Inspiration. And a few cents.

Today at the Food For Thought Conference, one of our presenters was Jessica Jackley Flannery, Co-Founder of Kiva. Energizing. Passionate. Truly engaging. Her story, similar to Ben & Jerry's is one of circuitous, accidental success discovered by following your heart more than a business plan. (She does hold an MBA from Stanford, I should mention).

But the story of how trying stuff, seeing if it works and then evolving. She used the work 'iterate' as a key practice that got them going and where they are today. Very cool.

Then I had lunch with her and heard more of what motivates her to visit 9 countries in 2 months and to have an itinerary that includes the West Coast yesterday, East Coast today, Canada tomorrow, and South America next week. Her compassion for fellow humanity is infectious. Her drive to help is wonderful.

Another good meal.

Chilly Thoughts

This week I'm attending the Food for Thought Conference in Greenville, SC hosted by ad agency Erwin-Penland. Last night I was fortunate to hear a presentation on business, life, struggles, humanity, and ice cream. By whom? Jerry and Ben of Ben & Jerry's. What stood out to me included:

• They did not know how to make ice cream when they founded the business. They took a $5 correspondence ($2.50 each) through Penn State.
• They copied the business plan of a NYC pizza parlor, changing the word 'slice' to 'scoop.'
• They took on Pillsbury, owner of Haagen-Dazs, who'd told distributors to stop trucking B&J ice cream. The campaign was "What's the Dough Boy Afraid Of?" It was kicked off with a one-person picket by Ben.
• One frigid VT winter, they started a campaign, Penny Off Per Celsius Degree Below Zero or POPCDBZ.
• They gave 7.5 of pre-tax profits to causes they believed in.

They have a great story. Obviously. But the mutual admiration of two business partners for each other, their joint mission to make business a better practice, and their mark on making the world a better place was a great dessert. Before dinner.

Students Benefit from Outdoor Classroom

Tomorrow is Earth Day and one of the best things you can do to not only help the planet but kids as well, is to take them outside and use nature's resources to teach the lessons found in textbooks. When learning outside and connecting with nature, kids are more enthusiastic about the lessons and develop a respect for natural areas that can help create a future generation of environmental stewards for our planet.

The school featured in the article, "NEISD Students Turning Park Into Living Laboratory" shows us the benefits and logic behind taking classes outside to get students more engaged and interested in the learning the curriculum. In science class at this New England elementary school, students visit a nearby park and use GPS devices, digital cameras, pencils and paper to document growth of plants and learn the lessons detailed in their Earth Science books. With American students falling behind other countries in STEM studies, putting more emphasis on science and making it relevant and interesting to young people is a good thing. And this school seems to get it as one of students explains to the reporter, "“This is for a really big science grade. But I've been out here for class before and it just feels like I'm on the weekend or some kind of break.”

Earth Day Everyday

If you didn't know already, Earth Day is this Wednesday, April 22nd. While we set aside this day to officially honor our planet, we'd like to think that people do something every day to help our environment stay clean and healthy. Here at Topics Education, our employees are pretty conscious about reusing, reducing and recycling, so because Earth Day is this week, we'll showcase some of things we do that help our environment everyday.

First off, using reusable containers for drinking water helps reduce waste. Josh and Winn use these gifts from our friends at the outdoor clothing company, Mountain Khakis, and the creative services agency, Bright Yellow Jacket, to keep their water cool, clean and eco-friendly.

Later this week, Winn (Executive VP) and Liz (Marketing Manager) bike to work.

Some Suggestions for Environmental Education Week

It's National Environmental Education Week! Through the combined efforts of schools, nature centers, museums, zoos, and other educational institutions millions of students get to spend more time learning about the importance of caring for our natural environment this week in anticipating of Earth Day on the 22nd.

In honor of this week, Josh Thomas, leader of our sustainability and environmental education practice area here at Topics Education has shared some resources that can help enlighten and educate you around all things environmental.

For blogs on Youth & Nature check out Children & Nature Network and the National Wildlife Federation's Green Hour blog. For info on GreenTech side of things, Josh recommends GreenBiz and Earth2Tech. And other good ones include, Breakthrough Institute and Treehugger.

On a sidenote, this weekend Josh is speaking at the Charlotte Clean & Green Event about the benefits of children connecting with nature. We'll recap that event for you next week, so stay tuned!

Bruce Attends Financial Literacy Fest

On April 1st, the first day of National Financial Literacy Month, the Jump$tart Coalition for Personal Financial Literacy hosted its Annual Awards Dinner to celebrate those who are leading the movement for more emphasis on financial education in our nation. Bruce Nofsinger, leader of Topics Education's Financial Literacy practice area was there to champion the cause and enjoy the celebration. He's pictured below with (L to R) Diana Beck, Ted Beck (President of the National Endowment for Financial Education and co-chair for the President's Advisory Council) and Sandy Wheat (Executive Director of North Carolina Council on Economic Education).

Dara Duguay on Personal Financial Education

Dara Duguay has been involved in the field of financial education for over a dozen years, most recently serving as Director of Citi’s Office of Financial Education. Before that she was the Executive Director of the Jump$tart Coalition for Personal Financial Literacy. She is also the author of three books and a nationally recognized expert on personal finance. We had the pleasure of working with Dara on a number of Citi financial education initiatives and in honor of financial literacy month, we’ve asked her some questions on all things financial (answers have been edited for length).

