10 Ways to Improve the World Through Learning

by Jamie Moesser on July 31st, 2012 | No Comments »

Learning has a way of changing both the learner and the teacher. There are many ways we can improve both ourselves and the world around us through the learning process. I suggested a few last year. Here are a few more:

10 Bite-Size ways to Improve the World by Learning

Learn about forests that are endangered around the world, why they're endangered, and what can be done to bring them back in balance with the economic needs of the countries in which they're found, at Seussville.com/LoraxProject.
Help your kids learn about endangered forests and "truffula trees" by playing Lorax Project games.
Call your local police station's K9 unit to learn if there are any dogs that are in need of support, like this young boy did.
Pay for someone else's parking in a hospital parking lot, so they can learn the status of a loved one's health without incurring expense. This idea was inspired by the Tilford family of Ontario, Canada.
Refresh your memory on how to help a choking victim.
Discuss with your kids the subject of adoption, or how adoptive families might look different than others, and how to observe etiquette in interacting with them. These tips from Kristen at RageAgainstTheminivan might help.
Help design a new logo for Encompass: the Daniel Braden Trust, a nonprofit that fosters intercultural understanding and learning through adventure. This opportunity is available through Sparked.com for four more days.
Help design a new logo for the San Francisco Bay Area's Creative Impact Performing Arts Workshop, which strives to help young people develop critical thinking, creative expression, and basic learning skills through the arts. This opportunity is available through Sparked.com until August 31st.
For 30 minutes, help tag and sort archived images of bird breeding behavior from nest cams, so that scientists for the Cornell Lab of Ornithology can better understand this behavior. This opportunity is available through HelpFromHome.com.
Learn how to let go of perfectionism a little by reading this post from Amy Sullivan.

How Will You Give to Others This Week?

Have you ever done any of these things? How did it go?
What other acts of service have inspired you?
How have others given to you this week and what difference has that made in your life?

How Else Can You Make a Difference This Season?

Commit to do one act of kindness/service based on the week’s challenge.
Leave a comment with ideas relating to the week’s challenge as well as your experience(s) performing it.