Even if you’re lucky enough not to be targeted directly, just watching the news or even our social media feeds these days bring a daily assault on so many issues progressives care about: human rights and equality, environmental protection, animal welfare, and the state of our democracy and our discourse, for starters.

How do we cope without burying our heads in the sand?

“Self-care” has become a popular topic in recent years, but it wasn’t a term I had even heard of when I started out as an activist 20 years ago. I recently recognized that, without consciously planning it, I’ve been using some key strategies that have helped me keep going all these years, though they’re a bit different than what folks normally think of when we think of self-care. In addition to the basics that most of us know (though may not necessarily do), like eating healthy, exercising, meditation, and getting enough sleep, choosing our approach to activism and how we engage with the problems in our world can help us use our time strategically and avoid burning out.

At Youth Empowered Action (YEA) Camp, a summer camp for social change, we have expanded our focus on self-care since the 2016 election. This year we will host our second year of YEA Camp for Adults as well, and we will make even more time for this. We will do yoga and journaling and meditation, yes, and we will also focus on how we can do activism in ways that not only make a big difference in the world but also sustain ourselves. We’ll also have time in nature and the opportunity to visit with rescued animals at the sanctuary we will be staying at. But I digress….

Here are 10 approaches to self-care that might support you in your journey as an activist and human.

1. Resist

So many YEA Campers have been speaking out against this administration.

It might seem like doing activism is not a form of self-care or is even the opposite of self-care, but resisting harm is self-preservation and helps us know we are taking action on what matters to us.

When your house is on fire, it’s hard to go take a bubble bath. We need to sound an alarm and put out the fires.

“Activism is the antidote to despair,” said Joan Baez, and taking action can not only bring about change but also keeps us action-oriented so we can protect ourselves and our community and don’t feel helpless.

While social justice issues are very interconnected, to avoid overwhelm, at YEA Camp we recommend focusing on one main issue, what we call your IOI, or issue of importance. Nobody can solve any of the major problems of the world alone, but all of our actions add up to make a cumulative difference. Taking breaks and pacing yourself as needed for you and your life are key.

To get more involved in activism opposing this administration, connect with Indivisible, sign up with 5 Calls to call your legislators, or get involved with any of the many organizations working to bring about social justice.

2. Focus on other types of activism you enjoy or can easily accomplish to see an in-person, real-time impact.

There is so much we can all do in our communities to make a difference.

Resistance activism is playing defense, stopping something bad from happening. As important as that currently is, it’s also difficult and exhausting, and a “victory” just means stopping something terrible.

We also need to proactively find ways to make good things happen. This can include volunteering at a local shelter or community organization, doing a neighborhood cleanup, teaching people what you know, or greening your school or office.

Is there a way to combine something you love to do with a cause you believe in? Or a way you could get involved that doesn’t involve convincing sold-out politicians to change their policies?

It’s also empowering to recommit to daily actions that you have direct control over. Think driving less, eating fewer animal products, boycotting harmful companies, buying less stuff, and speaking up in oppressive situations. Knowing that we are doing these daily things can help us feel OK about taking the time off we need. Try to bring humor, lightness, and joy to counter the stress associated with the issues we’re working to address.

3. Think of yourself in a larger activism context.

You don’t need to get your PhD in Social Change, but just learning about how change has happened in the past can reframe our thinking in a more long-term context. It can be humbling to realize just how many actions it takes to cumulatively bring about systemic change, and to recognize that none of us can ever do “enough.” That also frees us up to pace ourselves. Even though we may not see big results right away, each small step adds up. Two short videos about the gay rights movement and civil rights movement serve as a reminder that all of the actions so many people took led to big change.

4. Donate money.

If you’re feeling depleted or demoralized about the state of the world, a donation is essentially paying someone else to do the work that you’re not able to do. And giving not only does good, it makes us feel good — and activism that combines doing good with feeling good is a win-win that we should do as much as we can. Even better that it only takes a minute and then you can go do whatever you need to do.

Even if you are not in a good financial situation at the moment, since you’re reading this, you can probably donate $1. Maybe $10 or $100? Or more, if you can. Choose an organization doing good work (here are many we recommend), and then commission them (or us) to do more of it while you take time to do what you need to do.

