by Walt Carvalho

The tragic events over the last few weeks have reminded us of how fragile the living experience can be. I know for myself, the pain and suffering the people of Japan have endured and continue to endure is incomprehensible.

As we witness the ongoing events that unravel every day as this brave Japanese society rebuilds and mourns the loss of family and friends, we also see the desire for so many around the world to help those in need.

A remarkable effort has come to my attention. This monumental effort is being organized and executed by many young people with the hope of providing aid and relief for Japanese victims by the sales of art created by at least eighty-four artists displaying art over two venues in San Francisco, CA. Media sponsors Society Theory and Warholian.com will be covering the event.

The events are as follows:

Date/Time: Sat, April 2nd

                  7pm – 12am

Venues: Gallery Heist + Kokoro Studio

Locations: Gallery Heist: 679 Geary St, SF

                Kokoro Studio: 682 Geary St. SF

Japanese and American artists will be joining in an effort to generate funds for Japan relief. RISE JAPAN will be an art exhibit shown by San Francisco art galleries: Gallery Heist and Kokoro Studio in response to the massive tragedy Japan faced as a result of the devastating earthquakes and tsunami disaster Japan has endured. All artwork will sell for $100 or below. All proceeds will be donated to Give2Asia.com: Artists Help Japan – Earthquakes&Tsunami 2011.

For more information, visit http://give2asia.org/artistshelp

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by Walt Carvalho

Japan suffered a huge disaster; Friday afternoon their time, as an 8.9 earthquake combined with a massive tsunami caused considerable damage involving much of the country. Twitter alerted users as news broke of the disaster. Tweets were being posted with notifications and video links. Facebook opened discussions regarding images coming out of Japan. Facebook posts also provided major concerns for family and friends living in Japan at the time of the horrible disaster.

Japan unfortunately, lost digital coverage in areas where they suffered great devastation. Losing digital communication could prove disastrous in recovering victims in remote areas since the tsunami carried homes, cars, boats and probably people far from initial contact with the massive waves measuring up to thirty feet.

Japan could be looking at aftershocks lasting for weeks. There has been over sixty-five aftershocks within the first day almost all of them measuring over 5.0.

Airports throughout Japan, including Tokyo, were shut down due to damage.

The world has been watching in shock as information coming out of Japan is producing so many different videos and images of the horror experienced by so many.

The effects of the earthquake and tsunami are now involving other areas in the Pacific. Hawaii is bracing for potential damage and destruction as the energy has traveled across the ocean with Hawaii being in its path.

We hope for the safety of all involved in this major disaster. They are in our thoughts and prayers.

Photo: Special thanks to flickr/creative commons

By Walt Carvalho

There isn’t a day that goes by where something new doesn’t grab my attention because of its genius or creative innovation. I’ll usually find it in a tweet, linking me to a cool site, which someone has just launched. It may come from a facebook post, where a group of people has gotten together to accomplish something special. It could be the result of a blog post, as a writer shares an idea that moves people to make his dream a reality. One thing for sure - there are some amazing things taking place in our world today.

Greatness is decided at a crossroad. One path, appearing easy, will take you to mediocrity. The other is a new road built by growth, innovation and creativity. Passionate people are usually behind many of the marvelous digital advances we see today. They continue to design and build with vision as digital communities grow.

We are now, as a society, building the groundwork. Our new technology and the digital marketing knowledge we are acquiring will enable us to compete in an online worldwide marketplace. Governments who fear the power of social networking, causing them to shut down Internet resources, will find their illusions of control over their citizens as a means that will cause failure in their economic success in the near future. Businesses everywhere are becoming social.

Social Business is being supported by Social Consumers. This consumer base is growing larger by the day. They are driven not only by social media sites but also by other digital media which allows them access to information about products and services within their networking circles. They now have social and digital access everywhere and anywhere a web connect can be found.

It’s a common human trait to protect what is. There’s the comfort of the status quo. There’s the security of having a vision, which looks to the past. On the other hand, there are the passionate innovators and the many passionate users of the digital products and services they develop. One group is huddled staring at each other while the other group is becoming the future.

Get Creative. Get Social.

Photo: Thanks to - flickr/creativecommons/mindluge