Hummingbird is a personalized knowledge base for action-oriented activism that focuses on collaborative and systemic change. We help people more easily answer two deceptively simple questions: ”what’s going on?" and “how can I help?”
Most people want to help others and many already are. However, sometimes it can feel impossible to help in a substantial way. On Hummingbird, you will find relevant-to-you actions that help the causes you care about through consumer activism, policy advocacy, shareholder activism, and more.
We look forward to collaborating with you to bring about meaningful change on important issues.
Our name was inspired by a 2-minute story narrated by Wangari Maathai in a clip from Dirt! The Movie:
We are constantly being bombarded by problems that we face, and sometimes we can get completely overwhelmed. The story of the hummingbird is about this huge forest being consumed by a fire.
All the animals in the forest come out and they are transfixed as they watch the forest burning and they feel very overwhelmed, very powerless. Except this little hummingbird. It says, “I'm going to do something about the fire.” So it flies to the nearest stream, takes a drop of water. He puts it on the fire and goes up and down, up and down, up and down, as fast as it can.
In the meantime, all the other animals - much bigger animals like the elephant with a big trunk, could bring much more water - they are standing there helpless. And they are saying to the hummingbird, “what do you think you can do? You’re too little. This fire is too big. Your wings are too little and your beak so small; you can only bring a small drop of water at a time.”
But as they continue to discourage it, it turns to them without wasting any time and tells them, “I am doing the best I can.”
And that to me is what all of us should do. We should always feel like a hummingbird.
I may feel insignificant, but I certainly don't want to be like the animals watching as the planet goes down the drain. I will be a hummingbird. I will do the best I can.
It is our hope to help those who identify with the hummingbird spirit as well as those who - like the other animals in Wangari’s tale - feel overwhelmed and powerless in the face of today’s issues. Make no mistake: embodying a hummingbird spirit does not restrict us to the Sisyphean task of being forever alone carrying single drops of water at a time in an effort to extinguish massive, fiery problems.
The narrator of this story, Wangari Maathai herself had the spirit of a hummingbird and the water carrying capacity of an elephant. Though she notes having felt as insignificant as perhaps we ourselves sometimes do, she was able to simultaneously hold space for this feeling while carrying on to act with great tenacity and effectiveness, championing substantial progress across many causes. Best of all, she was not alone: she inspired others to fly with her hummingbird spirit, casting a rainfall of collective impact upon fires as she went, dampening the spread of such things as political oppression, gender-based injustice, and environmental degradation.
We aspire to follow in the footsteps of Wangari and the multitudes of other people carrying the spirit of the hummingbird throughout their work. We welcome other hummingbirds who are already flying as fast as they can between stream and fire. We feel for those who are frozen in horror watching causes important to them burn and welcome them to look up and see the hope of hummingbirds flying in the sky above them, calling for them to take flight and do their best to help.
Like the hummingbird, we resolve to do our best so that doing your best is easier.
On Hummingbird, you will be able to:
Hi, my name is Stephanie Goulet. I care deeply about individuals’ ability to participate in shaping the systems affecting their lives. I believe in strong communities, moral leadership, and courage in the face of the sometimes seemingly insurmountable. At present, this is a solo undertaking, though I often use the term “we” in anticipation of expanding this project with partnerships and team members who share the desire to contribute to this mission.
Currently, this project is entirely self-funded and is not accepting funding from outside parties. If you’re interested in supporting this project (monetarily or otherwise), please join the waitlist where contact information will be provided. I always look forward to meeting others who share the hummingbird spirit.
Yes, we welcome your input. Join our waitlist and receive an email with optional opportunities to become more involved.
If this sounds interesting, join our waitlist.
Hummingbird