by on April 3, 2013

Kenya Africa

Parsapiyio is 64 years old, lives in Kenya (Africa) and is married to Sidio and supports a family
of six. He has been a maize farmer for the last twenty years, earning a monthly income of
about USD $290.

One of the reasons this project stood out to me is the USD $290 he earns monthly. In the 1980’s in Guyana where I was born, this was a fortune. We moved to Canada and I thought that if I could just earn $300 / month…

With $600 he intends to pay for land cultivation and to purchase more modern farm supplies
which is helping him to be more efficient. The anticipated profits will be used to diversify into
sheep keeping to further increase his business. Parsapiyio’s dream is to improve his financial
stability and provide his family with something they can rely on for generations to come.

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: , , , ,
by on March 8, 2013

Giant Floating Tilting Labyrinth Game Board

Stockton, California
Public Art

This is a very fun, creative art project that involves balance games. The first balance game that will be built on moneys raised, is a balance board, which is floating on water where two individuals balance on opposite sides of the board and try to knock a ball into holes. The board has a few holes on it and the rules are that the opponents are allowed to have contact with each other and not the ball. If more money is raised than what is needed for this game a second game will be built. This is a game of mini-golf or another idea with the same concept of floating on water. This is a fun way to let of some steam and the games will be at a free festival.

Filed Under: Art Tagged With: ,
by on February 10, 2013

“STALE” a unique feature about (lack of) change

A crew of filmmakers, who are very passionate about their work, are attempting to raise money to help support a 60 minute movie called Stale. Money raised is just for basic costs (lighting, props, camera, transportation) as the film makers are mostly volunteering their time out of love for their line of work. Stale is about a young man named Andrew. Andrew is a professional and is in a stable relationship. Andrew’s mother suffers from depression and Andrew attempts to reconcile as past wrongs are starting to disrupt his life, but has a hard road of reconciliation ahead of him. This film takes you through a journey of life that unfortunately all too many have faced and experienced, that’s why I got so interested in this project. We’ve all been there. This project raised $5,067 from 21 people. Decent!

Filed Under: Film Tagged With: , ,
by on January 12, 2013

Openings

This feature length film in Boulder, Colorado takes a deep dive into the supernatural. Openings started out as a shorter feature but evolved into full-length. The creators are open to all sorts of spiritual encounters through all different threads of life in different encounters with other worldly beings. I normally wouldn’t give towards a project like this but I did this time.

Filed Under: Film Tagged With: , , ,
by on December 12, 2012

Eat out of a dumpster

When this documentary project came across my desk (okay computer screen) I thought I’d donate a couple of bucks towards the making of it. It has a very interesting take on food that has been thrown away wastefully and what some people do to save it, what depths they will go to. This documentary is about a movement of what is called “Dumpster Divers” who salvage thrown out food from stores by going through the dumpsters. Dumpster Divers share their stories as well as store owners, employees, managers of food banks and the homeless. If you haven’t already seen this documentary, please do!

Filed Under: Film Tagged With: ,
by on November 12, 2012

Dead dreams don’t have to become zombies

I was invited to donate into a theatre project, and I LOVE theatre – when I was younger I thought I would get into it and took all the drama classes in school, until high school when most of my dreams were dashed and I had to face reality. The best I can do these days is donating money into the arts and giving away free consulting time.

Plot summary: Why does everyone have to go ruin everything and start getting married? Julius and his best friend Morrie live together comfortably, reliving their college days. But Julius’s girlfriend, June, is growing frustrated with Morrie’s quirks, specifically, his phobia of all things related to love. They find themselves awash in wedding invitations, prompting a crisis in Julius’ and June’s relationship.

Filed Under: Theatre Tagged With: , ,
by on October 17, 2012

Ground Station Calliope

This is a phenomenal project involving outer space. The goal is to promote a satellite called “Project Calliope.” This satellite is an instrument in space that picks up on sounds from outer space, these sounds are called sonification. Moneys raised on this project will help bridge the gap between the sounds from outer space and musicians on earth to create music tracks. The satellite has a life of 10 to 12 weeks, just like most of my diets. This is possibly one of the most different art projects I’ve ever seen.

Filed Under: Art Tagged With: , ,
by on September 19, 2012

Asif Zamir’s Peru Project

Asif Zamir Peru Project

Asif Zamir Peru Project

Okay, by now I know what you’re thinking “Asif only does projects in South America because that’s where he was born.” Nope! This is just by chance, but I do jump at the opportunity to do anything in South America, any country there.

Gladys is a native of Peru in her 20’s. She owns her own home which is built with wood.
She purchased the house a few years ago, and lives with her young son. She wants to provide him with a good future plus make enough money to furnish the house. Gladys and her partner work growing coffee plants. They have been farming their own land for several years, and inherited the plots from family.

During the harvest season Gladys gets help from laborers so that they can finish harvesting. They later take the product to the distribution centers for sale, which are located one hour away from the community where she lives. She is well compensated for the sacks of coffee she sells there, it’s not like slave labor or anything like that. However, transporting them is very hard for her, since there aren’t very many vehicles in transit in her community and her partner has to carry them up to a certain point, but even that doesn’t prevent her from continuing with her work. Gladys will use $1,000 nuevos soles (about $400 USD) to purchase fertilizer so that she can maintain her plants

Now to get back to why I did this project – I have a foster child in Peru and sending money every month is something that makes me wonder about sustainability. I’ve been a part of child sponsorship programs since around 1997, and in months when I’m poor, it’s a real struggle. This kind of project requires more money up front, but the recipient is then able to take care of themselves forever. It’s a win win situation for everyone.

Now in regards to Peru, I’ve done several other projects here, and I’m currently working on a larger project involving renovating a school and hospital, in co-operation with several dozen amazing Christian missionaries, but that project won’t be complete until probably 2015, so I’ll get back to you on that.

Asif Zamir

Filed Under: Uncategorized
by on August 17, 2012

Fish Bridge

This project is about the art of printmaking. This art form, which goes back to 1855, is a fine printmaking art called Gyotaku, and seeps into various areas including anything from fine art publications and books to child crafts. The goal for this project is for the interested person to be able to travel to Japan and study this fine form of art under the instruction of a Japanese art master / mentor. I rarely give towards people traveling, but what the heck, if I can’t go, someone else should 🙂

Filed Under: Art Tagged With: , ,
by on July 17, 2012

What You Can Do

What You Can Do is an awareness project. The hopes is to be able to air is a television series of 21 episodes. This television series will include one minute clips on how to better our world. For example, think of how much water could be conserved if everyone in the world decided to turn off the water while they were brushing their teeth. The project focuses on different crucial aspects involved in sustaining life such as fighting global warming, promoting respect and cancer awareness. I’ve participated in several really neat projects like this in the past. – Asif Zamir

Filed Under: Film Tagged With: ,
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