How to Be a Bad Girl in India

The poster in this article was created by a co-ed group of Indian students for a class assignment.  

The article provides a quick cultural snapshot. Perhaps not so different from how we view  "good" and "bad" behavior in our culture. 

Enjoy!

http://www.bbc.com/news/blogs-trending-31535455

Working for Shared Understanding

In a recent World Economic Forum post, Laura Liswood discusses how men and women view gender differently.  

The key issue? 

"We all have our own lenses through which we see the world.  Our window to the world is shaped by experience, hopefulness, unconscious beliefs, personal filters.  The challenge becomes how to reconcile opposing and strongly held beliefs in the interest of improving a situation."

Liswood says, "We need a shared understanding of each of our experiences if we are to ever close the gaps in our world views and make the changes needed to improve everyone's lives."

So how do we foster a shared understanding of diverse, often conflicting world views?
I suggest we start with self-awareness and empathy….and with a little practice we might just be on to something.  
https://agenda.weforum.org/2015/02/how-men-and-women-see-gender-equality-differently/

Pleasant Dreams

Oh, to be seven and awake with pleasant dreams on your mind!  And OH! To be a seven-year-old's mom, blessed with Luji's happy morning greeting:

   "Good morning!  I had the most pleasant dream."

   "You did?  What was it about?"  

   "I don't remember for sure, I just remember that it was SO pleasant."

   "Well, how was it pleasant?"

   "It was about me training wild horses and showing them at horsey shows.  I didn't use a helicopter, you know, because I didn't want them to be scared or rounded up.  So I hung food inside a gate and when the horses came to get food, and they pulled down on the food, the gate closes.  I don't, like, sell them, I just keep them and then after a while I might let them go. Or I might keep some of the stallions and the mares so I can have babies. Then I'll train the babies and keep them for a while with their mom and dad, and then let them go after the babies don't need milk anymore, you know?" 

   "And why do you let them go?"

   "Because then I'd have a lot of horses and they probably wouldn't be able to go into the wild again.  I might sell them but I won't put tags on their ears and stuff."  

As dreams tend to go, there was never a clear reason for letting the horses go after they'd been trained, and really, isn't that the beauty of dreaming?  There doesn't have to be a clear intention for doing things a certain way or coming to a certain outcome - we can just accept that there will be twists and turns and unexplainable reasons for doing the things we do in dreams. And we are totally OK with it because, after all, it's a dream.

So today, let's welcome a little pleasant dreaming into our day.  Let's allow ourselves the luxury to just be … no explanations, outcomes, or justifications needed.  

Today, let's DREAM SaSi.

What Leaders Have to Say About Working Families

Read what some of the female leaders who attended the White House Summit on Working Families last month have to say about the stigma around working mothers (it's really about working parents), work-life balance (it's for everybody!), and public policy (we can SO do more).

This is What Virtually Every Woman You Admire Thinks About Working Parents

Rethinking "Like A Girl"

While watching (well, listening) to Wimbledon, an ad came on that caught my attention.  Actually, it more than caught my attention.  I stepped from the kitchen where I was happily preparing dinner, sat on the couch, and watched.

If you know (and especially if you love) a girl or young woman - or any woman, for that matter - this ad from P&G's Always brand will make you think twice about how you use the term "like a girl" from here on out.

Check it out:

http://time.com/2927761/likeagirl-always-female-empowerment/

Pregnant Chicken Speaks on Not Failing as a Mother

Moms (and dads)…don't worry...you're doing GREAT!  

For more info and a good laugh, check out this fun post:

Pregnant Chicken Blog

And remember, we are all a part of this awesome village!

Girls+Engineering=Fun

To all the inspiringly brilliant, 

knock-your-socks-off-creative 

girls out there... 

This one's for you!

Watch Video Here: Engineering Toys for Girls

Innovating Sustainability

If you like cars, are intrigued by the evolution of potentially disruptive technologies, or are always looking for ways to be more ecologically aware (or all three!), this article from Popular Mechanics about the first 3D printed car, the Urbee 2, is worth a read.  

It's a great story of collaboration, dedication, passionate pursuits and innovation.  Interesting gems are littered throughout, like this quote from Jim Kor, founder of Kor Ecologic:

"...designing for sustainability can arguably be stated to be humanity’s biggest and most important challenge of the coming century. It’s something we absolutely need to get right.” 

Innovating with sustainability at the core.  Well, that pretty much sums it up.  And since every little bit counts - from recycling daily to producing an entirely new automobile - the possibilities are endless. 

Where will you start?