It was around this time four years ago, that my friend and colleague Allison Fine and I were sending drafts back and forth of the yet-to-be-named Social Citizens paper and wondering how people might react once the paper was out in the wild. We were realistic in our expectations but of course always hoped it would do more than simply collect dust on the shelves of foundation and nonprofit execs. We wanted to help spark a conversation across generations about how the rising generation of Millennials was changing the nature of social change. We knew it wasn’t just an obsession with technology that set them apart – but also their collaborative styles of leadership, radical transparency, and a general desire to find meaning in their work. These characteristics and many more served as the basis for conversations that would find their home on the Case Foundation’s Social Citizens platform.
Today, Millennials are four years older (hopefully a bit wiser), certainly more connected – and the conversations are as important as ever. Just before the holidays we announced our 10 Social Citizen Ambassadors – and today we unveil a fresh, new, modern logo – that we believe conveys the spirit of what it means to be a social citizen. The overlapping and abstract megaphones are images we think represent shared thinking, increased dialogue, and amplification of ideas and discussion that advance social good. Sure, that may sound like the designer was trying to make a hard sell – but really, we agree, we love it, and we think it looks solid on the new Social Citizens platform that will be unveiled to the world in February.
While the logo and redesign of the website are exciting (at least for us) – those are not the only changes you’ll be seeing in the coming days and weeks around Social Citizens. After five incredible years with the Case Foundation, 3.5 of which were spent moonlighting as my alter-ego @socialcitizen, I am excited to pass the baton (and perhaps more importantly, my twitter handle) on to Emily Yu. Emily has been my partner and proud champion of Social Citizens since joining the staff of the Foundation about a year and half ago. I feel strongly that if it weren’t for her perseverance, Social Citizens would not be the strong platform it is today -- and there certainly would not be such a natural person to keep the important conversation going. Emily, a millennial herself, is director of social innovation at the Case Foundation after a successful career in program development and social marketing strategy in the public and private sectors. She helped develop iconic pro-social campaigns like Diet Coke’s The Heart Truth. I can describe Emily in one word… awesome. She may the hardest working and most detailed-oriented person I know, but she also has a passionate love for local music and (much to my dismay) cat videos! You’ll have to ask her about that on @socialcitizen in the days to come.
I'm pleased to have the opportunity to continue to champion the important work of Social Citizens, this time from the vantage point as a Social Citizen Ambassador. If you're interested in following my new ventures – I hope you’ll find your way over to @KDS and join me in conversation. In the meantime, thanks for continuing this great conversation and making sure the voices of millennials are loud, clear, and present at every table where change is being made.