Impact on HuffingtonPost.com

Dame Mary Marsh: What Are the Social Sector's Skills and Leadership Needs?

2013-05-21T23:00:00Z

Six months ago I was asked by the Minister for Civil Society to lead a review into the critical skills and leadership gaps facing charities and social enterprises, what I call the social sector.

Working alongside a great working group including Skills-Third Sector, ACEVO, NCVO, NAVCA, Small Charities Coalition, UnLtd and UK Community Foundations, we drew insights from a diverse range of organisations, both through face to face meetings and through social media conversations.

From our discussions eight key areas emerged as the critical areas for the sector to address: governance; leadership; routes into and through the sector; skills sharing; digital fluency; data-informed social change; enterprise capability; and collaboration. We have published these findings on a blog site leadingsocial.org.uk where each theme reviews the challenges, reflects on the best practice and identifies solutions - things that we can be doing ourselves in the sector, as well as things that Government could do to support us.

What is clear for all of these areas is that across the sector, individuals and organisations are already rising to the challenge and developing innovative and effective solutions. And there is a real commitment to drive this further, demonstrated by how many people contributed to the review, and by the numbers now signing up to help co-design The Skills Platform to develop a digital platform for the sector where organisations can not only find the right skills and training, but also swap and share their existing expertise.

Many of the challenges we are facing are not unique to the social sector, and the radical shifts in opportunity and changed financial context are also shared in particular with private sector SMEs. If we are to meet these challenges we need to quickly get to grips with areas such as the mostly intergenerational gap in digital fluency, the lack of skilled data driven approaches and a lack of enterprise capability. This will require us to not only give a focus to these areas in our work, but also recognise the value of increased openness and 'boundary hopping' between other sectors. We can, for example, learn from private sector SMEs about how they are using data to inform and drive their businesses, and adapt this to help us inform our service delivery and drive social change.

We also need to build on our ownership of skills and leadership development. We will not get far in developing leadership and skills unless all of us recognise that we are each personally responsible for our own development. What does this mean? Partly that we can each get better at using our personal networks and online resources. But more than that, if every single one of us is trying to improve ourselves because we know that this will improve the end result for beneficiaries, we will create a tidal wave of improvement and innovation.

And beyond that, those at the top of organisations, including those in governance, will need to show leadership in developing and 'growing' people, both by being a role model in this, and through actively prioritising a developmental approach throughout the organisation, including of course for volunteers as well as paid staff. To do this effectively, leaders will need to be prepared to be robust in how we manage people, balancing development, coaching and support with a clear expectation of delivery and performance. But difficult and honest conversations can be highly productive if they support constructive reflection and action.

There is a role that we all have to play in responding to the changing skills needs that we will continue to face, and the diversity of the sector will mean that different organisations will need to reflect on these broader themes and identify priorities and appropriate solutions that work for them.

What we've shared so far on leadingsocial.org.uk should be seen as the starting point, from which everyone across the sector will build. If we recognise our shared commitment to social change, we will all benefit from greater openness in sharing challenges and solutions.

Jessica Hendricks: Born Brave

2013-05-21T16:05:21Z

My bravery comes from my mother. A renegade, studying photography in Africa while in college, and birthing me in Paris, her exquisite curiosity and joie de vivre ignited my wanderlust. My wide-eyed entrepreneurial spirit was passed down to me from her, as I watched her open her own jewelry boutique with unstoppable passion and originality.

I learned a few years back that not every daughter has the luxury of watching her mom live out her dreams as I have. While teaching English to young students in Thailand in 2008, I decided to take a trip to Cambodia to see the famous temples of Angkor Wat, a remnant of Cambodia's rich ancient culture. I was fascinated by the tangled synthesis of both the beautiful and heartbreakingly violent past of this small Buddhist country.

A theater major at NYU at the time, immersed in a cocoon of creativity, it was positively numbing to step foot in a country where, less than 30 years prior, artists were targeted in mass genocide. More chilling still was the modern-day reality on the streets: Girls as items for sale.

It was the brave stories passed down by my mother that led me to this faraway place, and it was pure, heroic bravery that the Cambodian people taught me through their acknowledgment and celebration of their own stories, difficult as they may be. I met artists whose parents were killed because of their craft, who were able to overcome this violence, continuing in their family's tradition and creating beautiful art today. I met survivors of trafficking who have committed their lives to sharing their painful stories of abuse in an effort to spread awareness and plant the seeds of change.

Inspired by the courage of these amazing people, most of them women, I decided to bring their bravery back to the states by sharing their stories, and actualizing my own. In 2012, I launched The Brave Collection, a line of bracelets made in Cambodia that say "Brave" in Khmer, the language of Cambodia. Each handmade bracelet is a job opportunity for a fair-trade artisan, and with each bracelet that finds a wrist, a donation is made to fight trafficking through our work with partners like Half the Sky Movement and the Somaly Mam Foundation. Our bracelets serve as a token of freedom, and a reminder of the inner bravery that unites women across the globe.

Every little girl should grow up as proud of their mom as I am, and by working together to support women from New York to Cambodia, together we can make that so.

This spring, we celebrate women graduates across the country, wishing them tremendous success as they begin to build their careers and follow their dreams. Let's celebrate the dreams of women everywhere. If we can find a way to nurture the talent, confidence and bravery of women today, we will be effortlessly inspiring the daughters of tomorrow.

Dale McGowan: Compassionate Humanism: Closing the Giving Gap

2013-05-21T16:02:15Z

Imagine you've designed an experiment to find out how to motivate people to give more to charity. One group attends a weekly inspirational talk. They hear about the needs of those less fortunate and are urged to rise to the highest aspirations of their worldview by meeting that need. Then a shiny plate is passed, full of the generous donations of their friends and neighbors. Each person makes a choice--add to that plate, or pass it on without contributing, fifty-two times a year.

A control group attends no such meetings. They give to causes they learn about and care about, but it's less systematic, less closely tied to a community expression of shared values.

Run the experiment for a year, then try to contain your surprise when the first group turns out to have given 2-3 times as much as the second. You probably wouldn't conclude that the first group is filled with more virtuous people. Instead, you'd realize that you'd created an effective giving culture--one that is systematic, personally aspirational, and tied to a community of shared values.

Of course this experiment has been going on for centuries. Churches have created a giving culture so effective that most religious adherents see charitable giving as a direct expression of their worldview. So it's not surprising that such solid instruments as the American Community Survey of the U.S. Census, the Social Capital Community Benchmark Survey, and studies by Independent Sector and the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University all show that the average churchgoer gives away 2-3 times more discretionary income than the average non-churchgoer. Given the different giving contexts, I'd be surprised if that wasn't true.

