Thivya and her friends at YouSpoken will host a regional art competition including visual art, film, and poetry focused on the theme: “A sustainable vision for our future.” Winners of the competition will be featured in a pop-up art exhibit at the Varley Art Museum in Markham, Canada.
Paloma is removing invasive Japanese Knotweed from Beaver Pond Park in New Haven, CT, USA, and developing alternative purposes for its use in bio-based dyes and construction materials. She plans to work with community partners to develop an artistic structure at a community garden using the Japanese Knotweed as a means to rewrite the narrative of how this plant can be utilized.
Purity and her team aim to raise awareness and rehabilitate gold mines in a remote village in Ikolomani, Kenya. As performing artists, they plan to develop theatre, dance, and music performances for the local community and miners about the environmental and health impacts of gold mining. They also plan to work with experts to mobilize the community to rehabilitate the minings areas via soil erosion control, reforestation, and water management.
Joy and Arnold aim to address the mental health challenges faced by children and youths in rural areas by utilizing the therapeutic benefits of nature and mindfulness practices. Through interactive workshops, nature based activities and art therapy sessions, he seeks to foster emotional well being and resilience in young adults.
Kabir’s project aims to reduce waste pollution through creative arts by teaching his community how to convert environmental waste into art. In the process, his group hopes to increase environmental education in the community. They plan to reach 150 school students and 25 women. Craft Planet would also like to host an exhibition showcasing the youth and women’s eco-friendly products made from waste to increase awareness.
Javie plans to host a three-day environmental youth camp in Malalison Island to teach 20 local youth about the intersection of ocean conservation and climate change through a creative approach to grassroots youth empowerment. Through experiential learning, creative expression, and community engagement, campers will learn about the importance of blue carbon ecosystems in mitigating climate change, and develop their own creative strategies for advocacy in their own communities. Javie and the campers will host an art exhibit of their work following the camp.
Gwenan aims to develop a charity fueled by selling prints of her own personal paintings that combine folklore and mythology with current climate and environmental issues, utilizing cultural traditions and stories that connect people to the natural world and environment to motivate action. Part of each painting’s profit will go to organizations working to solve the particular issue the painting relates to.
Shamsuddeen and his fellow Eco Poets plan to recruit poets and develop pieces to educate the public about climate change and the environment. They aim to develop 12 videos in both English and the local Hausa language to share on social media, You Tube, and T.V./radio stations. The Eco Poets also plan to perform 50 events throughout the year with the goal to reach 5,000 youth across Kano State.