Awesome Foundation - Projects

Rotterdam – Rotterdammertjes - de bouwsteentjes van Rotterdam

2016-06-15T00:00:00Z

Zeeland heeft Zeeuwse babbelaars en Den Haag heeft Haagse Hopjes maar wat voor snoepgoed heeft Rotterdam? Geen! Daar moet een einde aan komen. Een stad als Rotterdam verdient een eigen snoepje. De tijd is aangebroken voor ‘Rotterdammertjes’. Echt Rotterdams snoepgoed dat als ware ambacht met veel liefde wordt gemaakt. De snoepjes verwijzen naar het verleden en het heden want als er de afgelopen paar decennia in één stad veel is gebouwd dan is het Rotterdam wel. De snoepjes zijn voorzien van afbeelden met daarop de meest bekende gebouwen en objecten. Onze Maas maakt het al eeuwen mogelijk dat het volledige achterland in Europa wordt voorzien van specerijen. Specerijenhandel kenmerkt Rotterdam. De snoepjes worden verpakt in verpakkingen vergelijkbaar met grote luciferdoosjes voorzien van een kijkgat (om een blik te werpen op de snoepjes) welke opengeschoven kunnen worden. Het betreft een illustratie die handmatig met karton in laagjes geplakt is. De verpakking is voorzien van de meest kenmerkende Rotterdamse gebouwen. Een combinatie van 3 verpakkingen vormen de skyline van Rotterdam.

New York City, NY – Queer Kid Stuff

2016-06-15T00:00:00Z

Queer Kid Stuff is a new educational webseries creating LGBTQ+ videos for kids. Queer representation and content for children is scarce and Queer Kid Stuff aims to eliminate stigma by educating future generations through free and entertaining videos. The project allows young people to have access to a queer resource that is specifically made for them. Googling “What does gay mean?” only finds dictionary definitions and guides for parents and teachers to help explain the topic to children. But there are no resources specifically made for children. Queer Kid Stuff aims to change that. In the pilot episode, co-hosts Lindsay and her best stuffed friend Teddy explain what gay means through a vlog-style conversation focused on love and family. Think Sesame Street meets Gender Studies 101. Parents, teachers and LGBTQ+ adults can use the video as a tool to help them explain what gay is to the kids in their lives, recommended for ages three to seven years. A free, printable activity sheet accompanies each episode to further emphasize the lessons of the videos through activities which can be done at home, in the classroom or wherever you might find a box of crayons. Our Awesome Foundation grant will go directly toward producing the first full season of Queer Kid Stuff's educational videos. Watch the first episode online now, follow them on Facebook and Tumblr, and visit the Queer Kid Stuff website for more information about this awesome project.

Lusaka (Non-active) – Building my World

2016-06-14T00:00:00Z

Girl Inspiration Group is a registered Lusaka charity that helps children to read and also to realize the importance of acquiring education for a better future. Our program involves working with the children directly in addition to providing resources for families to support the development of strong literacy skills. We are working through partnership with volunteers and other non-profit organization to create long life readers. Together, we are helping young children reach their potential and strengthening communities in Ng'ombe. Our goals are to assist young children in learning essential early reading skills, build community by encouraging those who live and work in the community to be involved in supporting their children and to provide a meaningful volunteer opportunity. Our mission is to provide programs and services through community wide partnerships to help children learn to read. We have a program that targets children from grade 1 to 7 who need a literacy boost. The children are paired with trained community volunteers who work on one to one with them. The program helps children to recognize letters, a sound each one represents, how to learn words by sight and how to learn a word by using the sounds of its letters.

Boston, MA – refugium II

2016-06-14T00:00:00Z

I am about to begin a long-term project that will take place in the Adriatic Sea in Albania. The dictator Enver Hoxha had 750 00 single-person bunkers built during 45 years of communist regime that could not be disposed of by the government to this day. My plan is to excavate some of these bunkers and lower them into the Adria near the shore, so that they will reincarnate in the form of an artificial reef and help the regeneration of the sea. The project deals with the history, sociology and the society of the country. Refugium II also addresses Europe’s current political state through the location and the historic context. At the same time my project thematizes the severe climate situation and is searching for a solution through scientific methods.

Boston, MA – OncArt!

2016-06-14T00:00:00Z

Our awesome project is OncArt!, an online/app-based platform connecting clinicians with artists to help cancer patients, especially in resource-poor regions. Clinicians in global health settings are routinely faced with misinformed patients who do return to clinic or adhere to their treatment due to language and time barriers. Artists, however, have the skills to close this information gap by illustrating treatment plans and prevention strategies. By connecting medical need with an artistic solution, OncArt!’s mission is to make art, explain cancer, and ultimately, save lives. How does OncArt! work? First, OncArt! invites clinicians to submit their challenges and artists to create profiles on its website. Then, OncArt! matches the clinician with the appropriate artist, encouraging collaboration to create the ideal visual tool for the cancer patient. After the artist finishes the custom artwork and the clinician vets it, the artist uploads it to the OncArt! website, and the clinician downloads it on mobile phone or computer to deliver to the cancer patient. Finally, each artwork is archived in OncArt!’s searchable repository, ensuring that cancer-related art can be accessed instantly by others in need of this service. The OncArt! team has signed on three key advisors from the design and medical fields, developed a prototype website, recruited a professional back/front-end web developer to work on a final website, and produced cancer graphics. We have also established a key collaboration with global healthcare clinicians at Massachusetts General Hospital. At the 1st Global Oncology Hack-a-thon, OncArt! was awarded the Alpha Core Prize, with attached funding from the National Institutes of Health for mentoring and incubating by Boston University’s Center for Future Technologies in Cancer Care. We are planning 2 pilot programs to launch this summer: one local for Hispanic immigrant women in Lawrence, Massachusetts, and a second in Mbarara, Uganda.

Northern Virginia (NOVA) (Non-active) – Divas Auto Clinic

2016-06-13T00:00:00Z

Divas Auto Clinic is designed to empower women and young girls through teaching basic hands on automotive maintenance skills. Our desire is to go out into the community to teach girls the importance of automotive technology and how they too can become female mechanics. We want to teach free classes in the Northern Virginia area.

Awesome Without Borders (Non-active) – "A Single Vote" Suffrage Ballet

2016-06-13T00:00:00Z

The League of Women Voters of Nashville (LWVN) and the Nashville Ballet are developing an exciting new project to bring a milestone in Tennessee history to life for middle school (grades 5-8) students. In 1920, young Representative Harry Burn cast the single deciding vote to ratify the 19th amendment that gave the right to vote to women in America. It was a crucial victory for American women as well as a powerful reminder that one vote can change the course of history. We believe that ballet is the perfect medium to recreate the drama of this event! Beginning in the fall of 2018 and continuing through the centennial celebration of the Suffrage Amendment in 2020, the 5-member touring company of the Nashville Ballet will present the program to middle schools throughout the region. The League of Women Voters will develop accompanying classroom curriculum to incorporate into grade level history classes. While the suffrage story is included in the 5th grade history curriculum for Tennessee schools, the current curriculum guidelines focus entirely on the historical events instead of including the civic lesson of the value of voting. LWVN wants to provide this critical addendum.

