Change Makers is a collection of uplifting people and communities in South Africa who have started with an idea and are achieving great things, because they have put their head where their heart is.
“Change” is one of those words that continuously bounces back and forth in conversations nowadays. Grand personalities, from Albert Einstein, Nelson Mandela, Terry Pratchett to Mahatma Gandhi and the Dalai Lama have produced some of the most powerful quotes to get people going to “Be the change they want to see”. However, while these wise snippets have always made me inspired, from the inside out, and helped me put a whole lot in perspective, I feel I have struggled so far to constantly keep at the change I want to see in the world. Change is most often perceived as something difficult, like starting to exercise; it is projected into the future, the world of tomorrow and what will be when we will have more time, more money, more and more. The truth is that change starts today, with each and every one of us. My change is different to your change.
“Transformation is our watchword. At this moment in time, we are called upon to lead and act with courage. We are called upon to embrace change. Change in our societies. Change in the management of our economies. Change in our relationship with our one and only planet.” (Synthesis report of the UN Secretary-General on the post-2015 sustainable development agenda). The eight Millennium Development Goals are being reviewed this year, with discussions on how to develop an integrated sustainable development agenda, and for countries to adopt a set of global goals to secure a just, healthy, educated and happy population. Never before has civil society been encouraged to take global action, for its people and the (one and only) planet.
Change Makers is a collection of uplifting people and communities in South Africa who have started with an idea and are achieving great things, because they have put their head where their heart is. Photographer David Peter Harris and myself (Clotilde) are embarking on this journey of inspiration, together with you. If you know of anybody/companies/organisations who are committed to bringing about positive change, please let us know in the comments below; we would love to chat to them and share their story. In the words of Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu,
“We may not be capable of changing the world in one fell swoop on our own, but when we swim together in the same good direction, we become an unstoppable force.”
Be curious. Lead and act with courage. Stay inspired. Embrace change.