Conservative commentators including Arthur Brooks of the American Enterprise Institute claim that the difference is evidence of a "gap in virtue" between the groups. Churchgoers are just better people. But it's telling that we're talking not about belief but the measurable activity of churchgoing--the act of putting yourself in that giving context. I was a churchgoing atheist for over 20 years, and when I stopped going to church, my charitable giving fell off a cliff. It's not that I suddenly became less generous, just that my generosity was being tapped much less often and less effectively.

Nonreligious commentators sometimes counter that church giving shouldn't "count" since most of it stays in the church. True, it does--but that's irrelevant to this question. Even if the plates were emptied into a hole out back every week, it's still the case that individuals are giving more than they would have if they'd stayed home on Sundays. And despite the temptation to simplify the motivations for church giving to fear of hell or hope of salvation, the social psychology of it is far more down-to-earth, and therefore more adaptable to the world outside the church doors.

So once we get past the finger-pointing and back-patting about the giving gap, we can finally get to a worthwhile question: Can we create an equally effective systematic giving culture among the nonreligious? Without the church absorbing the lion's share, I could make an even bigger impact on genuine human need than I did when I was feeding that shiny plate.

This is a challenge and an opportunity for philanthropy. Church attendance in the U.S. has been dropping steadily since the 1990s, and fewer than one in four Americans now attend on a regular basis.¹ Even those of us who consider this good news for the culture should see that there are some things churches have done really well. If creating a giving culture is one of them, and people are exiting that system in droves, it's worth asking whether and how we can create it without the religious context.

To answer that question, in early 2010, I worked with several other atheists and humanists who had seen the same challenge to create a systematic giving program for those who share our worldview. The result is Foundation Beyond Belief, a charitable organization with a humanist identity that features five carefully selected charities per quarter working in areas including poverty, education, and human rights. Members sign up for an automatic monthly donation in the amount of their choice and distribute their funds however they wish among the charities. We spend each quarter telling the stories of these organizations and connecting their work to the humanist imperatives of mutual care and responsibility. We keep none of the funds designated for our featured charities; our own operations are funded through separate donations and grants.

The results so far have been very encouraging. We have over a thousand contributing members and are approaching a million dollars in total giving since the launch. Many members report a deeper connection with humanism and with human needs, and many have reported that they are now giving 2-3 times more per year than before they joined.

So that giving gap is real, but it's not about virtue, and closing it is a win for philanthropy and for the people whose lives are made better by it. As more and more people leave the churches, there will be more questions like this one, more opportunities to hit pause on the culture war and learn what we can from the things religion has done well--even as we set the rest of it aside.

1 - Hadaway, C. Kirk and Penny Long Marler. 2005. "Ho Many Americans Attend Worship Each Week? An Alternative Approach to Measurement." Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion 44:307-322.

Alessandra Orofino: People-Powered Politics at the City Level: Searching for True Citizenship

2013-05-21T15:54:33Z

For the first time in human history, over half of the world's population live in urban areas. By 2050, that number is projected to reach 70 percent. And yet, cities face huge problems. They are responsible for almost 80 percent of the world's energy consumption and 67 percent of its greenhouse emissions. In 2005, one in three urban dwellers was living in slum conditions.

Precisely because of the magnitude of the problems they face, cities are increasingly emerging as the most fertile grounds for creating change. They are the laboratories in which many of the world's most intractable challenges -- including the challenge of reinventing the very fabric of our political lives -- will be solved.

Recognizing the fundamental importance of cities and city governments, organizations such as C40, the Global Cities Forum and the Mayor's Conference, have started to connect governmental institutions from large metropolitan centers around the world. Certain corporations have also been quick to understand the growing economic and political importance of cities: IBM, Cisco, GE and Siemens are just a few examples of large multinational companies that have launched Smart Cities initiatives in the last few years.

However, many large-scale organizing groups have not yet acknowledged that the world's power center has shifted to cities. People-powered politics is, in fact, changing the world we live in: groups like Avaaz, GetUp!, AllOut and MoveOn have inserted people-powered politics into national and transnational decision-making processes. These dynamic groups use a combination of online organizing and offline action to very successfully coordinate large numbers of people. They allow people to easily grasp and influence issues that are important to them. Such groups rely on small contributions from their members to operate, and are financially independent. Yet their model has not reached the world's urban centres and the decisions made at that level.

As cities become increasingly high-tech, the question of ethics remains unanswered. What kind of ethical model do we need in order to guide the development and application of such technology?

My hometown, Rio de Janeiro, is the perfect example of a city undergoing massive urban changes. The city is increasingly relying on technology and big data. Yet it is neglecting to include significant portions of its citizens in the decision-making process that will define its future. I co-founded Meu Rio in the belief that citizens need to organize themselves as intelligently, use technology as ubiquitously, and share knowledge as efficiently as the public and private institutions, in order to really participate in the definition of public policy at the city level. Examples of our work include in-person demonstrations at City Hall to prevent sudden, unilateral changes to the city's environmental code; saving a landmark neighborhood school from demolition through 24/7 webcam monitoring; and changing the Constitution to preclude officials convicted of corruption from occupying high-level positions in Rio's administration.

Today, only 18 months after we founded it, Meu Rio is mobilizing almost 100 thousand citizens of Rio -- one in 20 young people aged 20 to 29 is a member. We have brought people-powered politics to many aspects of city life. We have helped provide checks and balances to traditionally unaccountable institutions. We have pooled resources and ideas from citizens to help improve and simplify city life.

Now, I hope that citizens elsewhere will use open-source technology and adapt the Meu Rio model to the realities and challenges of their own cities. We need the C40 of citizens, not just city-governments. Civil society has to tackle the great challenge of developing a multi-metropolitan movement to provide checks and balances to both the private and public sectors.

Ultimately, we need to ensure that cities around the world will be designed and governed to serve the ones who really matter: us.

This post is part of a series produced by The Huffington Post and The New Cities Foundation, to mark the New Cities Summit in São Paolo, June 4-6, 2013. The summit highlights what works to solve the great urban challenges facing all cities. For more information on the New Cities Summit, click here

Eddie Kuspiel: Remembering Your Mom Is a Human

2013-05-21T15:37:33Z

About eight years ago when I was a sophomore in high school, I was walking around town with one of my friends. We had just eaten our weight in pizza, and were doing our best to convince a group of girls that we were visiting our parents from college (even though we still lacked the ability to grow facial hair). All of a sudden my phone started vibrating in my pocket. I politely excused myself, explaining to the group of girls that I do promotional videos for my (nonexistent) university. I told them it was "most likely my agent," and I should really take the call.