Singapore – Shine a Light

2016-06-13T00:00:00Z

We work with Laos Association for the Blind and with visually impaired (VI) students at the Home of Light - a blind school and hostel for VI students, by teaching futsal. The school provides holistic development programs i.e. sports to build students' self-confidence. We intend to build goal posts, teach VI students the rules of futsal, build team discipline, conduct futsal drills, teaching futsal tecniques and organise a futsal competition for the VI students. Our team will help build confidence in VI students via sports and show that they are capable of being more than just blind masseuse or blind teachers, which are currently the main occupations for the adult VI in Laos.

Austin, TX – arcade of anything

2016-06-13T00:00:00Z

JUEGOS RANCHEROS is an Austin-based community of independent game developers and fans. This year, JUEGOS RANCHEROS began a quarterly artist residency program known as the arcade of anything. The aim of the arcade of anything artist residency is to provide artists with a month-long opportunity to push into experimental and unexplored territory within digital games, art, and other interactive works. The arcade of anything de-emphasizes commercially-viable products or finished works in favor of strange and wonderful projects that facilitate creative growth, unexpected collaborations, and community engagement. The arcade of anything is housed at the Museum of Human Achievement (MoHA) in East Austin. Residencies culminate in a public event and the arcade is open during some additional MoHA performances. The arcade debuted during the 2015 East Austin Studio Tour, amusing hundreds of visitors with original games such as Risky Bison (you're an insurance agent to bison in the Southwest, manage your clients and save enough money to buy your grandma a cactus) and Oh Crap No One Loves Me (navigate endless levels of purgatory by throwing your lifeless body through openings and riding coffins through chutes and loops). Upcoming residency showcase events for 2016 are scheduled July 22 and September 30th. A $1000 grant from the Austin Awesome Foundation will support the artists and the public events planned to share their work with the Austin community.

Awesome Without Borders (Non-active) – Micromuseums

2016-06-12T00:00:00Z

You’re bored and you're waiting - you’re in a health clinic reception or a bus depot. You spot something you’ve never seen before. You peek through its tiny windows at an alien world: creatures with a hundred eyes made of stone, animals with no heads, and animals that spend most of their energy making slime. You’ve stumbled upon the world of the mollusk, the animal group that runs from garden snails to giant squid. The details of this world appear to have sprung from the mind of a genius sci-fi writer, but they are real - details you will continue to discover as you observe city snails after a rain or calamari on your plate. The Smallest Mollusk Museum is the first of the Micromuseums - an effort to bring captivating dollhouse sized museums to places where people’s time is typically wasted. Micromuseums show visitors how to unearth new questions on familiar topics. Eventually we may have a fleet, exploring such topics as the science behind tickles (Vol.2) or dust (Vol.3). Science is more than just a barrage of facts. It’s a template for how to be curious - how to look at something, ask a million questions, and then try to find answers. Micromuseums is an attempt to share the curious, answer-seeking, scientific way of thinking with non-scientists. Everyone should have access to engaging educational experiences, but NYC’s biggest museums are clustered in concentrated cultural zones. Micromuseums, starting with the Smallest Mollusk Museum, inverts this model. We come to you. The museums will travel on month long residencies around the five boroughs, and pay special attention to underfunded school districts and outer boroughs far from Museum Mile. They will be free of charge.

Sydney – NEWTOWN NETFLIX NIGHTS

2016-06-11T00:00:00Z

MAKING MOVIE WATCHING SOCIAL AGAIN. We all know that movie watching has become increasingly isolated. Now all it involves is watching a flick on Netflix in bed. Alone. Or with a cat. So we want to make it social (and fun) again by opening up our mother of a living room for a free monthly movie night cinema for people in the inner west. We live in an epic and very unique share house 30 seconds off King Street, above a church hall. It has a huge carpark and an outrageously enormous living room (that even has its own entrance off our terrace, making it perfect for an event like this). With such a huge space and massive blank wall, it would be a huge waste not to use it for epic movie watching on a projector. We could set up a community Facebook page to pre-decide the movies, or get everyone in on the night and choose together on Netlix. It's gonna be great. And a hit. Back when YouTube used to be the new 'big thing', a pub in Surry Hills would host a weekly YouTube night where people would come and watch their favourite YouTube clips together. Simple and fun, right? Keen for this to come to life - we couldn't be more excited.

San Francisco, CA – Stellar Displacement

2016-06-08T00:00:00Z

Stellar Displacement is a traveling immersive environment in a box truck that transports participants into an experience of lying in a forest clearing on a summer night in the middle of nature while staring up into the sky. Our mission is to bring a sense of the night sky, stars, and constellations to urban areas where light pollution prohibits visibility to the celestial sphere. The installation will be built inside a 15' box truck. A planetarium projector will be installed and project nightscapes and other scenes from space around the room. A shadow plate will create the illusion of trees surrounding the viewer, who lies down and faces up on grassy sod. Additional sensory experiences include the chirp of crickets, flitting fireflies, and evocative olfactory set dressing. While those of us in the Bay Area are privileged enough to have relatively close access to nature, it is a privilege that is often underutilized, as the convenience of being in a city so bloated with on-demand services distracts from a more primal attraction to being awed by natural spectacle. Our Stellar Displacement Truck would aim to randomly appear in urban streets and offer the experience of stumbling upon a gorgeous view, rather than making plans and schemes to find them. We hope that this experience can encourage participants to seek out natural wonder, as well as being more observant of mundane beauty in all environments. Stellar Displacement is a project of the Living Room Collective, whose members comprise: Michael Katsevman, Jessica Lachenal, Kat Meler, Alex Kryzanowski, Aaron Wynn, Justin Tang, Min Yoon, and Albert Kong.

Paris (Non-active) – "Si tu ne viens pas au spectacle...

2016-06-07T00:00:00Z

"Si tu ne viens pas au spectacle... le spectacle ira à toi" La compagnie ACM Ballet développe une démarche artistique unique. Par équipe de quatre des danseurs professionnels évoluent à l'hôpital de chambre en chambre, présentant des spectacles conçus comme pour la scène. Ces compositions chorégraphiques puisent dans des styles variés, du classique à la variété en passant par le jazz, la danse contemporaine, le baroque. Elles amènent surprise, fraîcheur, émotion, évasion, plaisir. Les patients sont vraiment vus comme un public, et la chambre comme une scène. Pour le 14 juillet, nous interviendrons dans une structure d'accueil pour personnes handicapées à Paris 15eme. The company ACM Ballet has a unique artistic approach. Four by four, professional dancers perform in hospitals, moving from bedroom to bedroom to present shows conceived for the scene. This choregraphies are inspired by various muscial styles, from classical music to jazz, contemporary dance and baroque. They bring surprise, emotions, happiness and a breath of fresh air. Patients are treated as a public, and the bedroom as a scene. For July 14th, we will perform in a center for disabled people in Paris 15ème.

