Robert Alan Black Defense Fund
Donation protected
Dear friends of Alan Black,
As most of you know, Dr. Alan Black is a considered global expert in the field of creativity. While volunteering and teaching at a Global Creativity Conference in Abu Dhabi, Alan was detained for taking a photograph in a restricted area during one of his morning walks.
What you may not know is that Alan is a former architect and an amateur photographer and has been documenting his daily walks for health and happiness in response to recent health concerns. He is deeply apologetic for the incident, and we are working through diplomatic channels to bring him home safely soon.
Many of you have asked if you can donate money to help Alan with legal fees, fines, and transport home. Our funding target is an estimate of the costs that will be incurred as we get him home and back on his feet. If you wish to donate now, you may do so here. Anything you can donate is greatly appreciated.
Because we are told that Alan’s legal fees might be quite substantial,* we will soon be launching a more elaborate crowd funding campaign that allows Alan to practice reciprocity for all the amazing support that he's received at this difficult time. Crowd funding is about leveraging off the resources within a specific community to achieve a goal. Let's use our collective gifts to make a difference in his name and in the name of creativity!
To help us achieve our target figure, you can get involved and benefit in the following ways:
1) You can purchase various of Alan's workshops and books for your company or for someone else within your network. This is great because it allows Alan to repay you for your generosity. Please note that this does not include transport, accommodation, or postage required to deliver on the services.
2) You can offer an attractive incentive as part of the campaign. The idea here is that instead of pledging money you can do work on Alan's behalf and extend your offering to other parts of the macro network that will be engaged as part of this campaign. Again, your costs are separate, and you are offering your fee to the campaign.
If you would like to provide an incentive for the campaign, contact us and please provide the following:
-A cool name for the incentive and a description of what it is: seminar, book, cool experience, conference ticket, etc.
-What you plan to offer and the details, such as number of participants, duration, and any fine print that ensures people know what they are buying.
-How much people need to pledge to get your incentive. Offering the fair price to discount is the best strategy here.
-Think of how you can make it a special once off offer.
-Links to all media that would entice people to pledge.
If you are unfamiliar with crowd-funding, check out some of the various crowd sourcing platforms to familiarize yourself with how it works. Once we have a clear idea of who is involved, we will draw up the campaign and confirm details before sending it out.
Some info about who is already involved and what is happening...
Who we are: Alan's family, friends, and colleagues -- Jessica Beasley (Alan's daughter), Scott Black (Alan's son), Tara Grey Coste (University of Southern Maine), Rosemary Rein (United Way), Tim Hurson (Mindcamp), Mahmoud Arafa (Designframe), Gregg Fraley (Kiln), Harry Vardis (Kennesaw State University), Eileen Doyle (Author), Kobus Neethling (ACRE), Bonnie Cramond (University of Georgia), Diane Rezendes (Stanford University), Alison Dundes Renteln (University of Southern California), and so many more around the world!
What we are doing: Raising funds for Alan's legal fees, fines, transport home, and any other expenses associated with his detainment in the UAE. Funds are being sent to Alan through the American Embassy and to Alan's lawyer in Abu Dhabi.
Please contact us through this site if you have any questions.
*Although we don't anticipate this happening, if any funds are raised in excess of Alan's expenses, we will set up a fund in his name to be used for scholarships to attend non-profit creativity conferences around the world.
As most of you know, Dr. Alan Black is a considered global expert in the field of creativity. While volunteering and teaching at a Global Creativity Conference in Abu Dhabi, Alan was detained for taking a photograph in a restricted area during one of his morning walks.
What you may not know is that Alan is a former architect and an amateur photographer and has been documenting his daily walks for health and happiness in response to recent health concerns. He is deeply apologetic for the incident, and we are working through diplomatic channels to bring him home safely soon.
Many of you have asked if you can donate money to help Alan with legal fees, fines, and transport home. Our funding target is an estimate of the costs that will be incurred as we get him home and back on his feet. If you wish to donate now, you may do so here. Anything you can donate is greatly appreciated.
Because we are told that Alan’s legal fees might be quite substantial,* we will soon be launching a more elaborate crowd funding campaign that allows Alan to practice reciprocity for all the amazing support that he's received at this difficult time. Crowd funding is about leveraging off the resources within a specific community to achieve a goal. Let's use our collective gifts to make a difference in his name and in the name of creativity!
To help us achieve our target figure, you can get involved and benefit in the following ways:
1) You can purchase various of Alan's workshops and books for your company or for someone else within your network. This is great because it allows Alan to repay you for your generosity. Please note that this does not include transport, accommodation, or postage required to deliver on the services.
2) You can offer an attractive incentive as part of the campaign. The idea here is that instead of pledging money you can do work on Alan's behalf and extend your offering to other parts of the macro network that will be engaged as part of this campaign. Again, your costs are separate, and you are offering your fee to the campaign.
If you would like to provide an incentive for the campaign, contact us and please provide the following:
-A cool name for the incentive and a description of what it is: seminar, book, cool experience, conference ticket, etc.
-What you plan to offer and the details, such as number of participants, duration, and any fine print that ensures people know what they are buying.
-How much people need to pledge to get your incentive. Offering the fair price to discount is the best strategy here.
-Think of how you can make it a special once off offer.
-Links to all media that would entice people to pledge.
If you are unfamiliar with crowd-funding, check out some of the various crowd sourcing platforms to familiarize yourself with how it works. Once we have a clear idea of who is involved, we will draw up the campaign and confirm details before sending it out.
Some info about who is already involved and what is happening...
Who we are: Alan's family, friends, and colleagues -- Jessica Beasley (Alan's daughter), Scott Black (Alan's son), Tara Grey Coste (University of Southern Maine), Rosemary Rein (United Way), Tim Hurson (Mindcamp), Mahmoud Arafa (Designframe), Gregg Fraley (Kiln), Harry Vardis (Kennesaw State University), Eileen Doyle (Author), Kobus Neethling (ACRE), Bonnie Cramond (University of Georgia), Diane Rezendes (Stanford University), Alison Dundes Renteln (University of Southern California), and so many more around the world!
What we are doing: Raising funds for Alan's legal fees, fines, transport home, and any other expenses associated with his detainment in the UAE. Funds are being sent to Alan through the American Embassy and to Alan's lawyer in Abu Dhabi.
Please contact us through this site if you have any questions.
*Although we don't anticipate this happening, if any funds are raised in excess of Alan's expenses, we will set up a fund in his name to be used for scholarships to attend non-profit creativity conferences around the world.
Organizer
Tara Grey Coste
Organizer
Topsham, ME