The Boomerang Effect of Kindness/Suspended Coffee initiative takes hold-Video & more

The following information is used for educational purposes only.

























The Boomerang Effect of Kindness



Apr 29, 2013



It doesn't take much to smile at a stranger, say thank you to the cashier or hold the door open for someone - these small acts of kindness can brighten up anyone's day and take minimal effort. Perpetuated moments of thoughtfulness and consideration exemplify the concept of paying it forward, resulting in a ripple effect of goodwill. Created by the nonprofit Life Vest Inside, this inspiring video demonstrates how far the power of kindness can go, in the end boomeranging back to where it began.






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Think Good, Speak Good, Do Good



22/02/2012



What is "Doing Good"?


Doing Good is a simple and universal vision. A vision to which each and every one of us can connect and contribute to its realisation. A vision based on the belief that by doing good deeds, positive thinking and affirmative choice of words, feelings and actions, we can enhance goodness in the world.

These past years have proven to us that old patterns can no longer suffice. Many of us are experiencing a phase of change, shedding outdated patterns and liberating ourselves from the old by moving on to the new. The year 2012 is an important one for mankind, a pivotal year. The potential for this exists in the mere fact that the majority of us are yearning for change. But in order for such change to actually take place, a critical mass of people is required, driven by the energy of goodness and candid goodwill for change, since only such an enormous quantity of people who think good, speak good and do good - can generate the essential change in the state of mankind as a whole.

But, in order to bring about such change, we must realise that maintaining old patterns is detrimental and cannot lead us towards the positive change to which we all aspire. As I see it, change should express itself in the creation of a new reality that emphasises the dominant values of unity, love, friendship, and compassion, and, most of all - the capacity for containment, encompassing the ability to accept ourselves and others, with our differences and uniquenesses.

Six years ago in Israel, I initiated Good Deeds Day. My initiative was based on my solid belief that each and every one of us can give of ourselves for the benefit of others, according to our own skills and abilities. Everyone can do a good deed and contribute to the community in which they live. All that is required for participating in Good Deeds Day is goodwill and the understanding that even smiling at someone is a good deed. The idea is simple and since it's easy to do a good deed, the circles grow and grow.

Over the years, Good Deeds Day has annually gained greater popularity, spreading beyond geographical boundaries to include many more countries worldwide. International Good Deeds Day has become a global annual tradition of giving. Last year, we were overwhelmed by the enormous response of people in Israel and around the globe who joined in to do a good deed for the benefit of others, and this year we anticipate that these circles will continue to grow as new communities join us.

Good Deeds Day serves as an example of how our world can look all year round, not only on a single day. If we adopt the Good Deeds Day values and its modes of action throughout the year, I am certain we can create that critical mass of people to bring about the essential change in our world.

For this year's International Good Deeds Day, upcoming on 25 March, I would like to invite each and every one to do a good deed benefitting the life of another, making someone else happy. You know, as well as I do too, that such a good deed will also improve your own life and will make you happy, knowing that you contributed to making our world a better place. Together, out of goodwill and faith in our ability, we can create a lasting and real change, for us and for our future generations.



Source: www.huffingtonpost.co.uk







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Happy is a documentary that traces an enticing quest: exploring the secrets of happiness. Director Roko Belic interviewed individuals all over the world about what happiness means to them. The trailer, featured here, offers a taste of the most coveted emotion of all.



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Italian tradition of ‘suspended coffee’ takes hold elsewhere in tough economic times


By Agence France-Presse


Monday, March 25, 2013

Can’t afford coffee? No matter. In Bulgaria, an old Italian tradition that sees good souls buying hot drinks for those who struggle to make ends meet has taken hold after weeks of tensions over deepening poverty.More than 150 cafes across Bulgaria have joined a goodwill initiative modelled on the Italian “caffe sospeso” tradition, which literally means “suspended coffee”, according to a Facebook page devoted to the movement.The tradition — born in the cafes of Italy’s southern city of Naples — sees people pay in advance for one or several coffees without drinking them.

