Awesome Foundation - Projects

Santa Fe, NM (Non-active) – Keep Madrid's Pets Healthy

2017-10-29T00:00:00Z

As a small animal mobile veterinarian I have been servicing rural Santa Fe County between Santa Fe and Albuquerque for over 10 years. My services include: vaccinations, dog and cat castrations, light sedation for dental cleaning, wound repairs, hospice care for sick and elderly animals, in home euthanasia, general health exams and education on animal health and welfare. I currently offer low cost visits, examinations, medications, vaccines and minor surgeries to many rural people in my community that might otherwise be inclined to neglect their animals due to financial restraint. I would like to continue to be able to provide every pet owner with an affordable treatment program for their animals and have the ability to complete a satisfactory treatment plan for low income families. I intend to offer discounted services through the use of vouchers for medications, vaccinations, oral care cleaning and products, castrations and minor surgeries such as wound repairs. I would like to propose that I have 50 vouchers of a $20 value to be available over a one year period. A $20 voucher for example, would cover the cost of antibiotics for a cat or dog wound treatment, a vaccine for a cat or dog, a discount on a castration surgery or dental cleaning, or a general health exam.

Alaska (Non-active) – Unmasking Brain Injury - Alaska 2017

2017-10-29T00:00:00Z

"The mission of Unmasking Brain Injury is to promote awareness of the prevalence of brain injury; to give survivors a voice and the means to educate others of what it’s like to live with a brain injury; to show others that persons living with a disability due to their brain injury are like anyone else, deserving of dignity, respect, compassion and the opportunity to prove their value as citizens in their respective communities." This project is open to anybody with any type of traumatic or acquired brain injury and their family/ loved ones, to make a mask with an explanation of their art, to share what it feels like to live with a brain injury. Photos of the finished masks and explanations are put on the website and people can look at masks and stories from different states and around the world. Masks from Alaska become part of the Alaska exhibit. At exhibits and events, people are invited to share their experiences and raise awareness about brain injury by continuing to be involved in the project if they want to do more than make a mask. Because Alaska is so small and brain injury still has a stigma, participants can use initials or a fake name if they want to share their story but protect their identity. Alaska is the only state out of the 20 participating states with an individual instead of an organization doing this project - this means Alaska is the only state with someone paying out of pocket and volunteering to do this project. We work with groups and organizations to host mask making events, and then the groups can have their name on the project exhibit. We bring the masks and art supplies, and the orgs bring the space and the guest list! This way involvement is low risk/ high reward, and people can use space that already exists, and advertise to their own folks in their area. This project is ongoing.

Oahu, HI – Mokauea Futures

2017-10-27T00:00:00Z

Aloha! Mahalo for your consideration for an awesome project on Mokauea Island. An ahupua‘a is more than a land division encompassing ocean and sky. It is one of Hawai‘i’s greatest resources providing food, energy, and material provisions necessary for culture and life. Today, many groups around Hawai‘i have been focused on rebuilding ahupua‘a starting with fishponds, taro patches, and important historical sites that encompass important sections of ahupua‘a. One of those groups is the Mokauea Fishermen’s Association (MFA), focused on the historical site of Mokauea Island in Ke‘ehi Lagoon (located in the shoal waters of the ahupua‘a of Kalihi between Sand Island and the Honolulu International Airport runway). Although every airplane flies over this site, not many people know about Mokauea Island. Historically, the site was an important place for maritime navigation and astronomical observation, and home to a fishing village surrounded by 41 thriving fishponds. However, since the dredging of the reef during WWII, the construction of the reef runway, the destruction of the 41 fishponds to build the industrial areas of Kalihi, ‘Iwilei, and Sand Island--Mokauea is in critical condition. In efforts to restore the ecology and culture of Mokauea Island, every month MFA brings 150 students to the island by a 15 minute sail in a double-hull canoe to learn about the island, its reef, and the challenges of food production in a sea-level coastal zone. As part of their educational programming, MFA is near completion of a small community center on island. As an artist who is originally from the ‘ili of Mokauea (which extends uplands into the Diamondhead side of Kalihi Valley), I am applying for an Awesome Foundation Grant to build a 3D model of Kalihi Valley that shows Mokauea Island before the reef was dredged and before the fishponds were destroyed. This projection model will be donated to MFA and housed in the community center to strengthen the student’s field trip experience.

Tallahassee, FL (Non-active) – WeDo Hands-On STEM Robotics

2017-10-27T00:00:00Z

We would like for the Awesome Foundation of Tallahassee to help include a cross-curricular coding and robotics opportunity into Sabal Palm Elementary's Special Area: Technology class. Lego Education offers a robust Robotics solution in WeDo 2.0 that not only allows students to engineer and code robotic creations but also connect to other science disciplines with lessons that also match up with Florida's Educational Standards. Students may investigate the metamorphosis of a frog, examining the life cycle while also creating a robotic demonstration that the students are able to modify into each of the 4 stages. Other projects examine various building models and how they withstand different levels of earthquakes, speed and acceleration, the parts of a flower and pollinators, and more. The WeDo 2.0 set includes the necessary Lego blocks, Smarthub, motors, and sensors for creating the curriculum's Guided and Free Build projects, and employs Lego's WeDo 2.0 software for presenting lesson features, robot schematics, coding principles and instructions, data collection and presentation methods. Lego's purpose for this set is to provide an educational experience that can be classified as "playful learning". After a lesson, our students will walk away from the session with a deeper knowledge of not only coding and robotics experience, but also with real-world scientific knowledge that connects to their life experiences and observations.

Oahu, HI – Water for Nanakuli Boys & Girls Club

2017-10-27T00:00:00Z

Within our organization, an AmeriCorps Volunteer received a donation of a water dispenser from Menehune Water Company. The dispenser was a great contribution to our clubhouse, because without a drinking fountain our kids have a hard time filling hydro-flasks and keeping hydrated. Currently, we have the dispenser and no sustainable way to keep water in the jugs filled for our teens. Without a drinking fountain, or a way to install a drinking fountain, our water dispenser is the most efficient way to keep our teens hydrated after our sports leagues, healthy lifestyle programs, and after school.

Newcastle – Just Like You Dolls

2017-10-26T00:00:00Z

In March this year Jade launched a business that creates a variety or medical devices for dolls. Her daughter Bella (now 5) was born with bilateral congenital hearing loss and has since been implanted with Cochlear Implants. Bella has always loved her dolls and Jade soon noticed her trying to put her own implants onto her dolls. Christmas 2016 she set out to create a doll for Bella that had toy implants. When she opened is Christmas morning she was so excited to see a doll that had 'special ears' just like hers. Jade gifted her friend a doll and it was that moment when she saw the look of pure joy, she knew it was something she had to share with other children. Supported by her husband and father in-law who designs all of the devices, they have started their own business 'Just Like You Dolls' Alllowing customers to customise their medical devices (types and colours) as well as their doll type so that they can finally have a doll 'Just Like Them'. Now they are in the process of trying to get their name out into the community so that they can bring the same joy to as many families as possible.

Twin Cities, MN (Non-active) – Lighting Up The North End

2017-10-24T00:00:00Z

Awesome Without Borders (Non-active) – Leadership Institute - ADIMTU

2017-10-23T00:00:00Z

ADIMTU works to unlock the potential of girls in the rural communities of the Mayan highlands to stay in school, direct their own futures, and become leaders in their communities. The Leadership Institute consists of 3 projects: The Life of My Mother, Family Reading Time, and Little Sister. The projects are implemented in the rural Middle Schools of San Pedro Sacatepéquez, San Marcos, Guatemala. These projects build on one another and are implemented sequentially with 7th, 8th, and 9th-grade girls and boys. The Life of My Mother project builds trust and support between mothers and their child, through a yearlong interview that is recorded by the student in a diary of their mother’s life. The Family Reading Time project develops the reading/storytelling skills of students after which they take books home and read them with their parents and siblings building a network to support literacy and staying in school. The My Little Sister project pairs 9th-grade girls with 2nd or 3rd-grade girls that have been identified by their teachers as at risk of dropping out from school. The “big sister” helps the “little sister” with their schoolwork, reviewing school lessons and supporting their reading progress. The “little sisters” see their “big sisters” as role models and examples of success in school, while the “big sisters are able to realize their potential as leaders and change makers in their community. We started to pilot the inclusion of boys in our projects beginning with the mother’s diaries project. This decision was made after listening to feedback from mothers and school officials, looking at how boy's inclusion on girl center projects can further change and realizing that the generations of leaders that were just formed at the Leadership Institute where still living in a “machista” environment. In addition, the school system in the region expressed strong interest in seeing boys included given the positive impacts on school retention and success for girls.

