Communication reaches its fullest potential when it does something good for people and humanity… particularly when the act of communication itself helps that good act do even more good.

That was the case with a project that touched me, my friends and my city very profoundly - a project that I had the privilege of helping a good friend with… It Gets Better London.

In late 2010, the world was shocked to hear tragic cases of young people in the States who committed suicide because they were harassed and bullied for being gay. To help spread hope, American podcaster Dan Savage and his partner recorded a video to show young LGBT people that a happy adulthood is waiting for them if they can make it through the challenging years of their life. They created a campaign, It Gets Better, that went viral: more than 10,000 people have shared inspiring videos including President Obama.

My friend James Wilkinson had a brilliant idea: spread the hope in London with local people telling local LGBT youth “It Gets Better.”

***** It Gets Better London *****

James created a spectacular “It Gets Better” video for London:

I lent my support by building a social media campaign: using Twitter and Facebook to help expose as many Londoners to the video as possible (almost 1900 views). The social media campaign grew into a community of people who heard the message of hope and spread support throughout the city.

And so a second video was created, profiling community members telling LGBT youth in London that they have support. I was proud to lend my voice to the video:

*****

The local campaign has sort of drawn to a close - but it’s been exciting to watch how the social media community grew and how the videos went viral in London.

More so, it was powerful to watch the positive impact on the local community of supporters - to know we were making a real difference.

And communication helped to make that difference even greater.

My travel and exploration blog “where is Andrew now?” is back - with a fresh new look.

I am currently writing about my two-week journey across Canada on board VIA Rail’s The Canadian - their flagship transcontinental rail journey. My travels included a visit to Winnipeg, two days in Jasper and five days in Vancouver and Whistler!

Check it out, and subscribe to my travel blog… I’ll be keeping it going with travels near and far; not just one big journey around the world, but rather the everyday journey full of the exploration I see throughout life.

Lots of charities are getting into social media these days - which is totally awesome. Philanthropy is meant to stem from a personal connection that leads one to feel compelled to help: so cultivating that connection through social online connections just makes sense.

Some foundations do a great job with their online messages; others kind of suck at it.

Here are a few that I’ve read over the last year from two healthcare foundation twitter accounts: @BloorviewPR and @sickkids. These are my favourite tweets because they catch my attention, tell a story and get me to read more. They’re powerful short messages that create a connection.

1. Are you a “SickKids Kid”? Four people have already shared their stories. Read them and then share your own!
2. Joey has an infectious spirit and a rare gift for making others feel at ease. Read all about Joey’s SickKids story.
3. Giving: ‘The greatest feeling you’ll ever have’
4. On the BLOOM blog: ‘Your shoes drive me crazy’
5. Sticks and stones might break bones, but words cut deeply too.
6. Nick’s time at Bloorview inspired him to pursue work in neuroscience.
7. Learn how Greg pays it forward.
8. Bloorview helps Claire reach her full potential with state of the art prosthetics.
9. For disabled youth, cooking or doing laundry can be overwhelming. Bloorview helps kids adapt
10. Having a disability won’t stop these kids from making music. See how Dr. Tom Chau’s innovations make it happen
11. Becoming a pilot is more than just child’s play for Melanie. See how Bloorview has made this dream come true
12. At Bloorview it’s family first! See how Adam’s sister is involved in his care.
13. It’s not all work & no play at Bloorview. Read about the impact of therapeutic clowns.
14. Justin Hines fell in love with music & performing for his class at Bloorview. He now performs internationally
15. Bloorview is creating a World of Possibility for kids with disabilities.
16. A tragic car crash left Holly a paraplegic and brought her to Bloorview. Read how therapy helped her move again

What do you think? Are these tweets effective? What about them do you think makes them effective?