Robin Franz
SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA, CA • VOLUNTEER COORDINATOR (LIFEMOVES, PROJECT HAPPINESS, OAK KNOLL ELEMENTARY, GIRL SCOUTS OF AMERICA)
“Meditation practice isn’t about trying to throw ourselves away and become something better, it’s about befriending who we are.” – Ani Pema Chodron
Robin has 20 years of experience in public health and community coalition building. She started her career with the NAACP working on urban environmental health issues, later working at the Education Development Center, as Director of the Central Square Business Association, and developing and directing a new nonprofit to coordinate emergency response volunteers in public health.
Q&A
- What inspired you to become an Ambassador for Project Happiness?
- Project Happiness has many facets, through their work in other countries, their film, online course, and circle groups, but I became involved through their elementary school curriculum. I have two young children and my own mindfulness practice, and was looking for ways to connect my interest in mindfulness to supporting mindfulness opportunities and social/emotional learning in children. I feel like there are many good curriculums out there that tackle the issue of happiness and well-being in elementary school children. Project Happiness is an aggregator of all the great data, research, and programs out there, which makes it a great place for practitioners, parents or any laypeople to start learning and talking about happiness. Project Happiness wants to work side by side with the other organizations doing this important work locally and internationally, and I have enjoyed facilitating that process.
- What is your favorite part about being an Ambassador?
- The people! Surrounding myself with people trying to do good for themselves and others in their community not only helps me feel positively about my own live, it helps me connect with the positive impact curriculums like this can make in the lives of children. I organized a meeting of developers of social/emotional curriculums working in the Bay Area, and it was an inspiring experience to be a witness to their care for our children, their support of each other and the work being done, and their willingness to share ideas and success stories.
- What are some of your passions outside of Project Happiness?
- I feel passionate about creating an environment for my children and other children to succeed and thrive in this world. This leads me to be a Girl Scout Leader at my daughter’s school, and also to work with LifeMoves, the homeless network on the Peninsula, improving spaces for homeless families and working with their corporate outreach team. Personally, I am a big hiker, and I like to cross country ski and cook. Wandering around the farmer’s market on a beautiful California day with my family, tasting everything and planning yummy meals is my idea of happiness! Now that the kids are getting a bit older, we are also adding travel back into our lives with a trip planned this summer to Iceland.
- What is one way that you cultivate happiness in your own life?
- I am a meditator and a practitioner at Insight Meditation Center in Redwood City. This practice brings intention to my life, and calm when my days are stressful. This helps me focus on happiness in a much longer-term way, and not be so hung-up on creating happiness each day. Some days are difficult, sad, or painful, but with the intention of eliminating suffering, in ourselves and others, it’s easier to see the bigger picture and slowly move towards a more joyful life.