Piqua, OH (Non-active) – Donation Projects

2017-10-23T00:00:00Z

St. James would like to put up 2 boxes- 1 a little library for anyone walking by to take a book, the 2nd box for non parishable items (ie. soap, deoderant, diapers etc.) for public use as it is needed.

Awesome Without Borders (Non-active) – Amra Odbhuth Cafe

2017-10-23T00:00:00Z

Founded in May, 2016, Amra Odbhuth Cafe started out as a pet project from a community member's living room where we had community performances and poetry readings, and sold food we made to sustain these events. In January, 2017, we shifted to permanent space. We are a group of LGBTQ youth looking to start a self sustainable community center in Kolkata. We are a one of its kind project in India, and the first to have an official community 'space and cafe' in the country. Our cafe is built in a community model, in that it gives visibility, platform, support and employment to queer artists and individuals. The trans community especially feels that this space is a safe haven which lets them express their gender without feeling threatened. At the moment we function on an event basis, but we have an entire two story home with a terrace, backyard and garage (which we plan on turning into a community store), available. The house is really old, and was uninhabited for almost ten years and is hence falling apart. The core team members have all pitched in monetarily to make it a barely operable space but we have exhausted our means and lack the funds to open this up on a regular basis. Our events so far include poetry nights, drag nights, queer film screenings, community workshops, we've also had a performance by trans poet, Alok Vaid Menon. We hold queer performances at all our events, and raise donations that are used to pay performers for their labor and sustain the space's bills, repair costs etc. Our primary aim is to give the grassroots queer community the means to support themselves through employment, by performing, selling their art etc. We are connected with the community all over the country, including several trans artisan groups in nearby villages and districts who make fabulous accessories, bags, clothes etc. We feel giving them access to a mainstream market space by creating a cafe atmosphere, we will be successful in our long term goals.

Orlando, FL – Nerd Nite Spotlight

2017-10-20T00:00:00Z

"Nerd Nite Spotlight" is an upcoming television program hosted by Ricardo Williams. The production is a collaboration between WUCF-TV and Nerd Nite Orlando that highlights some of Central Florida's best and brightest. All guests on the show are former speakers of Nerd Nite Orlando's monthly event series. The show will air weekly through Central Florida's public broadcasting which serves nearly 4 million viewers across nine counties. "Spotlight" will also be available online. WUCF-TV is Central Florida's PBS station, licensed to the University of Central Florida, serving nearly 4 million viewers across nine counties with award-winning and acclaimed national programming for all ages and local productions that explore our community. Nerd Nite Orlando is an evening of entertaining yet thought-provoking presentations– all while the audience drinks along in a casual atmosphere. Speakers present for 15-20 minutes each on a fascinating subject, often in an uncanny and unconventional way. Nerd Nite has been established in over a hundred cities around the world and has organized special programing for National Geographic, Comic-Con International, The Future is Here Festival, and Maker Faire Orlando, among others.

Kingston – Welcome Home Packages

2017-10-20T00:00:00Z

Here at Home Base Housing we do everything we can to ensure that clients have a place to live. With that being said, it's not just about where the live it's what's inside their new home. People always think about the basics such as; a bed, a couch, a kitchen table, some food. But what about the day-to-day items that are used so frequently but may get forgotten about when it comes to donations? We want to make sure that clients have the best time transitioning into their new homes and will also know how to continue having the best time once Home Base Housing is no longer a key support system in their lives. Our Project is the 'Welcome Home Package'. Home Base Housing staff will purchase items and put it together in a package for the clients to use. In our packages will be cleaning supplies, personal hygiene items, small kitchen items, other useful items that they may not know about and resources to show where the clients can purchases these items when they run out.

Minas Gerais (Non-active) – Arqueologia Estelar

2017-10-19T00:00:00Z

Arqueologia Estelar é um projeto de arqueologia urbana no casarão do Espaço Comum Luiz Estrela. Serão atividades de busca de vestígios arqueólogicos em cômodos de um abandonado Hospital Psiquiátrico Infantil. A localização, identificação e tratamento desses vestígios visam pesquisas nas áreas de Arqueologia da Medicina, Arqueologia Urbana além de trazer à luz uma história marginal de crianças estigmatizadas e trancafiadas. Uma história que sempre foi abafada seja pelo esquecimento, abandono ou por camadas de poeira. Todos os artefactos encontrados serão tratados e passarão por um processo de curadoria. O Espaço Comum Luiz Estrela tem como objetivo transformar o antigo Hospital em museu onde esses objetos serão expostos a toda sociedade. Serão ministradas oficinas a todo público interessado, totalmente gratuitas, visando a troca de experiências acerca do tema Cultura Material, isto é, sobre o potencial informativo dos vestígios materiais deixados por ocupações e atividades humanas do passado e como as técnicas de Arqueologia podem contribuir para contar histórias que ainda não são conhecidas. Tem como meta divulgar todo o conhecimento produzido e o resultado das pesquisas realizadas no exercício de suas atividades, seja a arqueologia, ou o restauro ou no campo das artes. Todos os profissionais envolvidos neste projeto trabalharão de forma voluntária. Conta com arqueólogos, historiadores, arquitetos, museólogos, restauradores e equipe de audiovisual. A edificação foi inaugurada em 1914 como um Hospital Militar. De 1947 a 1980 funcionou como manicômio infantil. Depois, transformou-se em uma escola para crianças portadoras de necessidades especiais. Em 1994, a edificação foi tombada e abandonada pelo poder público. Dentro de suas paredes, ocorre um processo de reforma, restauro e pesquisa histórica em consonância com os princípios de conservação do patrimônio histórico e de divulgação da memória contida no local. Onde havia concreto, hoje entram luz e ar! ****************** O Espaço Comum Luiz Estrela foi inaugurado em 26 de outubro de 2013, por meio da ocupação de um casarão tombado de Belo Horizonte. Foi ocupado com o objetivo de construir um espaço aberto, autogestionado que recebesse e oferecesse atividades culturais e políticas. O Espaço Comum Luiz Estrela recebe encontros, oficinas, cursos, conversas, apresentações artísticas e uma série de atividades. O Estado formalizou a cessão de uso do imóvel aos seus ocupantes pelo período de 20 anos.

Antigonish, NS (Non-active) – Random Acts of Kindness - SAJS Style

2017-10-19T00:00:00Z

Now that our Guidance team is formed, we are excited to go forward with this application. Our team is comprised of Grade 7 and 8 students from SAJS who want to make a difference. We want to spend a day making a difference to people in Antigonish. On Thursday, Dec 21nd, our plan is to spend the day performing monetary Random Acts of Kindness. We have divided the money up among 6 different groups / organizations. See below All in one day - one awesome day!

Bend, OR (Non-active) – You matter signs

2017-10-18T00:00:00Z

My project is to bring more uplifting signs to Bend, signs that encourage people who are suffering from depression and those who want to give up on life to keep going because they matter. While visiting friends in Newberg this summer I noticed signs with encouraging words throughout the community. I inquired about them and learned a woman had designed them in response wanting to help stop the high teen suicide rate in Oregon. I knew I had to bring them to Bend which I did. The response was immediate when a woman texted the creator that the signs in my front yard saved her life. She was ready to give up, saw the signs and felt she mattered. In the month they've been up there have been many positive responses, one man even knocking on my door to say thank you as he suffers from ptsd. Teenagers who thought they were cool were touched by them. The words "don't give up" "you matter" " mistakes don't define you" "you are worthy of love" reach out to hurting people. . To see channel 21 s news coverage go to ktvz.com/news/don't-give-up-campaign-aimed-at-lifting-spirits/614047291. This project has spread across the U.S. and Europe and I believe Bend would be even more awesome if more people were helped because the signs were in more places, reminding us all that we matter.

