Ode isn’t just a magazine. Look deeper, and you’ll see a community of like-minded individuals working to move this world forward in the way we all know it needs to go. That’s why we often say Ode isn’t your media; it’s your medium. And that’s why this winter, I proposed we mount Ode’s first online auction. I saw it as a productive, fun way to bring our talented community together and generate new connections between longtime advertisers, aligned companies who belong in our pages, interview subjects past and future, writers and editors, readers with vision, and an altogether different brand of “consumer,” one who seeks sustainable goods and transformative experiences.
Happily, everyone else saw it this way too. Cultural pioneers like Charles Eisenstein and Paul Hawken stepped up willingly to contribute. Charles committed to escorting two lucky bidders to the Slow Living Summit in Vermont this summer (two free admissions are up for bid as well), while Paul offered the shirt off his back. Literally. (Log onto the auction site to find out why.) Financial columnist Amy Domini volunteered to take an aspiring social investor to lunch, while Ode’s managing editor agreed to lead aspiring writers through a discussion of which pitches sell and why.
Companies were no less generous. Savvy Rest donated a $3,000 organic mattress, ALIA Institute a $2,500 seat at its summer leadership conference. Berrett-Koehler contributed a $1,600 self-publishing package. Life Ionizer gave a $2,200 water purifier, The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Enlightenment offered a $10,000 retreat at the Miraval Resort in Tucson and health pioneer Johan Boswinkel gave a $37,000 training course. Readers came forward with skills in filming, coaching, massages, fashion, logo design, painting and more. We have grad. school tuition credits, a homeschool curriculum package, a training course for yoga teachers on giving classes in prison. I can count on my fingers the number of times we were refused.
The result is the freshly launched Ode Community Auction, where you’ll find 125 items at a total suggested value of $115,000—and more to come in the next 30 days. Please visit the auction and enjoy the gifts our community has to offer, knowing that any funds you commit to Ode go toward making our world more of what you want it to be.
So make your bid for a better world. And then? Let’s work together to build it.
With love for this crazy, wonderful community,
Carol Greenhouse
Auctioneer-in-Chief
The Ode Community Auction
I like this article, it is very interesting to know what people are doing for the community. God bless America and you!