My 2008 fellowship with Yp4 gave me the tools and confidence to transfer my desire to work in social justice for the long haul.  After canvassing, training and field managing with Clean Water Action through my undergraduate years at Temple, my third summer with the organization introduced to me the opportunity to canvass direct the Philadelphia office for the month of August. 

July 22 and my blueprint has been approved! What a great feeling... after 6 months of thinking, planning, evaluating...and starting all over again; the relief of finally having a grasp on how I am going to make a difference in my academic community is inexplicable.

One aspect of my blueprint for social justice that was different than other blueprints I've read was my goal for leadership development. This was a goal that was suggested by Zach Dryden and Rachel Burrows. Since I have planned to run my blueprint on a smaller scale (aka, no funding necessary) Yp4 offered me the opportunity to attend Camp Wellstone's citizen action training in my home town of Philadelphia.

[asset|aid=797|format=image|formatter=asset|title=elodygyekis_240wide.jpg|width=240|height=320|align=right|resizable=true]I sat down with Elody Gyekis the other day to chat about change through art, community organizing, and what makes being an activist worthwhile (and hard!).
Check it out!

Hello to all!