Ottawa – Growing Futures

2017-10-18T00:00:00Z

October’s Awesome Ottawa award goes to Lucia Eyzaguirre and the Parkdale Food Centre to support the Growing Futures program, which uses hydroponic growing systems to teach primary school children about food and financial literacy, as well as to give them a taste of entrepreneurship. “Growing Futures' goal,” explains Lucia, “is to foster a more physically and financially resilient next generation, leaving food insecurity in the past.” The program now has more than 40 hydroponic systems in schools, community centres, and community houses — each partnered with a local business owner. The award from Awesome Ottawa will be spent on a new blender bike. “This past summer,” Lucia continues, “one of our volunteers rigged up a blender bike so we could make use of frozen greens the kids had grown and couldn't sell. We created green smoothies and sold them at the NCC Sunday Bike Days. Our bike is falling apart, so we would love to get a new one and keep having wonderful conversations with the people that buy our green smoothies, spreading awareness of what Growing Futures does and the kind of impact we have had and hope to have.” Lucia is a recent graduate of the Entrepreneurship Acceleration program at Algonquin College, and the administrative assistant for Growing Futures.

Yerevan – Առողջանոց տիկնիկաթերապևտիկ նախագիծ

2017-10-18T00:00:00Z

Նորից մենք)) Ներկայացնում ենք «Առողջանոց» տիկնիկային նախագիծը: Նախագիծն իրենից ներկայացնում է տիկնիկային թերապիայի հանդիպումներ հիվանդանոցներում ստացիոնար բուժում ստացող երեխաների համար: Նպատակը:Օգնել ստացիոնար բուժում ստացող երեխաներին հաղթահարել հիվանդանոցային իրավիճակի հետ կապված հոգեբանական և ֆիզիկական անհարմարավետությունը ու տագնապայնությունը, ինչպես նաև ուղղակի ուրախացնել նրանց: Ինչպես: Ցանկանում ենք տիկնիկների հետ միասին այցելել երեխաներին: Տիկնիկները իրենց հետ կանցնեն որոշ բժշկական պրոցեդուրաներ խաղի միջոցով: Երեխաները կկարողանան սրսրկել տիկնիկներին, անել վիրակապեր, «վիրահատեն» նրանց: Ինչպես նաև պարզ բժշկական պարագաներից կպարտրաստենք հետաքրքիր իրեր: Ում: Նախատեսում ենք այցելել օնկոլոգիական հիվանդություններ, տուբերկուլոզով հիվանդ, ինչպես նաև ֆիզիկական հաշմանդամություն ունեցող երեխաների: Ամեն հիվանդանոց այցելելիս ծրագիրը կփոխվի՝ կախված երեխաների հիվանդությունների առանձնահատկություններից: Ձևը: Անցակցման ձևը կլինի ինչպես անհատական , այնպես էլ խմբային մակարդակով: Անահատական ասելով ի նկատի ունենք, որ տիկնիկները կայցելեն հիվանդասենյակներ, կխաղան իրենց հետ, կզրուցեն, «բժշկական պրոցեդուրաներ կանցնեն»: Խմբային մակարդակով տիկնիկները երեխաների հետ կխաղան, կանցնեն այնպիսի պրոցեդուրաներ, որոնց միջով երեխաներն են անցնում, և ամենակարևորը, երեխները հանդես կգան բժշկի դերից, իսկ տիկնիկները հիվանդների: Տիկնիկները: Նախատեսում ենք կարել մեծ տիկնիկներ՝ կենդանիների կերպարներով, բայց երեխաների չափերի, որպեսզի երեխաները տիկնիկի հետ հավասար հարթության մեջ գտնվեն: Տիկնիկները կլինեն ինտերակտիվ, այսինքն՝ շարժվող բերանով, ձեռքերով և ոտքերով, կլինեն հագնված, այնպես, ինչպես սովորական երեխաները: Մենք նախատեսում ենք ունենալ երեք տիպի տիկնիկներ, որոնք կունենան առանձնահատկություններ (օրինակ, ֆիզիկական հաշմանդամություն, մազերի առրայություն կամ բացակայություն, հանվող վերջույթներ):

Yerevan – ՆորՇենԼաբ

2017-10-18T00:00:00Z

Արցախի Նորշենի դպրոցում սովորում է 54 աշակերտ: Կրթության մեջ նորարար մոտեցումների ներմուծման և կրթական գործընթացն ինտերակտիվ ու հետաքրքիր կազմակերպելու համար ցանկանում եմ ինձ հանձնված ֆիզիկայի դասասենյակը կահավորել հետևյալ ձևով. Դասասենյակում՝ սեղանների վրա կտեղադրվեն վահանակներ, որոնք ամենաառաջինը սեղմած աշակերտը հնարավորություն կստանա հնչեցված հարցին առաջինը պատասխանելու: Վահանակները հաղորդակցվելու են ռադիոկապի միջոցով: Ուսուցչի մոտ տեղադրված վերահսկման վահանակի լամպերի վառվող լույսերով պարզ կլինի առաջինն արձագանքած աշակերտը: Ունենալու ենք նաև գնահատման վահանակ, որում կերևա յուրաքանչյուր աշակերտի ցուցանիշն ըստ իր պատասխանած հարցերի քանակի: Հենց այս գնահատականներն էլ անցկացվելու են դասամատյանում: Գաղափարի իրականացումը ոչ միայն դասավանդման գործընթացն ինտերակտիվ կազմակերպելու հնարավորություն կտա, այլև հնարավոր կլինի կազմակերպել արտաժամյա մրցույթներ և խաղեր: Քանի որ ինքս Նորշենի դպրոցի ֆիզիկայի ուսուցիչն եմ, ուստի ռադիոկապն ու կառավարման վահանակներն օգտագործելու եմ նաև ուսումնական գործընթացի դասաժամերին կիրառական փորձարկումներ իրականացնելու համար: Նշված համակարգը հավաքվելու ենք Նորշենի բոլոր դպրոցականների մասնակցությամբ, ինչը նույնպես կրթական բաղադրիչ է աշակերտների համար:

Baltimore, MD – Bridging the Gap

2017-10-17T00:00:00Z

Baltimore's elders are arguably our second most endangered species and our most under utilized natural resource, topped only by our young people of color. In our LGBTQIA communities, the problem is multiplied exponentially. Young transgender and queer-identified people suffer from higher levels of homelessness, discrimination, abuse, violence, and death on our streets than their non-trans or queer counterparts. Transgender and queer elders suffer silently with unreported abuses, stigmatization, and discrimination. Many live in fear of reprisal or loss of housing security if they report the perpetrators. We believe that Bridging the Gap provides a way to address some of the issues that face our youth while providing much needed help for our elders. In July of this year our organization received a grant that allowed us to begin hiring young transgender and queer-identified people as paid interns who in turn work with trans and queer elders in our community whom we've located through community centers, social media, word-of-mouth, whatever means possible to make our service known. The interns provide services such as: escorting elders to appointments, shopping, providing companionship, grooming, and preparing meals if asked. So far, we have provided services for 6 elders and have hired 4 transgender women as interns. Our goal for 2017 is is to employ interns at every level of employment, starting with 12 this year and expanding the number each year. We believe that Bridging the gap will provide the opportunity for our youth to develop marketable skills while under the tutelage of our organization, while providing needed services to our elderly. We also believe that Bridging the Gap is a project that be replicated across all demographics, not just trans and queer communities, but all communities, and not just in Baltimore, but everywhere.

Gloucester, MA – When the Lee Rail Was a Stranger.

