Name: Bryan
Posts by Bryan:
- Screening a documentary on Burma, it’s called “Crossing Midnight.”
- Educating one another about Burma, the history, the people, the regime. Understanding why the regime is oppressing it’s people and why the world tolerates it’s actions.
- Action: each person who attends will call or email their Senator, urging President Obama and Secretary of State Clinton to pressure the UN to act on Burma.
- Present your content well with quality design and really good branding.
- Create brand standards and FOLLOW THEM.
- Utilize free web applications appropriately.
- Create a marketing plan.
- Expect quality but not at the price of your lone media staff member.
- Be realistic.
- Seek help from professionals and ask questions (we like to display our knowledge).
eleho in Haiti
February 5th, 2010Officially, eleho is not in Haiti but a member of our team was asked to travel with an organization to the country. Bryan will be documenting on the trip on video for an organization called Project 81. They are a group of people who have been working in Port au Prince and a town called Village 81 (the 81 is how many kilometers from the capital) to lessen the constant sting of poverty. We are honored that we can be a part of the relief effort even in the smallest of ways. Poverty is the same everywhere and we feel obligated to support those in desperate need.
Below is from his personal blog which you can visit at: http://bryanmonzon.com/blog or follow him on twitter @bryanmonzon
After a long couple of days of travel, I’ve yet to arrive in Haiti but I’m one step away. I’ve flown across the United States to Tampa, Florida and drove in the rain through a tornado warning into Miami. We’re at the Marriot where, on Super Bowl weekend, we have 6 rooms for one night at $40.00 total! Jared Brown, Co-Founder of Project 81 and organizer of this trip, somehow managed to pull this feat off.
I’m rooming with Greg and James, two native Haitians making the journey along with the team. The team is quite a crew. There’s 18 total of us and team members skills vary from neurosurgeon to journalists. I am the team’s videographer.
We leave tomorrow on a US military aid plane at 1:30pm EST. The flight is less than 2 hours long and we will certainly be inserted into a world like we’ve never imagined. I was in the San Bernadino mountains during the ‘94 Northridge earthquakes and I remember the images of the 1989 San Francisco quake. It’s hard for an economic powerhouse like California and America to recover from such destruction, let alone a nation already impoverished before the catastrophe.What to expect from this trip would be impossible. It’s such an awkward thing for people who want to wish us well and say “have fun” or “oooh that’ll be exciting”. While the adventure is an adventure, I would much rather visit on different terms. The quake happened, I have skills that could be used and the opportunity was available. I’m thankful for that and look forward to meeting more wonderful people.
With all of this I realize more and more that this is where I want to be. Traveling to meet people, hopefully meet their needs and gain a fantastic friendship that lasts a lifetime.
Alms for 10,000 Monks
November 28th, 2009Straight out of Thailand is some video footage from Austin Flack our filmmaker. Check it out!
Ignite Project
October 19th, 2009the movement is growing of students sick and tired of what is happening in Burma. With Aung San Suu Kyi’s fresh sentence of house arrest and multiple attempts by the Burma Regime to establish legitimacy in the eyes of the world, students will not be deceived.
with hundreds of people illegally imprisoned and over a million people displaced within the country and millions displaced on the Thai-Burma border – not to mention the executions, murder and rape – enough is enough. on October 28 – we’re binding together to educate one another and act now to pressure our Senate and President to urge the UN to take immediate action against the Burma regime.
time is short so we need you on board now. if you’re a student and are ready to lead, order a lovemine toolkit here. it will give you all the info to run the ignite project at your school (on oct 28).
what the ignite project is
on october 28, college and universities across the country will host an ignite project on their campus. the event will comprise of:
ignite project is designed to do what it name says: ignite. it’s a starting point to raise further awareness on your campus. it’s one of many lovemine events designed to equip and support your voice getting heard in the Burma conversation.
questions? comments? email lovemine team.
order a lovemine now.