It was my mother. I quickly tried to rationalize that hitting the F-U button on the woman who made sure there wasn't a hint of crust on my peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for the better part of a decade was acceptable because one of the girls looked like Jessica Biel (she didn't) and was totally about to give me her phone number (she wasn't). Instead, I rolled my eyes and begrudgingly answered the phone.

"Hey ma, what's wrong?" I quietly tried to utter so my future Jessica Biel-esque girlfriend wouldn't hear. "Oh nothing, I'm just in line at the grocery store and I figured I'd call you."

How dare she?

I'm finally about to get the confidence to ask this girl for her number (no, I wasn't), and she has the nerve to call me and ruin the situation (at which point I'm sure my friend and I had already done), just because she is out purchasing my future rations for the week, and got BORED?

My mother was bored.

Now don't think I was anymore of a selfish jerk than any other 15-year-old adolescent. I was a sweet kid. Up until then, I just never thought about -- hadn't even considered -- the fact that my parents could experience any emotion that would make them anything short of godly. But there I was coming to this realization, and there she was bored in line at A&P. My mother wasn't my property; she wasn't only "my mom." She was a human being. Right then and there my hormone-infested, self-absorbed, juvenile brain realized: My mother's sole purpose in life was not to accommodate mine, but that she in fact, had one of her own.

Since that moment, anytime I see a mom laboring to turn into my lane, I slow down and let her go. I give up my seat to the woman whose daughter is biting her ear on the subway. And anytime my mom calls me, I pick up... no matter how much the woman I'm talking to looks like Jessica Biel (she never does). They 're small showings of appreciation for the things mothers do for their oblivious children on a daily basis, and, in a way, for all the things my mom does for me.

If you really want to make a difference and directly help women and mothers around the world, make a donation to the RaiseForWomen Challenge. Your donation can go to a mom in Kenya or maybe even a woman on your block. Don't forget a woman wears many more uniforms besides "mom" (even if that's her favorite one).

MotherWoman: Nowhere to Turn: Perinatal Mental Health Resources can be Difficult to Find

2013-05-21T15:27:36Z

By Catharine McDonald, MS, NCC, LPC

There is never a dull moment working in the psychiatric emergency department. I love the hustle and bustle, and the variety of cases we see and the stories I could never confabulate in my wildest dreams. Each of the clinicians has their certain areas of passion [as well as dread!] and we complement each other in our interests and skills. I love perinatal mental health. I am a self-diagnosed birth junkie. I have always found pregnancy and birth enthralling. I learned as much as I could about prenatal and maternity care while pregnant with my daughter, and I have seen this fascination spill over into my work life. I have a soft spot for pregnant and postpartum mothers in our emergency room. I bombard psychiatry consult requests for postpartum mothers with resources and ideas for treatment, going above and beyond to help in any way I can. Perinatal mental health is important for the mother, the baby, and the entire family. This population certainly has my undivided attention, but then comes the question--now what?

I can rattle off the names of at least twenty substance abuse programs in my tiny little state of Connecticut off the top of my head. Perinatal mood disorders? One. There is one outpatient program that specializes in mood disorders and mentions postpartum mental health. Yes, I recognize that there are private practitioners who have experience or even expertise in perinatal emotional complications, yet I challenge you to find one in a timely fashion. New moms don't have time or energy to do this detective work. Mothers suffering from depression, anxiety, or intrusive thoughts are often so overwhelmed they feel paralyzed, unable to ask for help, much less actively search for it. My community is greatly lacking in perinatal mental health services and I am left feeling helpless when a mother does come in needing help and I have little to offer her.

One client in particular whom I have encountered still stirs up my emotions. I was asked to find a patient in ICU a psychiatric bed elsewhere because my hospital was out of network with her insurance. When I opened her chart, my heart broke. She was a first-time mom, two weeks postpartum and was in ICU after a serious overdose. This woman was a well-educated, working woman who was struggling so much that she felt her daughter would be better off without her. The despair is still palpable and I get emotional when I think about her case.

How is it that we have over a dozen mental health graduate training programs in this tiny state, yet no specialized treatment? In searching for resources [for hours] I was able to connect her with Postpartum Support International's local contact, who was able to connect her with private practice clinicians, however for the interim she had to go to a general inpatient psychiatry unit where her tiny newborn wouldn't be allowed to visit. Nursing was out the window, and her husband was left to worry about his wife at home while caring for their daughter.

Had she been 700 miles southbound, this patient could potentially have gone to UNC Psychiatry, home of the only Inpatient Perinatal Psychiatry Clinic in the country. This program welcomes infants to mothers' treatment; offers extended visiting hours, lactation support, and a variety of other specialized services to meet expectant and postpartum mothers' needs. This is a five-bed unit. 1 in 6 women suffer perinatal emotional complications. While most of that 1 in 6 does not require inpatient hospitalization, there are certainly more than five at any given time in America. These women are falling. Falling through the cracks. Falling deeper into depression or anxiety. Falling deeper into feelings of suicide or infanticide.

In large part, our mental health system is failing them. Common psychiatric screenings do not involve questions about pregnancy or nursing, births or birth complications, or perinatal symptoms. The American Psychiatric Association authors the DSM, the psychiatry bible of sorts, classifying all mental health diagnoses (diagnosis means insurance reimbursement)--there is no code for postpartum related depression, anxiety, OCD, or psychosis.

Grassroots-style efforts are sprouting up in local communities, while few and far between. These programs touch the lives of countless women and children daily, offering group therapy or support groups, counseling resources, home visitors, and other supports. Some public health departments offer screening and free or sliding-scale services. MotherWoman out of Massachusetts advocates for family-sensitive legislation, provides training to mental health and community-based providers, holds monthly support groups, and helps organize Perinatal Support Coalitions to develop support networks, referral lists, provider training and implementation of universal screening programs.

Massachusetts is certainly a leader in the area of Perinatal Mental Health, now we need to work on the other 49 states. What resources are in your area? Where would you refer a mother you love?

Catharine McDonald, MS, NCC, LPC works as a Senior Clinical Therapist and Access Specialist in Crisis and Behavioral Health at a community hospital. Her clinical interests include trauma, family therapy, and maternal mental health. Catharine is also active in La Leche League and Holistic Moms Network in supporting pregnant and postpartum mothers in her area. She lives in Connecticut with her husband, daughter, and their two spoiled dogs.

Please consider supporting MotherWoman through its 'Advocating for Mothers' Campaign, which is part of Huffington Post's RaiseForWomen Challenge.