2017-10-17T00:00:00Z

I am a former Gloucester fishermen and I still work in the maritime industry under sail and in other areas. I have a collection of century old negatives of Gloucester vessels from tugs to eastern rig draggers and photos and letters from the men who captained and crewed them. My goal is to publish a coffee table book of these images to share with the public. These funds would be used to scan all negatives digitally and to preserve them in archival sleeves for future generations.

Pittsburgh, PA – Search and Rescue K9 Scent Kits

2017-10-16T00:00:00Z

The White Oak EMS Search and Rescue K9 Team (“WOSAR”) is an all-volunteer, non-profit division of the White Oak EMS Dept. Our mission is quite simple, SERVICE BEFORE SELF. As volunteer emergency responders, we each put the needs of the public above our own desires and wants. Per the 2016 US census, Allegheny County had an estimated population of 1,225,365. We have always had an older population. For the last two decades, there was a downward trend and our population was getting younger; however, recent reports show the numbers climbing again. Of the total US population, the average number of persons over the age of 65 is 16.8%. Yet in Allegheny County, it is 19.3%, and by 2025, this will reach 21.1%. There are over 30 Dementia and Alzheimer specific care facilities in our region. Of the 16.8% seniors, 10% of them will suffer from some sort of Dementia or Alzheimer’s, that means that in our area, over 20,000 patients are in need of some sort of care. Obviously not all are in care facilities. Some live with family and friends. Nevertheless, we can be certain; all of them need to be safe. AND THREE OUT OF FIVE PATIENTS WILL WANDER... 12,000 people in our area that are at risk for wandering off; 12,000 people at risk of injury, or worse. WOSAR wants to keep this from happening. WOSAR would like to do start a Human Scent Preservation Kit program for the highest risk patients in our area. A Scent Preservation Kit is a specific scent article (a cotton pad) with the patient’s own scent on it. Once the patient’s scent is collected on the pad, the pad is placed in a jar, the jar sealed and safely stored. Then, should the time come that the patient goes missing and this scent is needed for a Search Dog, it is available. There are times that a person has gone missing, a scent article is not able to be located with only the missing person’s scent. Due to this person living in a group facility, no one can be sure that a piece of clothing or personal item isn't contaminated

Cass Clay – It Just Takes One

2017-10-15T00:00:00Z

This project is about how are country is dividing. This book shows that it only takes one person to stand up for what is right. Even though it is tough to do. Jimmy Fallon recently said, "ignoring it, is just as bad as supporting it". We hope this book will help all kids k-6th know that it is OK to stand up for what you think is right, and have the support of your classmates as you do it. We hope each classroom can use a copy of the book, and read the book on a specific day that is recognized as "It Just Takes One Day." We hope that this helps kids stand up for each other and themselves. I would like to create a fundraiser for this project because I would like more than just Hawley to be able to receive this book, and take part in this day. With the help of my parents I would like to share this through social media, using the hashtag #itjusttakesone. I am hoping that other people who are interested could support this by sharing and using this hashtag too. I want to start this day in the Hawley school district, because it is a smaller school district. If we have enough funding we would like to add DGF and Moorhead in the future. The theme of this fundraiser was inspired by the book, "One" by Kathryn Otashi. We would use the money to purchase the book "One" by Kathryn Otashi. We would like each k-4th classroom in the Hawley and surrounding districts to own a copy of this book, incorporate it in to their lesson plans, and have student led projects incorporating concepts from it. My name is Hali Dahl. I am 11 years old and going into 6th grade at Hawley Elementary.

Poughkeepsie, NY – Briggs Farm Multi-sensory walking trail

2017-10-14T00:00:00Z

NHR is creating an outdoor therapeutic walking trail for adults and children with autism. It will be built and maintained on our 65-acre Briggs Farm site in Poughkeepsie. The Dutchess County Land Conservancy holds an easement on the site that requires all future development be done for therapeutic services or programs. This will ensure the site remains a natural setting. The trail will be about 1/3-mile in length and four feet wide. It will have three sensory stations and will be wheel-chair accessible. These sensory stations can be used to rest and/or address any stress the individuals we serve get from the outdoors. We want to share the benefits of outdoor exercise with the community so we will extend the use of the trail to anyone in the community who enjoys walking outside and being on a working farm.

Birmingham, AL (Non-active) – Programs at Ruffner Mountain

2017-10-12T00:00:00Z

In 1977, an intrepid grassroots community movement banded together to form the Ruffner Mountain Coalition in order to protect 20 acres of the Appalachian chain in the historic Eastlake Neighborhood from a land developer planning to build an apartment complex on the site. Their passion for conservation and the mountain itself, with it’s myriad of native species of flora and fauna, has proven to be an invaluable teaching resource for youth and adults in Birmingham, AL for four decades and counting. Today, at 1,038-acres, Ruffner Mountain is one of the largest privately held 501(c)(3) urban nature preserves in the southeast. We continue the legacy of the original Coalition through our mission of advancing the understanding of ecology in a rapidly changing world. One way that we fulfill that mission is by providing public programs that demonstrate not only the interconnectivity of the ecosystems on the mountain, but how humanity fits into the ecosystems large and small in our communities. Our programs are organized into four categories: Citizen Science--Training on the identification and observation of native species, for the purpose of collecting data from Ruffner Mountain and our own backyards that will help real, national scientific efforts. Community Work Days--Opportunities to connect with the greater community, through a hands-on project that improves Ruffner and the neighborhoods that surround the Mountain. A long-time staple of Ruffner’s programming. EcoArts--Because the Arts are a powerful teaching tool in any subject, Ruffner collaborates with the art, writing, and music communities of Birmingham to host creatively-driven classes and workshops that convey ecological concepts. Guided Hikes--Another popular, long-standing aspect of Ruffner’s programming, guided hikes are opportunities to explore the Mountain with an expert in Alabama ecology, conservation, biology, geology, or history.

Oahu, HI – The STEM World from Above

2017-10-11T00:00:00Z

Students in the Waialua Robotics STEM Learning Center in grades 7-8 will participate in a relevant, rigorous, and highly technical STEM Research Digital Media Project that will allow them to 1) engage in the scientific inquiry/engineering design process 2) work with adult volunteers, providing expert mentorship from interested organizations, community members, and higher education institutions 3) and create documentation videos utilizing drone technology to better capture perspective and allow new accessible vantage points to make digital media themes and messages much more powerful. The VEX IQ STEM Research Project utilizing Digital Media will be offered as a competitive elective and afterschool program platform, during the weekdays and select weekends, including vacation time for middle school students. The project period will be from the beginning of the 1st Quarter of the 2017-18 School Year until the 2018 Hawaii VEX IQ State Championships to be held at the Hawaii Convention Center in January 2018. Should the team qualify for the World Championships, they will continue to work on their projects until April 2018 where the event will be held in Louisville, Kentucky. Our team plans on participating in local tournaments. At each event, our teams will compete with other local VEX IQ Robotic teams across the State including neighbor islands. At each participating tournament, students will be able to enter their STEM research digital media projects for judge’s review. Student participants will be assigned specific roles on the team, based on student interest and strengths. Student roles may change depending on their demonstrated performances as the season moves along. In May 2018 at the conclusion of the project and season, the Waialua STEM Learning Center will report the degree to which individual/team project objectives were met using a STEM Research Investigative Report and Presentation Board, and/or Engineering Design Notebook, and/or Video Documentation.