Closing Reflections As I Leave Thailand
July 13th, 2009
It’s all a bit surreal for me. I was sitting in the back of a cab at 3 in the morning headed to the airport to return home. The taxi driver put on a CD, probably because he couldn’t speak english and the silence was a bit awkward. Immediately I recognized the intro of the song to be Linkin Park. The music quite anthemic and really fits as the closing song to a movie like Transformers or James Bond. This would be where the final montage with me in the back seat, in silence, passing by the king’s palace and throughout the dingy city of Bangkok. Peering out the window I watch the city I just saved from mass destruction whisk by thinking about how amazing I am.
Well maybe that’s being dramatic (and I’m not amazing at all) but I did feel nostalgic and reflective as I began my long journey home. Learning how to fight for human rights and social justice has been extremely tough on me. If you’re realistic you quarrel with some philosophical principles and the human nature to help. I began to write a few days ago about in my own journal about this struggle. Upon learning bad news I had to come to a resolution.
So here’s the entry:
Today is my final day in Thailand. Tonight (Friday night), I head down to Bangkok on the night bus and Sunday, I leave for home. My initial thoughts as I leave are to “miss” my bus and stay here forever but my family back home would hate me and I don’t think I could live with that, so I’ll board the plane as planned and return to reality where bills and school await me.
I absolutely love traveling without expectations. I recommend to those of you who are type A people and travel the world to loosen up on the schedule a bit. It will open you up to unexpected adventures. I changed my plans two days before I was supposed to visit the islands and the trip took a dramatic turn.
Father of this newborn died recently leaving him and his 3 brothers and sister alone with their mother.
For the rest of the trip I will be traveling home with a heavy heart. This picture is of a baby whose father died only a couple of days ago. The father left 4 kids alone with a mother who all live on the street already. The family would regularly be in attendance at the street ministry where Compasio would spend an hour each day talking and providing the children with a small amount of food. The people on the street say it was a boil on his face but it was probably something like the flu or a cold. The possibilities are endless. The fact remains, the kids are left without a father have a bleak future.
In addition to the father passing away, I also learned that the aunt (age is in the twenties) of one the babies Compasio cares for was raped and murdered only a few days ago as well. They have no idea why or who committed the crime. She was however involved with the drug and sex trade for several of years. Also, there were 9 homeless Burmese people imprisoned this week-their kids were left to fend for themselves. They, as of this afternoon, are still sitting in prison and the kids are running around town begging and collecting bottles for recycling.
When the experts say “create sustainability” and use buzzwords college students and professors speak of, I want so bad to make that happen in Burma and Thailand. My question to the academic world and those with greater wisdom than I is, how can “sustainability” happen in a place where a Burmese man tells me he ran from his own country because living on the streets in Thailand, illegally, is safer for his family? He’s legally not allowed to work, has no health benefits, cannot rent or own a home and is forced to live on the streets. If an organization were to advertise a product made by Burmese but operated in Thailand, they could be investigated and then kicked out of the country, not helping anyone. Maybe it’s a risk worth taking.
Quite possibly I am missing components of this because I’m an artist learning the nuances of development. In several conversations with the people working out here, there doesn’t seem to be any one solution that is working. In fact the only solution I see happening are organizations working just to provide the essentials of food and clean water. Maybe at this moment in time, that’s all we as westerner’s looking to help in someway or another can provide right now.
I can sum up how I feel in a small paragraph written by my friend Megan Byrd for eleho. She wrote:
We are the collective. Surfers. Students, Artists. Entrepreneurs. Idealists. We’re here to author change, expose honesty and pursue life for a people beyond conflict. For us it’s about more than doing good – it’s about doing right. It’s about being human in a world of inhumanity. We are the witnesses who must do more than watch. We are the privileged who are privileged to give back.
My greatest conviction is that I’ll just be someone who passes by and misses the issues lying in the cracks and crevices that hide within brief interactions. My biggest problem is that I carry the weight of the world when it’s impossible to believe that I could save everyone from their problems.