Rockport, MA – Solar Light Fixture for Mill Pond and Dam

2016-06-07T00:00:00Z

Mill Pond is a beautiful water space tucked away in Rockport. It is more hidden and smaller now than when it was first dug by Rockport's (then called Sandy Bay) second settler, John Poole, in 1702 for use as power for a mill. An earth and stone dam was built to gather the water coming through the Millbrook watershed. This pond enabled lots of industry through the years. It was donated to the town of Rockport in 1936 by the family of George Todd in his memory. More recently the pond has provided a place to paint, toss rocks, catch a fish, sail a model boat, feed the ducks, habitat for turtles, eels, herons and other birds, a pair of swans and even a beaver or two. Winter skating and ice hockey fun has long been had on the pond. In 2006 a storm blew in on Mother's Day and the dam was breached. For the next six years concerned citizens worked with Rockport's DPW to secure funding to rebuild the dam which was completed in 2012. During this construction, a light that been mounted to a pole next to the Mill Lane side of the dam and pond was removed. That single light illuminated the walkway across the dam that is a convenient cut through between King Street and Mill Lane. It also provided for night skating and easy hunting for the bugs by local bats. I would like to purchase a new programmable, solar powered, pole mounted light for the Town of Rockport to replace the old light. I have reached out to the DPW Director, Joe Parisi, and the DPW Commissioners, including Bruce Reed who is Chair of the Green Communities Task Force. The DPW will handle the purchase and installation of the pole and fixture. Also consulted was the lead project manager for landscape design firm Milone & Macbroom hired for the restoration of Mill Pond and Millbrook Meadow. The firm's lighting specialist reviewed the site plan to recommend an appropriate fixture. I relayed the feedback for use of the area, night safety, and dark sky respect gathered at MMC public meetings.

Liverpool (Non-active) – Liverpool MakeFest 2016

2016-06-07T00:00:00Z

Liverpool MakeFest is a festival celebrating all things 'makey' in the north-west, showcasing things people have made, projects people are working on, inventions, gadgets and hands-on activities including, coding, hacking workshops and demonstrations. This year we have taken over and extra library floor, spilled outside and are hosting Mersey ComicCon during the festival, so expect to see stormtroopers, R2D2 units and Daleks rubbing shoulders with high-tech NERF shooting, virtual reality, robotics, drones, coding, 3D printing, arts and crafts, hacking and fun science in abundance. We have over 50 maker stands, workshops and demonstrations and a host of ComicCon stalls and Cosplay competitions to make the day the geekiest ever. We’re VERY excited!! Here’s what you can expect to see… Daleks, Dr Who masks , Robbie the robot, R2D2 NERF shooting &Drones Fun Science & Special effects Hackspace projects Virtual Reality & Sewing Home-brewed computing PCBs, Arduinos and electronics MeArm, Ohbot and Mirobot Future Tech Studio Build a bug & Embroidery Sound ceramics & Voice emulators Sticker Critters, Tactile electronics & thought-bots Digital film production and photography Codebug, Geocraft, Minecraft workshops 3D printing & underwater robots Microbits & Coding RaspberryPi & Linux Studio Schools and UTC stands Midnight Polygon Liverpool Astronomical Society & Girl Geeks Interactive mirror displays Mersey ComicCon stalls ranging from comics to jewellry to t-shirts and guests including Marvel’s Tim Quinn, and Starwars characters from the Empire Strikes back care of the Sentinel Squad...

Dubai (Non-active) – Build a Better World

2016-06-05T00:00:00Z

BaBW aims to give GCC students the opportunity to travel to African nations in need of help for housing development (Kenya), water well development (Tanzania), and refurbishing of schools (Madagascar). This is sort of an "Outward Bound" and "Real Life Skills" building program that will leave the students without their creature comforts for 2 to 4 weeks and which we think will change lives in Africa and GCC forever, for the better.

Oakland, CA (Non-active) – Legal Clinic Day - Advanced Directives for All

2016-06-03T00:00:00Z

Advanced directives are living wills that allow people to document their wishes concerning medical care and treatment when they are unable to communicate or make decisions on their own. These documents are especially important for queer and transgender people living in the Bay Area, as many have moved here to escape abusive families who refuse to recognize their gender identity or sexual orientation. Without this document incapacitated queer and transgender people's abusive parents and next of kin are legally entitled to make important medical decisions on their behalf. Horror stories are pervasive as a result, ranging from parents forbidding their queer adult-child's partner from being at their deathbed and parents refusing to use their child's correct pronouns to parents dressing their estranged transgender son in girl clothes after death. In one extreme instance, a transgender woman's sister shaved off her long hair while she suffered a coma. In an effort to ensure that Bay Area queer and transgender people are treated with respect and in accordance with their wishes, Red Light Legal will coordinate two day-long legal clinics. At these clinics, volunteer attorneys will assist 40 queer and transgender people in creating their advanced directives for free while providing notarization and copies in both English and Spanish.

Awesome Without Borders (Non-active) – Advice You Don't Want to Hear

2016-06-03T00:00:00Z

My name is Maysoon Zayid. I am a comedian, writer, and disability advocate. In 2014, I had the #1 TEDTalk and I recently completed a stint as a guest comedian-in-residence at Arizona State University. While at Arizona State University, I filmed a mini-web series that I created, wrote, and starred in. It is called “Advice You Don’t Want to Hear”. Each episode is under five minutes and features four questions from the public who are seeking my advice. I am planning on filming a second season with the West Bank as my backdrop instead of Arizona State University. Like the first season, all of the episodes will be open-captioned so that they can be enjoyed by English speakers of any ability. We will produce 10 original episodes to be uploaded to YouTube for public consumption. The total budget for this project is $15,000 US Dollars. The mission of Advice You Don’t Want to Hear is to mainstream disability by placing me, a woman with Cerebral Palsy in the position of helping others. We seldom see anyone with a disability helping, rather than being helped. The advice I give on AYDWTH is good advice, except when it’s not and it is always funny. I am including links to the 10 Episodes I filmed at ASU, as well as a link to my TEDTalk so that you and learn more about me. Advice You Don’t Want to Hear https://youtu.be/zubF03wAQus?list=PLrCgOdSki7cUzBTxqZX3TkTvC0WzlHPri TEDTalk http://www.ted.com/talks/maysoon_zayid_i_got_99_problems_palsy_is_just_one Thank you, so much for your support and consideration, Maysoon Zayid

Sarnia (Non-active) – Sarnia Speaks

2016-06-03T00:00:00Z

Atlanta, GA (Non-active) – Cabin For Our Troops

2016-06-03T00:00:00Z

My name is Beth Waters and I run a nonprofit that supports our troops. My husband deployed (for the first time) in 2010 for a year long deployment and I actively supported all of the men/women in his unit and the family members stateside. Once he returned I continued my efforts in support of our troops and although it took a couple of years.....as of 2012, we are now a nonprofit ....Operation Appreciation. Over the past 5 years OpA have been approached many times by chaplains, units and military family support teams to host a veteran that is in need of a get-a-way during their reintegration. Often times a service member needs a longer transition between war, home and work. OpA has paid for a week here or a couple of days there many times in the North Georgia, Tennessee, and North Carolina mountains as "nature" seems to offer the most amazing comfort and healing. We have come up with an idea that will allow OpA to own an asset for assisting our troops rather than renting and throwing money away each time a service member has a need. A couple of months ago, my husband and I purchased a lot in the North Georgia Mountains (and donated it to OpA). We are currently working with a builder to build a log cabin that will serve as a permanent retreat for qualifying returning veterans in need of a small reprieve during their reintegration (we are personally paying for the mortgage). By Christmas 2016, this will be for the use of our veterans that need something extra in order to heal (upon vetting from their units)....our American Heroes! It is critical we find a way to support this ever growing need....and not fail our veterans that suffer from PTSD. The name of the cabin is: Red, White & Bear and all of the decor will be rustic: Americana, mountain, bear themed. Red, White & Bear will be filled with donated items, hand crafted furniture and accessories and treasure everywhere the eye turns. For every donation given with love and in support of our troops,