5. Follow just the right amount of the right news.

As activists, we want to be generally aware of what is going on — sometimes it can be more stressful not to know — but you don’t need to know intimate details of every horrible thing happening in the world each day. Learn just enough of what you need to know for the activism you will be doing. Some specific tips:

• Remove any news apps from your phone and disable news notifications.
• Give yourself a time limit of the amount of time you can spend on the news or social media each day. Monitor it so it doesn’t get out of hand.
• Ask yourself: Do I really need to know the details of this? What will I do with this information? Will this help me to make a bigger difference, or make me feel more demoralized?
• Sometimes we need to laugh instead of cry. Watching Alec Baldwin’s dead-on Saturday Night Live performances, and critiques from Seth Myers, Trevor Noah, Samantha Bee, or Stephen Colbert can be as gratifying as a bubble bath. In fact, there’s actually reason to believe that satire is better equipped to critique Trump than mainstream news.

6. Build community and ask for what you need

Some of our community at YEA Camp for Adults

OK, enough about activism. We need to reach out and create tighter community than we’ve had before. We’ve currently got a perfect storm of disconnection. While so many of us communicate more with our friends by typing than talking, we also are more likely than older generations to move far away from our families and to be single later in life. Statistically, we’re less involved in community organizations, whether it be religious or civic, and we are less likely to know our neighbors. And there’s an all-out assault on just about every community of people, animals, and the planet who are not straight white men.

We need to know that we can count on others when we need it, and we will feel good to do the same for others. So meet your neighbors, try going to local events, maybe find a MeetUp, talk to people you come in contact with, connect with like-minded people through social media, and be in better touch with your expanding circle of friends and family. If you need help, there are resources to support you even in the most dire of circumstances.

At YEA Camp, we focus on giving campers the knowledge, skills, confidence, and community to make a bigger difference on their cause when they get home. We believe that being a part of a like-minded and dedicated community makes all of us stronger advocates. We want to be your cheerleader!

7. Manage your life and take care of yourself in ways that are right for you.

Typically, when we think of self-care, we may picture a spa day or yoga class, and these, of course, can be great. But we need to go deeper to assess what we can do to fully take care of ourselves.

In some ways, we all need the same basic things as a baseline, such as eating healthy food, access to clean drinking water, getting exercise, sleeping enough, safe shelter, and nourishing relationships. So many people, especially of lower income, are not getting these basic needs met.

• Evaluate different areas of life that cause you anxiety, from work stress to health issues to your home, relationships, or finances, and start dealing with the most critical ones.
• Get more rigorous doing what you need to do because taking care of ourselves is a precursor to taking care of others.
• Tackle unhealthy and develop healthy habits and practices as directly as possible to take care of yourself and your one precious life.

From stopping smoking to getting check-ups to paying bills on time, healing your relationships to pursuing your goals, or otherwise “adulting,” you are in charge of managing your life. When you don’t do it well, other things start to suffer, including your activism.

As activist hero Audre Lorde said, “Caring for myself is not self-indulgence, it is self-preservation, and that is an act of political warfare.”

8. Figure out and do what you love.

YEA Camp for Adults is held at Woodstock Farm Sanctuary.

To stay in this for the long haul, we need to find ways to enjoy our lives, do the things we love, and step away from stressful situations when we need to. Many people are either not clear about what they truly enjoy doing, and many more are clear that they don’t spend much time doing what they love.

If you love to read or write or play music or be outdoors, make time to do that, even if it’s just for a few minutes a day or an hour or two a week.

One of my favorite things about our YEA Camp for Adults is that it is held at Woodstock Farm Sanctuary, which provides sanctuary and some animal friends to visit with while we are there as well. Animals have an innocence and gentleness that can be an antidote to stress and help restore our energy and feeling of unconditional love.

At YEA Camp, we combine the seriousness of activism training with fun activities to model sustainable activism.

