Well, we can hardly believe it, but Youth Empowered Action (YEA) Camp is preparing for its 15th (!) summer training aspiring activists! (Two of those were virtual because of the Covid pandemic, but they still count in our book!)

So. after 32 in-person camps, 12 virtual sessions, and lotssss of testimonials, we are pretty confident we know what to expect. And we want you to know too!

So here, in no particular order, are 15 things you can expect as a camper (or guardian of a camper, or even as a staff member!) at YEA Camp this summer.

1. Finding Your People and Fitting In Perfectly

Our campers are some of the best humans in the world. They literally want to spend part of their summer vacation learning how they can make a bigger difference in the world. If only everyone wanted to do that! But many of our campers tell us that at school they sometimes (or maybe always) feel like that they don’t quite fit in, or that they are one of the only people at their school who cares about a certain issue.

At YEA Camp, they fit in perfectly. They’ll meet people just as passionate as they are about a certain cause. And they’ll meet people who are super passionate about other causes they might not know as much about.

And then of course there’s our amazing staff! These are some of the best role models a young person could ask for.(We’re hiring, by the way!)

These are like-minded people who can be friends or mentors for life and have way more in common than classmates at school. If you’re wondering what to expect from other campers or staff at YEA Camp, if you’re passionate about making a difference on progressive causes, we know you’ll fit right in.

2. Feeling Hopeful and Inspired

Don’t get us wrong. If you’re paying attention to the state of the world, there are lots of reasons to be demoralized and pissed off. We actually talk a lot about that at YEA Camp. This is not some Polyanna utopia where we tell you that everything is magically going to be OK. We’re not going to solve all of the world’s problems by the end of camp.

But you will learn how change happens and meet other people who are making a difference on the causes you care about. You will see that while we have every right to be angry or down about the state of the world, there are also reasons for optimism that can inspire action.  Our campers report feeling much more hopeful about the state of the world after camp than when they arrived.

YEA Camp’s Changemaker Toolbox

3. Build Your Changemaker Toolbox

Everything we do at YEA Camp is designed to develop 4 core areas that we feel are critical for activists.

First is knowledge. Knowledge about problems in the world and knowledge about solutions to those problems.

Next is skills to actually do something about those problems.

Then there’s building confidence. Developing knowledge and skills also builds confidence, but we will go a lot deeper than that.

And finally, there’s community so that you know you’re not alone. And you’re definitely not.

(More on all of these below!)

4. Figuring Out What to Do

Our campers show up to YEA Camp passionate about making an impact on at least one cause, but often they don’t know what to do or how or why to do it.

You’ll have the first half of camp to learn about different issues. Then, at about the midway point, you’ll get to choose what we call your Issue of Importance (IOI). This is the issue you primarily want to focus on.

At YEA Camp, we will teach you what we call the 4 Levels of Activism. This will give you tons of ideas to help you get started.

Then we’ll teach skills like effective communication, campaign planning, fundraising, grassroots outreach, and lots more. Want to learn more about politics? You’re in the right place. Maybe you want to start a school club? We’ve got you covered.

These are all actions you can take to make a difference on the cause you care about in a way that inspires you.

Don’t worry. You actually don’t need to know that much to get started on any of these things, but YEA Camp is one of the only places where you can get just enough training to get started or get serious about making a difference.

5. Figuring Out What to Say

Sometimes the hardest part about being an activist can be knowing what to say in different situations.

Maybe someone is legitimately curious about your cause, and you have a chance to educate and inspire them! Fantastic! At YEA Camp, you’ll develop your talking points, your elevator pitch, and your answers to the most frequently asked questions about your issue.

On the other hand, sometimes people just want to give us a hard time and don’t actually care about our cause. We’ll teach you about the Spectrum of Agreement, which will help you know how to handle this. Some people just aren’t worth your time, and we’ll help you prepare for these situations so you can handle yourself with poise.

What if you have a chance to do public speaking or to talk with a decision maker with power over your issue? We’ll help you with that too!