So as I conclude this trip I am leaving with less answers to more questions. J in Chiang Mai opened my eyes to the real problem being the distrust of all the people in Thailand (from an earlier post). My study of the book, The River of Lost Footsteps has revealed a history of betrayal and disloyalty for several hundreds of years which might possibly still be woven in the thread of this broken country. My trips to Mae Sot and Mae La have revealed that the problems are not easy to solve and that an easy package solutions that work in other countries aren’t always applicable everywhere else.
My personal resolution in all this is that there are hungry people who need to eat and who need to drink clean water. There are people who need immediate medical attention and protection from the dangers of a society capable of great evil.
Thoughts on the Web for Small Organizations
July 6th, 2009I decided to write a post about the web for small organizations. In essence we are a small org working in a big and intimidating world. The main goal of a humanitarian organization is to raise awareness/funds and create change. A video is only profitable if hundreds, thousands and sometimes millions view it. Not only view it, but also send it to their friends to view as well. The web has been woven into the thread of our everyday relationships and style of living. More people regularly use the web than ever before. Check out this short video I found a few days ago (on a friends blog).
The video really illustrates well how we get our information. How are we to compete with CNN, Al-Jazeera, BBC and Google to be a reputable source of information? Or what about showcasing yourself as a worthy location to donate hard earned funds? You can’t just expect people to ignore their first impression of your organization if your site looks like it was built by a 13 year old myspace whiz.
Well, I am not a programming genius but I have learned enough code to make me dangerous. I’ve leaned on free web applications to produce a product that is attractive and functional. Our site was free because I built it myself. Expect to pay anywhere from $100-$3000 dollars for a site depending on how customized you want it.
To Begin:
Every non-profit is essentially a business and needs some sort of marketing plan. The sad part of working in the humanitarian world is that often times, it’s a competition for money. Only the well-known orgs with quality design really get ahead. By having a quality web presence, simple design and by utilizing free web applications like, Vimeo, Twitter, Youtube, MailChimp, Google Analytics and WordPress you can do a lot of damage.
There is a slight learning curve in achieving these goals but here’s how we are using them. If you’re a small organization looking for some better solutions, check these out.
WordPress
You’ve probably heard this term often and are wondering what it is. Basically it’s a blog. As a web programmer myself, wordpress is so much more than a blog. It was designed to give users flexibility in design and functions. For example, look at my friend Cole Nesmith’s site. He is a writer and has a unique style to site which is really just a blog. You can sign up for free on their site or for more flexibility, you can down load the open source (meaning free) code and files and install it on your own server. The only step is to create a database and connect it. After that is done, you can select from thousands of themes to fit your needs and change out pictures when you need to. When you update posts, the process is as easy as using Microsoft Word or my favorite, Apple Pages.
As I said, there is a bit of a learning curve the more you want customized you want it. You can also buy themes which tend to offer more applications and flexibility. It’s very easy to steal themes and not be ethical about it, people work hard to make the web a better place, make sure you pay them for their hard work.
The power of WordPress is it’s integration with other web applications.
Some of you we’re on Twitter when you received an update from eleho saying there’s a new blog up. No one on our team actually posted that update. In fact, wordpress did it all by itself. When I hit publish it posts to our site in the proper categories and then sends to Twitter using it’s robust API (basically a key/password allowing you to access your Twitter account) to update the site and then all of you.
For all of you who were wondering what the big fuss is with Twitter, well this is one of the man reasons! The fact that we can update our 1,000+ followers instantly and with a short message is insane! We can embed Vimeo or Youtube videos into a post and then with one click send it out to everyone interested.
Mail Chimp
Though Twitter is great, you have only 140 characters (including spaces) to write a message. For email campaigns of greater importance I introduce to you, Mail Chimp. I’ve found it’s the easiest and least expensive way to send massive amounts of emails. Not only that, their templates, tutorials, statistical analysis and presentation of data is by far the best I’ve used.
We don’t use mass emailing much because of it isn’t the best way to get people to your site. Most people, if they even open the email, won’t click ANY links. Several reasons for that would be the content of the email. The best way to design and communicate via email is to assign ONE link and use it for event based or emergency communication purposes. Find a graphic design to make an image and a huge “CLICK HERE” button on it.