Sharon K. D’Agostino: Improving Maternal Health Care, One Text At A Time

2013-05-21T14:50:19Z

It can be the most exciting time in a woman's life, and the most daunting. During her pregnancy, every expectant mother has bright hopes for the new life she carries. She may have concerns about her ability to care for a newborn. But depending on where she in the world she lives, her fear may be much deeper and more fundamental: "Will my baby survive childbirth?" Or, "Will I?"

Save the Children has just issued its 14th annual State of the World's Mothers report, an overview of maternal and newborn survival in 186 countries, a summary of progress and challenges. The report confirms that the birth day is the riskiest day for newborns and mothers everywhere: More than one-third of the 3 million neonates who die each year die within 24 hours of birth.

The statistics are numbing, and with less than 1,000 days left to achieve the United Nations Millennium Development Goals, the need to accelerate action is pressing.

Today, it's easier than ever to reach expectant and new mothers in remote areas through mobile phones, allowing them access to critical health information that can save their lives and those of newborns. Simple messages about health, hygiene, early warning signs throughout the stages of pregnancy and the care and feeding of newborns empower a mother with knowledge that enables her to make healthy decisions for herself and her baby.

In December 2011, the Mobile Alliance for Maternal Action (MAMA) announced its first shareable resource: a set of adaptable mobile messages. These free messages provide basic, stage-based health information in text or voice format, localized to meet country needs. The messages have since been downloaded by over 150 organizations working in 50 countries and have been translated into 10 languages.

It is true, however, that in many places health decisions are not solely those of the expectant or new mom. Husbands and mothers-in-law are influential and oftentimes the primary decision-makers in what a mother should eat, when and if she should visit a clinic and how she should care for her newborn. To address this cultural dynamic, BabyCenter, a Johnson & Johnson company, worked with MAMA to develop a second set of mobile adaptable messages geared towards household decision-makers. The messages are now available on the MAMA website and can be sent to these decision makers to complement those sent directly to mothers.

MAMA has just celebrated its second birthday with the launch of its second national program: South Africa, which joins Bangladesh in providing health messaging via mobile phone. Bianca, a first-time mom in South Africa, signed up for MAMA by texting her expected due date. Immediately, she began receiving the advice and information based on the stage of her pregnancy. We invite you to meet Bianca here and learn more about her and about other mothers who have enrolled.

As a founding partner of two public-private partnerships, MAMA and Text4Baby, we are proud to work with USAID, the United Nations Foundation, the mHealth Alliance, the National Healthy Mothers Healthy Babies Coalition, in sharing the vision of empowered mothers and healthier families everywhere.

This article is part of an online debate series on mobile health by the Skoll World Forum on Social Entrepreneurship, and in partnership with Johnson & Johnson, the mHealth Alliance, Impatient Optimists at the Gates Foundation, and Forbes.com.

Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf: Time for the Big Push to Defeat Malaria

2013-05-21T14:42:55Z

Moments of historic greatness are rarely realized by a single actor. Instead, they require the work of partners, with a sense of shared responsibility and coordinated action. The Big Push to defeat malaria is no different. In the past 10 years, partners working together have reversed malaria's spread and prevented millions of deaths, mostly of children under the age of five. Yet even with all that progress, malaria still claims a child's life every minute. So we have more work to do. Science has given us the tools to defeat this disease. We will achieve greatness by getting it done.

Today we have insecticide-treated nets rather than just regular nets that last longer, significantly reducing costs. There are new drugs to tackle resistant strands and rapid diagnostic tests that allow us to identify kids that do and don't have malaria. We are moving in the right direction. Global malaria mortality rates have dropped by 26 percent and half of the malaria endemic countries are on track to meeting the global target of reducing malaria case incidence by 75 percent by 2015.

As a global community, our fates are often more intertwined than we like to imagine. Controlling malaria isn't only a prospect of preventing needless deaths, it is an economic imperative. Entrepreneurs, farmers and traders who are at home sick themselves or with their kids cost Africa an estimated $12 billion a year in productivity. Defeating malaria is one of the first steps we can take to speed up Africa-driven economic growth.

Later this year, the international community will gather to pledge money to the Global Fund for the next three years. In April, the Global Fund requested $15 billion from donors as an investment towards the historical opportunity of defeating these diseases. It's the kind of investment where the return will be measured in lives saved, and the increased productivity of developing countries no longer burdened by deaths from mosquito bites.

Essential to maximizing these investments, African leaders will continue to demonstrate their own commitment to national health programs both financially and with human resources. The African Leaders Malaria Alliance, a consortium of 49 leaders from the continent, tracks country progress in preventing and treating the disease, with government leaders holding one another accountable to keep malaria a priority, while working towards the goal of near zero deaths by the end of 2015.

With less than 1,000 days until the clock runs out on the 2015 Millennium Development Goals, our resolve will be tested both before and after the zero hour. Meeting the health related MDGs would no doubt be a great accomplishment for our global brothers and sisters, but history will judge us by whether or not we fill our war chest and use our proven strategies and tools to defeat these diseases. As partners in this fight, this is our shared opportunity and responsibility.

Sir Ken Robinson: Why You Need To Find Your Element (NEW BOOK)

2013-05-21T14:20:36Z

Excerpted from Finding Your Element: How to Discover Your Talents and Passions and Transform Your Life by Ken Robinson and Lou Aronica (Viking)

In 2009 we published The Element: How Finding Your Passion Changes Everything. The Element is where natural aptitude meets personal passion. To begin with, it means that you are doing something for which you have a natural feel. It could be playing the guitar, or basketball, cooking food, or teaching, or working with technology or with animals. People in their Element may be teachers, designers, homemakers, entertainers, medics, firefighters, artists, social workers, accountants, administrators, librarians, foresters, soldiers - you name it... So an essential step in finding your Element is to understand your own aptitudes and what they really are.

But being in your Element is more than doing things you are good at. Many people are good at things they don't really care for. To be in your Element you have to love it too ... As Confucius said, "Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life." Confucius had not read The Element, but it feels like he did. ...

Why is it important to find your Element? The most important reason is personal. Finding your Element is vital to understanding who you are and what you're capable of being and doing with your life. The second reason is social. Very many people lack purpose in their lives. The evidence of this is everywhere: in the sheer numbers of people who are not interested in the work they do; in the growing numbers of students who feel alienated by the education system; and in the rising use everywhere of antidepressants, alcohol and painkillers. Probably the harshest evidence is how many people commit suicide every year, especially young people.
Human resources are like natural resources: they're often buried beneath the surface and you have to make an effort to find them. On the whole, we do a poor job of that in our schools, businesses and communities. We pay a huge price for that failure. I'm not suggesting that helping everyone find their Element will solve all the social problems we face, but it would certainly help.