TE: Why do you think that personal financial education has not been emphasized historically or as widespread as advocates would like?
Common arguments that I've heard over the years are (1) it should be taught in the home (2) I figured it out on my own so why can’t the kids nowadays and (3) this is a “life skill” which has no place in the schools because school is for serious subjects. These arguments are all flawed. For example, many parents don’t understand money management so how can they be expected to teach their children? And then, consider that this new generation of students has to navigate financial instruments that are more complex than ever. Finally, personal finance education can be incorporated into other current required subjects like economics or math in order to make these subjects “come alive.” And in fact, teachers have discovered that learning about money is a subject that their students are interested in and take quite seriously. For a list of states having a personal finance requirement, go to www.jumpstart.org and click on state requirements.

TE: An argument/question that I get from time to time is ... “Why would a credit card company want customers to be financially literate — won’t that make the companies less profitable?” Why do you think it’s important for credit card companies to encourage and educate customers to be more financially literate?
It is in the company’s best interest to have customers who are financially literate. No one wins if someone defaults or has to file for bankruptcy. Companies incur large costs when they have to initiate collections on an account. They may have to hire more employees if account defaults increase or even contract with an outside collection agency to pursue payments. And if the company is not successful in getting the customer to become current on their account, they may have to write-off the customer’s balance. This is a negative to their balance sheets and a hit to their profits.

TE: Do you think our current economic crises have illustrated the need for more (and better) financial education?
I truly believe that our current crisis has exposed the deficiencies in our money management practices. When the average American spends $1.22 for every dollar they make and they have personal savings rates at almost zero, emergencies like this current recession expose these vulnerabilities. The bright side to this recession is that Americans are now starting to save more than ever before. They are also starting to follow a budget and are reigning back spending that exceeds the income they have available. Financial education should and “must” be emphasized now... more than ever.

Top Five: Funny Money Videos

Some comic relief for personal financial management conversations.

"Don't Buy Stuff You Can't Afford"
Saturday Night Live
Steve Martin, Amy Poehler, Chris Parnell

"Home Equity Loan"
The Simpsons

"Trendspotting - Credit" with Demetri Martin
The Daily Show
June 26, 2007

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	M - Th 11p / 10c
Trendspotting - Credit
comedycentral.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Economic Crisis Political Humor

"First CityWide Change Bank"
Saturday Night Live

"First Mattress Bank"
Late Night with Conan O'Brien
September 30, 2008

The Argument Against those Against Financial Literacy

By Bruce Nofsinger

Recently, newspapers across the country published an opinion piece questioning the value of financial education — going so far as to say it can do more harm than good. The argument comes primarily from a paper by Loyola Law School professor, Lauren Willis.

I am a firm believer in the value of financial education. And despite Professor Willis’ anti-financial education position, my hope is that this article and her paper encourage greater conversation about financial education. One positive of the economic crisis is increased attention on the subject, and we will all benefit from more skeptical and scholarly discourse.

That said, let me add my 2¢ to the conversation.

Financial Literacy: Does Not An Expert Make
Professor Willis’ paper, “Against Financial Literacy Education,” falsely equates financial literacy with financial expertise, stating that “consumers generally do not serve as their own doctors and lawyers and … generally should not serve as their own financial experts.” The article reinforced that notion by saying, “Make every American a financial whiz, the thinking goes, and credit bubbles never will bedevil us again.”

But the goal of financial education is NOT to make us all “financial experts.” If you define financial literacy this way — as the equivalent of being able to practice law or medicine — you’re doomed to disappointment.

There’s not an expectation that health education on oral hygiene, or nutrition, or physical fitness qualifies us to be dentists, dietitians, or personal trainers, right? We know that the intent is to help establish and reinforce knowledge and skills for us to build a foundation of good habits. Likewise, financial literacy is about having a foundational understanding (knowledge and skills) to navigate the world of financial decisions, including knowing when, where, and how to seek the expertise of, well … the experts.

However, even lowering the bar on what it means to be financially literate doesn’t mean that it’s easy to accomplish. Influencing behaviors — particularly those that require breaking bad habits and/or exercising discipline — poses a huge challenge. Still, that doesn’t mean that we should abandon the notion of instructional time for financial education.

Can financial education be ineffective?
Of course. Any type of educational effort can be ineffective. While some clearly set the bar too high for what defines financial literacy, others set the bar far too low for what constitutes financial education.

Not enough financial education builds in real-world relevance to make concepts and experiences more tangible. Not enough extends beyond an emphasis on financial knowledge and embeds skill building into the learning process. Not enough financial education is meaningful enough to the participants to motivate them to take a proactive approach to their fiscal health.

Fortunately, though, there are examples of financial education that set the bar high — that understand the importance of blending knowledge and skills in ways that prompt reflection on how and why to be fiscally responsible within one’s specific circumstances. The examples that meet these criteria recognize that the intended audience must strongly influence how you engage them in the process. (They’re the antithesis of a one-size-fits-all approach.) The best efforts emphasize skill building around audience-appropriate concepts and experiences.

Financial Education = Skill Building
Let me give you an example of what I mean by using the concept of opportunity costs. Every purchase we make means that we can’t use that money for something else. Those something elses are our opportunity costs. (The concept also applies to how we choose to spend our time, but you get my point, right?) The experiences with and types of opportunity costs of a 15 year-old are drastically different from a 50 year-old. Still, no matter what our age, we should identify and evaluate our opportunity costs.

That’s a skill of a financially literate person — sadly, one that I think far too many people lack. Good financial education helps people develop and strengthen that skill, so as the circumstances and variety of opportunity costs change, the foundation exists to help people make good decisions, in part by helping us learn from bad decisions.

And I think it’d be a bad decision if we were to give up on financial education. Our current economic crisis gives a glimpse at the opportunity costs of failing to stress financial literacy through meaningful and ongoing financial education.