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Do you ever want to feel part of something bigger than yourself?

Do you want to change the conversation on a global level?

Melibee Global certainly answered yes to these questions and that is why we are ready to try a little experiment.

What if on one predetermined day a topic was selected to be discussed in communities around the world, facilitated by all of you out there who get the Melibee spirit? What if we put our smartphones down and got out of the virtual space to truly engage with our fellow community members? What if one person brought one friend to this event and so forth? What if at the end of the event we shared our collective thoughts on this topic to see what global themes and ideas emerged?

The answer to all these questions?  We don’t know what, but we are curious to find out! Melibee Global does a lot of work here on the internet but it’s time that we busted out into the world and truly promulgated our vision of changing the conversation!

That is why on February 19th, 2013, Melibee Global will be promoting Global Buzz – a new event aiming to spark global discussion on important topics affecting our lives.  

The goal is simple:  To engage members of our communities in face-to-face discussion of complex issues that we all deal with.  At the end of the events around the world on February 19th, participants will share the ideas and thoughts that their local communities discussed to develop a global understanding of these big ideas.

But we can’t do this alone!  In order for this experiment to be a success we need you, our faithful Melibee champions, to get out there and facilitate these discussions in your local communities.  It doesn’t take much to participate.  You will simply find a space to hold the conversation and share the flyer below with a friend, colleague or two and encourage them to share as well.  Then, on February 19th, we will all (in our own cities and time zones) hold these Global Buzz conversations!  At the end of the conversation/event, encourage participants to let us know what was discussed and/or their thoughts by using the Twitter hashtag #globalbuzz or by contacting us directly.  We hope that those of you who take on the role of facilitators will also send us a short summary of your discussion and perhaps some photos so we can report back to the world about a truly global discussion.

The theme of this first Global Buzz event?  The dangers of labeling people.

Here is how to proceed…

FIRST:

Read this article to get the conversation started.

THEN:
Circulate this flyer to encourage people to join you in the conversation on February 19th. Pick a time that will work for your community – perhaps a “brown bag lunch” or a post work gathering? You can edit it to include your own organization’s logo and/or partner with other organizations in your community too!  (Just be sure to keep the Melibee Global logo on the page please.) GlobalBuzzFeb2013pptx

You can use these questions to spark conversation (or not) on February 19th! ConversationStartersFeb2013

AFTER THE EVENT:
Share your discussion with us using #globalbuzz on Twitter or by e-mailing us at info(at)www.melibeeglobal.com!

We’ll update this section below to include a list of locations where THE GLOBAL BUZZ will take place on February 19th around the world:

• Cuenca, Ecuador, 10 AM at the El Nomad Center (sponsor) at Urb. Las Pencas II, Calle Orquideas 3-25 y Casuarina
  
• Washington DC, USA, Time/Location TBD
• Tempe, Arizona, USA, 12 – 1 pm on Arizona State University’s campus in the Tempe Center, Room 158 (951 S. Mill Avenue, Suite 150).  Email Kyle at kyle.rausch(at)asu.edu to RSVP! 
• Seattle, Washington, USA  6 pm at Local 360 Email Lisa Z at lisamxny(at)gmail.com or Deanne at dspuloka(at)gmail.com to RSVP!
  
• Winston Salem, N. Carolina,  USA at 7 pm at the Nissen Building (310 West 4th Street in downtown Winston)  Email Missy Gluckmann at info(at)www.melibeeglobal.com to RSVP!
• Boston, Massachusetts, USA at Lesley University at 5:30 pm – 3rd Floor Cafe of University Hall at 1815 Massachusetts Ave. in Cambridge, MA 02140.  Email Ashley at ashleyrosehouston(at)gmail.com
• Kralanh, Siem Reap, Cambodia, hosted by Pepy Tours  at noon (Cambodia Local Time).
• On February 20th – Bethel, CT, USA 4 – 6 pm/Hosted by Beyond the Surface: Critical Thinking and Social Justice Academy.
• And more coming soon!

Thanks for participating in our little experiment!  We look forward to changing the conversation and reporting back to you in late February! (And thank you to the Melibees for putting this fabulous project together!)