Sydney – Good to Go

2017-10-11T00:00:00Z

Myself and three friends got inspired after watching the War on Waste series to try to experiment with an intervention that would reduce single-use plastic waste; specifically, single-use takeaway containers. Our project is the implementation of a reusable food container system, similar to the systems that currently operate in Portland and San Francisco in the United States (by the organisation GoBox), and at colleges all around US (e.g. Harvard, Berkeley), but in an Australian context. The way the scheme practically operates is that a participating restaurant serves takeaway food in one of our reusable containers, the customer eats it there, or takes it up to their office, and when they're done eating they drop the box in a designated drop box (placed next to ordinary bins). The boxes are collecting by a third party, returned to the restaurants who wash the containers, and then reuse them. They can be used up to 500 times. Once they break, they can be placed in the regular recycling - closing the loop of materials. We've done extensive research and the existing overseas schemes have been shown to reduce the amount of waste going to landfill and overall greenhouse gas emissions, compared to any single-use alternative, including compostable containers. We're currently in the process of running a Life Cycle Analysis to analyse the environmental footprint of using the boxes in Australia, but based on our preliminary research we expect them to still be radically more environmentally friendly than any single-use alternative! We have been speaking to a number of local restaurants to partner and a run a pilot, including Cornersmith, Sumo Salad, Rose Bay Farmers Markets, Will & Co, Tokyo Tina (in Melbourne) and more. We have found that prospective partners are very keen to participate, but initial costs are a concern (since the model is yet to have been used in Australia).

San Antonio, TX – Farm to Table Initiative

2017-10-11T00:00:00Z

Rolling Hills Catholic School started the 2017 -2018 school year providing their students from PK3-8th grade with nutritious lunches and afterschool snacks. This was made possible through a partnership with Redbird Farmacy Restaurant, who is dedicated to educate and inspire others on how diet and proper nutrition can heal your body from the inside out. The previous lunches the students were offered were your typical school lunches that children all over America are provided on a daily basis with highly processed foods with many preservatives. We are at the first phase of our farm to table initiative to provide our students with nutritious meals and to teach them about nutrition. The foods that are prepared for them, mainly come from local farms. The students are learning to enjoy fruits and vegetables as well as learning healthy alternatives to chicken burgers, lasagna, and hotdogs. The next phase to our initiative is to start our school garden on our school acreage. We need funding to get this next phase started.

Chicago, IL – The East Side Project

2017-10-11T00:00:00Z

I love Chicago! I am a Chicago Public School librarian at George Washington Elementary School on the East Side. Why does this matter? I'm glad that you asked. While many of my students have grown up on the East Side, they may not be aware of its rich history. I hope to change that! I was lucky enough to earn a grant from the Chicago Architecture Foundation this summer. It centered around the book No Small Plans -a graphic novel centered around urban planning and Chicago's past, present and future. The grant provided a class set of books and great curriculum materials to start this journey. I like practical lessons. Therefore, I want my students to think like urban planners and create their own plans for the site of the former US Steel Plant on Lake Michigan. I have already enlisted the help of our Alderwoman Suzanne Garza who has offered to tour the site with my students. The Chicago Architecture Foundation's Vice President of Education Gabrielle Lyon is also going to join our tour and share her expertise with the kids. Author Rod Sellers is willing to meet with students at the East Side Museum located in the Calumet Park Field House. So my project lets students READ and LEARN and PLAN in the library and go to the site to see the practical application of their knowledge. All we need is money to pay for buses!

Adelaide – Nature's Playground by Naturally Gathered

2017-10-10T00:00:00Z

Our mission is to to inspire, empower, support and inform families to make changes that will lead to a world of healthy, confident, connected and resilient children, through time in nature and the occupation of play . We are an Adelaide-based business that has been created by an occupational therapist to support positive health, development and well-being in children and the community. We have noticed a gap in families spending time in their local, natural environments as well as the limited time and value place on free play. As a result are concerned about the long term implications of this and have decided to do something about it. We offer experiences in natural, local, public spaces that are filled with opportunities for free play and exploration, with the goal to ensure parents and families can continue to get the most out of these spaces (for free!) after the experiences that we host are finished. We are advocates for free play in a world full of obsession for structured activities. We aim to provide information and support that will lead to happier, healthier and more confident and connected families. Our approach is experience (or occupational) based and we use informal opportunities to provide information and curiosity to prompt families to think reflectively about how these ideas might fit into their own life. We currently are putting out an expression of interest with Adelaide City council with our first session planned for mid October.

Louisville, KY (Non-active) – Scoring Goals in the South End

2017-10-09T00:00:00Z

Scoring goals in the South End is a plan to bring youth soccer to the South End. Starting with free clinics to educate, build interest and generate community commitment. Clinics will run once week for 6 consecutive weeks in the Spring and Fall of each year until there is a time when there is enough community involvement to establish a league or to partner with an existing league. The mains goals of the project are to make soccer accessible to youth in the community who may not have the finances to pay league dues or whose family may have a hard time transporting them across the city to participate in en exiting league. We will do this by offering the clinic for free and keeping the location within the 40214/40215 zip codes. Currently, there are no organizations offering youth soccer to the public in the area. We want to change that. We have been selected as the recipient of the Center For Neighborhoods, Neighborhood Institute Micro Grant that has funded the cost of initial soccer equipment and we have access to multiple fields in the area. The South End is the most diverse area in the city and soccer is the most played sport in the world. It only makes sense to have soccer where the world comes together in Louisville.

Louisville, KY (Non-active) – STEMY Academy

2017-10-09T00:00:00Z

We are STEM + Youth, a recently established student-run nonprofit on a mission to foster curiosity, learning, and innovation by engaging students of all genders and backgrounds in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math). This year, we’re launching a new program called STEMY Academy. STEMY Academy will be a two-pronged educational initiative that aims to cultivate scientific curiosity in 60 to 90 local middle school students—particularly those from underrepresented backgrounds. By engaging these students in exciting and educational activities, the program will challenge participants to think critically, add a deeper layer to their scientific understanding, and reveal the numerous real-world applications of the information they’re learning. As a result, this unique exposure can spark an interest in STEM and encourage students to pursue STEM throughout school and into a career. The first part of STEMY Academy will be an afterschool science workshop specifically aiming to demonstrate that STEM can be exciting. For example, participants will explore fluid dynamics and physics through an egg drop challenge and learn about the biology of life by building edible DNA strands. By engaging students who may have had little previous exposure to STEM in a series of fun challenges, we can show them how fascinating STEM can be and recruit students for the second, more education-focused part of STEMY Academy. The second part of this initiative will educate students about real-world issues that can be solved through STEM. Participants will learn about major problems currently affecting our global society and our environment (such as the overuse of natural resources), work in groups to discuss these problems, and explore different ways to address them through hands-on activities. For example, students will learn about sustainable technology while building solar ovens. This part of the program will challenge students to apply what we teach them to solving real problems.

Youngstown, OH (Non-active) – Craft for Humanity: Creativity with a Mission

2017-10-07T00:00:00Z

Craft for Humanity, crochet a plarn sleeping mat for the homeless. Have you heard of plarn? Plarn is the ‘yarn’ that is used to crochet the plastic mats. It’s constructed from plastic bags. The concept is pretty simple but simply AWESOME. Using upcycled crocheted plastic shopping bags and turning them into functional items. For this specific project sleeping mats would be made. The sleeping mats are intended for people who are less fortunate. These crochet mats are remarkable comfortable and offer just enough to create a barrier between the ground and the body, to help retain body heat while sleeping. It’s no problem if the mats get wet as they can easily be dried. The mats are also a cleaner way of sleeping. Bugs don’t like them. And when dirty, they can be easily hosed off, shaken out and be good to go again. They are portable as well, the crochet plastic makes for a very lightweight mat. Each mat will keep 500-700 plastic bags out of the landfill. Humanitarian and eco-friendly, what is not to love?! This AWESOME project allows children and adults of all ages to get access to the art form of crocheting while also using creativity to provide sleeping mats to individuals and organizations that need help. This project would focus on involving city of Youngstown church groups, knitting and/or crochet groups, youth groups, nursing homes, Youngstown City School children, etc. Sleeping Mat Materials Needed: • Plastic Bags (500-700 per mat) • Bamboo Crochet Needles (size: O or P) • Scissors The goal is a 3’x6’ size plastic yarn mat. How to make plarn: 1. Lay out and smooth plastic bags. 2. Fold in bottom and side pleats of bags. 3. Cut off horizontally the top and bottom of the bag. 4. Fold bag into accordion. 5. Snip ends off each “roll” of bags you will then have many loops of plastic aka plarn. 6. With a simple slip knot, each loop is tied together. 7. Roll attached loops into a ball of plarn.