Everyone gets better with practice.

6. Using Your Unique Passions and Creativity For Your Cause

Are you passionate about art — whether it’s visual art like painting or music and spoken word? We do a workshop on arts activism to help you express yourself creatively for your cause! Maybe you love social media? We will teach you some key tools to apply those skills to get the word out about your issue.

We all have certain things we love to do or are just good at. Maybe you love to write or cook or skateboard?

There are so many ways to make a difference, and they are not all going to protests or public speaking.

We’ll do a whole activity to help you brainstorm how to creatively apply your natural gifts and passions for a cause you care about.

7. Overcoming Your Limiting Beliefs

We mentioned that as you learn more about your cause and what to do about it, it will build your confidence. But we all have self doubts and limiting beliefs that can hold us back. Really, we hold ourselves back when we believe these things.

We get deep into this. What do you tell yourself about why you can’t be successful? Why do you think people won’t listen to you? Is that actually true and a legitimate reason? Did you come out of the womb as someone who is “shy,” “a procrastinator,” or for whatever other reason you might have not able to make an impact? We think not!

Developing a positive mental attitude will help you in every aspect of your life in and outside of activism.

We describe the food at YEA Camp as kid-friendly vegan.

8. Eat Amazing Food!

YEA Camp takes our food very seriously!

We are powering the next generation of changemakers, and that means we need to feed you well!

To us “well” means several things.

It means the food has to be a perfect combo of healthy, delicious, filling, and ethical. That’s why we have the most amazing chefs cooking at YEA Camp!

Want to know more about the food at YEA Camp or even see some sample menus to know what to expect?

Read more about our food here!

9. Silliness and Fun

YEA Camp is not all serious workshops and vegan brownies. We do a lot of goofy activities and offer 2-3 hours a day of free time with lots of fun activities to choose from.

YEA Camp is held at a camp right on a like, where campers love to go swimming or kayaking. We have a basketball court, a Gaga pit, volleyball, soccer, or picnic tables if you just want to hang out and chat.

Whether you like to get up early to go for a run or do yoga, or you prefer to sleep in and rest, there’s a great combo of camp time and down time to enjoy your summer.

YEA Camp has beautiful, modern camp facilities

10. Beautiful and Comfortable Facilities Out In Nature

YEA Camp is held at a gorgeous camp in the Berkshire mountains of western Massachusetts. Not sure what to expect from our cabins? Don’t worry! Our facilities are super modern and comfortable. Of course there are the basics, like cabins with electricity and indoor bathrooms. Plus there’s gorgeous views while we eating overlooking the lake, and fresh air and quiet away from the busyness of city life. Well see geese and birds and squirrels and if we’re lucky, some deer. We’re pretty sure you’ll see more stars at YEA Camp than you do at home, too!

11. Getting Out of Your Comfort Zone

Changing the world can look lots of different ways, and we want you to build your muscles for taking action in ways that might push your comfort.

What if you had the opportunity to speak to your whole class, your whole school, or maybe your school principal, or the city council about your cause? Would you do it or would you say no because you’d be too nervous?

We will create an environment where you will be able to challenge your comfort zone. Don’t worry. We won’t make you do anything you don’t want to do. But we will encourage you because YEA Camp is designed to train you in a way that will make it easier for you to say yes and step up in the future when it really counts.

12. Learning to Take Better Care of Yourself

It might seem like activism is all  about helping others, but if you don’t take care of yourself, you’ll burn out fast.

And as changemakers, we can struggle with the extra challenges that come along with paying attention to what’s happening in the world and the obstacles we face along the way trying to make a difference on them.

At YEA Camp, we do a whole Self Care activity where you’ll get to try out different ways of taking care of yourself, which is a super important life skill.

Whether it means getting enough sleep, maintaining healthy relationships, having positive self talk, managing your time better, feeling our feelings, developing healthy coping mechanisms, or not taking it personally when you don’t get the results you’re hoping for, it is up to each of us to take good care of ourselves so that we’re also able to make a difference for others.

