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People can tip towards change

by Sunisa on 31 January 2012

There’s an interesting model of philanthropy here in San Francisco. I popped in to talk to Tipping Point Community, a network that funnels money from people to selected charities. They make their decisions based on measurable impact, clear finances, and strong leadership. And get this: the board of Tipping Point underwrites all the operational cost of the organization. That means that they each contribute annually so that 100% of donations made go to the groups they’ve selected as poverty-fighting organizations.

I chatted with the communications team about two nonprofits that work with young people. First Place for Youth (FPFY) has been a Tipping Point Grantee since 2005. They help former foster youth transition to independent living. As we know at STREAT, there’s a very vulnerable stage that happens when young people come out of foster care. If the transition is unsuccessful for a person, it can lead to unemployment, homelessness, health problems and poverty.

FPFY offers much of the same cocktail of intervention that STREAT does: case management, drop-in training, communication workshops, and job placement assistance. Tipping Point leveraged their connections to also provide staff training, strategic planning, and technology consultation to FPFY.

The second charity is a newer grantee. Gateway to College National Network (GtC) works with students who have dropped out of high school or are likely to. They help students get their high school diploma, and some of the classes even count towards college credit. GtC students have an average attendance rate of 82%, heaps higher than their previous performance.

As Tipping Point’s founder and CEO asks, “If we don’t fix what’s broken in our back yard, who will?”

That’s a question that STREAT cares about too, which is why our CEO Bec Scott brought the STREAT model back from Vietnam to apply it to our needy urban population.

Thanks for tuning in to a case study from abroad!

 

 

 

 

Can we teach old dogs new tricks?

by Vanessa on 26 January 2012

old dogI was confronted to read recently that a Sydney modeling agency had advised one of their young models, who incidentally is the ripe old age of 16, that she was becoming too old to model.  Apparently, as a society, we are now recruiting models as young as 13 because at 16, they are past their used-by date.

After I calmed down, I started thinking about whether or not we are ever too old to tackle something new.  How does our age impact upon our potential to grow, learn or try something new?

Whilst I like to consider myself as someone who continues to grow, remain open to new ideas and extend myself, I must admit that the older I get, the more set in my ways I become and the less ‘flexible’ I find myself. 

What is it that prevents us from wanting to learn new skills, make new friends or travel to new places?  Is it confidence?  Is it fear?  Is it stubbornness? Or, is it past experience?

Our previous experiences can impact enormously on our willingness to ‘put ourselves out there’ again.  Anyone who has experienced a relationship break down will be familiar with the phrase ‘never again’. 

With this in mind, consider a young person who has been miserable at school.  For whatever reason, the mainstream school environment has not agreed with them.   No wonder they are so hesitant to go back into a learning environment.  Someone who has had a car accident is obviously challenged by getting behind the wheel again.

So, I pose the question: can we teach old, or young dogs, new tricks? 

It might sound naive but I believe we can.  I try to remember that “many roads lead to Rome”.  By that I mean that not everyone does the same thing at the same time.  We don’t all have to travel the same path to reach the same destination. We all do things at our own pace and maybe maturity or a period of separation from a task or challenge can reinvigorate our passion or willingness. Staying positive and focusing on strengths rather than preventions or challenges can keep our minds open to success and change.

Now, this old dog is off to try something new.

 

Let's be honest

by Bec on 10 December 2011

By Rebecca Scott

 

lets be honest banner Being the CEO of a start-up isn’t glamorous at all. Sure you get to meet some interesting people or go to the odd event, but most of all it’s just hard work. Unrelenting hard work. First there’s conceptualising things. And then trying to find the money to build what you’ve conceptualised. And then actually building what you’ve conceptualised. And then testing and running what you’ve built to see if you conceptualised right in the first place. Then continuing to look for more money to keep what you’ve built operating. And then undertaking the audits on the money you’ve found. And then writing the reports to accompany the audits to the people who have given you the money......

.....but every now and then in the midst of all of this activity you get an extraordinary reminder of why you decided to conceptualise the organisation in the first place. I had one of these moments last week whilst we were recruiting Class 5.

Kate (STREAT’s psych): Who would support you and be proud of you if you achieved in the STREAT program?

Young woman: No one. When your parents are junkies everyone assumes that you can't ever achieve anything either.

Kate: You've spoken earlier about your Aunty. Surely she'd be proud of you?

Young woman: She loves me and she's always been there. But she always tells me that it's OK if I can't reach my goals. It's like she's always preparing me for

the worst, not the best. I guess she’s been trying to protect me.

Kate: What about you? Do you think you can achieve in the program?

Young woman: Yes, I can do it. And I'll be so proud of me when I do.

Such moments can take your breath away. Or move you to tears. Luckily they can stay with you for days or weeks or years even. They’re the things that motivate me – and the rest of the STREAT team – to get up tomorrow. And the next day. And the one after that.

Unfortunately I can’t share all such moments with you. I can, however, tell you that your help – no matter how small or insignificant you feel it is – makes such opportunities possible for our youth. My sincerest thanks for this.

Rebecca Scott

Cookbook giveaway

by Sunisa on 9 December 2011

Dear fans of STREAT,

Vietnamese Street food

Next week we're thanking our supporters (and rounding out an amazing, exciting year) by giving away cookbooks.

The first giveaway is "Vietnamese Street Food", by Tracey Lister and Andrew Pohl. It's mouth-watering and will make you want to travel, guaranteed! The book is especially significant because our CEO, Bec Scott, was working in Hanoi when she was inspired to start a homeless youth social enterprise in Melbourne.

Flavours

Giveaway number two is the cookbook "Flavours of Melbourne" by Smudge Publishing, those excellent people who recently threw us a STREAT party fundraiser. If you haven't nabbed this book yet, you will want to. It features recipes from some of our most exciting restauranteurs, and some gorgeous shots of our city's laneways.

So you're wondering how to get these cookbooks? Sign up to our newsletter in the bar on the right of this webpage. It's called "STREAT updates." Then stay tuned for next week, when we tell you what to do to win! 

Women in focus: Rebecca Scott

by Sunisa on 8 December 2011

Women in focus bannerSTREAT's CEO Rebecca Scott recently had a profile on Commonwealth Bank’s website Women in Focus where she reflected on how she started STREAT, and also what our goals are moving forward. It’s an interesting read that brings to mind a few things for me:

First is, live the mission. I think a great social enterprise evolves from a place where the founders have skin in the game. STREAT’s founders Rebecca Scott and Kate Barrelle funded the seeds of what became STREAT for three years before they landed any outside funding.

Second is, you never know what tomorrow may bring. Just as the GFC hit STREAT landed it’s biggest funding. Other people may have thrown up their hands, and closed up shop before the organization even got going, because of the news that the global economy was in the biggest financial crisis since America’s Great Depression. Bec saw an opportunity and applied for some of the government’s stimulus funding. That is an entrepreneur at work.

And lastly, keep your eyes on the prize. When the interviewer asked Bec what the biggest challenge has been for STREAT, she had a reply –“funding” – but went on to spend the bulk of her answer saying:

One of our trainees told me on his first day that he had been sleeping in the park across the street. It marked the start of a change in his life and tonight he is working front of house at a five star, high-profile event we’re hosting. You wouldn’t recognise him as the same person, he’s now been in the workforce for a year and has had a stable living environment for all of that time.

You can tell that it’s the youth who motivate her and get her over the growing pains of starting, operationalising, and scaling a social enterprise. She’s going good guns at it.