Happy 2013!!! A new year is the perfect time to tackle new challenges and think about new ambitions: practice a new style of yoga, try 3D printing, master your new DSLR, learn to silkscreen, or become a scientist in the kitchen. You’re never too old to learn a new skill!

Rookie of the New Year is a series of five unique intro workshops to discover and learn something new this January.  From Monday, January 14 to Friday, January 18, various Toronto-based experts will be teaching their skills to those willing to learn! 

Not only are the workshops interesting, but also relevant to the time we are living in.  

Rookie of the New Year workshops include:

Monday, January 14:  Introduction to Suspension Yoga Class

Tuesday, January 15: 3D Printing for Total Beginners

Wednesday, January 16: Learn to use your DSLR

Thursday, January 17: Introduction to Silkscreening

Friday, January 18: An Evening of Molecular Gastronomy 

To learn more and book your tickets to any of the above, check out: www.uniiverse.com/rookie2013

The Uniiverse is full of Extraordinary People like… Kirstie Smallman

Kirstie has a positive energy that draws you in and fills the room, which she brings into everything she does.  As a blue belt Nia Movement instructor, she teaches in the Cambridge, Paris and K-W area. Check out her interview after the jump!

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Sharing: More than just a pre-school lesson

In kindergarten we were taught the importance of sharing and its purpose has become much more than making friends and avoiding playground tiffs. Our capacity to share will have a huge impact on our future, and recent trends are showing a shift in the right direction. The sharing economy revolution is under way!

The Problem

The gap between rich and poor is growing and accelerating; the environment is suffering, and as a result happiness is withering. It can be argued that all of these issues can relate in one way or another, to our capacity as societies to share assets. Are we sharing enough to make a difference?

Perceptions of consumerism are being re-evaluated. Does having more stuff truly make us happier, or does it hinder our time, space, and bank accounts? Society has put ownership and ego above access, experiences, and convenience. With recent economic and environmental struggles, this attitude is no longer efficient.

The Solution

The term sharing economy is soon to become omnipresent. It argues that sharing assets, such as our belongings, space, skills, time, and resources, can have not only economic and environmental benefits, but can also increase happiness, overall well-being, and create stronger communities. Sharing is an activity that can solve so many problems and provide so many benefits at once.

Several reports have shown there is a desire to share within our society on a larger scale but most are not good at it or don’t know how. Technology and the social web are going to play the most dominant role in the sharing revolution. Our online sharing habits have made people more open to the idea of sharing off-line.

Uniiverse is providing a solution for those with a desire to share with the new platform for collaborative living. Sharing in the physical realm is now made easy. As a person-to-person marketplace for services and activities, Uniiverse enables anyone to share what they have to offer, or discover what they wish to find.

• Do you have a guitar that sits around collecting dust? Share it
• Are you a yoga enthusiast looking to teach your passion? Share it
• Is there extra room in your car for your drive to New York? Share it
• Can you teach people how to cook? Share it
• Does your garden have extra room for someone to plant on? Share it
• Have a parking spot that you never use during the day or at all? Share it

The shift from hyper consumption to collaborative consumption is happening; are you going to be a part of it? Let’s make a dent in the Uniiverse together.

What will Ü share?

We’ve launched!

In the increasingly virtual world of today, people have lost the habit of meeting up with friends for a coffee to talk over the day’s events. Instead, friends reconnect with our smartphones. Ever wondered why, with over 500 Facebook friends, some people still feel lonely, spending most of their waking life in front of a screen? You are not alone. Here is where Uniiverse, the world’s first platform for collaborative living, comes in. 

Uniiverse is not a social network. Doing away with status updates and virtual friends, we take an offline approach with users. The reason? We don’t want to see you glued to the screen, your face an eerie pale-blue against the dim light it emanates. Instead, we want you to be outside, feeling the sun on your face, developing bonds with real people, and enjoying a collaborative lifestyle. If you want to gain further insight into our vision, watch the manifesto video.

Uniiverse is the only platform that allows anyone to share any kind of real-life activity or service, and, to make this even better, it’s absolutely free to post. Users can specify what they are offering, the price they want to charge (could be free), and when the event or service is happening. People can then instantly discover, book and pay for the listing through the website. This way, Uniiverse empowers anyone to become an entrepreneur, meet like-minded people, share their passions and, most importantly, live a smarter, happier, more sustainable lifestyle.

With Uniiverse, opportunities are endless:

• Organize a jogging group to join you on your morning run, a tapas party or a yoga session
• Share your knowledge by offering a service, such as a photography workshop, a language lesson or a sushi-making class
• Use your free time efficiently, and make extra money by posting your availability for errand running, babysitting, or pet walking
• Share the objects you rarely use, such as a guitar, a drill or a bike
• Rent out your space when you are away, or offer an unused parking spot
• Organize a ride-share to save money on gas, while helping the environment

Uniiverse promotes trust and creates a safe environment for sharing experiences offline. The platform enables people to get a full understanding of each other’s trustworthiness by showing social proximity (mutual friends), ratings, reviews and participation across categories.

Through this platform, Uniiverse is resurrecting old marketplace behaviors, such as sharing, on a scale that has never before been possible. We are building the sharing economy, where access and experiences are more important than ownership. This movement will help the environment, alleviate global financial issues, build stronger communities and make you smile, even on a Monday.

The sharing revolution begins today. Courtesy of Uniiverse.