13.  Developing an Action Plan for When You Get Home

By the end of our time together at YEA Camp, you will get to create an action plan for how you want to make a difference when you get home.

This action plan is not something you have to do, and in fact it will probably change once you get home and start taking action, but it will give you direction. Maybe your action plan is to start an environmental club at your high school, but when you get to school this fall you find out that there already is an environmental club. That’s actually great news! You can join that club and adjust your plan from there.

At camp, you’ll get to work in small groups with a staff member who has experience working on your IOI and with other campers who are just as passionate as you are about that issue. We’ll help you come up with SMART goals and teach you an important skill called backward-planning to set you up for success. We’ll also have you do some important time management techniques to consider your priorities and to be realistic while also making time for what matters most to you.

You can expect some amazing humans at YEA Camp!

14. Having a Community To Support You

Most people will make friends at a camp that they go to. That’s basic for what to expect.

But at YEA Camp you can expect to make even more meaningful friendships because of all our campers have in common and because of the depth of the activities we do at camp.

This is extra important for once camp ends. Of course we all want to have more friends, but having people who really understand what you’re trying to do to make a difference is even more important for changemakers at YEA Camp.

Of course, it’s up to each person to take the initiative to stay in touch after camp. But what you can expect is a community of people who will be rooting for you when things get challenging and cheering for you when you share a success.

15. Being Proud of Who You Are

One thing that has been heartbreaking to us over the years at the start of camp is to see how many of our campers have been bullied or made fun of for caring about making our world a better place.

It can be tempting to believe criticism from haters or people who don’t have the courage of their convictions, but that’s not who YEA Campers are.

You will leave YEA Camp proud of yourself for caring, for taking action, and for being someone actively working to be part of the solution instead of part of the problem.

What to Expect: A Life-Changing Camp for World-Changing Teens

This is really just scratching the surface, but we hope this helps you learn a little bit more about what to expect at YEA Camp!

As we celebrate our 15th year, we are always looking to improve and grow, and so we are hoping for the unexpected too!

If you want to learn more about YEA Camp, check out these testimonials from past campers, parents, and staff, read all the details on our website www.yeacamp.org, send us a message, or sign up here!

We hope to see you this summer and that YEA Camp is everything you expect and more.

The post What to Expect at YEA Camp appeared first on YEA Camp.

Following the success of our first-ever virtual sessions this summer, we are launching our first ever Winter YEA Camp!

One of the things that made our summer sessions so amazing was our incredible staff — all of whom were former YEA Campers and are now grown up with years of activism experience making a difference on causes like climate change, racism, LGBTQ equality, animal rights, mental health, and more.

We’re thrilled that most of our all-star team from this summer — Aine, Julia, Liam, and Maya — are able to join us again this summer, and we have added a few fresh faces, too — Ananya and Elyanna, amazing activists who were both speakers at the virtual camp this summer! These inspiring humans have over a decade of combined YEA Camp experience and have all done some incredible activism.

Throughout the week at YEA Camp, you’ll be learning about different types of activism, getting ideas for things you’ll want to do for the cause that’s most important to you (what we call your Issue of Importance, or IOI), and working on an activist project or two yourself! These are the staff members who will be your role models, advisors, cheer leaders, and mentors to help you put your passion into action — and that’s pretty special.

So without further ado, here is the YEA Camp Dream Team for Winter 2020.

Nora Kramer, YEA Camp Founder and Director (2009-present)

Current Issues Of Importance (IOIs): Factory farming, political accountability, mass incarceration

Just some accomplishments: Started and directed or co-directed 30 sessions of YEA Camp! Successfully coordinated grassroots volunteer efforts to qualify ballot initiatives in 2 states to outlaw some of the cruelest, unsustainable, and unsanitary practices on factory farms; passed out tens of thousands of leaflets; gathered several thousand signatures, including most recently for a measure that helped to stop a new prison from being built in Los Angeles. Wrote The Beginner’s Guide to Changing the World.

