By Mackenzie Pedersen, Staff Writer
Ever get tired of seeing tales of heartbreak, tragedy, and violence across the television? Are you ever curious about what people across continents are doing to show humanity for one another? Are you wondering where all the good people are in the world? Then, look no further than Good All Over.
https://player.vimeo.com/video/221313199
Finding Good People in the World
Philanthropology: the study of those who sacrifice themselves for their fellow man; a completely made up word and definition created by Good All Over’s hosts
This upcoming fall, look for Good All Over, a TV docu-series that highlights the work of aid and charity workers and social entrepreneurs across the world.
“We seek to tell and showcase the good being done amidst the strife and grief present in the world,” the documentary’s Director of Communications Kelly Luciano (OMGM ’18) describes. The show’s storytellers and co-hosts are two lifelong friends, Earl Bridges and Craig Martin. The first season features stories of individuals in six unique locations, such as Kenya, Tanzania, Bangkok, and Alabama. Earl and Craig bring several aspects to this documentary series by showcasing amazing people and their organizations, as well as shedding light on political issues, arts, and a variety of cultures.
Additionally, the Good All Over cohosts “set off around the world to places where people are doing good. Inner-city ghettos, border camps for refugees, rural health clinics and fully armed anti-poaching teams are some of the impossible situations they’ll explore in season one. In four one-hour episodes, these philanthropologists find community, culture, and compassion alongside the people who see the world’s greatest problems and say, ‘I can fix that.'” All with a wonderful balance of humor and insight. The staff of Good All Over are working with PBS stations to bring this incredible show to its viewers.
What to Expect from Each Episode
Courtesy of Good All Over Twitter
Each episode of Good All Over is centered around the stories of two anchor characters and the stories are built up around them. After the team discovers the two characters, they follow their stories, showcase their background and what that individual’s motivations are for accomplishing the good that they do. The team travels to the locations where these individuals are creating an impact and films them in their environment.
The first season includes a Kenyan/Tanzanian episode about two individuals. In this episode, they begin by following Eric Hersman, the CEO of BRCK. BRCK is an organization based in Nairobi focused on building the tools for connectivity to places in Africa “where electricity and Internet connections are problematic in both urban and rural areas.” More so, what the staff discovered through their experience is that sometimes the story changes.
As a result, the crew discovers two people to follow during the preproduction phase. Once on site, though, they might meet someone else with an incredible story. This happened when they met the BRCK team. Through the BRCK team, they met Mark Kamau, a native from Nairobi which is rare. His story is strong, inspirational, and worth tuning in to! Ultimately, Mark’s tale is one of an underdog: from the slums he rose to help create this successful organization.
Furthermore, each episode starts with two characters and a theme. Then a deep dive begins, not only into the characters, who are real individuals doing incredible things, but into the location itself. Earl and Craig provide a real sense of what it is like to live and thrive in these locations. Moreover, Andy Duensing, the director of Good All Over, is an incredible storyteller.
Get to Know the Co-Hosts
Earl on the left, Craig on the right. Courtesy of Good All Over Twitter
These two best friends met in their youth in Bangkok where both of their parents were missionaries. While attending the International School of Bangkok, a friendship was born. Earl’s background is in nonprofits and corporate social responsibility. Additionally, his entrepreneurial spirit has guided him to the creation of Good All Over. Earl describes himself as a philanthropologist, technology entrepreneur, and filmmaker who specializes in global nonprofit and corporate social responsibility initiatives. As he says, “He provides technology, and visual story-telling to leverage his network of the largest companies and foundations in the world for social good.”
On the other hand, Craig’s background is more established in film. During his life journey, he organized many missions. Additionally, he has visited over 80 countries, several of which are conflict and war torn arenas. Craig states that he is an “award-winning communications director and marketing strategist with extensive hands-on experience in visual storytelling. [Craig is an] acclaimed digital media and web strategist with twenty-two years of experience traveling to work in more than 80 countries.” Needless to say, he has a lot of experience in this type of work.
This just goes to show that there are many different career paths that an individual can take to impact social good.
Want to Nominate Someone Who is Creating Good in the World?
Are you a social entrepreneur? Do you know of an incredible charity that deserves to be recognized? Do you want to help get the word out about other’s doing an incredible work in the social impact space?
Contact Kelly Luciano: kelly@goodallover.tv
Follow the project on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and their Website.