9. Pursue fun and challenging hobbies and distract yourself as needed.

Pursuing challenging hobbies is a great way to trick your brain to take a break from what it was worrying about so that it can focus on the matter at hand. Studying a new language, learning a musical instrument, creating art, dancing, reading novels, playing games, and any sort of vigorous exercise are great for this. Find something you really enjoy that gets your mind off of things, and have that be your go-to when you need it.

10. Feel your emotions — the good, the bad, and the ugly.

Our compassion and empathy has led us to become activists for change, but these emotions can sometimes overwhelm us. We are not robots and cannot go numb. We also need to live our lives and enjoy the beauty and possibility that we can create in life.

Being guided by a healthy relationship to our emotions will not only help us as individuals, it will help us as activists. We’ve got to feel the good, the bad, and the ugly. That might mean crying when we need to, journaling, talking things through with friends, or seeing a therapist. It can mean being quiet and meditating or going out in nature to unplug. It also means being grateful for the countless privileges and opportunities, friends, experiences, and beauty in life. When we don’t run away from our emotions, we can run toward what we want.

Finding ways to celebrate the positives and to fully experience joy might feel difficult at times in the context of all the suffering in the world and the harm being done by the Trump administration, but cultivating happiness and gratitude, and fully appreciating the good in life can help rejuvenate us to get through harder times.

Join us this summer!

It’s been said that activism is a marathon and not a sprint. We need to find ways to show up as activists as best we can in the short term, but we also need to recognize when we need to step back, especially if we are from a community that is more at risk, when we are going through personal struggles, or when we know that we are pushing ourselves too hard or not getting our own needs met.

When the government doesn’t take care of its people, we need to work extra hard to take care of ourselves, each other, and animals and the planet too. Each of us has an important role to play in bringing about the change we wish to see in the world.

For more tips on strengthening your change-making abilities, download YEA Camp’s free ebook, The Beginner’s Guide to Changing the World. Want to see how we integrate self care with leadership training at camp? Join us this summer at YEA Camp for teens or YEA Camp for Adults.

About the Author: Nora Kramer is the Founder and Director of YEA Camp. She is a long time activist who practices self-care by swimming, playing with her dog, Daiya, and eating vegan ice cream sundaes.

The post A Different Approach to Self-Care for Activists in the Age of Trump appeared first on YEA Camp.

Summer camp for adults gives us permission to let down our hair and dance!

For most “grown-ups,” summer camp is a thing of the past, trading cabins for cubicles and hikes for hectic work schedules. But there are so many benefits that kids get from going to camp that are valuable for adults too!

That’s why Youth Empowered Action (YEA) Camp took its 10 years of experience running summer leadership camps for teens and created a YEA Camp for Adults.

For YEA Camp in particular, as a social justice camp that helps aspiring activists make a bigger difference on the causes they care about, we see that what we do is just as relevant for adults as for youth.

Since 2009, YEA Camp has trained over 700 teens to get active and be more effective on the issues of their choice. Our program is focused on developing people’s knowledge, skills, confidence, and community — something that anyone on a change-making path will benefit from, regardless of age.

Here are 10 reasons adults need summer camp just as much as kids do:

1. Tap into a greater sense of your purpose

   When was the last time you spent a week focused on cultivating your life’s purpose? At YEA Camp, our focus is on how to make a bigger difference in the world by reconnecting with what really matters. We prioritize the good stuff.

2. Camp bursts your bubble (in a good way)!

   When we are accustomed to spending time with the same people, at the same job, and in the same community, we limit how we express ourselves. Stepping out of your bubble gives you an opportunity to experiment with new ways of being. This helps us to live into our most authentic selves.

3. Self-care, self-care, self-care

   Despite being a ubiquitous buzzword, self-care — “the practice of taking action to improve one’s own health” — is super important. In the busyness of work and life, sometimes we take our own well-being for granted. This can have consequences to our mental, physical, and emotional psyche. At camp, we share ways to replenish ourselves and invest in experiences that will refuel our energy.

   

   Forget traditional networking, at adult summer camp you will make life-long friends in a really organic way.

4. It’s the most fun you’ll ever have “networking”

   Forget business cards or small talk. Camp is set up so that we can develop meaningful friendships through a like-minded community. From playful games to heartfelt discussions to late-night pajama parties, our adult campers leave with friendships that are much deeper than can be made at happy hour.