Reason for being on staff: “Activism can be really challenging, especially when you’re just getting started and not as confident. I love being able to help people on their path to make the biggest difference they can, and I love to surround myself with amazing changemakers who inspire me.”

Elyanna Calle, Counselor (YEA Camper: 2018)

IOIs: Animal rights and climate change

Just some accomplishments: Elyanna is a student at the University of Texas studying journalism. She attended camp back in 2018 with her IOI being animal rights. Since then she’s participated in many animal rights groups and organized protests and events. After that, she got involved in climate justice and organized two climate strikes in Olympia,WA — all while still in high school.

Reason for being on staff: “Since the day I left YEA camp I wanted to come back as a staff member. I learned such invaluable lessons and I want to give back to the program!”

Julia Clark, Counselor (YEA Camper: 2016, Virtual Counselor: Summer 2020) 

IOI: Racial Justice

Just some accomplishments: In high school, successfully led a student organization called Students for Change that removed confederate names and symbols from her public high school. Currently an outspoken activist, a local organizer in the Black Lives Matter movement, and the Vice President of UNC Black Student Movement, which is the largest cultural organization on UNCs campus.

Reason for being on staff: “To amplify the voices of young activists and use the knowledge I have gained to help others.”

Liam Davis-Bosch, Counselor (YEA Camper: 2015, 2016; YEA Camp Counselor: 2017, 2018; Virtual Counselor: Summer 2020)

IOIs: Mental Health and LGBTQ+ Rights, Climate Change, Education

Just some accomplishments: Former YEA Camper turned staff member that is currently studying neuroscience, psychology, and education at Pitzer College. From a young age, Liam has been involved with humane education and animal rights causes, which then sparked an interest in climate justice. Investigating these intersections led them to work with the Alliance for Climate Education working on youth education and empowerment and advocating for green energy legislation in New York State. More recently, Liam’s focus has been on alternative and accessible education through working as a youth ambassador with HundrED and conducting research on trauma-informed teaching and arts education. Created a resource guide for teaching with sensitivity to queer folx and those affected by mental illness.

Reason for being on staff: “I know from both being a young person and working with young people how truly powerful we are. There is a yearning for knowledge and a passion and drive that is unstoppable. When this is paired with education and support, I know that change can be made in this world. As someone that has benefited so much from this program I want the change to give that same experience to others.”

Maya Diaz-Villalta, Counselor (YEA Camper: 2017; Virtual Counselor: 2020)

IOI(s): Indigenous Rights and LGBTQ+ Rights

Just some accomplishments: Maya Diaz-Villalta (they/them) is a third year at Saint Mary’s College of California pursuing their degree in Anthropology and Dance. They have been an Indigenous Aztec dancer for fifteen years and are involved in various Indigenous communities. Maya is the founder of an organization called Naturalmente Indigena which serves Native youth to connect them to their culture, mother earth, and encourage higher education.  Maya serves and advocates for Indigenous, immigrant, and queer communities.  

Reason for being on staff: “To listen to young people’s ideas and help manifest their goals.”

Aine Pierre, Operations Manager (YEA Camper: 2015, 2016, 2018; Virtual Counselor: Summer 2020)

IOIs: LGBTQ+ Rights and Student Press Rights

Just some accomplishments: Headed the student advocacy chapter of the Garden State Scholastic Press Association for three years, changed the recycling system in her school district, and has written extensively on racial issues, immigration, mental health, etc. for her school newspaper, reaching a wide audience. Also served on the board of a horse sanctuary. Is now currently the Assistant News Editor for the student newspaper of Wake Forest, where she is studying political science and ancient civilizations.

Reason for being on staff: “YEA Camp was a transformative experience for me, allowing me to become more confident in myself, learn more about the issues of the world and how to make them a better place, and in building a community of changemakers that have become my lifelong friends. I want to give other kids the opportunity to experience that.”

