Intensive training, effective collaboration, and expert guidance... sounds a bit like GES's model for "creating a community of the next generation of global change leaders."  Now expand that to a 10-week summer institute where 25 young social entrepreneurs undergo rigorous and practical training including personal & entrepreneurial skill development, intensive collaboration & work-shopping, and involved guidance from mentors.  Their model: attract social entrepreneurs, unite and incubate them, finance their endeavors.  Another perk of the institute is that they provide website ...

How does one develop empathy for strangers? Is it through face-to-face interaction, or exposure to ideas? Does it require travel to impoverished communities, or can stories and responsible documentation help take you to places you otherwise cannot experience? These are some of the questions staff members of GES grappled with at a recent meeting, featuring guest speaker Jeff Pinzino. These are also the questions The OpenShutter Project grapples with, using the ever-changing medium of student art. OpenShutter, an exciting initiative within GES, is now ...

By CHRISTIE THOMPSON Last night, I took an impromptu trip into the city (with my lovely GES co-chair) to catch what I could of the Chicago International Film Festival. I’m kicking myself for not going earlier, because the lineup this year was truly staggering – I think I heard over 145 films from 45 countries! We were lucky enough to catch “My Neighbor, My Killer,” a documentary on the Rwandan Genocide. The film focuses on the Gacaca tribunals, a justice system in ...

Are you an American student interested in learning how to develop your change-based project? Apply to be an American Delegate! If you have any technical issues filling out the application, contact tech@theges.org. If you have general questions about the content of the application, check out the FAQ or contact american@theges.org.

Malawian inventor William Kamkwamba and co-author of his new biography Bryan Mealer spoke at the first-ever GES speaker event on October 2 2009. The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind published in 2009, focuses on William’s impoverished childhood and efforts to build a wind turbine out of refuse in his small Malawian village.  Forced to quit school at 14, William taught himself the basics of electricity and mechanics from school books that were often in English, a language he himself did ...

GES is about community: the communities we partner with, the community of our peers, and the community of change-makers around the world.  The blog seeks to utilize GES's dynamic network to share information, resources, and ideas from GES facilitators, alumni, staff, and the rest of the world. GES is at a unique place as an organization and an event.  As we embark upon our fifth year, we have established a dynamic network, spanning over 40 countries, 80 colleges and universities, and ...