Portland, OR – Cypher CURE

2016-06-03T00:00:00Z

We are a small group of hip-hop artists and mentors from diverse backgrounds who have been building a non-profit organization called Cypher CURE. We utilize hip-hop culture as a way to connect with the younger generation (aged 12 - 21) and provide a safe environment for self-expression, guidance / mentorship and recognition of each individual's gift, in a supportive community environment. The circle is called the "cypher", a term that was coined in NYC, with the emergence of hip-hop culture, based on the number 0, which represents completion in supreme mathematics. At Cypher CURE we consider the circle a sacred container based on the principles of equality and respect. "CURE" is an acronym for "Creative Unity of Related Energy." We believe the younger generation already has the consciousness, imagination and creativity that can help create solutions in the world and it’s our job to help awaken their innate genius in a supportive community environment and offer guidance based on our experience. Over the past 5 months we have been meeting consistently with youth for cyphering, workshops and discussion sessions. The initial stages of this organization have been an organic culture-building process, connected with the youth, asking them what they're interested in. We invite you to view this video for a glimpse into the cypher: https://youtu.be/oFr0ogdFsZw Our first public showcase is going to be May 28th where youth will share their skills for the community. Our vision is to offer: - Ongoing workshops (at least 2 a month) - A monthly showcase - meet with an elders circle (at least once every 3 months) to clarify vision and guidance Moving forward, we’d like to: - attain a space for youth to record / produce music consistently - embark on nature excursions (at least once every 3 months) Cypher CURE is currently registered as a non-profit, without 501C-3 status. We are in the process of partnering MyVoice Music as a fiscal sponsor to seek grant funding.

Plano, TX (Non-active) – Dogfight: The musical

2016-06-02T00:00:00Z

Pete Duchan’s Dogfight was first performed in front of an audience on July 16, 2012. This romantic comedy-drama takes place in San Francisco during the years 1963 and 1967. The Musical follows young marine Eddie Birdlace throughout his last night in the United States before being shipped off to Vietnam. During their last night in town, the marines have the annual “Dog Fight”, which is a party where each guy brings the ugliest woman they can find. The winner of the Dogfight gets a large amount of cash. Eddie invites Rose to the party, which she does not react kindly to when she finds out. Throughout the story, Eddie and Rose go on a real date and the two end up falling in love before Eddie goes off to war. When Eddie comes back from war, he has post traumatic stress disorder and needs someone to depend on. Rose is the only person that is there for Eddie to depend on. This musical touches on social issues such as Gender Equality and Post traumatic stress disorder.

Ann Arbor, MI – The Leaders of the Future - Leadership Incubator

2016-06-02T00:00:00Z

Our mission since we were first incorporated in 2013 has been to transform the City of Pontiac by the power of the youth. Since September of 2013, we’ve hosted leadership development and group bonding programs on Friday nights, community service events on Saturdays, and a week-long retreat in August called the Golden Week that is geared towards community service and group bonding. At our Friday meetings, our college student staff train the high school students in the basics of leadership and project management. Then, the high school students are divided into teams and told one thing: identify a problem in your community and use your natural talent and training to solve it. With our project management outline and with guidance from the college staff, the high school students then create their own community-transformation projects. They’ve thought up, planned, and run clothing drives, marketing events at local businesses, park clean ups, partnerships with local churches to build parks and replant gardens in abandoned lots, and our Golden Week, a week-long inner-city retreat focused on community service and leadership development. And that’s not all. At the core of the Leaders of the Future mission is family. An hour and a half of each of our meetings is dedicated to peer mentoring and group bonding. Half of our Superhero Saturdays are dedicated to fun activities and group hangouts. In addition to the community service events, we’ve planned video game tournaments, lazer-tag outings, mini-golf tournaments, and hiking trips. In effect, it’s a team of young urban leaders dedicated to leadership and community development. It’s a nonprofit organization founded and moved forward by high schools students. It’s an army of passionate volunteers who are ready to cleanse their city of blight and degradation. It’s the Leaders of the Future organization, a family of game-changers with an unbreakable love for each other and for their community.

Baltimore, MD – Pop-Up KoreaTown II

2016-06-02T00:00:00Z

Pop-Up Koreatown II is 4 day exhibition/workshops/event made in collaboration with 10+ local Korean artists, seniors and business owners in Station North to create space and dialogue about the history, culture, identity of the past and present presence of the Korean community in Station North. We seek Pop-Up Koreatown II to further activate the exhibited artworks as agents to create new doorways and bridge the gap between the greater community and Korean community. Pop-Up Koreatown II is a sequel event from Pop-Up Koreatown I that was held last May in 2015, a wildly successful pop-up exhibition that featured in BmoreArts, CityPaper, The Korea Times, and Aaron Henkin's The Signal on NPR. Participating artists includes: Seon Young Park presents a video collaboration with the Seoul Rice Cake owner Mr.&Mrs as featured actor and actress of a Korean mythology with rice cake and the moon. Do Hyun Yoon, who intervenes in the condition of site and finds narratives in the space create site specific installations Korean own business spaces. Aletheia Hyun-Jin Shin sculptural Korean ceramic forms created with object sold in Korean own businesses, explores the presence of the Korean identity in the context of Baltimore, Sung Min Lee presents Korean fabric quilt forms called "bojaggi" work created with the Korean seniors from Greenmount Senior Center, Joseph Lee will present his social documentary photo series of the Korean communities in Public markets of Baltimore, etc. A Fun interactive, family-friendly public programming will include fan making workshop will be held for visitors to participate and learn about how to paint with sumi ink on fans. We also seek to hold a pubic event where people can help the restoring the graffiti that covers Mr.Kim's Mural.

Stockholm (Non-active) – NewBee

2016-06-01T00:00:00Z

Can beekeeping help refugees in Stockholm integrate faster? It’s a no-brainer! Of course it can and that’s why NewBees will receive this month’s 5000SEK grant. What a buzz to help such an awesome initiative! Read more at the link to the right!

Portland, OR – Parking Strips for Pollinators

2016-06-01T00:00:00Z

Parking strips, hell strips, parkways - whatever you call them they're typically just a place for grass, dog poo, and garbage! Why not turn it into pollinator habitat instead? I worked with a variety of experts in wildlife habitat, entomology, and botany to create a DIY handbook on creating high-impact pollinator space. But not everybody has the money and the physical means to convert a parking strip into pollinator habitat. Last November I worked with 20+ volunteers to convert 3,000 sq feet of sod into pollinator habitat! With $1,000 I could easily convert another 1,000+ feet. More than 80% of flowering plants rely on animals to pollinate them. Monarch populations have dropped 90% in the last 20 years, and native bee populations are crashing as well. Habitat destruction and fragmentation coupled with pesticides are leading causes of these problems. A Pollinator Parkways has 3 main characteristics. 1. It's pesticide free 2. it prioritizes native plants to support native pollinators 3. it has staggered bloom times to ensure nectar/pollen for pollinators as much of the year as possible. Interpretive signs will help encourage those passing by to take action of their own, and lead them to a source that'll help them do it well.