San Francisco, CA – Force of Nature: Women's Work Visualized

2017-10-07T00:00:00Z

Every year, women are doing hundreds of hours of work-- behind the scenes and for no pay. Men work hard too (of course they do!), but no one ever forgets to give a gold star to a man who works very hard. It’s visible, it brings home a paycheck, it’s the social norm. So many women, though, are working just as hard for a paycheck AND at the same time doing the domestic labor in their homes and volunteering in their communities-- work which tends to be invisible. It's what what sociologist Arlie Russell Hochschild has called the “second shift.” The Force of Nature sculptures are data visualizations that transform the work hours of women of various ages, ethnicities and socioeconomic backgrounds into weight-bearing sculptures, photographic portraiture, and social practice interactive events. Real-life data is collected using a custom-built app that enables participants to record their unpaid and paid labor, hour by hour. These labor hours are translated into large-scale sculptures that give voice and space to the women’s histories. A photographic portrait of each of these powerhouse women wearing or carrying her sculpture hangs next to each sculpture—in a real, physical way “shouldering her load.” Every woman and every different demographic group experiences work inequity differently, so each sculpture, in material and composition, reflects the personality of the person it was built for. The solid forms are typically representative of the women’s paid labor, because that’s more seen in society, and the ones that are more transparent represent the unseen labor-- invisible, but it’s still there. And the spaces in between represent when the women were not working, so if you look at them you see very few spaces for any of these women.

Singapore – The Sweet Keeper

2017-10-07T00:00:00Z

An Original Graphic Novel that examines Capitalism through the lens of a semi-fictionalised 1980s Hong Kong. The story will attempt to use some of the form and tropes of traditional adventure and manga stories to take a serious look at the issues of modern economies and societies. While the book is still in it's early conceptual stages, my previous book "The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye" (www.artofcharliechan.com) may serve as an indication of the form of the book - mixing styles and genres to tell a story in an engaging and unique way.

Oakland, CA (Non-active) – All That I Aspire To Be

2017-10-05T00:00:00Z

I am a fixer, and I see a problem. Many students, in the hood that I come from, do not have realistic visions of what they can do in life. Some have never really been out of Oakland and may not know anyone who has gone to college. Most will say they want to be an athlete, a rapper, doctor or firefighter. But there are so many options! And it is so important to understand one’s interests, talents, strengths and goals before entering high school. As a native of East Oakland, an artist/educator, and mother of three children in the public school system, I strive to bridge the gap in this area with my own family. Now, I want to start the conversation with some of the young children I encounter daily. My sister wrote a children’s book, called “All That I Aspire To Be”. I am the illustrator. The book features 13 illustrations of an African-American girl dreamily imagining her future career options. The next step is to self-publish this book through IngramSpark. This will produce hard copies as well as an electronic version. We can then take this book into classrooms at REACH Academy (at the intersection of Bancroft and 98th Avenues) where my son attends kindergarten. The aim is to use the book educate students about aspirations, career options, and to model a thinking process: • Print 100 copies of the book for first run • Bring book into 2nd and 3rd grade classrooms (2 classes total, approximately 50 students, each student gets a free copy) • I will volunteer my services as coordinator and facilitator • Coordinate one parent volunteer per class to come read to the whole class (as students read along with own book) • The parents can provide a personal account about their own childhood aspirations • After reading, facilitate a group discussion of the book with guided questions • Work with teacher to provide students with a writing assignment: “What I Aspire to Be” • Donate additional book copies to all other classrooms at REACH

Annapolis, NS (Non-active) – Annapolis County Climbing Club

2017-10-04T00:00:00Z

Awesome Annapolis decided tht ROCK CLIMBING is awesome. It is a growing adventure sport that can be enjoyed indoors and outdoors, all year round. The club is building a rock climbing gym for people of all ages and abilities to be able to challenge themselves in ways they never dreamed of. Rock Climbing tests your confidence, flexibility and endurance all while building self-esteem and resilience. The construction is nearing completion (which you can see on their Facebook page) and they are getting ready to paint, install the safety mats and most importantly, set the routes. This new climbing space is located in the loft space of The Annapolis Royal Community Recreation Center (formerly ARRA) and boasts just under 1000 sq/ft of climbing space. Western Nova Scotia has some of our Province's best outdoor bouldering. A lot of the outdoor climbing is located on the Digby Neck (Sandy Cove) and in the woods in and around Tupperville and Bridgetown. There is nothing quite as exhilarating as climbing a 15 foot high boulder overlooking the dark blue waters of the Bay of Fundy. This is good for the mind, body and soul.

Newcastle – From us to You

2017-10-03T00:00:00Z

From us to You collects donated men's and women's formal wear and accessories to give to high school students FOR FREE so that they may attend their high school formal without financial stress and pressure. We hold an annual event called 'Browse, try and take' where high school students can come to pick out an entire outfit for their formal at absolutely no charge, no strings attached. I started From us to You in July this year by putting up a post on my Facebook page asking my friends and family for donations of their formal wear and it literally blew up! Within hours I had total strangers dropping off donations to my home. So I set up 6 different donation drop off points between Sydney and Newcastle and within a month had close to five hundred dresses, shoes, bags, jewellery, suits, shirts and ties. I was interviewed on the Em Rusciano and Harley Breen Today FM breakfast radio show, ABC Newcastle and The Newcastle Herald also wrote two articles about From us to You. The Facebook page has close to 1000 'likes' and has been very well received. The community has been very supportive of this initiative. We had close to 100 kids through the doors at our Browse, try and take event at Alesco Senior College in Newcastle West on 26 August and are looking forward to making 2018 bigger and better!

Awesome Without Borders (Non-active) – Earth Caravan Quebec 2017

2017-10-02T00:00:00Z

In August 2017, a group of shiatsu practitioners and interdisciplinary artists from Montreal (fifteen people in total) will be travelling to the North of Quebec province in Canada to visit Innu communities in Natashkuan and Mingan. This 10-days self-funded trip is organised with the intention to establish the links with remote Innu communities and to initiate the dialogue with their culture that predominantly remains marginal and unacknowledged in the context of contemporary Canada. During the trip, we offer free Shiatsu treatments, thematic workshops (art therapy and mindfulness workshops for children and adults centered around sharing, positive thinking, and cooperation) and give therapeutic art sessions to parents and children to help each other heal from the effects of cultural and social disenfranchisement. First Nation’s communities in Québec continue to endure inter-generational trauma as a result of resident schools in the mid-twentieth century. This neglected situation has resulted in a myriad of negative social, emotional and psychological effects, which continue to hamper the positive development of the community as a whole. Cultural segregation and underrepresentation in mainstream Canadian cultures reinforces the sense of alienation that profoundly affects Innu communities Through participatory art workshops, deep listening circles, and play we will initiate the dialogue with Innu communities vital to restore damaged relationships between First Nations and mainstream cultures in Canada. Instead of seeing Innu community as one having a problem and ourselves as helpers, we propose collective engagement, co-creation and sharing as a form of mutual healing process. The results of this encounter will be documented in a short video focusing on dialogic relationships between Indigenous communities and volunteers and the process of cultural exchange.The video will be presented during the indigenous awareness week at McGill university in September 2017.

Northampton, MA (Non-active) – Food Tour publicity and logo development

2017-10-02T00:00:00Z

This project promotes walking food tours in downtown Northampton, with the goal of making the city a food destination. Many tourists and visitors pass through the Valley in their travels or while dropping off students. Food tours are a way for visitors to learn about our incredible local food producers and purveyors. In a 2.5 hour guided walking tour around downtown Northampton, each tour stops at 7-8 destinations to learn about the businesses and sample foods that they make or sell. Food tours prompt return visits to participating businesses and encourage visitors to spend time downtown. They also return home with stories to share about Northampton's vibrant food community. The idea is not new [http://www.growfoodtourism.com/how-food-tours-support-destination-growth/], but it is the first in the Pioneer Valley. As such, it will need to be promoted both online (through tourism websites, social media) and in print (regional print supplements, rack cards at hospitality locations, tourism organizations and institutions); and it will require a well designed logo. The local food tour of Northampton had a successful trial run and is ready to begin, once the website is live (early September). I expect to add additional tours (Vegetarian, Dessert, Apple Harvest) in the future. With extensive publicity in the first year, I expect attendance at the Food Tours to increase from Fall 2017 through Spring /Summer 2018 and beyond.

