I have a Studio Art degree from Furman University, a small liberal arts college in Greenville, South Carolina (USA). In my professional life I have worked for non-profit art organizations, art galleries, photographers, and in the photography department at a magazine. However, for the last 14 years I have worked with some of the the world's largest marketers to design, produce, and deploy interactive online experiences and advertising campaigns at leading New York agencies.
WHAT MOTIVATED YOU TO BECOME CERTIFIED BY THE UNSCHOOL?
After working at advertising and design agencies for a few years I started to research and understand the environmental impact of the increased consumption of products like electronics, consumer packaged goods, automobiles, etc. This research left me eager to find a way contribute to building a more sustainable world in my day-to-day work but I had no idea how. I decided to enroll in the UnMasters program to understand more of how I could contribute to building a more sustainable world using the experience, influence, and skills I have built up over the course of my career.
WHAT IS YOUR PROFESSIONAL BACKGROUND?
My background is in program and product management for large multi-million dollar accounts at advertising and design agencies. I lead multi-discipline teams for large campaign or digital experience engagements where I establish and enforce "the process" (or ways of working), build the appropriate team for the engagement, maintain quality control, as well as manage engagements to delivery timelines and budgets.
WHAT TYPE OF CHANGE DO YOU WANT TO MAKE AND WHY?
I want to use my personal agency and the agency of the company I work for to make marketers more aware of their environmental impact and offer solutions for how their businesses could be more environmentally sustainable. While this sounds quite general at the moment, I hope to work with my current company to create a consulting practice that is tailored to how we can best deliver on this.
HOW DO YOU PLAN ON APPLYING WHAT YOU HAVE LEARNED THROUGH THE UNSCHOOL CERTIFICATION?
I plan to use what I have learned in 2 ways. The first is educating internal stakeholders at my current agency about the Disruptive Design Method and working with agency leaders to build our own DDM practice. The second is by using the DDM to investigate Environmental, Social, & Governance (ESG) investing and how I can help other invest more sustainably in their retirement and other investment accounts.
ARE THERE ANY SPECIFIC SDGs YOU WANT TO HELP ADDRESS?
One of the UN Sustainable Development Goals I feel the most passionately about is Responsible Consumption & Production (SDG 12). While I believe product manufacturers and service providers must seek way to make their offerings and environmentally conscious as possible, I also believe it is the the obligation of the consumer to demand that they do so and to offer ideas on how they would like to see change. I want the work that I do to help both consumers and corporations feel empowered to attain a more Earth-friendly future.
HOW DO YOU AMPLIFY THE CHANGE YOU MAKE IN THE WORLD?
Amplification is something I am still working on. For now, my hope it to use the platform and agency of my current employer to advance a sustainable consulting practice for large marketers. Once we get this practice up and running we can amplify more sustainable thinking through some of the largest consumer-centric companies in the world.
WHAT DID YOU THNK OF THE UNMASTERS PROGRAM?
I feel like my brain went through a full renovation over the course of the UnMasters program. I learned and thought about so many different things at a depth and speed that I had not experienced before. Not only did I find this learning experience deeply gratifying, it made me realize how fun self-directed research and learning can be when you start to see the world through a systems thinking lens.
I loved the UnMasters experience and I think I'm going to love being a part of the Unschool online community even more! To me, the most helpful part of the whole process was the mentorship component. It really helped me bring everything together in a way that was relevant to me. The mentorship process was THE most valuable Unschool experience for me to understand how the Disruptive Design Method applies to my career and professional ambitions. It was the right blend of structure, flexibility, inspiration, and challenge for me to see how I can make change in the world.
HOW CAN PEOPLE ENGAGE WITH, SUPPORT, OR FOLLOW YOUR WORK?
Follow me on LinkedIn and the UnSchool app (especially the ESG group) where I plan to start posting and sharing ideas regularly.
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/charlieshipman
UnSchool: https://community.unschools.co/groups/esg
