Dream Blog
Read about Dream Tank news and recent events,
watch archived content, and more!
Dreamakers Anya and Summer Produce Inspiring Documentary, “HOME OF THE OWLS”
Anya Smith (10) and Summer Cuppari Gould (11), the Story Architects, heard about the local Owl Preserve that is in danger. BVSD owns the land and is proposing to build 300 affordable houses there. The Dreamakers believe that the housing can be located elsewhere and spare this beautiful land and hunting ground for Great Horned Owls.
The Story Architects decided to partner with the Boulder Owl Preserve and make a documentary film. The challenge: they had school, homework, and 2 weeks to make it, and they didn’t have a drone. Yet, they had a vision to create a fun and inspiring film, and bring viewers into the perspective of the Owls in their Home. Magic and the Dream Tank Collective was on their side, and Filmmaker Jeff Orlowski of Chasing Ice helped us find Andrew Ackerman of Off the Map Media to jump in and help Anya and Summer with a Drone camera. The film includes some ‘making of’ footage at the end and fun music to celebrate the life of Owls.
1) Watch the incredible Online Premiere: “Home of the Owls” with your kids! (4 minutes)
Enjoy the Breathtaking perspective of Great Horned Owls as they hunt!
3) This Tuesday night Feb 14, 2017 bring your kids and join us at the school board Owl Public Hearing!
Speak alongside and meet BVSD students, Summer and Anya, the remarkable young 10 and 11 year old filmmakers of Dream Tank who produced “Home of the Owls”!
At this really important school board meeting, we will ask Boulder Valley School District to help us save the Owls! It’s really easy – you can just say “I love the Owls and please help create the Owl Education Center and the Twin Lakes Owl Preserve.”
More info and RSVP at https://www.meetup.com/BoulderOwlPreserve/events/237516123
5:45 pm Tues Feb 14, BVSD Board Room 6500 East Arapahoe, Boulder, CO
If you can’t make this meeting you can still help!
3) If your child is interested in helping otherwise, you and he/she can email Superintendent Bruce Messinger at: superintendent@bvsd.org
Please send a quick email right away- not later but please now – to Boulder Valley School Superintendent Bruce Messinger. Bruce is a good man – let him know that you love Owls and are grateful for his help in creating the Owl Education Center and the Twin Lakes Owl Preserve.
Please forward a copy of your email to us at: info@BoulderOwlPreserve.org
Thanks SO MUCH from the Owls!
With much gratitude,
Twin Lakes Owl Preserve and Open Space
Ken Beitel, Chair of Wilderness Conservation
email: info@BoulderOwlPreserve.org m. 720 436 2465
Enter the Dream Tank Collective
Do you remember “dreaming big” when you were young? When you thought anything was possible and had no limits on your creativity? What an exhilarating feeling! And do you remember how it felt when that dream was crushed, by an adult, by society, by school? When someone told you it wouldn’t work? That it wasn’t possible?
What if someone had listened to your dreams, encouraged you, believed in you? What if that someone offered you entrepreneurship skills, technology, mentorship, and a global network of people who could help you to bring that dream to life?
Enter the Dream Tank: A launchpad where we ignite dreams to innovate a better future through entrepreneurship.
I have devoted my career to create positive social and sustainable impact through business and finance. I have traveled and spoken on this topic all around the world. I’ve launched and grown nonprofits, businesses and campaigns. I’m also a mom of Cody (8) and Summer (11).
And I’ve noticed a major thing missing in all of these global conversations about systems change: the voice and input of children.
I believe that the children are the key to our future — the key to creating the world that we dream of — because they do not have old thinking ingrained in them. They are filled with unlimited potential and possibility. They have hopes and dreams. They believe in magic. And their brains can use parallel process and technology like we’ve never imagined.
We need children – now more than ever! Albert Einstein said: ‘We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.’
Earlier this year, our Founding Dream Team asked the question: What if we were to give children a launchpad for their dreams to create the world they see is possible? What if we were to help them access entrepreneurship skills, technology, design thinking, mentors and global networks? Our answer is that we saw a new world that was possible.
The awe we have experienced when listening to children’s questions and ideas about the world ignited and awakened our own inner dreamers – and we realized that we could all benefit from awakening and activating our dreams… so we invite you to: ENTER THE DREAM TANK COLLECTIVE and LAUNCH YOUR DREAMS!
Dream Tank Named as Semi-finalist for She-EO Venture Challenge!