The third reason is economic. Being in your Element is not only about what you do for a living. Some people don't want to make money from being in their Element and others can't. It depends what it is. Finding your Element is fundamentally about enhancing the balance of your life as a whole. However, there are economic reasons for finding your Element.

These days it's probable that you will have various jobs and even occupations during your working life. Where you start out is not likely to be where you will end up. Knowing what your Element is will give you a much better sense of direction than simply bouncing from one job to the next. Whatever your age, it's the best way to find work that really fulfills you.

If you are in the middle of your working life, you may be ready for a radical change and be looking for a way of making a living that truly resonates with who you are.

If you're unemployed, there's no better time to look within and around yourself to find a new sense of direction. In times of economic downturn, this is more important than ever. If you know what your Element is, you're more likely to find ways to make a living at it. Meanwhile, it is vitally important, especially when money is tight, for organizations to have people doing what is truly meaningful to them. An organization with a staff that's fully engaged is far more likely to succeed than one with a large portion of its workforce detached, cynical and uninspired.
If you are retired, when else will you deliver on those promises to yourself? This is the perfect time to rediscover old enthusiasms and explore pathways that you may once have turned away from.

Although The Element was intended to be inspiring and encouraging, it was not meant to be a practical guide. Ever since it was published, though, people have asked me how they can find their own Element, or help other people to find theirs. They asked other questions too. For example:

• What if I have no special talents?
• What if I have no real passions?
• What if I love something I'm not good at?
• What if I'm good at something I don't love?
• What if I can't make a living from my Element?
• What if I have too many other responsibilities?
• What if I'm too young?
• What if I'm too old?
• Do we only have one Element?
• Is it the same throughout our lives, or does it change?
• How will I know when I've found it?
• What do I do help my children find their Element?

There are answers to these questions, and as the success of that first book grows, I know that I need to offer them. Finding Your Element is a wholehearted attempt to do just that. So, whatever you do, wherever you are and no matter how old you are, if you're searching for your Element, this book is for you.

Adam Grant: Who's Smarter: The Selfish or the Generous?

2013-05-21T14:07:10Z

In 1992, a young CEO named Kurt Herwald apparently gave away half a million dollars of his company's money. His company, Stevens Aviation, had been advertising with the slogan "Plane Smart." Unaware that Stevens had a copyright on the slogan, Southwest Airlines launched an advertising campaign with the tag line "Just Plane Smart."

At the time, notes Harvard professor Robert Bordone, neither company was particularly large or well-known. A lawsuit would cost Southwest half a million dollars, and Southwest's campaign wasn't really hurting Stevens. Whereas Southwest was targeting consumers, Stevens specialized in business-to-business market in aviation sales and maintenance. Herwald ended up handing the slogan over to Southwest, asking for nothing in return. Was this a wise decision?

Most people say no; a smart person wouldn't give the slogan away. After all, smart people are shrewd, calculating, and logical--not helpful, caring, and compassionate. To illustrate, imagine that two people, Einstein and Bozo, are about to make choices about giving money to a stranger. Einstein is very smart, scoring in the top 20 percent of the population on an intelligence test. Bozo is less bright, scoring in the bottom 20 percent. They both have $4 to give to a stranger. Whatever they give, they lose, but it will be doubled for the stranger. Who will give more: Einstein or Bozo?

When Dutch psychologists asked people to predict whether Einstein or Bozo would give more, their guesses depended on whether their own motivations leaned toward taking or giving. They were confident that Einstein would share their preferences -- naturally, the rational choice is the course of action that we ourselves would follow. The takers, who adopted a self-serving approach to the world, expected Bozo to give more than twice as much as Einstein. In the mind of a taker, generous people are naïve suckers; it's smarter to maximize our own individual interests. But the givers, those who enjoyed helping others, made the opposite prediction: they expected Einstein to give 56 percent more than Bozo. In the mind of a giver, takers are short-sighted and unenlightened; wise people are willing to give when the benefits to others exceed the personal costs. So who's right?

In a series of experiments led by the Yale psychologist David Rand, people's actual choices fluctuated based on whether they had time to think. When they had less than 10 seconds to choose, more than 55 percent gave. But when they had more time to reflect, giving rates dropped, with fewer than 45 percent giving. This follows a pattern that Rand and colleagues call spontaneous giving and calculated greed. When our decisions are governed by emotion and instinct, we act generously. When we have time to rationally analyze the options, we become more selfish. At first glance, this seems to suggest that smart people are more likely to take than give.

Kurt Herwald doesn't think so. Over the three years after he gave the slogan away to Southwest Airlines, revenue at Stevens spiked from $28 million to over $100 million. According to Herwald, his decision about the slogan was a major driver of the company's success.

Consistent with Herwald's reasoning, three different groups of researchers have gathered evidence that smarter people give more. Exhibit A: Belgian researchers asked hundreds of people to take a validated intelligence test. They had to solve as many complex problems as possible in a limited time frame. Then, they were divided into groups of four, and had to make choices about whether to take resources for themselves or give them to the group. A quarter of the participants acted like givers, contributing more than 75 percent of their resources to the group.

These givers did significantly better on the intelligence test than everyone else. The givers scored 12 percent higher than the others, averaging more than 33 problems correct in 15 minutes -- those who divided resources evenly or kept the majority for themselves each averaged less than 30 correct. The givers also did better on another measure of intelligence: reaction times. They were able to press correct numbers on a keyboard faster than the matchers and the takers. Could givers be smarter than takers?

Exhibit B: The economist Russell James carefully analyzed a study of a representative sample of thousands of Americans above age 50, looking for connections between intelligence and patterns of giving. Those who scored higher on intelligence tests were more likely to give money to charity -- even after controlling for their income, wealth, health, education, and age.

Exhibit C: Vanderbilt researchers Bruce Barry and Ray Friedman measured the intelligence of nearly a hundred negotiators using quantitative, verbal, and analytical reasoning problems. Then, the participants negotiated the sale and purchase of a property in pairs as buyers and sellers. Barry and Friedman found that the smarter negotiators actually gave more value to their counterparts at the opposite end of the bargaining table.

Why would smarter people give more? This evidence is relatively new, but two related explanations are gaining steam. First, the more intelligent you are, the more you excel at analyzing other people's interests. As James writes, "people with higher cognitive ability are better able to understand the needs of distant others." Second, the smarter you are, the more you reject zero-sum, win-lose thinking. As Barry and Friedman explain, "The smarter negotiator appears to be able to understand his or her opponents' true interests and thus to provide them with better deals at little cost to him- or herself." Armed with richer knowledge of other people's needs, you're able to be more creative in finding things to give to others that cost you nothing--or even benefit you as well.