Ananya Singh, Counselor (YEA Camper: 2015, 2017 YEA staff member 2018, 2019)

IOIs: Climate justice, social movements, education

Just some accomplishments: Longtime youth climate justice activist. Started Youth United Making An Impact, was a lead activist with Greenpeace, a Climate Justice League Fellow with Sierra Club, former CEO of Greening Forward, youth advisory council member and plenary speaker for National Youth Leadership Council. Currently a student at College of the Atlantic in Bar Harbor, Maine! I have an interdisciplinary major in human ecology

Reason for being on staff:  I love YEA Camp so much because it truly changed my life and shaped me into the activist I am today, and it’s such a special experience and community! Being able to give that experience to other people and help them discover their activist passions has been incredible!

Want to learn from these incredible changemakers? It’s not too late to register today for Winter YEA Camp. For more information about our amazing new winter program, head to yeacamp.org!

The post Meet Our Staff at Virtual YEA Camp’s Upcoming Winter Session appeared first on YEA Camp.

We held the second session of YEA Camp for Adults at Woodstock Farm Sanctuary in New Paltz, New York.

Here are some of the highlights from YEA Camp 2019.

Our 11th Summer

This was our 11th summer hosting YEA Camp for teens ages 12 – 17 and we are so grateful for the opportunity to work with these inspiring young people. 

Our first youth camp was held at Nature’s Classroom in Charlton, Massachusetts from July 13 – 20. Our second youth camp was held at Camp Buckhorn in Idyllwild, California from August 3 – 10. 

We had around fifty campers at each youth session representing two dozen states and three countries. 

From June 30 – July 6, 22 campers from 12 states stayed with us at Woodstock Farm Sanctuary in New Paltz, New York for the second ever session of YEA Camp for Adults. From yoga in the morning to meeting with farmed animals after lunch, from workshops on gender and race to trainings on communication and fundraising, our campers had the perfect mix of self-care and reflection while also learning valuable skills to help advance their activism.

We love our YEA Camp Massachusetts staff!

Between the three sessions of camp, we were so blessed to have 35 amazing staff members from 16 different states.

Our Impact

Juan Antonio Nelson is an Iowa college student who flew all the way to New York to attend adult camp. When asked about the experience, he said, “Without YEA Camp, I wouldn’t feel that I could make a difference in my immediate community. I wouldn’t have the courage to stand up for others. If not for YEA Camp, I wouldn’t have met a strong community of activists who are passionately advocating for what they believe in.”

A few months ago, former YEA Camper and current YEA staff member Ananya Singh was featured on the Perennials Podcast. In the podcast, Ananya says, “When I was 12 years old, the summer before eighth grade, I attended this summer camp called Youth Empowered Action and this is a camp for teen activists and it really was a life changing experience for me. It exposes you to so many different social issues that are going on in the world and kind of takes the approach of intersectionality and showing how all of these issues are so interconnected and then really breaking down what is possible for young people to do.”

YEA Camp staff member Ananya Singh in action at the Morristown, New Jersey Climate Strike

We also recently shared the story of former YEA Camper Leah Kelly who FIVE years after attending camp, wrote this blog post where she says, “Five and a half years ago, as a 15-year-old, I attended Youth Empowered Action (YEA) Camp for the first time and my life was changed immeasurably. I can’t imagine how different my life would have been from then on had I not spent that pivotal week learning what it means to be an effective agent of change and forming lasting connections that supported, and continue to support me as I navigate a chosen path of social justice and fighting for what I believe in.”

Our Brand New Program

This year, we also launched the first-ever YEA Camp Volunteer-a-thon. The Volunteer-a-thon was created to encourage our community in service and activism while raising money for the YEA Camp Scholarship Fund. 

Dima Bischoff-Hashem created an awesome Volunteer-a-thon project supporting her Issue of Importance, animal rights!

Participants created donor pages, shared what activism they would be working on, and asked their loved ones to “sponsor” them in their work. You can read more about three of our camper’s projects at this link and click here to read what one camper wrote about the experience. 

All funds raised through the Volunteer-a-thon go towards the YEA Camp Scholarship Fund which makes camp accessible for all who want to attend. 