Liverpool (Non-active) – Wheel Meet Again - Christmas Grotto

2017-10-02T00:00:00Z

I've recently started working as an Outreach Worker for L8 Charity, Wheel Meet Again. We're an over 50s project that tackles social isolation for Liverpool residents by providing subsidised classes, trips and transport for Liverpool residents. One of the first projects I have been tasked with is getting our members together to transform our building into a Christmas Grotto for the L8 community. This project will be cross-generational as we are inviting local children to write letters to Father Christmas and post them in our special Christmas post box (made by one of our members!) which we will then reply to and they'll receive their replies when they meet Father Christmas (or one of his helpers!) at our Christmas Fair on 11th November. Last Friday we had a taster session for our Christmas Crafts class, which is going to run every Friday leading up to the fair. This session will be free for our members and we're not paying any tutors. Basically, we're all putting our heads together to use our own expertise and experience to peer teach each other different crafts which we can use to create things to Christmas-i-fy the building. So far I am providing sessions in giant snowflake making, felt baubles and gift box making (this is for one of our members who makes angel charms - she will be selling them to raise money for our charity at the fair so we're going to make boxes to put them in). Some of our members have said they will do sessions on crafts such as card making, sign writing and mini Christmas trees. We're also going to be writing 'Merry Christmas' in as many different languages as we can think of. Many of our members are from culturally diverse backgrounds so we think this is a great way to bring the community together and raise awareness of different backgrounds and different languages.

Ann Arbor, MI – Michigan Prison Doula Initiative

2017-10-02T00:00:00Z

The Michigan Prison Doula Initiative is a start-up nonprofit which seeks to support incarcerated mothers during their prenatal, labor, and postpartum process through doula support, childbirth education, and postpartum visitation coordination. Women who are pregnant and incarcerated represent one of the most vulnerable factions of our community. The portrait of the incarcerated mother is one often effected by poverty, racism, domestic violence and drug addiction. Therefore, pregnancies are often high-risk to mother and child, and marred by lack of adequate prenatal care. We are seeking to mitigate some of these effects by providing an experienced doula (birth partner) for each eligible mother, as well as full-spectrum childbirth and nutritional education classes. After the birth, MPDI seeks to work with MDOC and Catholic Social Services (the current placement coordinator), to allow for more visitation between mother and infant, creating opportunities for bonding and breastfeeding when available. Elsewhere, these efforts have been shown to reduce recidivism rates, strengthen the mother-child bond, and help reintegrate mothers back into their community upon release. It is our ultimate goal to train mothers post-release to work within our program in some capacity, offering no or low-cost doula and childbirth educator training as a means to widen employment opportunities for interested mothers. So far, we have developed our program and our board, and are in the process of finalizing our by-laws and applying for 501c3 status. We are working with the current childbirth educator to facilitate an education program with a wider scope, and are in discussions with Women's Huron Valley Correctional Facility to launch a pilot program. It appears we are moving full steam ahead, and, as always, need funding and supporting partners to make this dream a reality!

Milano (Non-active) – Kaddis,recup.e val. cimitero monum ebraico milano

2017-10-02T00:00:00Z

Kaddish, recupero e valorizzazione del cimitero monumentale ebraico di Milano. Verrà effettuato il censimento delle lapidi, la loro catalogazione, il restauro specifico, la cura delle aree verdi, la creazione di un sito internet e l’allestimento di uno spazio espositivo ed informativo localizzato formato da pannelli permanenti, immagini e didascalie che potranno integrare le informazioni delle visite guidate.

Atlanta, GA (Non-active) – College Toiletry Drive

2017-10-01T00:00:00Z

Our project began when we discovered that they were actually college students attending schools and are homeless. We reached out to a few schools to get some information on this growing issue and was informed that there are actually students that stay in their cars or even on friends couches in order to get a college education. So far we have distributed six boxes contains over 725 items fully stocked with toiletries and have donated them to Kennesaw State University, Georgia State University and Georgia Highlands Coolege Rome campus. It is our goal to fill the needs of the other four Georgia Highlands College within the next month. Our goal is also continue to connect with schools whether it's colleges, high schools, middle or elementary school. We would love to have students going to school without being concerned about having the basic necessities. Items we stocked in our boxes for the pantries are soao,washcloths, toothbrush, toothpaste, lotion, deodorant, razors, shaving cream and wet wipes.

Disability – NOS Magazine

2017-09-30T00:00:00Z

NOS Magazine is the first professional news and commentary site by and for the neurodiversity community. Expect long form journalism, reviews of pop culture, and more. NOS stands for ‘Not Otherwise Specified,’ a tongue-in-cheek reference to when a condition does not strictly fit the diagnostic criteria, or is in some way out of the ordinary. Opinions: Not Otherwise Specified Stories: Not Otherwise Specified Perspectives: Not Otherwise Specified What our grantee is saying: "Recently, I left my full time job to follow my dream and make NOS Magazine a self-sustaining community institution. This grant from the Awesome Foundation will help me take one of my first steps: Establishing a home office. It may seem small, but it will go a long way towards making NOS Magazine everything I know it can be."

North Minneapolis, MN – Young Vision Arts

2017-09-30T00:00:00Z

Well, I threw a few art shows in collaboration with Win Back the Community, LLC and New Rules this summer. While those were great successes, I'm a person who's always striving for better. I plan to have a fashion show, an art show and concert ALL IN ONE (the caps are aggressive I know, but I'm trying to get my point across). The project is titled "Turtleneck Szn" and will be in the north side at New Rules and the goal of it is to: bring the community together through art, and give local creatives a platform to showcase their creativity. There's so much talent in our community that goes unseen due to lack of resources. I may just be an 18 year old kid, but I strive to be that resource. The exact date isn't set just yet, but I'm shooting for late November. I know that this alone isn't even a fraction of the work that our community needs, but it's something. Although this grant would be super helpful, even if I don't get it, I'll find a way to make sure this still happens. (Ya'll invited too. It'll be a good time I swear).

Washington, DC – dc1968 project

2017-09-29T00:00:00Z

When most people think of Washington, DC in 1968 they think of "the riots" which occurred after the assassination of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. on 4 April. The popular conception is that "the riots" destroyed the city and that it wasn't until the expansion of Metro and the infusion of new development in the 1980s that the city flourished. This popular conception is historically inaccurate and does a grave disservice to all Washingtonians because it ignores the city's rich history of art and activism that was created and nourished in 1968. dc1968, a curated and crowdsourced digital project commemorating the upcoming 50th anniversary of 1968, will transform the public's perception of that extraordinary year by creating a digital 365 Days of History calendar for 2018. dc1968 will have rich daily content covering art, activism, architecture and more across race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, class, ability and ward. Each daily story will include a photograph, 200-word descriptive text, audio and video clips, and a geolocation. For example, on 21 October 2018, the public will learn about Roberta Flack's concert fundraiser, held on 21 October 1968, for the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (which organized the Poor People's Campaign and Resurrection City) at Arena Stage. They will see a photograph of Flack; read an immersive description of the concert, the theater and the weather; watch a YouTube clip of her singing one of the concert songs; and listen to a clip of an audience member sharing memories of the concert. These daily stories will be featured on the dc1968 project website and will be shared via Twitter, FB, Instagram and Medium. Wouldn't it be awesome for Washingtonians to start each day in 2018 learning something new and informative about their city? Wouldn't it be awesome to have daily opportunities for meaningful and impactful conversations? That's what the dc1968 project will do!