5. Time to focus on passion projects

   When we pull ourselves out of your daily routines, we can actually focus on what matters to us. At camp, we spend a whole week exploring our activism area of interest. Setting aside intentional time for your passions can be an unforgettable experience with long-term benefits. Camp provides an opportunity to focus on passions that sometimes don’t fit into your busy schedule.

6. Shifting routines shifts your perspective

   Speaking of getting out of daily routines, think of camp as a reset. Being in nature can help us clear our minds, refocus our priorities, and refresh our outlook. Think of YEA Camp for Adults as a well-deserved retreat — but with a talent show, a dance party, and activities that will help you see the world differently and take more effective action on the causes you care about when you get home.

   

   Camp for adults allows us to spend time in nature while taking time to pursue what we really care about.

7. Being in nature is paramount for our health

   So many of us spend our days indoors, staring at screens. Being out in nature, spending time with animals, breathing fresh air, and engaging in healthy forms of movement are key ingredients to a vibrant life. YEA Camp for Adults takes place on the property of Woodstock Farm Sanctuary, a sanctuary for rescued animals whom we can visit with each day. There will be time for yoga, journaling, outdoor games or exercise, or just taking a nap under a tree.

8. We make “work” fun

   Activism can be hard, and delving into serious topics can be challenging. YEA Camp makes it fun. We don’t force you to sit at a conference. We also aren’t big fans of stuffy offices. That’s why we do our activism training in between visits with the animals and meaningful community-building activities. At the end of the week, campers leave with a clear and tangible action plan on how they can make a difference on their chosen cause. Plus, they have a great time doing it.

9. Meaningful self-development

   The more we expand our outlook and perspectives on life, the more comfortable we can be in every situation. This can lead to endless new insights, relationships, and possibilities in any area of life. We think it’s true that life does indeed begin at the end of our comfort zone. YEA Camp is designed to help campers feel more comfortable going outside their comfort zone.

   10. Live your best life

   As they say, “pick a job you like and you’ll never work a day in your life.” At camp, we believe that finding the joy and fun in something real and meaningful will help you lead a more balanced and fulfilling life. Plus, camp lets us get out of a rut or initiate shifts in routine that can lead to creativity and new perspectives. Devoting a week to what’s most important to you is so valuable. At YEA Camp for Adults, we connect with how to apply your skills and passions. We want to help you make the world a better place in a way that inspires you.

No matter how old you are, it’s not too late to have a great answer to the age-old question, “How did you spend your summer vacation?”

YEA Camp for Adults is for aspiring activists who know they want to make a bigger difference in the world, and who want focused skill-building and leadership training in the midst of the playful world of summer camp. If that sounds like a great way to spend your summer, click here to learn more. And, of course, if you know a 12-17 year-old who wants to know how they can do more to make our world a better place, YEA Camp’s youth camp is the place to be!

The post 10 Reasons Adults Should Go To Summer Camp Too appeared first on YEA Camp.

While some people are looking for illegal ways to boost their chances of admission to their dream school, we have a much more inspiring, equitable, and legal idea to achieve that goal: activism!

Many YEA Campers over the years have shared with us that the activism that they’ve done following attending YEA Camp actually helped them get into more prestigious colleges than they otherwise would have.

Take, for example, former YEA Camper Madison Cole, who was recently accepted early decision on a full scholarship to Yale. We asked her if she thought her activism or going to YEA Camp helped with her admission and she said, “Yes, definitely!”  She wrote:

“I wrote one of my supplements about YEA Camp, and how immersing myself in a community of understanding, kindness, and tolerance changed my perspective on the world and restored my faith in humanity. And it pushed me to start my own organizations at school to stand up for what I believed in.

YEA Camp inspired me to start my own animal rights club at school, and we organized an all-school assembly in association with the environmental club last year to discuss the ethical and environmental impacts of animal agriculture.

“Fighting for these causes, and the eloquence with which I was able to discuss my ventures thanks to YEA Camp, allowed me to make my college application stand out. In discussing these passions, I was able to show to the schools that I am passionate and driven. It worked, and it helped get me into my dream school, Yale University.”