We can see this skill at work in Kurt Herwald's decision about the "Just Plane Smart" slogan. By handing the slogan over to Southwest, Herwald was offering a gift that cost him nothing. And by gaining a clear understanding of his counterpart's interests, he was able to convert this gift into a win for Stevens as well as Southwest. Herwald did some homework on Herb Kelleher, the colorful cofounder and then-CEO of Southwest Airlines. Learning that Kelleher had a reputation for being a ham, Herwald pitched an unconventional idea: instead of going to court, they should hold an arm wrestling contest. The victor would earn the rights to the slogan, and select a charity to which the loser would donate $5,000.

Kelleher agreed, and the two companies staged an arm wrestling match called Malice in Dallas, which attracted thousands of attendees and international media coverage. As Herwald anticipated, Kelleher pulled out all the stops, strutting like a professional wrestler, smoking a cigar, and carrying Wild Turkey bourbon. The two companies donated the $15,000 proceeds to charity, and according to Southwest's PR manager, the publicity generated by the event was worth $6 million. Although Herwald won the match, he was so pleased with the outcome that he signed the rights to the slogan over to Southwest anyway. Kelleher received a letter from then-President George H.W. Bush: "Just Plane terrific! Your clever arm wrestling with Kurt Herwald was a win/win, not to mention great comic relief."

Being smart doesn't mean being the Tin Man, any more than being caring means lacking a brain like the Scarecrow. In fact, intelligence and concern for others often go hand in hand. This doesn't mean it's wise to give away the farm. The key is to use our brainpower to make sure that our contributions to others don't come at the expense of our own interests.

For more on giving and success, see Adam's new book Give and Take: A Revolutionary Approach to Success, a New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestseller.

Martin Penner: How a Syrian Refugee Kept Her Family Fed

2013-05-21T13:52:06Z

BEIRUT -- Um Abdou was determined that her family would not go hungry. She knew things would be difficult when they left their home in shell-battered Aleppo. But she reckoned a bit of planning would see them through the early weeks as refugees.

So she packed three suitcases full of bulgar wheat, rice, lentils and tomato paste. And when the family boarded the bus to Lebanon last November, the three suitcases went with them, taking precedence over almost all other possessions.

"The only other thing I brought with me were a few clothes and my jewelry," said the 39-year-old housewife. It wasn't sentimental value that prompted Um Abdou to bring her necklaces and rings. It was because she knew they could be sold easily.

Six months later, sitting in her small apartment in Beirut with her five children looking on, Um Abdou told me about her family's first few months as refugees. After my conversations with other refugees, parts of her story were very familiar -- husband unable to find work, money and supplies running out, a desperate longing to be home again and for the war to be over.

"It got to a point when we had no money, we had sold practically all my jewelry, and the children just couldn't eat boiled bulgar any more," she said. "They're not fussy eaters, but they were going crazy."

Food vouchers

Help came in the form of food vouchers distributed to Syrian refugees by WFP as part of an operation funded by ECHO, the UK, Sweden, Saudi Arabia, Canada, and the USA.

The first time Um received vouchers she didn't believe she would get any more, so she spent most of them on more rice and lentils. The second time she added canned fish, vegetables and a bit of cheese to liven things up.

Now she has come to understand that the vouchers are not a one-off occurrence and next time she plans to buy eggs, humus and maybe even a little meat. "Up until now we haven't been in a position to even think about meat or chicken."

Food vouchers are the main channel for WFP's food assistance operation in Lebanon. At the moment some 300,000 refugees are receiving them monthly. Vouchers are worth about 20 euros and enable refugees to buy a wide range of food items in local shops.

"Refugees like getting vouchers because it means they get to decide what food their families eat," says Laure Chadraoui, WFP spokesperson in Lebanon. "They appreciate having that level of independence".

The shop-owners involved in the programme are happy to take part, realizing that the voucher system is creating more business for them and helping to boost the local economy.

"I have taken on several new staff to deal with the rush of customers that come every time food vouchers are distributed," said Ahmed Koubeitri, a shopkeeper in the northern town of Tripoli, where many refugees are now living. "The programme is good for our neighbourhood."

In fact, during the current cycle, vouchers will be injecting over 6 million euros into the Lebanese economy. This goes some way to helping Lebanon's strained infrastructure deal with the number of refugees now in the country.

Lebanon's population is creeping towards 5 million, compared to 4 million before the war in Syria, and the refugees are spread all across the country. Like Um Abdou, most are living in small apartments in poor districts of the cities.

Buying the basics

Um admits her new home is a far cry from the large, airy apartment they had in Aleppo. But she is not complaining. It was hard enough to find this one and there are many refugees living in worse conditions.

I asked her whether they can eat all the same foods they used to eat in Syria. She says they can buy most of the basics, and having access to fresh food like eggs, milk and vegetables is a big improvement. But they are still eating more simply.

The family's favourite dish is Shish Baraq, which they haven't had for about 9 months. It's a traditional Lebanese stew of yogurt and tiny meat dumplings. You need a kilo of meat to make it for the whole family, Um says. This is not something she even wants to consider for the time being.

She says her seven-year-old son Ibrahim was especially pleased with the change of diet produced by the food vouchers. "He loves cheese, especially a certain French type we used to get in Aleppo. He was very happy when we were able to buy some cheese spread. It really made his day."

Reflecting on her current situation, Um says there's a lot she worries about, including her children's education. They're not in school now because it would cost money to send them. Hinting at the low-level tensions that the number of Syrian refugees has created, she says she's sorry the family haven't made more friends among their Lebanese neighbours.

But all in all, Um feels they have been lucky to escape a worse fate. She shows me the one piece of jewelry she still possesses six months after fleeing Syria. It's a slender gold ring that she wears on her third finger. She says it's worth about $90 but she won't sell it yet.

"That's to pay for our return journey to Aleppo."

Michael D'Antonio: Real Christian Heroes Step Forward

2013-05-21T13:41:12Z

Twelve new apostles of truth -- they call themselves The Catholic Whistleblowers -- are raising their voices against a system of cover-up and denial, calling on Pope Francis to follow a six-point plan for ending the era of scandal caused by priests who have sexually abused children. Nuns and priests alike, the 12 Americans are asking for commonsense efforts including:

An international advisory board of abuse survivors to facilitate talks between church leaders and victims.
Revocation of pledges of secrecy to avoid scandal for bishops.
Full public access to documents relevant to abuse cases.
Removal of officials who facilitated abuse, obstructed justice or destroyed documents.