South Bend, IN – River Lights Music Festival

2016-05-31T00:00:00Z

RIVER LIGHTS Music Festival is a collaboration between community members & local college students seeking to illuminate South Bend as a prime destination for original music in the Midwest. 21 volunteer committee members across 7 groups are working together to showcase awe-inspiring music & unforgettable experiences in the resurgent community of South Bend, Indiana! This three day music fest will take place May 5-7. -Thursday May 5th will feature small shows at 3 key locations in the city: O'Rourkes near ND campus, The Well on Mishawaka Ave and Chicory Cafe in DTSB. -Friday May 6th ticketed events will take place at the Century Center Island and an electronic after-party at Club Fever -Saturday, May 7th will be ticketed as well with two stages setup at Seitz Park and the parking lot of the emporium building. The after party for that night will be at Corby's. -Rain location for all shows is Madison Center gym As a new music festival our goal is to build processes, procedures & structures to enable the event to be financially sustainable and grow in the years to come. We are anticipating a total attendance of 2,500+ ppl with a potential economic impact of over $125,000 on the city (assuming a $50 spend per person) We are confident that is just the start of something impressively AWESOME for South Bend

South Bend, IN – LGBTQ Pride

2016-05-31T00:00:00Z

We are hosting South Bend’s First Annual Pride Parade! The event is sponsored by the GLBT Resource Center of Michiana, which will soon be named The LGBTQ Center. The event will include lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer/questioning people and their allies. It will be a festive, family-friendly occasion to showcase South Bend as a 21st century city where all are valued, respected, and empowered. The event will include a parade and booths including LGBTQ-friendly businesses, organizations, artists, vendors, families and individuals in our region. The parade will end with an all ages dance party downtown. All businesses downtown will be encouraged to participate in the event with special promotions and entertainment. This will be a regional event with significant attendance. This event will follow our upcoming rededication. On April 28, 2016, we will be hosting a large-scale event called “The LGBTQ Center: A Celebration of Change.” On this day, we will be releasing a new name, mission statement, logo, exterior lighted sign, interior renovations, website, and an online LGBTQ-accepting business/organization directory. We are thrilled about the changes at the Center, and look forward to our growth as a South Bend organization.

South Bend, IN – Resurrect the Roses at Leeper Park!!

2016-05-31T00:00:00Z

This is an all-volunteer project to restore the historical Rose Garden at Leeper Park. The volunteers began working in April, 2015, and have since enlarged and created all the Rose beds (six large, concentric circles); removed six to eight tons of weeds, and overgrown sod and grass that were choking the Roses; pruned and re-dug nearly 100 Roses, many of which were dead, or barely alive; added over 100 new Roses, perennials, and new plants; Hauled and spread over ten yards of new soil, and over twenty yards of mulch, for the Rose beds; fertilized and treated all of the plants;removed four tons of soil, and overgrown weeds, and debris from the old viewing ponds; re-designed the viewing pond beds, and spread several tons of soil for the new beds; planted nearly 100 new perennials into the new viewing pond beds. This has been a cooperative project with the South Bend Park Department, and the Historical Preservation Commission, although no tax money has been used, and the project is fully self-funded.

South Bend, IN – The Birdsell Project

2016-05-31T00:00:00Z

The Birdsell Project (TBP) seeks to revitalize underutilized spaces by opening them to artists and the community. It creates community space that reflects upon South Bend’s history, celebrates current artistic endeavors, and experiments with methods of merging art and community. Since it's conception in Aug. 2014, we've put together a number of different projects: Our first project, a large-scale installation in The Birdsell Mansion, featured 21 artists. The show saw over 3,000 visitors. We hosted 11 local, national, and international artists for a 2 month residency. TBP provided housing, a stipend, and installation space. Artists created new work in SB's former power plant, provided artistic services to community organizations and met with a diverse group of local leaders. The show was open to the public for 2 months, exposing the community to installations created specifically for this space, and bringing people into spaces that have been unused for decades. We collaborated with ND on a number of class projects. In the last year, over 100 students have created installations with TBP for their final projects. We also collaborated with a local artist to create a mobile art installation that traveled to Grand Rapids to participate in Artprize 7 where we were voted one of the top 25 installations. TBP has seen over 30,000 people attend our art and music shows, classes, and projects. We’ve engaged local artists and attracted new artists to the area, gotten local and national media coverage, and brought new artwork to underutilized spaces; spurring important conversations regarding how space is used. Please follow the links below to view 2 videos documenting some of our work. https://vimeo.com/122979095 https://vimeo.com/160683753 We think we're bringing something awesome to SB and we want to continue bringing the cool to the community we call home. Our budget is small, our ambition large. $1000 would be transformative for The Birdsell Project.

Jumbos (Non-active) – We Stories

2016-05-31T00:00:00Z

IMAGINE WITH US What might be possible if more families from across St. Louis decided to start talking to our young children about race and racism? Would it change how we see ourselves? Our city and its people? Would it unlock our ability to contribute to a more hopeful future? We Stories: Raising Big-Hearted Kids is a new and growing organization that uses the power of children’s literature to create conversation, change and hope in St. Louis and a stronger, more equitable and inclusive future for all. Our family learning program provides St. Louisans with beautiful, compelling picture books that feature diverse characters and address race and racism. We pair the books with monthly, thematic resources that help parents bring the books to life and advance their own learning. And, we foster a supportive community among the participating families through a closed Facebook group and regular in-person events. Our program is aimed at families with young children (ages 0-7) who are not yet having robust conversations about race and racism. From November 2015 – February 2016, 80 local families participated in a pilot of our program approach. From their feedback, we know that our offering is robust and effective, and filling a niche that is not being met. The results of a pre- / post- survey demonstrate that participating families are actively learning, talking and taking action to counteract racism more than before joining We Stories. And, families feel less isolated, better informed and more confident in their ability to address racism in their daily life. The pilot participants were highly satisfied with their experience. When asked if they were likely to recommend this experience to others, 100 percent of participants responded affirmatively. We have developed a partnership with our region's largest library system to make diverse children's books more widely available.

Washington, DC – SOULAR SUNDAY in Marvin Gaye Park

2016-05-31T00:00:00Z

Something magical happens every other Sunday, during the summer, in Ward 7’s Marvin Gaye Park…SOULAR SUNDAY. In April 2014, after 21 year old Hubert Hunter was gunned down in broad daylight at the park’s entrance on Division Avenue, concerned neighbors, Christine Rhone and Maceo Thomas knew something had to happen to address the violence and highlight the magic they knew existed in the neighborhood they loved. They decided that the best thing they could do was encourage their neighbors not to avoid this troubled city park but to occupy the space with them and so, on June 8, 2014, SOULAR SUNDAY was born. Rhone & Thomas used their neighborhood and social media connections to encourage people to “bring your lawn chairs, picnic baskets, and newspapers and just come chill with us” and over 100 people showed up. Jamil Hamilton, popularly known as DJ Jahsonic and a lifelong resident of Ward 7, offered his music skills for free as did neighborhood face-painters, hula-hoopers, double-dutch teams, and more. Realizing there was the potential to showcase even more neighborhood talent, Rhone reached out to local artisans, artists, and chefs and got permission to have them set up a “Sunday sidewalk market” which added to the vibrancy of the first event. By summer’s end, everyone wanted to know whether SOULAR SUNDAY would be back in 2015. In 2015, SOULAR SUNDAY was back! Still using their own funds and hard work, Rhone and Thomas launched the new season with an official logo, free food, more vendors, and more DJs. The duo acquired all permits, provided restroom facilities, manned the grill, managed the vendors, ran the social media efforts, booked the DJs, cleaned the park, maintained community outreach, worked with Metropolitan Police Department, and so much more, that went into providing the amazing experience that was SOULAR SUNDAY 2015. Again, everyone wanted to know if SOULAR SUNDAY would be back the next year. SOULAR SUNDAY will return in 2016 even bigger and better.