I’m so excited to be a part of a feminine funding platform called She-EO. I learned about it when I met Vicki Saunders, the founder and CEO, through my friend Chantal’s Emerging Women luncheon about a year ago. She shared how she created this as a response to the challenging state of startup funding for women-led ventures, and the small number of women investors.
Thus, she created She-Eo to create a way that by inviting the essence of radical generosity into the investment experience, she could inspire women to become investors (activators) where women can invest in women. 500 women invest $1000 each to create a fund of $500k. Women-led, women-run ventures can apply, and 5 ultimately receive the funds. Here’s the most fascinating part: the 5 venture founders go on a retreat together and decide how they are going to divide up the funds. The only rule is that they can’t divide the funds equally.. They have to learn about each other’s businesses and decide collectively. Then, the women in the network who are called Activators, pledge to help the businesses succeed with radical generosity by offering their skills, talents, and a very compassionate container to help the companies grow.
How we got here
I have been in the social impact finance world for over 12 years, most recently at UBS Financial Services as an Impact Investing Wealth Manager, and then leaving to start Anastasia Impact to help women and millennials learn about and ultimately invest their portfolios in alignment with their passion and purpose. In all that time, I had not seen such an innovative way to inspire and activate women to become investors.
Earlier this year, as a single mom of 2 kids, Summer (11) and Cody (8), I discovered a divine spark that came to me through a series of ups and downs in my life and career. I saw how brilliant kids are and how mine responded to design challenges and entrepreneurship. I saw how a dear friend, educator, artist, and creative young millennial young woman, Ashley Kulik, was mentoring my daughter and her friend to create their own kid production company, Story Architects. I was inspired to partner up with Ashley and create Dream Tank. An accelerator and think tank for kids. We announced in May 2016 for our first Accelerator week – July 18-22.
Jumping In with Both Feet
I learned She-EO was coming to Boulder/Denver when Jennifer Simpson met me at Global MindED when I was speaking about the upcoming launch of the Dream Tank pilot in June this year- and when I met her partner Heather MacKenzie a month later, I truly felt amongst powerful sisters, and I knew with all of my heart and soul that I wanted to both become an activator (investor), and also apply as a venture.
At Dream Tank my partners Ashley, Dana and I knew – and felt – that if there were others that resonated with the deep calling we feel to unleash the dreams and brilliance of children, that we had a chance. Dana, our newest rockstar founding partner who courageously and passionately joined us in early November, volunteered to take on the SheEo application with me and we rolled up our sleeves, dove into the application, felt our global vision, and prayed.. And then let go of our attachment to the outcome.
Getting the CALL!
When I got the phone call, I was so blown away! My heart pounded with joy and aliveness. I will never forget that moment. My partner Dana loves to say that she feels the energy of kids when she’s really connected. I can say that in this moment I felt the joy of kids everywhere coursing through my body. I shared the news with my partners and we all jumped up and down.
Circle of Midwives
Most powerfully is that I’ve imagined and had visions that Dream Tank – where we are Igniting young people’s innovative dreams for positive social and environmental impact – is meant to be birthed within a circle of midwives – who are women, and men who really get it. Midwives who care about its life, and growth, with compassion, generosity, and love. Regardless if we make the final 5, we already feel so held in a circle of midwives, and will never forget this time as critical in Dream Tank’s journey.
Celebrating Dreammaker Success
Recap from our recent pitch night: Kids Can Fly!
Our recent event, Kids Can Fly: Dream Lab Live, was an extraordinary success! On November 18th, 2016, Dream Tank 8-14 year old entrepreneurs, or Dreamakers as we call them, unveiled the dreams and designs they incubated at Dream Lab over the course of twelve weeks.
This was a kid-led, kid-inspired and created event!
Some of the amazing highlights:
DREAMINATOR – a game show created by all of the Dreamakers for the whole audience to participate in
Tank Talk: An interview and talk by a 14 year old mentor to the younger kids
Live Virtual Reality Demonstration
A Short film that intentionally included a last scene shot at the event.. with the kids who attended, and then published under pressure by 10 & 11 year olds just minutes before their presentation.. with total grace.
A Flash Mob!
Watch our video and enjoy the flight!
Thank you Impact Hub Boulder and to Alais Clay for video production.
Thank you to our Event Sponsors:
Liquid Light Project – Dara’s Raw Balls – Noosa Yogurt – Boulder Organics – Rainbow Lightning
and our beloved Impact Hub Boulder!