Miami, FL – STEAM Saturdays

2017-09-28T00:00:00Z

The Program Objective: The purpose of the program is to foster youth interest in the arts and technology with a focus on STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math). After being exposed to STEAM-related activities, we seek to examine whether there is an increased desire within youth to learn and seek higher education in these areas and to discover their many applications. Science, technology, engineering, arts, and math (STEAM) are often the basis for new product innovation and improvement. Therefore, we believe that it is important that the next generation of scientists, engineers, artists and mathematicians are exposed to these areas of study at an early age. It is our perspective that is important to understand how to get students interested in STEAM as today’s students are tomorrow’s innovators. To this end DEAM has designed an interactive program to increase interest in these areas. Studies have shown that Generation NeXt learns differently than previous generations. The Program: A half day of interactive, fun, and educational activities. Beginning at 9AM the students will follow interactive, hands-on modules each lasting 30 to 40 minutes. Participants will be assigned to either the Art track or the Tech track. The day will end with lunch and fun activities. Students will leave inspired and with a bag filled with program-related goodies. Breakfast and lunch will be provided.

Antigonish, NS (Non-active) – Lending Library Proposal

2017-09-27T00:00:00Z

I love reading and I got this idea when I was travelling in PEI last summer, I saw that they had small lending libraries where you could take a book to read and drop a book to share. I like this idea because I don't have a lot of options to share or exchange the books I own. My idea is to set up a lending library in the Keppoch Lodge as a pilot project so I can share my reading passion and provide a community service. Who wouldn't love curling up in front of the fire and reading a book in front of the fire at Keppoch?? Target audience: Books of all ages, I have already gathered up some of my books I am willing to donate to start with. I can also volunteer to keep an eye on the books as I live close enough to check in and act as project steward. I can add and replace books as necessary. The project would be checked on every 3 months to make sure the lending library is working well and to gauge the success of the project.

Buffalo, NY (Non-active) – Please DO Touch the Art

2017-09-27T00:00:00Z

Please DO Touch the Art, coming soon to the Niagara Library, is project created by teacher, child care giver, and artist Jess Widmer. Please explain your project.

Please DO Touch the Art is an invitation and a wish for the community to interact with something whimsical, handmade, and unique. I chose a library for several reasons. Libraries are accessible to everyone; they lack the classiest connotation that an art gallery can often have. I want people to come to the library and be inspired by the work to create their own narratives of the piece, to spark imagination. (Books are also great for that, it turns out!) Moreover I want something specifically for children to be engaged by. There are not many free indoor things for children to do when the weather is harsh and having touchable work in a library creates a sense of magic in a space that is made for learning and dreaming. Sitting on a creature while you read, or having another draped near your head as you work would be something delightfully new. It is rare and valuable to have art that is touchable and interactive. Developmentally, children learn through touch, and many adults need touch to better connect with the world, as well as with their imaginations. Both benefit from the tactile experience and break from the immersion in the digital world.

How did you come up with idea?

As a tactile person myself, I recognize the lack of interactive art in Buffalo as well as the need for children and adults to engage more fully with their imagination and their senses. I love mythology, creatures, and things that feel like dreams. I'm often inspired by dreams, stories, emotion, and the natural world. By combining these things I'm creating work that can reach a wide range of people.

What are the next steps?

The next steps are figuring out how to engage the community around the Niagara Library and gathering supplies. I would like to tap into folklore or mythology of the Burmese, African, and Latin community there in a way that includes them and starts a conversation. I don’t want the art to appear from nothing in the space. I want it to be engaging and connected to the people going to use the library. There will be a hanging creature, hanging clouds with iridescent crystal rain drops to refract light into the library, and some climbable rock pillows. Then I can lead a workshop and start making the creature for the space. You can see updates on my Facebook page, @JessWidmerart or my Instagram, @jwbunny4.

Melbourne (Non-active) – Equal Access to Healthcare for Transgender People

2017-09-27T00:00:00Z

1 in 4 transgender people are denied healthcare by medical professionals - be it a GP, a specialist, hospital staff (and dinosaurs). This is all the more shocking given that 1 in 4 transgender people attempt to suicide in their lifetime - and lack of medical care has a horrific impact on mental health. The impact of being turned away at a time you are most vulnerable and in need of help is immeasurable. We want to change this. Doctors and clinical staff at all levels need education, guidance and support on how to best serve the transgender community. As there is very little good quality medical research in the field to guide clinical care, our research aims to provide essential, evidence-based information on the psychological, social and physiological impact, as well as effectiveness and safety, of cross-sex hormones in the transgender population. The Trans Medical Research Fund has recently been established to improve transgender health through medical research, education and advocacy. With the Awesome Foundation grant we want to draw attention to our advocacy work on social media, the platform that best allows us to reach out to the transgender community to tell everyone who has been experiencing healthcare neglect that they are not alone, and that we are fighting for improvement. The stock photography, iconography and graphics that are available online are shockingly cliched and inappropriate. We have creative volunteers and models at hand who are willing to help us create appropriate, engaging and helpful imagery to be used online that transgender and gender fluid people can identify with and that doesn't marginalise and alienate them (trans stock photos are horrific caricatures of trans lives). The Awesome Foundation grant can help us pay these willing and able contributors a small fee and most importantly help us push the new content out where it needs to go - trans people, on social media.

Tallahassee, FL (Non-active) – 500 Miles of Freedom College & Civil Rights Tour

2017-09-26T00:00:00Z

The 500 Miles of Freedom College & Civil Rights Tour is a trip organized by the Omega Lamplighters, a young men's mentoring program for at risk youth. Every August we travel to visit Colleges and Universities as well as historical sites to the civil rights movement. We hear often you don't know where you're going if you don't know where you've been and this trip brings that to life. We visit historical sites in past years we visited New Orleans, historic Treme area and its lower 9th Ward that's still left damaged from Hurricane Katrina. We've also walked the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama the site of Bloody Sunday, Traveled to Baton Rouge to uplift Cameron Sterling, son of Alton Sterling who was killed in front of a Louisiana convenient store. This year we will travel to Nashville, TN, Atlanta, GA and Albany GA. With stops at the Tennessee Museum, Tennessee State University, Fisk University, MeHarry Medical College and Vanderbilt University. In Atlanta we will visit the Human and Civil Rights Museum, the Dr. Martin L. King Jr. national historic park, Georgia Tech University, Morehouse College, Clark Atalanta University, and the birth home of Dr. King.The trip is for males only, mentors, Dad's, Uncle's, male cousins etc. This is a important part because majority of the young men we service come from single family homes. So for them it's bigger than just going out of town it's an opportunity for them to bond with men and father figures. There are some Fathers who are active in their sons life and those Dad's who attend the trip get to share these moments with their son and get a chance to observe them in their natural environment and watch them mature before their eyes. Our kids need to see this beautiful country and see it's history. Sometimes youth can get isolated to their small communitie and think it's only Tallahassee but this trip let's them see there a whole world out there beyond here and that they must learn their history and share it with everyone.

New York City, NY – Emma's Torch Female Baking Collective

2017-09-26T00:00:00Z

The Female Baking Collective is a new initiative of Emma's Torch, an organization that provides culinary training to refugees including culinary and language training. While their main program aims to prepare its participants for work in restaurants, **The Baking Collective is envisioned as a female-only program that addresses the need of women with children for greater flexibility in their working lives. It seeks to address this need by preparing its students for roles as small-scale artisanal goods producers, creating products like granola bars, beverages, and snacks that they can sell to a larger market.** The artisanal goods market is a rapidly growing sector of the New York food scene, and many producers make their own hours, work from home, and collaborate with a tight-knit group of like-minded individuals. These start-ups offer female refugees more financial independence, while also fitting sustainably into their lives. Our grant will be used to develop the curriculum for this program and help support the initial class of participants. **You can support Emma's Torch by visiting their pop-up cafe on Saturdays and Sundays at Home/Made, 293 Van Brunt Street, Brooklyn, NY 11231.**