The Die-No Details
In an early phase of #DinosUnite, we imagined our goal was to Get The Message Out about climate and inequality reality, and then People Would Respond en-masse to the seriously dangerous situation They and Their Children are facing. Alas, less than 1% of people we exposed were motivated to engage themselves personally in collective human objectives. Of those who were motivated, most were already fully engaged, but Burning Themselves Out against massive Social Resistance.
Humans evolved in environments where being together was more important than being right, and Following the Hierarchy was the surest way to pass on genes and ideas to future generations. Humans developed advanced Mental Defence Mechanisms, such as Cognitive Dissonance, to tolerate any possible social circumstance. Cognitive Dissonance allows humans to whole-heartedly believe in literal paradoxes, if it suits social cohesion and mental well-being.
While #DinosUnite is about communities coming together to address Common Long-Term Needs, people and communities were threatened by the idea that anything was wrong to begin with. Potential collaborators were at odds with themselves, between acting authentically for equality and future, or fitting into their community's conventions. The motivated few were compromised by intensely Homogenous Pressure to Conform or stay silent.
And so, we pivoted. #DinosUnite 2022 fuses Art, Community, and Technology to connect concerned citizens and drive Long-Arc Values-Oriented Collaboration. Since the root ingredients of our global crises are Inequality and Apathy, we focus specifically on Empowering Artistic Expression of equality activism; Re-Normalizing Empathy and Engagement vs the consumption and escapism currently glorified in pop media. Our primary objective is to reach isolated would-be activists, and help them find the support they need to survive and act to their fullest potential. A secondary objective is to attract "bystanders*" to enjoyable micro-actions, showing by example that engagement is fun, easy, and meaningful. *"You can't be neutral on a moving train!" (Zinn)
Who started #DinosUnite?
Jeff Knowunzy is a math-and-science whiz turned systems-thinking strategist. At Cornell University ('01-'07, Ph.D.), they taught undergraduate Computer Science and researched incremental optimization: optimization problems with time-evolving constraints. At Google ('09-'14, technical lead), they facilitated an award-winning team to deliver zero-cost mobile internet to millions in Asia and Africa. They then founded OneWorldInnovations ('14), a social benefit business, and piloted trans-cultural innovation workshops in Latin America. In 2018, Jeff pivoted OneWorldInnovations to focus full-time on climate and inequality. Jeff loves email, so feel free to reach out!
What if...
What if the walls could move and showed you what you wanted to see?
What if the words could speak and told you what you needed to be?
What if the air could breath? What if the tears could feel?
What if all our worth was paper?
What if all their smiles were vapor?
Lyrics @drdino_1
Vocals @globalsolidarity
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