These and other policy suggestions form the base of the group's suggested program for resolving a scandal made worse by bishops who have been "proposing themselves to be seen as the victims" of the claims made by men and women who were sexually abused in childhood by clergy. They add, "For this reason, without a doubt, the Church's sexual abuse crisis and scandal live on today as strong as ever."

The whistleblowers include Rev. Thomas Doyle, a former official of the Vatican embassy in Washington who was the first priest to criticize the hierarchy's response to sexual abuse back in the 1980s. He is joined by five other active priests and two nuns who serve the church in Delaware and New Jersey. Among the group is the Rev. John Bambrick of Trenton, N.J., who was himself abused by a priest at age 15. After making a complaint, Bambrick was assured that the priest who abused him had been barred from working as a priest. He later discovered the man was still in ministry.

In their letter, the members of the group liken themselves to a New Testament beggar who sought healing from Jesus. "The beggar refused to be cast into silence for he knew his healing could only come from the dispenser of the divine mercy," they write. "Like this poor disfigured beggar we call out to you from the side of the road, we who have been cast off, the apostles telling us to be silent. Please, Pope Francis, do not pass us by."

Noteworthy because they are acting together, and in public, the new whistleblowers represent a larger number of Catholic priests, nuns and even bishops who have challenged the official church response to abuse survivors, often at much personal risk. Doyle, for example, lost his prominent position when he warned of a looming crisis. Bishop Thomas Gumbleton of Detroit became an advocate for abuse victims and in 2006 testified for changes in the law to allow them to file suit against the church. Gumbleton was forced to retire soon after he spoke out. Members of the new organization say they know of other clergy who were removed from their positions or accused of mental instability after they spoke about priests who had abused children.

The letter, which was sent to several Vatican officials, is timed to take advantage of the opening created by the historic resignation of Benedict XVI, a remote figure who was tied to old policies of denial and deflection and the arrival of his more approachable successor. The group urges Francis, the ultimate leader of the world's 1.2 billion Catholics, to "change the Church's response."

Plainly sensible and sincere, the appeal by these loyal Catholics is nevertheless a courageous step. Most of them live and work inside the church structure and in organizing and speaking together they risk their positions and open themselves to criticism. However they also join the ranks of heroic men and women who form a long tradition of service and sacrifice in the cause of justice. For this they should be regarded as heroes.

Douglas Stewart: Get Out and Stretch Those Legs This National Walking Month!

2013-05-21T12:41:14Z

Most of us can probably put our hands up and admit that we've vowed to ditch the car and start walking more to the shops or work on more than one occasion. But how many of us can honestly say we've stuck to that for longer than a few days?

As May is National Walking Month, there isn't a better time to kick-start your walking habit. Of course, it isn't always the best mode of transport, especially with our somewhat unreliable British weather, but making just a small change and walking to the local shops instead of driving, or to work if it's close enough, can bring with it big benefits in the long run.

Just the health benefits alone could be reason enough to start. Walking up to 30 minutes burns up to 130 calories, not to mention helps you relax. Next time you have a stressful day at work, instead of hopping on the bus stick those headphones in and enjoy a brisk walk home, it will even help you work up an appetite for dinner!

One of the other main factors of National Walking Month is of course, its environmental benefits. With cars accounting for up to 70% of air pollution, think how great it would feel to be a part of reducing this. It doesn't just have to stop at the end of May either, make it your task to walk as often as possible this summer and reduce your waistline and your carbon footprint at the same time - for me and my shape, that's a win, win situation! Think of it as a new summer's resolution!

I know it doesn't feel much like it at the moment, but summer is approaching, honest, and it'll make the thought of walking a lot more appealing. Instead of spending the bank holiday weekend indoors hiding from the cold, aim to walk somewhere - you could even plan different routes to make it all the more interesting. Vary the pace too, speed walk to feel like you've done a workout, or if you're like me take it slow to relax and clear your mind - it'll do wonders for your wellbeing. Furthermore, get the whole family involved by checking out local events. Unleash your creativity with the little ones by making up games on the walks, such as who can walk the fastest for ten minutes - no cheating, though!

Save money - use your legs! Depending on how much you use your car, you could probably save up to £100 a month if you swapped your daily drive for a walk. So both the environment and your wallet will be thanking you. You could even use the extra cash to spend on a well-deserved pub meal at the end of your weekend walk.

Whatever you choose, walking further and more often will benefit both you and the environment - go on, give it a try!

Swimwear Line Helps Breast Cancer Survivors Feel Sexy Again

2013-05-21T12:22:44Z

Frustrated with the lack of fashionable swimsuit options for women who have undergone breast-removal surgery, Patricia Brett started Veronica Brett, a cross-functional swimsuit line designed specifically for the needs of breast cancer survivors.

Brett -- who spent most of her professional life as an architect -- hopes her suits will help women feel comfortable again in a bathing suit post-mastectomy. "I wanted to create a really beautiful, high-end product that not only met the needs of breast cancer survivors, but was also a really beautiful line in its own right," says Brett. "I wanted it to be fashion."

Brett's family has a long history with the disease. She lost three aunts to breast cancer, including her father's sister, Veronica, for whom the brand is named. Her sister was diagnosed when she was 41, and in 2002, Brett tested positive for the BRCA1 gene, a genetic mutation that greatly increases a person's chance of getting breast cancer. Faced with the overwhelming prospect of diagnosis, Brett decided to have a double mastectomy to minimize her own risk.

Several years later, Brett's niece had decided to undergo the same surgery at age 29. Brett, her sister and her niece decided that a girls' weekend was in order, and it was on that road trip that the idea for a swimsuit line arose. Although Brett's niece was at peace with her upcoming surgery, she was venting over the limited offerings of swimsuits and bras for women post-surgery. Brett and her sister had suffered through the same problem and upon reflection, Brett realized that it didn't have to be that way.

"I was thinking, 'This is crazy that all three of us struggle with finding fashionable, sexy, sophisticated apparel because of breast surgical issues,'" said Brett. "All of a sudden this light bulb went off. I thought, 'If I can design a building, I should be able to design a better swimsuit.'"

So Brett got to work. She sat down with a sketchbook and designed several initial concepts, wrote out a business plan, met with countless fabric- and pattern-makers, and even sewed the first suit herself. She kept the project a secret from her sister and the next time she visited, Brett brought out the unfinished prototype for her sister to try on. The reaction said it all.

"She tried on the suit and literally burst into tears," Brett remembers. "It barely held together, but it worked. It covered the bits that needed to be covered and it was sexy everywhere else. I thought, 'If this is her reaction, then a lot of other women are in the same boat.'"

