Students and Business Leaders Hook up to be a Force for Good, with Roberta Baskin – PS58
Episode Introduction
Award winning journalist, Roberta Baskin is a most distinguished guest on Positivity Strategist podcast. Roberta has had a stellar career in investigative journalism with more than 75 journalism awards both print and TV, including prestigious Peabodys, duPont Columbia Awards, and multiple Emmys. During this time of global reporting, there was a stirring within: a shift that has brought Roberta to where she is today, Executive Director of AIM2Flourish.
Episode Overview – Business as a Force for Good
AIM2Flourish is a non-profit organization, founded at Case Western Reserve University, whose mission is to accelerate the shift to a Business for Good mindset by recognizing the positive impact of today’s business leaders, and changing the way tomorrow’s leaders are taught. What is so exciting about AIM2Flourish is that these future business leaders get out of the classroom into businesses that are doing good and positively working towards achieving any one of the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals with a target date of 2030.
It’s as if Roberta had been preparing for this new role during her entire journalistic career. Her investigations, during her time as a journalist, resulted in making beer healthier, exposing sweatshops in the shoe and soccer industries, uncovering pediatric dental abuses, and succeeding in banning dangerous products.
Did You Discover Appreciative Inquiry or Did Appreciative Inquiry Discover you?
Whenever my guests come from the world of Appreciative Inquiry (AI), I invite this question: Did you discover Appreciative Inquiry, or did Appreciative Inquiry discover you. You’ll love Roberta’s quirky answer. (She’s very playful by nature, having enjoyed her company at a number of Appreciative Inquiry gatherings). As a recovering journalist, Roberta offers that she needed to do the AI Certification twice, because she was programmed to focus on the bad stuff in the world. Her default mindset was conditioned to find out “what’s wrong?” in situations rather than “What’s possible?” What a 360 turn! When she met Appreciative Inquiry thought leader, David Cooperrider, her worldview flipped, as does most people’s when they discover AI, and/or meet with Professor Cooperrider.
Restorative Narratives
It's very encouraging to hear Roberta offer examples of media organizations that are focusing on the best of humanity even in the worst of times. Journalists who report on tragic circumstances in ways that restore hope, resilience and possibilities that lift up the human spirit to inspire us all. Restorative narratives shine the light on how even in pain and suffering, there are beautiful stories of hope and resilience and possibility.
Examples of generative journalism can be found in Images and Voice of Hope, Constructive Journalism Project, Solutions Journalism Network, Axiom News and Huffington Post has a What's Working Section.
Changing Business Education by Changing the Story of Business
If we hold the belief that business can be a force for good, how might we change the way colleges and universities teach business skills? Instead of the same old traditional curriculum, we might inquire into the biggest global issues facing businesses today and create innovative partnerships and experiences for students to learn actively from personal experience rather than passively through books and the internet.
Organizations who value innovation, longevity and human flourishing as strategic imperatives, demonstrate that their financial bottom line is so interconnected with our planet’s and people’s well-being.
Developing Leaders for 21st Century
AIM2Flourish partners with professors in business schools around the world with materials to help their students research, and engage in conversations with innovative business leaders, and begin to conceive potential solutions that will not only advance business goals, but also address the 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals.
The 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals provide such an opportunity for business students to work on real issues such as ending poverty and hunger, shifting to clean energy, controlling climate change and working for peace. All this is possible. Our collective conscious has awakened to our global oneness. We are all in this together.
Being a Force for Good Benefits all Stakeholders
AIM2Flourish is the world’s first global action-learning platform showcasing business innovation that tackle some of our biggest challenges. Founded at Case Western Reserve University, business students across the globe use Appreciative Inquiry framed questions (AIM = Appreciative Inquiry Method) to search out and report on golden innovations that address the 17 UN Global Goals.
As a participating business, the benefits are many: brand reputation; being aligned with purpose-driven students; aligning with other leaders in the social responsibility space; recognition as a positive change agent in the world and providing solutions to some of the world’s greatest challenges.
AIM2Flourish Stories and Ways to Participate
As you listen to Roberta, you will be inspired by students’ stories. I encourage you to go to AIM2Flourish.com, join up and participate in being a force for good. The students and the companies that are being showcased will appreciate it and you’ll feel great about your contribution.
If you wish to participate more actively, please reach out to Roberta. Her links are provided below.
Accept Roberta’s invitation to create your own profile on AIM2Flourish.
Contribute to the Sightings page. Here's an opportunity to write up an innovation you are aware of that may help students explore more.
You, your family, community or organization can become part of the global improvement movement to achieve the 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals by 2030 – only 14 years away.
AIM2Flourish is housed at the Fowler Center for Business as an Agent of World Benefit in Case Western Reserve University's Weatherhead School of Management.
Links Mentioned
Website: AIM2Flourish
Twitter: AIM2Flourish
LinkedIn: Roberta Baskin
Facebook: AIM2Flourish
Roberta on Wikipedia
Fowler Center for Business as an Agent of World Benefit
Recent Articles by Roberta
1) Huffington Post blog: Business 101: AIM2Flourish
2) Kosmos Journal: AIM2Flourish
3) AIM2Flourish Blog
Let's Stay Connected
It's always great to hear from you. Please connect with me to ask questions or leave comments about this episode or the podcast in general, and there are several good ways to do this:
- Share your questions and ideas on the Podcast Feedback page
- Leave a voice message here, and we may feature your question on an upcoming episode
- Leave a comment on the show notes below