Every summer at YEA Camp, we help campers like Madison build knowledge, skills, confidence, and community. “A life-changing camp for world-changing teens,” YEA Camp helps campers overcome shyness and limiting beliefs, as well as hone valuable skills such as public speaking, networking, learning how to run an effective school club, plan a campaign, and fundraise for whatever causes are important to them.

Jake Johnson, a 2-time YEA Camper and 2-time staff counselor in training (CIT), has told us his before-and-after YEA Camp story many times.

He hated politics before attending YEA Camp, but got inspired at camp. Soon after, he actually interned on a Congressional campaign. As a 16-year-old, he also spent a week at Standing Rock, and as a senior he spent time volunteering to rebuild in Puerto Rico. Jake told us:

“I applied to my dream school [Loyola University Chicago], which has a pretty selective admission process, but honestly I didn’t have very strong academic records to help me get in. However, I had a lot of activism that I wouldn’t have done without YEA Camp, and I am convinced that without that activism, I would never have been accepted.”

And Jake may be right. When students get involved in activism at a young age, it shows colleges that they are engaged in and willing to contribute to their community, have strong leadership skills, can effectively manage their time, are responsible and well-rounded individuals, are go-getters and are more likely to pursue the issues that are important to them, and can overcome challenges and adversity.

Employers take note too. Jake recently let us know that when he applied for a position doing grassroots canvassing, because of his experience attending and being on staff at YEA Camp and the campaign work he did as a result, he was offered a  position not as an intro level canvasser but as a field manager — incredible for someone of his age!

Ethan Lyne, another former camper reached out to share the exciting news and thank us when he got into his dream school.

“College essays came easy to me because I could remember all the important memories from YEA Camp like it happened yesterday!” Ethan wrote.

“You all changed my life a couple summers ago. YEA Camp changed my focus in life and opened my mind to compassion and love for everyone. I have gotten into amazing colleges because I learned so much from everyone that one week in July many months ago and I couldn’t have done it without YEA Camp.”

Ethan is now involved in student government, local politics, and journalism at his dream school, Haverford College. He’s already played a huge role there as an activist. As a freshman, he organized shuttles to help students without cars to get to the polls to be able to vote on Election Day. Last year, Ethan was a leader in the successful campaign to get a polling place on campus — a huge accomplishment to increase voter turnout in such an important swing state. 

This is the type of impact activists can make on campus, and universities value it.

Of course, getting into a better college isn’t the reason to do activism. With so many problems in the world, making a difference in your community and changing the world around you is the reason to do activism.

However, if you are worried about your grades (like Jake was), know that your activism could actually play a bigger role in getting into your dream university — no bribes, Photoshopping photos and pretending to have played a sport, or cheating on your SATs necessary!

At YEA Camp, we strive to make our activist leadership training accessible for all — both for teens and for YEA Camp for Adults, regardless of socio-economic background. We believe everyone should receive an equitable chance to learn, grow, and succeed by their own merit, not their or their parents’ pocketbook.

Want to impress colleges or employers AND make a bigger difference in the world? Join YEA Camp this summer! If you’re a teen (or parent of a teen) take a look at our YEA Camp session dates and locations here. And if you’re over 18, you can’t be too old to attend YEA Camp for Adults!

The post How Doing Activism Can Help Teens Get Into a Better College appeared first on YEA Camp.

Charlotte with a turkey at Edgar’s Mission Farm Sanctuary

In our 10 years of YEA Camp, we have been fortunate enough to have campers attend from a dozen(!) different countries — but none came from as far away as Charlotte Chambers, and she did it twice! Charlotte is a committed animal advocate and vegan, and she traveled all the way from Australia(!) at age 12 and then 13 to attend YEA Camp in Massachusetts the past two summers! We are thrilled to see her applying the activist skills learned at YEA Camp back home “Down Under.”

We are so excited that Charlotte is sharing her story with us, and we can’t wait to share it with you.

YEA Camp: Hi Charlotte! Tell us about the activism you’ve been doing.