The suits are designed to address the concerns of women who have had one or both breasts removed. They feature pockets that can hold a breast form or prosthetic breast, thicker fabric and a modest cut to cover surgical scars, and a high degree of comfort and flexibility in post-surgical areas while remaining supportive.

Though the learning curve was steep and she faced considerable resistance from larger department stores to stock the line, due to the small market of breast cancer survivors, Brett pushed forward. Two recent developments have been encouraging for the company's prospects. First, two smaller retailers -- a spa boutique in Manhattan, Kimara Ahnert, and online retailer ShopBop.com -- have begun selling her suits, with positive reviews rolling in from customers. Second, the sellers report that a variety of women are buying the suits, not just breast cancer survivors.

Brett says various women, including large-busted women and new moms, appreciate the suits. The fact that women who aren't breast cancer survivors are buying the suits, Brett says, is evidence that she achieved her goal of creating a product with both style and functionality.

Brett says she's motivated to use those successes to attract larger stores and greater reach.

"The other day I received an email from a customer who said she had already received several compliments on the suit," said Brett. "Her daughter even called it her 'Baywatch' swimsuit. She is a breast cancer survivor and her daughter thinks of the suit as a 'Baywatch' suit. It's those little emails that keep me going."

PHOTOS: Tornado Aftermath Leaves Trail Of Destruction

2013-05-21T11:31:01Z

By Alice Mannette Ian Simpson

MOORE, Okla., May 21 (Reuters) - Pre-dawn emergency workers searched feverishly for survivors in the rubble of homes, primary schools and an hospital in an Oklahoma City suburb ravaged by a massive Monday afternoon tornado feared to have killed up to 91 people and injured well over 200 residents.

The 2-mile(3-km) wide tornado tore through town of Moore outside Oklahoma City, trapping victims beneath the rubble as one elementary school took a direct hit and another was destroyed.

(SCROLL DOWN FOR LIVE UPDATES)

Reporters were cleared back from Plaza Towers Elementary School, which sustained a direct hit Oklahoma Lieutenant Governor Todd Lamb told CNN. But television pictures showed firefighters from more than a dozen fire departments working under bright spotlights to find survivors.

President Barack Obama declared a major disaster area in Oklahoma, ordering federal aid to supplement state and local efforts in Moore after the deadliest U.S. tornado since one killed 161 people in Joplin, Missouri, two years ago.

There was an outpouring of grief on Plaza Towers' Facebook page, with messages from around the country including one pleading simply: "Please find those little children."

A separate Facebook page set up to reunite people in the area hit by a tornado on Sunday with their belongings and pets also showed entries for Moore residents overnight.

Another elementary school, homes and a hospital were among the buildings leveled in Moore, leaving residents of the town of about 50,000 people stunned at the devastation and loss of life. Many residents were left without power and water.

The Oklahoma medical examiner said 20 of the 91 expected to have been killed were children. The office had already confirmed 51 dead and had been told during the night by emergency services to expect 40 more bodies found in the debris, but had not yet received them.

At least 60 of the 240 people injured were children, area hospitals said.

The National Weather Service assigned the twister a preliminary ranking of EF4 on the Enhanced Fujita Scale, meaning the second most powerful category of tornado with winds up to 200 mph (320 kph).

Witnesses said Monday's tornado appeared more fierce than the giant twister that was among the dozens that tore up the area on May 3, 1999, killing more than 40 people and destroying thousands of homes. That tornado ranked as an EF5, meaning it had winds over 200 mph.

The 1999 event in Oklahoma ranks as the third-costliest tornado in U.S. history, having caused more than $1 billion in damage at the time, or more than $1.3 billion in today's dollars. Only the devastating Joplin and Tuscaloosa tornadoes in 2011 were more costly. Jeff Alger, 34, who works in the Kansas oil fields on a fracking crew, said his wife Sophia took their children out of school when she heard a tornado was coming and then fled Moore and watched it flatten the town from a few miles away.

"They didn't even have time to grab their shoes," said Alger, who has five children aged four to 11. The storm tore part of the roof off of his home. He was with his wife at Norman Regional Hospital to have glass and other debris removed from his wife's bare feet.

Moore was devastated with debris everywhere, street signs gone, lights out, houses destroyed and vehicles tossed about as if they were toys.

The dangerous storm system threatened several southern Plains states with more twisters. The area around Moore faces the risk of severe thunderstorms on Tuesday, which could hamper rescue efforts.

STORM ALERTS

Speaking outside Norman Regional Hospital Ninia Lay, 48, said she huddled in a closet through two storm alerts and the tornado hit on the third.

"I was hiding in the closet and I heard something like a train coming," she said under skies still flashing with lightning. The house was flattened and Lay was buried in the rubble for two hours until her husband Kevin, 50, and rescuers dug her out.

"I thank God for my cell phone, I called me husband for help."

Her daughter Catherine, seven, a first-grader at Plaza Towers Elementary School, took shelter with classmates and teachers in a bathroom when the tornado hit and destroyed the school. She escaped with scrapes and cuts.

SCHOOL DESTROYED

The National Weather Service Storm Prediction Center provided the town with a warning 16 minutes before the tornado touched down at 3:01 p.m. (2001 GMT), which is greater than the average eight to 10 minutes of warning, said Keli Pirtle, a spokeswoman for the center in Norman, Oklahoma.

The notice was upgraded to emergency warning with "heightened language" at 2:56 p.m., or five minutes before the tornado touched down, Pirtle said.

Television media measured the tornado at more than 2 miles (3 km) wide, with images showing entire neighborhoods flattened.

The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) imposed a temporary flight restriction that allowed only relief aircraft in the area, saying it was at the request of police who needed quiet to search for buried survivors.

Oklahoma activated the National Guard, and the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency activated teams to support recovery operations and coordinate responses for multiple agencies.

Briarwood Elementary School, which also stood in the storm's path, was all but destroyed. On the first floor, sections of walls had been peeled away, giving clear views into the building; while in other areas, cars hurled by the storm winds were lodged in the walls.

The number of injured as reported by several hospitals rose rapidly throughout the afternoon.

"The whole city looks like a debris field," Glenn Lewis, the mayor of Moore, told NBC.

"It looks like we have lost our hospital. I drove by there a while ago and it's pretty much destroyed," Lewis said.

The massive twister struck at the height of tornado season, and more were forecast. On Sunday, tornadoes killed two people and injured 39 in Oklahoma. (Additional reporting by Lindsay Morris, Carey Gillam, Nick Carey, Brendan O'Brien and Greg McCune; Writing by Daniel Trotta and Nick Carey; Editing by Alison Williams and W Simon)