Melbourne (Non-active) – Mechanical Youth

2016-05-31T00:00:00Z

My project is a shed space where youth will have the opportunity to gain skills in all things mechanical. It will be a space run by the community for the community. Volunteers will be from all walks of life with an interest in the development of youth and all things mechanical. The first activity revolves around reliable transport hence starting with bicycles. Participants will undertake a workshop to learn all about the operation, maintenance and repair of bicycles. Donated bikes will be recycled and once the participant completes the workshop the bike will be theirs for FREE. Other aspects of the shed will be the a place to drop in to undertake regular repair and maintenance and purchase both parts and accessories at discounted rates. Working on collaborations will local bike shop Riviera Cycles, Gippsland East Learn Local Alliance and Good Cycles in Melbourne. Bicycles are only the beginning will small engines, motorbikes and cars to follow.

Awesome Without Borders (Non-active) – All My Relations: A Native America Portrait

2016-05-29T00:00:00Z

Most of us have seen the photographic works Edward Curtis made during the early part of the 20th century. In 1906, he received $75,000 from JP Morgan to produce a series on North American Native Americans. The unspoken subtext: indigenous Americans were a disappearing race, and thus important to document. It was only a matter of time before they would all be culturally and or physically extinct. Just over one hundred years later, the history, politics and experience that comprise Native identity are as controversial as ever. Not one treaty made between indigenous peoples and the US government was ever honored. Each one was amended and altered, and sometimes outright revoked. Stereotypes remind us that there are multitudes of problems and indigenous populations have high rates of suicide, poverty, violence and addiction. If we are to become the country we say we are, there are many past hurts that need acknowledgement, many injustices that require resolution. Neither a history of injustice nor stereotypes tell the whole story. There is also resilience, strength, beauty and self-defining identity. The Indigenous Rising and Idle No More movements have signaled a new phase in Native consciousness, not only as Americans but as citizens of this planet. In this critical time of climate change, native voices are resounding with wisdom and perspective about the importance of honoring and protecting our planet. That’s why now, I am setting out to make a new record. It’s time to for us to tell our own stories of who we are and what is important to us. Why portraiture? I am interested in one powerful aspect of the process. I make a portrait as a message to the future — as a statement about who my subjects are in this moment. I ask, just before I press the shutter: “What, through this image, would you like your descendants to know about you, your life — your experience?” With this question, something happens: a gravitas, a moment worthy of recording.

Amsterdam (Non-active) – Volksbankjes (People benches)

2016-05-26T00:00:00Z

Doesn't everyone love it when something is named after them? It gives something a story and makes something special, instead of just 'a thing'. So I wan't to make public benches special. Because, well, they are. People use them to relax and enjoy the beautiful view of Amsterdam. And we should thank them for it! So for a day (or more) I want to go around Amsterdam and name public benches after the person/people who is/are sitting on that bench at that certain time! Forever engraving their names on the bench for everyone to see and remember. Because if Amsterdam belongs to the people, why shouldn't we name it after them?

Newcastle – To The Edge High Performance Centre

2016-05-26T00:00:00Z

To The Edge is Newcastle's very first athletic dedicated training facility. They specialise in action sport athlete development and have started to work with some of the Hunters best young motocross riders, surfers, snowboarders , skaters and other talented young sports stars. The dream is to expand into the largest high performance training facility in the Southern Hemisphere ! And to give all the talented young action sports athletes a central home to be able to train in specific to their sport. This grant will go towards supporting the owner, 28 year old Daniel, to undertake a coaching internship at one of the world's best high performance training centres in America.

Tallahassee, FL (Non-active) – Save 10 Tallahassee!

2016-05-25T00:00:00Z

For the first time, the Leon County Humane Society (LCHS) is working with Leon County Schools to promote fostering through families within the schools. We are encouraging parents to work with their children this summer to help save a life and seek a forever home for that animal. The summer months are the peak of kitten and puppy season, therefore this can be a grueling time in the animal rescue community. We want to have a hand in teaching the children in our community about responsibility and compassion. With a grant in the amount of $1,000 through the Awesome Foundation of Tallahassee, LCHS will be able to rescue 10 infant puppies and kittens and place them with families selected to raise those animals and become advocates for them. All of this will be done with a goal of placing the animals into loving adoptive homes. LCHS will assist the families in every aspect of fostering from bottle feeding and early socialization, to basic medical care and training. Once the animals have been spayed or neutered, we will walk the families through the adoption process. LCHS will provide infant formula, food, puppy training pads, toys, and medical care, while the foster families will provide a safe environment, socialization, and around the clock care for the foster animals. Through this unique foster experience, children will also be able to earn community service hours often required for school. The children involved will be encouraged to document their experiences with fostering through photos and writing to educate their peers. We envision success through this project, not only for these 10 individual animals, but also for the children and families investing their time toward the project. Our goals within the families selected for this project is to include a boost in confidence for the children caring for these animals as well as an unforgettable bonding experience within the family units entrusted with the care of these foster animals.

Twin Cities, MN (Non-active) – Beautify South Minneapolis

2016-05-25T00:00:00Z

The idea is to make Minneapolis a little prettier. I would like to cover with beautiful mosaics two garbage containers located in south Minneapolis (Nokomis neighborhood, 50th Street and 34th Ave S.) and also create two new mosaic planters that will be located in the same area. The planters will be located according to city regulations for sidewalks adjacent to businesses located in the area. Business owners will be responsible for maintaining the pretty flowers. This project is intended to revitalized the neighborhood making the business area more attractive for the community. The idea would be for the design of the mosaic to represent the Minneapolis culture.

Asheville, NC (Non-active) – Free Range Asheville

2016-05-23T00:00:00Z

Plano, TX (Non-active) – Shepard STREAM Lab

2016-05-22T00:00:00Z

The students at Shepard Elementary are more than just by-the-book learners, because of that we are expanding our classrooms beyond just text. We are in the process of creating a STREAM (Science, Technology, Reading, Engineering, Art, and Math) Lab in our library. In the STREAM Lab, students will be able to dive into their lessons and bring education to life! Working together with teachers, we target subjects that will become more meaningful through STREAM activities. Pencil and worksheets are being replaced by model bridges that students design and build, a light bulb that they power with static electricity, and a musical instrument they create and play. These are just some examples of activities that we have had in the STREAM Lab since it opened in the fall. In addition to the activities that support the district’s curriculum, we would like to introduce more technology to Shepard students. We view computers, wires, and coding as tools and materials that can be used to build, just as hammer, wood, and nails are. When we better equip students to create technologically, we are creating tomorrow's innovators and inventors. This December we participated in the international movement Hour of Code, where all of our students had dedicated time to learn about coding. Students as young as kindergarten came to the STREAM Lab and explored the process behind how to program through interactive games. These seemingly just-for-fun games were actually laying the groundworks for understanding how to script in Java. In the STREAM Lab, we strongly believe that in order to learn something, including programming, you must do something. When we allow students the opportunity to see programming as more than just lines of letters and parentheses, they will understand that programming is engaging and infinite in possibilities for them.