Charlotte Chambers: Some activism I have done includes getting hundreds of petition signatures to ban live animal export (a terrible practice where live animals are sent off on long journeys on ships from Australia) and volunteering at Edgar’s Mission, a farm animal sanctuary near my town. I did a video for the sanctuary’s Facebook page, attended vegan conferences in Melbourne and the Australian animal activists forum, and participated in marches to protest a new coal mine set to be constructed in Queensland. I have also formed a group for kids and teens who care about the environment and animal rights.

YEA: How did you get involved with activism and what you’re currently working on?

CC: I got involved with activism when I was 11, when I went vegan. My whole point of view shifted and I wanted other people to make the same realization about animals that I had — that they are not ours to do with what we please. I started writing assignments on veganism and having conversations with people about it. I wanted to make a bigger difference but I didn’t know how. When I found out about YEA Camp, I was so excited that I would be able to learn how to make a difference.

YEA Camp gave me so many new skills and it helped me gain enough confidence to make significant change. YEA Camp educated me on issues that I wouldn’t necessarily know much about. I learned more about the environment and I decided that I was interested in that area of activism too. I’m currently working on growing my environmental and animal rights group, called Brighter Futures for Animals and the Environment. Our goal is to make positive social change in our area and to make people more aware of the way we impact the environment and the lives of farm animals. We have planned projects such as banning plastic bags in our town, removing cage eggs from our supermarkets, planting more native trees, and educating our school peers about the importance of environmental protection and animal rights. We are currently in the process of meeting with our local representative in Parliament to talk about banning live animal export in Australia.

Charlotte and members of her animal rights club at her high school

YEA: That’s incredible! What challenges have you faced as an activist and how have you dealt with them?

A challenge that I have faced as an activist is the loss of inspiration and the feeling of hopelessness. I often feel that I am just a kid and I can’t make a difference. Sometimes, I ask myself what the point of all this is because it seems as though it’s all a waste of time.

Whenever I get this feeling now, I like to reach out to my activist friends for inspiration. I look back on past activism that I have done and I read about small environmental and animal rights victories that have happened recently. Speaking to my friends from camp helps me get fresh ideas and strategies for my activism and reading about changes helps me feel like I can make a difference.

YEA: That’s great. We all struggle at times, but we can’t give up! What advice do you have for new activists just getting involved?

CC: Some advice that I have for new activists is to go to YEA Camp if you can! It is really life-changing and will definitely give you a head start on your activism. I would also say to try and put yourself out of your comfort zone as much as you can. Go to events, meet new people who share the same passion, get ideas, and stay inspired. Once you know more people who are also into activism, there is now more support for you if you ever feel like you can’t make a difference. Also, keep a journal — sometimes the world just really sucks, and it’s really great to empty all your thoughts on paper.

Melbourne is host of the Animal Activists Forum, an event Charlotte attended

YEA: How did YEA Camp help you in your activism, if it did?

CC: YEA Camp helped my activism so much. It helped me gain so much confidence and gave me strategies for how to create the most amount of change. The camp connected me with so many awesome and inspiring people who I’m still friends with and talk to all the time. The workshops that we did at camp help me in my activism as well as my every day life, and I am so grateful for everyone at YEA Camp for giving me this unforgettable experience.

YEA: Aww! That’s amazing to hear! Are there any other organizations you’ve worked with or that have been valuable resources in your activism?

CC: I’ve gotten involved with many organizations since I went to YEA Camp, including Animal Liberation Youth, where I am a part of their organizers’ group in Victoria, and I marched with them at an animal rights march in Melbourne a few weeks ago. I have been getting more involved with Edgar’s Mission Farm Sanctuary, where I was in one of their videos for their Facebook page. I am also part of their new campaign, Kindness to the Max — I have been volunteering with them as much as I can. Some other organizations that I have been involved with include Animals Australia and the Australian Youth Climate Coalition.

YEA: Amazing! What are some of your short-term and long-term activism goals or plans?

My goals for activism in the future are to expand my group so that we can make large-scale change in our area and state, and I also would like to work more closely with other organizations. For long-term dreams, I would love to see an end to factory farming in my lifetime and possibly an end to animal agriculture, as well as all of Australia’s energy to be renewable.  

