Partners
Nice ‘n’ Native Gathering 2009 Report
By Kiritapu Allan, Co-Founder of Conscious Collaboration, YES! Alumni, and Co-Organizer of N’n’N
Ka rere taku manu ki tai ki uta kei raro te maru o
nga tihi hukapapa o Tararua
My bird flies seaward then inland under the snow peaks of Tararua
Our wananga (gathering) was held on the traditional grounds of the Ngati Hinemata, Ngati Ngarongo and Ngati Takihiku peoples in early July 2009. After the powhiri (welcome), the Kereru wananga began with the placing of a Rahui* on the English language so that the wananga itself would be conducted only in the indigenous Maori language.
Oakland Green Youth Arts & Media Center and Art in Action
By Maryam Roberts
The Oakland Green Youth Arts & Media Center (OGYAMC) began with pilot programming in Fall 2009, and continues to be a creative empowerment hub in Oakland that supports personal, professional, economic, and community development. We serve youth impacted by violence and poverty through innovative programs in the arts, media production, and environmental sustainability.
On January 14th, the OGYAMC had its official launch party event. Over 300 people attended the event as we unveiled our beautiful mural and permaculture garden with special guests including musicians Casual of Hieroglyphics, Dwayne Wiggins of Tony Toni Toné and legendary hip-hop journalist Davey D. The OGYAMC was on the front page of the San Francisco Chronicle, featured on local television news coverage, multiple blog sites online, and local newspapers.
Fearless YOGA Teacher Training
APPLICATION DEADLINE: March 19 but first come, first served
In this exclusive strategy-building pilot training, GENEROUS scholarships and work exchange are being made available for folks to help both workshop the training and hold positions to reduce costs to a bare minimum. This means they will be in the process of helping to create the materials, give feedback, compile curriculum and hold positions and tasks during the training that will be staffed in the future: cooking, cleaning, living yogic style.
This opportunity is exclusively for activists, allies and agents of social change that will commit to bringing fearlessYoga to their colleagues, consitutiences and communities with a social justice framework and analysis. We're especially looking for folks that will be at and be able to teach at the USSF.
YES! Partners in Local Healing and Organizing
The Santa Cruz Community felt the hurt and divide after the murder of 16 year old Tyler Tenorio this October, and in the face of this tragedy, we remembered our partner Shilpa’s reflection that if divide and conquer is a strategy that has been used to destroy, then connecting and self-organizing may be strategies for healing and regeneration. YES! responded quickly in partnership with several local groups including Barrios Unidos, coAction, and Youth in Focus to host a community forum that served as a healing and coalition building response to the racially-charged murder. The dialogues that were already underway between these local orgs around collaboration for cross-race programming for youth laid the foundation needed for us to be able to mobilize quickly for a community need for unity and dialogue.
Indigenous Climate Connections Creates Solidarity Around Asia
“As present and future leaders of our communities, we have to take action,” said Ivan ‘Sukkaydan’ Torafing, Igorot from Cordillera, Philippines, in his keynote address to the thirty-five indigenous youth leaders in the opening ceremonies of the Indigenous Climate Connections (ICC) gathering held last November 14-20, 2009. The conference, in cooperation with Jaringan Tanah Hak Adat Bangsa Asal Sarawak (TAHABAS) and sponsored by YES!, gathered indigenous youths from 18 indigenous communities from eight countries around Asia to learn from each other and formulate strategic actions to address the issue of climate change as an issue of justice and self-determination of the indigenous peoples. Moreover, it continues to train and build the capacity of indigenous young people’s in utilizing different UN mechanisms and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples’ (UNDRIP) in advancing the issues of their communities and nations.
Arctic Institute for Indigenous Leadership Hosts 3rd
Sponsored by YES!, the Arctic Institute gathered twenty-four young Alaska Native leaders at the Taste of Alaska Lodge, November 11-17, 2009, for a culturally based transformative week of learning, listening, sharing, and reflection. The days were filled with explorations of our personal life journeys, as well as those of our diverse peoples. We dialogued on critical topics, ate traditional foods from the land, shared song and dance, and celebrated with the local community. We came to deeper understandings of the impacts and challenges posed by rapid changes to our peoples ways of life. And we formed lasting relationships that will likely carry far into the future.
New Green For All $1000 Contest! The Dream Reborn Continues
Green For All is releasing a new song and music video by our Green For All College Ambassador, Markese Bryant to honor Dr. Martin Luther King's birthday. "The Dream Reborn: My President is Green" is a call to action for the Hip-Hop generation to carry forward Dr. King's vision toward a more just and equitable future. We are using this launch to announce The Dream Reborn Story Competition.
The hook of the song is a chant that says: “It’s time to go green/We got to go green/The food ain’t fresh and the air ain’t clean/From the hood to the burbs, everybody go scream/Dr. King, we’ve living your dream/My president is Black, but he’s going green/I got my president back, I’m going do the same thing!”
"Email Aikido" by Adrienne Maree Brown
As I doggie-paddle through the hundreds of emails that came in over holiday, I'm using our friend Adrienne Maree Brown's blog on "Email Aikido" as a guide. I'm sure we could all use a little help managing! Check it out here.
Creating Change Through Family Philanthropy Retreat What's Your 2020 Vision?
I had an awesome experience at Making Money Make Change (that I hope to blog about eventually!), an annual gathering cosponsored by our friends at Resource Generation, and wanted to share with you all another opportunity from RG - the "Creating Change Through Family Philanthropy Retreat" happening in March in NY. Check out the details below.
- Julie
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Creating Change Through Family Philanthropy Retreat What's Your 2020 Vision?
March 19-21, 2010 at the Edith Macy Conference Center
Briarcliff Manor, New York (Just Outside NYC)
Learn More and Register Here!
YES! Recipient Nature's Path 2009 Envirokids Giving Back Award
YES! NAMED RECIPIENT OF NATURE’S PATH
2009 ENVIROKIDZ GIVING BACK AWARD
Funds Will Support Global Leadership Jams
September 24, 2009 – YES! has announced it was named a recipient of Nature’s Path Organic Foods’ 2009 EnviroKidz Giving Back Award. The Giving Back Program donates money to non-profit organizations, such as YES! that support efforts with young leaders working for endangered species, habitat conservation and environmental education.
“We are thrilled to be recognized with the 2009 EnviroKidz Giving Back Award,” said Nga Trinh-Halperin, Development Manager of YES!, “The funds will help us continue the work we are doing to support, connect and collaborate with young visionaries of organizations and movements around the world.”