Miami, FL – The Plantain

2016-05-22T00:00:00Z

The Plantain is a satirical news outlet that creates funny, Miami-centric fake news stories. The goal of the project is to get Miamians engaged in local issues by presenting them in an absurd way.

Seattle, WA – Edible Sculptures

2016-05-22T00:00:00Z

If I was able to earn this grant, I would love to create an array of public sculptures designed for urban and rural areas. Within these sculptures, I would plant/inoculate an assortment of edible plants and/or fungi made for free, public consumption. By creating works of art that tantalize taste and sight, I hope to encourage a dialogue among the public participants about how a work of art may effect their everyday life, as well as encourage the notion of self-sustainablity. With the creation of numerous edible sculptures in various locations, I would hope that others would look upon it as something that they could do themselves; that they would be inspired to make their own art at home that can also act as a personal garden.

Kingston – Music at JG Simcoe Public School!

2016-05-22T00:00:00Z

John Graves Simcoe Public School is a low-income school in the Rideau Heights neighbourhood in Kingston, Ontario. Instrumental Music has become quite popular and successful at JG Simcoe Public School over the last few years. Learning musical instruments has been an opportunity they might not receive otherwise. Students are performing quite regularly at school concerts and school assemblies, as well as at upcoming opportunities at local nursing homes to perform for residents. Most students cannot afford to purchase or rent a musical instrument (which is most students at JG Simcoe PS) If we reach our goal of having 30 instruments by September 2016, that will allow approximately 30 students to have a chance to learn an instrument, as well as using some of these instruments with the school's various music clubs.   There are currently not enough instruments for future intermediate students for the next school year. Students in younger grades are beginning to see, and hear the success of the school band, so with more instruments, that means that more and more students will have a chance at learning to play a musical instrument. All of these music opportunities at school (which are free of charge to students) have given students a creative and positive way to express themselves and interact with their peers. It has translated to noted improvements in their in-class behaviour during music class and clubs, and in their homeroom as reported by homeroom teachers. Their confidence level has increased and they enjoy practicing during the school day, and some students take their instruments home to practice. Music education is building teamwork through music ensembles, and frequent school and community performances.  The students are learning about notation, performance, as well as appropriate language and behavior with different audiences.

Plano, TX (Non-active) – 105 Stories of Hope

2016-05-22T00:00:00Z

Each person is living a vivid, complex, and epic story filled with hopes, dreams, and battle scars, a story that we may play a major role in or never cross paths with. However, the lives of some of these people – their stories – are plagued with a silent killer. Depression affects 14.8 million Americans and has claimed 42,773 lives last year. Due to its negative stigma and the sufferer’s own feelings of shame, depression can be undetectable until it is too late. My team and I have started this initiative in response to a dear friend whose life and vivid story was one of those cut short too soon. Four months ago, my girlfriend, Cheyenne Garza passed away and lost her fight to depression. Cheyenne was a beautiful woman who always looked for the good in everyone. She was an artist who loved to paint, draw, dance, and take pictures. Her dream was to become a photographer for National Geographic so she could explore the world and put her passion to good use. However, depression is a silent killer, and Cheyenne battled her anxiety and depression alone for years without letting anyone know. While we are still in shock and healing from this tragedy, we know we are channeling Cheyenne’s benevolent spirit to help others who are afflicted with the same disease. In March 2016, we established ourselves as a non-profit organization in the state of Texas aiming to help young adults overcome their battle with depression. During the week of April 18th, 2016, we also partnered with the Gamma Beta Fraternity chapter at Texas Tech University for Philanthropy Week. As part of raising awareness of depression’s pervasiveness and educating students on how they can recognize or treat the symptoms, we distributed informative pamphlets to students and culminated the week with guest speaker, Tye King. The reception was resoundingly positive with students exclaiming how they can connect these lessons to their friends who are dealing with depression to potentially help or even save a life.

Alaska (Non-active) – The Velella Project

2016-05-22T00:00:00Z

I have designed and am building a shelter prototype called Velella to address an important and unique community need for truly affordable and safe temporary urban shelter for Alaska’s most vulnerable people. Aesthetically pleasing, highly durable transitional living structures in which individuals and families experiencing housing crisis can safely live are practically nonexistent. The municipality of Anchorage and key partners are working diligently to address and resolve the housing crisis in our state’s largest city. Velella is an attempt to provide a constructive temporary emergency housing solution in the interim. What if I designed beautiful inhabitable spaces with our most vulnerable neighbors well being foremost in our minds? What if the appearance and feelings generated by those spaces were valued as much by those with good fortune as those with poor fortune? Couldn’t this approach actually erase judgement, dissolve stigma and move all of us toward healthier and more empathetic communities? Velella is a shelter fashioned to engender a sense of security and pride in its dwellers and designed to resonate with everyone, regardless of housing circumstances. This shelter is designed to be surrounded by built land forms and grouped together to establish “micro-neighborhoods” that reinforce feelings of safety, home, whimsy, belonging and inclusiveness in both the inhabitants and the larger established community. Velella is intended to provide safe space and reinforce cohesiveness for individuals and families in the midst of crisis. It is deliberately designed to equalize social and economic imbalance, combat stigma and restore social dignity. The long term goal of this project is to advance Velella to production as an aesthetically pleasing, elegant, simple to install, durable shelter that has many applications.

Oahu, HI – LISTEN: IT ONLY TAKES A MOMENT.

2016-05-20T00:00:00Z

We are launching a social movement called IT ONLY TAKES A MOMENT™. The purpose is to demonstrate how we can improve the mental wellness of our communities through active listening. The catalyzing event is screening the unreleased feature film LISTEN across North America in Fall 2016. It will be 100% free for people to attend. LISTEN was inspired by Writer/Director Erahm Christopher's work with nearly one million youth. The film is about a school counselor who struggles to make a difference as isolation and negative influences spark destructive behavior among broken youth. Prominent themes include: mental illness, self-harm, gang violence, racism, cyber-bullying, domestic abuse and suicide. The trailer may be viewed at: www.listenthemovie.com. We test screened the film to 6000+ people and received incredible feedback. Here’s a summarized video response: https://youtu.be/1F1f8u83Evo. LISTEN helps youth feel like they are not alone and empowers them to empathize with their peers and vocalize their own struggles. We can provide a comprehensive data packet upon request. Screening event structure: • Intro by Local Mental Health Professional (5 - 10 min) • Feature Film Presentation (1 hour 48 min) • Facilitated Q&A Discussion (30 min) • ‘Just Listen’ Activity Books distributed to all attendees Supporting this event will benefit the community of Oahu in a multitude of ways. The event will (1) build awareness to mental health (2) reveal the damaging consequences that occur when we fail to listen to those in need (3) bridge the social divide between youth and adults (4) create a space for honest conversation and (5) provide local resources for individuals and families to seek help. Overall, we believe this will make Oahu more awesome by transforming inactive listeners into ACTIVE LISTENERS! Everyone has a role to play in communities therefore we must work together to help our youth grow healthy and connected!