Google Analytics
This is the most amazing free web application out there. It’s so intense I don’t even know where to begin. The only way to know if you’re reaching your intended audience is to analyze who’s visiting. GA will take of this for you. You can look at a map of the entire world and what countries people are visiting from and what specific cities as well. You can see what screen size, what screen colors, how long they are on your site, what pages they visit most and so much more.
Comparing this month Jun 4, 2009 – Jul 4, 2009 with last month May 4, 2009 – Jun 3, 2009, eleho has had a 257.06% increase in visitors. The average time on our site is 3 minutes 37 seconds. Visitors that come to one page and leave (also known as bounce rate) is 60.96%. There are an average of 2.55 pages per visit and 56.51% of our visitors are brand new (meaning they’re on an IP address that hasn’t yet been logged by Google. The analytics also tell us where we receive the most traffic from. As of now, Twitter and Facebook are currently the top two referring sites by far.
Design v. Content
There’s a timeless debate about what’s more important, design or content. Most of the time, a programmer can’t design, doesn’t like to and wouldn’t touch Photoshop with a ten-foot pole. Most designers want a tool or button that tell the server in laymen’s terms, “make button turn into this color when user presses it. ” They want the easiest solution saving as much time as possible. The undeniable truth is that both work together hand in hand.
Good design makes the user happy and do what they need to do quickly. A good designer creates an environment that’s balanced and easy to follow for any user. I use Facebook as an example. The code behind that site is ridiculous and if typed out in Times New Roman, 12pt font, in one long line it would most likely wrap it’s self around the world endlessly. The code to make a post on a wall without taking you to another page is for the user’s experience. The information design of where the buttons are placed, the text box, the unifying elements that make it “Facebook” can also make the user feel at ease as well.
Conclusion
There is so much more to the web than meets the eye. There is NO simple way around the web. There isn’t a “button” that makes things look cool. Sure Apple’s iWeb is great but it has several flaws and problems with itself also. A friend said once that “content is king” in the world of web and while that may be true, my response was, “then design is queen.”
Okay, I’m done now. I’m gonna go have a Pineapple shake and take my motorbike around Chiang Mai for a bit. It’s rained for almost 48 hours now and I’m loving it. I apologize to those looking for a post about Burma. This is more for organizations in search for some better solutions to their design and web needs. Have a rad day/night wherever ya’ll are in the world!
Addendum:
Lance Armstrong just tweeted this article about fundraising using Twitter.
Change of Plans
July 5th, 2009Instead of heading south to the beach, to vacation like I had planned, I am headed back to Mae Sot to help my friend Carl with some video projects. Carl is one of the main reasons I know about Burma and fell in love with the people. He and I have been friends since 7th grade and have yet to hang out in Thailand together.
Carl started Unite for Humanity. Essentially, it is Carl and his wife Leslie committing to a hostel in Mae Sot, Thailand and the well-being of the 127 children living there. They have been involved with the hostel since 2004 and still going strong. Check out their website to see some of the projects they are working on: http://www.uniteforhumanity.com.
Since Abby left this past weekend, I decided the beach wouldn’t be quite as fun alone. What would I do but sit there and spend more money than I need to. Instead we’ll work on getting some better quality videos up for them and maybe chat about some design stuff with their site and where they want to take their org. It should be a great time and I’m really looking forward to it now! I’ll post some pictures and an update when I get the chance.
Happy Independence Day
July 4th, 2009This evening I spoke with a man from Burma. He is from Shan State but his grandfather is from Nepal and his father, moved to Northern Burma for a better education (when it was the best in all Asia). He is 27 years old now and I’ll only refer to him as J to protect his identity. That is in fact why the picture of him is blurred.
J has been living in Chiang Mai for several years now. He is a tailor and a very good one. In 2008, Ryan and I by chance, walked into his shop in search for a good deal on a suit. His shop was the first we stopped into. We were very guarded about who to trust. As you might know, tailors in Thailand are as common as 7-11’s, Buddhist temples and taxi drivers. This by no means was going to be the only shop we went into that day. Instead it ended up being the only shop we’ll ever enter as long as it continues to run.
