Dream Let Us Dream Triennial Triennial International Conference ‘20 International Conference ‘20

12

Editorial Team’s Message

We, at Let Us Dream, are striving towards the common goal to build a positive environment for the younger generation and in turn to create a better society, and at large, the world.

In the sixth edition of the ‘Let Us Dream’ Newsletter, we bring to you the message from our Core Committee team member for the upcoming triennial International Conference – Ms. Debbie Collett-O’Brien. Through this edition, we are delighted to introduce the opening keynote speaker for Day 3 (November 21, 2020) of the conference – Ms. Rashmi Misra. Day 3 of the conference will involve a panel discussion on three themes, namely- Critical Thinking and Information Literacy, Impact of Coronavirus Pandemic on Community Response Services and Resilience and Animal Welfare and Environmental Sustainability. We have also introduced the moderator and panel members for each of the panel themes. The first panel will include Dr. Dawn Anderson-Butcher, Dr. Martin Klein and Mr. Vishal Talreja and the discussion will be moderated by Dr. Joshua Comer. The second panel discussion will be moderated by Dr. Myra Sabir and the panel will be graced by Ms. Prarthana Kaul, Ms. Donna Lloyd and Dr. Rajesh Tandon. The third panel will include Dr. Erin Evans, Mr. Michael Kaufman and Mr. Ricky Kej and the discussion will be moderated by Dr. Esther Delisle. We are also pleased to introduce the closing keynote speaker for the day - Mr. Bruce Siegmund. Finally, Ms. Tyler Conzone and Ms. Anita Eipe will be bringing to us some heartfelt testimonials.

We express our sincere gratitude to all the Core Committee team members whose active co-operation made this issue possible and fruitful.

Hope you enjoy this edition of the newsletter.

Newsletter Coordinator: Dr. Nisha Shankar, John Jacob, and Vedika Chokhani Chief Editor: Nimmi Shaji Graphic Designer: Fabin Francis, Aravind NG Content Writers: Regina Jecintha, Joshua Rajesh, Akansha Uprety, Tanya Sinha

13 Day 3 – SOCIAL AGENDA

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