San Jose, CA – HelloBots LEGO Robotics

2016-05-18T00:00:00Z

I started the HelloBots LEGO robotics program (www.hellobots.com), a free program specifically for underprivileged children in East San Jose and Alum Rock school district, California in the summer of 2015. Also I am offering “HelloBots for Her”, a special program for girls to build and explore in a supportive environment to develop an interest in math and science through the fun of robotics. I first created a basic level curriculum for four to six weeks. Then I planned another curriculum for the intermediate level for children with some basic exposure to LEGO NXT. The next challenge was to buy the kits. But in summer 2015, I worked at the Silver Creek Academy as an teacher’s assistant, and earned some pocket money from that. I combined that with the seed donation from my family and bought four LEGO NXT kits from Ebay. On August 8th, 2015 I had my first HelloBots workshop in Alum Rock Public library, which ran for six weeks. Library provided the some much needed laptops for the workshop. That was a life changing experience for me. Children from different family backgrounds, who couldn’t afford to have a laptop at home, came every day even before the class started, and didn’t miss a single one. Now I am running the 4-6 weeks workshops in three different libraries, and completed six workshops so far.Since last year I successfully ran free after school programs in LUCHA Elementary school, Alum Rock and Valley Vista Elementary School, San Jose. I am working closely with Alum Rock school district office and planning to launch new programs in 2016-2017 school year. This is the first time for any school in Alum Rock where students got exposure in LEGO robotics through the school. To this day, I have inducted three volunteers and taught 150+ students and looking forward to expand the horizon of Hellobots in more schools and libraries in San Jose and beyond.

Tilburg (Non-active) – Tante Leen (op de Buurtcamping)

2016-05-18T00:00:00Z

Voor één weekend is Stadscamping Tilburg, op het voormalig Van Gend en Loosterrein, geen evenementencamping maar een gezellige Buurtcamping volgens een bekend concept uit de Randstad. Ze wordt bewoond door alle mensen die de stad rijk is: van rasechte Tilburgers tot studenten, van muurbloempjes tot druktemakers en van peuters tot senioren. “Met een pleerol onder de arm zien we er ten slotte allemaal even knullig uit.’Ze zorgt ervoor dat Tilburgers elkaar leren kennen en zal daarmee duidelijk onderlinge sociale cohesie en begrip voor elkaar vergroten. Een uniek ‘evenement’ met een hoge sociale waarde. En iedereen is welkom! Tilburgers uit alle wijken, van de Reeshof en de Blaak tot Noord en Broekhoven. In totaal komen ca. 600 Tilburgers: ¼ inwoners met beperkte financiële middelen - ¼ vrijwilligers en actieve mee-makers - ½ Tilburgers die niet onder 1 van de vorige groepen vallen Een deel van de gasten leeft op de grens van het minimum inkomen, zij kamperen tegen een gereduceerd tarief en kunnen spulletjes lenen bij Tante Leen. Ook voor deze groep is dit een leuke manier om kennis te maken met lokale activiteiten, kunst & cultuur. Samen met de campinggasten zelf en vrijwilligers wordt een divers en actief programma opgesteld met enkele hoofdthema’ s: Sport & Spel, Cultuur en Natuur en eten & ontmoeten.

Gloucester, MA – "Gloucester Speaks"

2016-05-17T00:00:00Z

"Gloucester Speaks" is a one hour documentary portrait of the people of Gloucester at the crossroads between the historic past, the present and the unknown future of this iconic and beloved city. The story will be told through the captivating, sometimes excited, sometimes troubled words of our citizens. The building and opening of the Beauport Hotel will act as a kind of Motif representing the inevitability of change in this, America's first fishing community. To date, conversations have been videotaped the Mayor Theken, Peter Anastas, Jimmie Tarantino, fishermen, stone cutters, graffiti artists, a homeless man and an actor. 17 more conversations are planned spanning a broad and intriguing cast of Gloucester residents.

Ottawa – Love Letters from Anonymous

2016-05-17T00:00:00Z

May's Awesome Ottawa award goes to Brittany Paulhus, to support groups of community volunteers making cards with messages of kindness and support for people who might need a little extra love. The project is called Love Letters from Anonymous. “At our first event,” explains Brittany “we invited the public to help decorate Valentine’s Day cards for every person at ten women's shelters in Ottawa and the surrounding area. We also sent donation items including toiletries, feminine care products, bus tickets, makeup, and jewelry. The turnout for this grassroots event was unbelievable. More than 300 people showed up to participate and many others stopped by to drop off donations or to share stories of their own experience.” “Our most recent event,” Brittany continues, “happened in time for Mother's Day, with a similar goal of sending messages of support to people staying in Ottawa's shelters. We again also collected and delivered donation items. My goal,” she says, “is to make this a quarterly project where people can submit ideas for who to send cards to next. We’ve already received some amazing ideas. One volunteer suggested we do a card workshop and school supplies drive in September for refugee families new to the country.” Want to get involved? Love Letters from Anonymous is on Facebook and Twitter. Brittany is an events coordinator at a national not-for-profit, and moved to Ottawa this year from Winnipeg.

Awesome Without Borders (Non-active) – play:ground

2016-05-16T00:00:00Z

An adventure playground will open in the heart of New York City this May. play:ground, a local nonprofit, will open a 5,000 square foot play space on Governors Island where kids can imagine a world of their own making and experience self directed play. Modeled after a junkyard, the adventure playground lets children shape their environment using an assortment of materials, tools, water, dirt, and things that others might describe as trash. At the Governors Island adventure playground there will be none of the usual structures that you might find in a traditional playground - no shiny metal slides or swings, but the kids might build their own forts from wood pallets and hay bales, they might manage a see saw out of planks of woods or a trampoline out of old tires that lands them in a pile of mud. All this happens under the watchful eyes of trained playworkers — staff who are on hand to provide assistance when requested, but otherwise stand back and let the children take the lead. Today in New York, young people experience a tightly managed urban landscape, with rare access to spaces belonging entirely to them. Where are kids free to self-organize, or independently create from their imaginations? play:ground encourages a sense of freedom and permissiveness not found in most of the city. In addition to free public hours, play:ground will offer summer camps and school visits. Beyond the space on Governor’s Island, play:ground will continue providing local outreach through its ongoing initiative — play:ground in the park. Based on the Pop-Up Adventure Play model, play:ground in the park brings

Boulder, CO (Non-active) – Bear Creek Beautification

2016-05-16T00:00:00Z

The Bear Creek Signs and Mural project represent the next phase of Friends of Martin Acre (FMA) beautification projects along the Bear Creek Path. There are currently 5 signs upstream from the Bear Creek Path Mural under Martin Drive (an FMA project!) that are small, outdated, and at this point, covered in graffiti. These signs were originally designed, created and installed by Creekside Elementary School in cooperation with Boulder Parks and Recreation many years ago. FMA is seeking funds to replace these 5 signs with engaging environmental education signage. We have been working with New Vista High School, the City of Boulder, and facilitated a focus group of neighborhood residents to identify the topics and themes for the signage. Each sign and the new mural will educate the public about Bear Creek and its inhabitants as well as the 2013 flood. In addition to the 5 signs, we will incorporate a new mural component that focuses on art inspired by the flood, and includes a ‘How Tall are you in Flood Years’ marking the 500 year flood and below. Most importantly, each sign and the new mural will engage its reader with fun activities that range from using your senses to experience the creek to seeing if you can jump as far as a mountain lion (or squirrel). The entire part of the pathway, from the first sign to the 5th sign to the mural, will be connected with footprints that kids (and grown-ups) can follow to the next sign and experience.