After some talking and half-hearted negotiating, J asked me about my shirt. I was wearing a Peace Love Life shirt which reads “BURMA” on the front and in the native Burmese script it says “Peace Love Life.” He asked if I knew it what it said and of course, I did. He smile and said “I am from Burma.” In about an instant, our guard was completely destroyed and a new friendship was to begin.
J took good care of Ryan and I that day. We came in several times for fittings and got our clothing tailored perfectly. Through our conversation with J we realized we knew a lot of the same people working in Burma, primarily, the team from Partners International.
After we got our blazers and suits, I convinced an Australian couple to come in and buy a suit and custom dress. My Aussie friends we headed to a wedding in a few months and were also expecting. J was kind enough to design and tailor a dress that would fit perfectly no matter how big her baby grew in her stomach.
Does this give you an idea of the kind of man J is?
J’s story is intense! He is from Northern Burma. He ran from Burma over 10 years ago. He spent time in Thailand illegally. He got his migrant papers 6 or 7 years ago but still works under the table (you’re not allowed to work good paying jobs as a migrant). He’s been in jail several times for being in Thailand illegally. He speaks several languages: Nepalese, Shan, Thai, English and Burmese to name a few. His family still lives in Burma. He has had to pay thousands of Thai Baht to avoid arrest and deportation. He’s not allowed to drive a motor bike in Thailand and if he does, he has to take all backstreets and allies for fear of checkpoints and being forced to pay more money. He’s tried leaving Chiang Mai to visit friends in other parts of the country. When he does he often pays off police officers up to 2,000THB(Baht) $60USD) only to be turned around and sent back to Chiang Mai also paying at least another 3,000THB avoiding jail and deportation.
Tonight, I went to say hi to him. Every time I do it ends up being hours of him telling stories. I couldn’t do it justice here. I recommend you visiting with him sometime. The stories where I see the most pain are about his father.
His father moved them to Northern Burma for a better education. They didn’t want to live in the hill tribes any more and they knew they needed a better education. At one time, before this military junta was in power, Burma had a wonderful education system. You can see it still in the refugee camps at times. Some people speak perfect english others are doctors and some are extremely talented musicians.
With a military in control of this control, everything in Burma has fallen into shambles. There is so much separation between all the ethnic groups. The military are all looking out for themselves rather than the good of the people. SSA (Shan State Army) make deals with the Burma Army and get paid to not fight them. The Burma Army runs around with no consequence and terrorizes villages all over. No one can stop them.
J started to explain how his father would try and please both sides, the SSA and the Burma army. The people were always caught in the middle. I could see J tearing up so I started talking. What I said was, “it seems like an impossible situation and something no other country can fix.” J perked up and agreed, “Bryan, what you say is right, ‘my neighbor cannot fix the problems in my household, only my family can do it.”
America cannot solve Burma’s problems or Iraq’s problems. All we can do is build relationships and love people. Beyond that, we create more problems like dependency and apathy by just dropping tons of cash in a country. By sending in troops we miscommunicate our intentions and cause fear and fear is what ultimately leads to distrust.
J isn’t fooled by the hype. He isn’t apathetic as he is realistic. He has no home. Officially, he is a migrant with very few rights. He sleeps in Chiang Mai but how will he eat if he cannot work?
I don’t need much to remind me of the freedom I have. Fittingly, the 4th of July is this weekend. Never more am I in awe of George Washington stepping down willingly to set the example of government should look like. Even though we have several looming problems in America and all western countries, none compare to places like Burma, North Korea and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
I won’t patronize you with a cliche closing like “let’s not take for granted our freedom…” but rather encourage you to simply find hope somewhere in your life and maybe even be the inspiration of hope in someone else’s life. All J has to cling to is a hope that one day he will be free to live, raise a family without the ever present fear of death and have a place to call home.
New Ink
July 1st, 2009Check out my tattoos. They’re my first. I like em.
