E4C Philosophy

The thinking behind EventsForChange.
For millennia, you could argue that the most powerful influences on the planet were religion and a long parade of nation-states.  But more recently, there is a growing appreciation of the power of business to impact our lives.  That’s because businesses control huge resources: money, people, time and effort, and often information.  Here in Vermont, we figure Ben & Jerry got it right when they said that “the most powerful force in society is business.”   And when you think about it, every event is really like starting up a new business: you have your objectives, you create a plan to make it happen, you execute, and you expect a return on your investment of resources.  If there were more ways to increase that ROI after all of that work, wouldn’t you want to take advantage of them?   And by returns, I’m not just talking about money.  I’m also talking about solving problems, educating people, inspiring them to action, getting things built, and making connections so that people can collaborate and continue to make a positive impact long after the event is over.

Here’s the basic concept: whether it’s six employees meeting around a boardroom table or millions of viewers watching the Superbowl, all events have one thing in common: they bring people together.  And people are resources: they each bring their own ideas, energy, money, muscles, expertise and connections to others. They also offer you the opportunity to change the way they think about something or to inspire them to some sort of action. Every planning decision you make can have an impact: the site you select, the experience you design for the participants, who you select as vendors and service providers, the way you treat your staff or volunteers, how you distribute the revenues…all of these (and much more) provide opportunities to produce a positive effect on others and the world at large.

If you don’t consider yourself an event planner, but you advocate for a cause or non-profit organization, then events can serve as an effective tool for accomplishing many of your goals. Events give you the capability to channel resources and influence how people think and behave.  And that’s power!

You may not be able to solve world problems with one single event, but you can make a significant impact on one corner of the world and–collectively–we truly can change the world.