A customer-in-need can then later ask if there is a “suspended coffee” available and have a hot drink without having to pay for it.Poverty in Bulgaria — the European Union’s least wealthy country — is increasingly sparking social unrest, with several desperate people setting themselves on fire in the past month.Weeks of street protests also forced the right-wing government to resign on February 20.Most cafes that decide to join the “caffe sospeso” initiative — which has been covered extensively on television — have posted pictures of payment slips issued for free coffees on the Facebook page.

“Super! The first ‘suspended coffee’ at our place is a fact,” one user registered as Ethno Bar Red House said on the “Suspended Coffee in Bulgaria” page, which has so far garnered 19,011 likes.Some cafes use a pot of small cards or bottle caps to count the number of coffees already paid for, which can later be claimed.Apart from cafes, several fast food places and grocery shops have also joined the Bulgarian initiative, proposing that their clients buy someone a loaf of bread or a snack.






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Suspended Coffee initiative takes hold



29th March,2013



We can be kind even in times of crisis, cafe owners comment









































The first cash reg­is­ter receipt for a pinned cof­fee to be giv­en to a needy per­son was issued at the Red House eth­no-bar in Var­na.29 March, 2013A nation-wide good­will ini­ti­a­tive mod­elled on the Ital­ian "caf­fe sos­pe­so" tra­di­tion has tak­en hold across Bul­gar­ia. It was launched on 22 March when at 06:41 pm the first cash reg­is­ter receipt for a pinned cof­fee to be giv­en to a needy per­son was issued at the Red House eth­no-bar in the east­ern city of Var­na. Since then, doz­ens of cof­fee shops through­out the coun­try have been serv­ing what came to be known as sus­pend­ed or pinned cof­fee. The hot drink is free for those who strug­gle to make ends meet, as anoth­er cus­tom­er has paid for it in advance. Fol­low­ing the "sus­pend­ed cof­fee", there have been plen­ty of pro­pos­als for sus­pend­ed loaves of bread, ham, cheese, snack or even a lunch or sup­per. "We can be kind even in times of cri­sis," cafe own­ers com­ment.

The lat­est idea came from a trav­el agent in Var­na, who offered "sus­pend­ed vaca­tion" and "sus­pend­ed trip" ini­ti­a­tives. Mean­while, the num­ber of Face­book fans quick­ly surged to 10,000. A list of the estab­lish­ments that have joined the char­i­ta­ble cam­paign is post­ed on "Sus­pend­ed Cof­fee in Bul­gar­ia" page in the social net­work.

The idea was inspired by the Ital­ian poet and screen­writ­er Toni­no Guer­ra, who described a vis­it to Naples with direct­ors Vit­to­rio De Sica and Fed­er­i­co Fell­i­ni. In a local cof­fee shop, Guer­ra first saw how pin­ning a sus­pend­ed cup of cof­fee for a stranger worked.

"A man could be hun­gry but could have five minutes to peace­ful­ly drink a cup of cof­fee and enjoy it," Var­na-based Red House own­er Marin Sot­ir­ov com­ment­ed. Mlad­en Stan­ev, man­a­ger of a bak­ery chain in Var­na, said that the idea is gain­ing ava­lanche-like momen­tum. "I expect with­in days to see a queue of peo­ple in front of my out­lets wait­ing to ask if there is any­thing pinned for them to ben­e­fit. This thing rap­id­ly goes around as the news is spread by word of mouth," he stat­ed.

A sign read­ing that 4 sus­pend­ed loaves of bread were avail­a­ble was pinned in a shop in the east Bul­gar­i­an city of Bur­gas. "Peo­ple in the neigh­bour­hood offered them­selves to pay for and thus offer bread for needy peo­ple and we accept­ed their ini­ti­a­tive. It is only nor­mal that a hun­gry man would first request bread and then cof­fee or any­thing else," the shop assist­ant com­ment­ed.

"Gen­er­os­i­ty is a state of the soul. It is a mor­al vir­tue, not a finan­cial one. And a mor­al vir­tue includes atti­tude. You can give away to a man. But can you sit with this per­son at the same table?" polit­i­cal sci­en­tist Emil Kosh­luk­ov asked. In his view, the ini­ti­a­tive is twice as won­der­ful since it puts the down-and-out and the well-off togeth­er at the same place. And this is what is real­ly ingen­ious about it - that they will sit down togeth­er.




Source: www.europapost.bg