My left wrist says “love” and my right hand says “hope” in Burmese. I’ve thought about doing it for about a year now. When I’ve made my trips into Karen and Shan State and even Chin State (various regions within Burma) all the men had tatts on their arms. For the most part they were prayers for safety, for courage, and for hope. They have no choice to be committed. It’s their lives for which they fight. I get to leave and return to America as much as I want.
Burma is engrained in my heart. For whatever reason I’m drawn to this country and I have no plans of stopping. At times it’s quite rough and I question why I get so involved. Bottom line, there are people in Burma who need hope and love.
I can’t speak Burmese yet and maybe never will. At least my wrists can tell them how I feel.
Street Kids – Compasio
June 26th, 2009
This week we are spending time with some people from Compasio in the border town of Mae Sot. Mae Sot is a very unique town. It is located directly on the Thai/Burma border. The town is quite diverse in culture and religions. You have the migrant community with the Karen and Burmese, you also have the Muslim district and then you have the Thai community. There is also this other community of people working to help the cause in Burma. Because of it’s proximity to the border people have been able to get directly involved here.
One organization that is making a huge impact is Compasio. They are a group with very big hearts. “We never say no to anyone” is a quote I’ve heard over and over again. They have taken in a few kids and committed to raising them. They also spend time with local street kids who beg in the markets. There are also a few families that they’ve begun spending time with and have invested in helping them and their kids.
Here is a brief description of who Compasio and what their organization does from their website:
Seeing a need, feeling compassion and acting with practical love on behalf of those who are poor, needy and at risk, this is the heart of Compasio. See.Feel.Act
When Allan & Joane, the founders of Compasio, first came to Thailand in 2001 while leading a Youth With A Mission (YWAM) outreach, they bumped into the issues of girls-at-risk, poverty and vulnerability, and the displaced peoples of Burma. They were shocked to hear that one of their sweet, smiling, female English students — barely in her teens — was being pressured by her mother and at immediate risk of being sent to work into prostitution.
Compasio was formed in 2006 to focus the issue of women and children at risk in Thailand. Most ministry is focussed on the migrant community and tribal groups living along the Thai-Burmese border, who are among the poorest and highest at-risk people groups of Thailand.
I personally enjoy these kids and I love what their organization is doing. I have thoroughly enjoyed our time hanging with them, their staff and the people they serve. Check out their site at http://compasio.org and find out even more about their team. They’re doing a lot and if you can donate ya should.
Away We Go
June 19th, 2009It hasn’t hit me completely yet. In fact, it won’t until I’m in the airport. This is my 3rd time in Thailand since August of 2006 and I’m not in the least bit tired of it. Both of my previous trips were unbelievable.
The first trip introduced me to the Karen people of Burma. It introduced me to the most humble, selfless, and loving people I’ve ever met and changed me forever. I’m only hours away from departure and a long flight from being at my second home.
The problems of Burma are far and wide. Unconquerable by any one person or group. A massive change of in the hearts of the people of Burma is really their only hope. I and my friends can do all we want to help but in reality, it’s not our fight. We live in the freedom of our homes in the western world and are only affected in a superficial way, as compared to those directly involved.
So why go? Well, because I can. Because the value placed on human life is far greater to me than anyone one possession I have here. Because my family loved me so much and gave me the courage to travel into jungles and places that most would never dare and simply love another person.
So as I stumble upon my words at 2:44am, I’ll conclude with this: those who call themselves “missionaries” or “activists” and make a lot of noise about it have missed the point. I mean, people who have to label themselves and stake claim to all that they do forget that loving someone doesn’t always involve “doing” something.
This trip has little in the way of plans, in fact none of our trips really did. Where we’re at as an organization is research and make connections. I think it’s important to build relationships with those suffering and all those working to ease their struggle.
As my scatter brained attempt to make logical sense continues to finish up packing, I will say I love you guys and thank you for your encouragement in making these things happen.
I’m chatting with Ryan online and it’s now 2:52am and we just figured out that Eleho has spent 6 months of the past year in Thailand. His reply was “not bad for a group of kids with no money.” Anything is possible. Focus on the details and the individuals and you can ever be blamed for not being effective.