Charlotte Chambers is 14 years old and in year 9 at her high school. She is from Bright, Australia and attended the 2016 and 2017 Massachusetts YEA Camp sessions. Her issues of importance are primarily animal rights and environmental justice.

If you are as passionate about making a difference as Charlotte is, you should come to YEA Camp — either to our youth session or to our session for adults! If you want to learn how to get active right away, download our new ebook, The Beginner’s Guide to Changing the World.

The post YEA Camper Activist Spotlight: Charlotte Chambers’ Journey Towards a Better World appeared first on YEA Camp.

Sorry, we don’t mean to give away all the spoilers! We were happy she fit this interview with YEA Camp into her busy schedule and are glad to let her tell you more.

YEA Camp: Tell us about the activism you’ve been doing.

Lauren: I’ve volunteered with two organizations for several years now – Animal Advocates (an animal shelter where my family and I take care of cats) and Global Links, which packs and sends donated medical supplies to hospitals that can’t afford to buy their own, or to places that have recently gone through a natural disaster. For instance, right now, we’re sending a lot of stuff to Puerto Rico.

Lauren tabling with her robotics club

In addition, I’ve written several articles and blog posts about activism, animal rights, and veganism for different websites and organizations.

I’m also on an all-girls high school robotics team (The Girls of Steel). Our mission is to empower women and girls in the pursuit of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) by exemplifying female success in robotics. STEM fields are still very male-dominated – our mission is to change people’s attitudes about women in STEM and helping young girls know they can be successful in a STEM career.

How did you get involved with activism and what you’re currently working on?

My parents were vegan and doing animal rights activism before I was born, and I’ve been explaining veganism to people since forever, so I guess you could say I was born an activist! However, I started volunteering when I was about 11, and I started writing and doing other forms of activism after attending my first session of YEA Camp in 2015.

Right now I’m working on a few things, along with writing, volunteer work and Girls Of Steel. I’m on Farm Sanctuary’s Youth Advisory Board, giving input on pamphlets etc. they want to create for younger activists, as well as kids that want to learn about veganism.

In addition, I’ve done a few art-activism things. I just finished performances of a play called “You Belong to Me” with a local theater company. This play aims to raise awareness about, and prevent, teen dating violence, and it’s an incredibly powerful piece that has been performed in schools all around the Pittsburgh area. I want to be an actor when I grow up, so this was a great way for me to combine acting and activism!

I’m also a YEA Camp Intern!

Lauren at a farm animal sanctuary with rescued turkeys

What challenges have you faced as an activist and how have you dealt with them?

Time management has always been a bit of a problem for me, but I’ve discovered it helps me be the most effective if I have one specific goal (maybe it’s to “Write one article before Sunday”) and then I budget my time over the week to make sure I get it done; vs having an open-ended goal (“Write as many articles as you can this week”).

What advice do you have for new activists just getting involved?

Go for it! Even if you don’t think you’ll be good at it. Even if you can only do something you consider small or unimportant. You’ll get better (and gain confidence) with practice and every single action matters and will make a difference, no matter the size or scope.

How did YEA Camp help you in your activism, if it did?

YEA Camp helped me in tons of ways! I gained more knowledge (about many things, but specifically about how to answer tricky questions), as well as a lot more confidence in myself and my abilities as an activist. YEA Camp also connected me to a ton of organizations and people that I have worked with or could work with in the future. It’s also helped me a lot to just know that there are amazing people out there who care as passionately about issues as I do.

What activist goals do you have in the future?

Gain more confidence. Reach more people. Take part in more activism.

Have you been involved with any organizations or used any as resources for your activism?

Yes! YEA Camp (obviously), Animal Advocates, Global Links, Farm Sanctuary, and Girls of Steel Robotics are the main groups with which I have worked that have helped me to grow in my activism.

Do you care about making a difference just like Lauren does? Want help getting more involved? Come to YEA Camp this summer!

Lauren Scheller-Wolf is a 17-year-old activist for many causes, though her focus is on animal rights. She lives in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and attended YEA Camp New York in 2015 and 2016.

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