This year, 51 of our 100 participants received financial aid and 17 of those campers were on full scholarships. Overall, we funded $66,400 of financial aid this year.  

Our Gratitude

We cannot say thank you enough to everyone who made camp possible. From our food donors to our staff to our donors, thank you. 

Helping ourselves to vegan pizza with Miyoko’s Cheese and more toppings than we can count!

Thanks to two generous donors, we also have a special opportunity through the end of the year. All donations given before the end of the year will be TRIPLED. Click here to learn more and to donate to our Scholarship Fund. 

Every year at YEA Camp, we have the privilege of meeting passionate and activated changemakers who are taking the world by storm. We feel so grateful to be a part of their story and look forward to supporting you in making a bigger difference on the causes you care most about, too!

See You Next Summer

Do you want to experience YEA Camp for yourself next summer, or know someone who would love to join us? 

We are eagerly preparing for 2020 and are excited to offer an Early Bird special registration for $250 off those who sign up before the end of the year. Do you know someone who would be great for YEA Camp? Nominate them here!

• Youth Camp: in Ventura, California (July 5 – 12) and Charlton, Massachusetts (August 1 – 8)
• Adult Camp: in Lanoka Harbor, New Jersey (July 18 – 24)

See you next summer!

The post Thank You for Another Great Year of YEA appeared first on YEA Camp.

By having friends and family sponsor them in this activism, participants are raising money for the YEA Camp Scholarship Fund. The scholarship fund is a core tenet of the mission of YEA Camp. It makes camp accessible for all who want to be there. In the past decade, we have trained over 1,000 activists. None of that would be possible without the support of our donors.

This summer alone, YEA Camp gave financial aid to 51 of the 100 participants to a total of $66,400 worth of aid!

Triple the Impact

This year’s Volunteer-a-Thon is an opportunity to pay that gift forward. By giving to YEA Camp, you give a young person the gift of camp. You allow us to activate them with the knowledge, skills, confidence, and community that they need to make a bigger difference in this world. By participating in or donating to the Volunteer-a-Thon, you become a champion for someone’s activism. 

Thanks to two generous donors, we are making your dollars walk a little farther this year. From now until the end of the year, all Volunteer-a-Thon donations will be TRIPLED. Where else can you invest $20 and see $60 raised to support young changer makers?

Sometimes, though, it’s hard to quantify what that looks like. That’s why we’ve invited two time YEA Camper and Volunteer-a-Thon participant, Mia Jay-Pachirat to share her story. 

What YEA Camp Means to Mia Jay-Pachirat

Hello! My name is Mia. I’m 17 and have gone to YEA Camp for two years now.  I love it. Last year, my Issue of Importance (IOI) was climate change, and my action plan was to create an art zine, all based around solutions to climate change based in New York City, where I live. (Note: A zine is a small-circulation self-published work of original or appropriated texts and images).

Through the Volunteer-a-thon, I have been working on this zine, and I’ve started to plan out the skeleton of it. I am hoping that next month I can start making it! I am thankful for YEA Camp for giving me this opportunity to pursue my passion because otherwise, I wouldn’t have the knowledge and the community to effectively pursue what I wanted to do.

YEA Camp has allowed so many kids to learn how to fight for the world we live on. This is so important because currently not a lot of adults in the government are fighting for what the youth is going to have to live with for many years to come. I think YEA Camp allows youth to make sure that they have the tools themselves to change the world and to right the wrongs that adults have made and continue to make.

I know, personally, that through YEA Camp I have become a much stronger and passionate activist than I ever was before. I’ve learned how to talk to people I don’t know about issues that concern me and how to do that in a positive, helpful way. Additionally, the friends you make at YEA Camp are the best friends you will ever make. YEA Camp friends care about issues that you care about, and they understand what it’s like to struggle with explaining yourself to others that don’t think the same way.

Mia’s Project

So on to my zine! My basic idea for my action plan was to start creating a zine, mass-produce it, and then hand it out on the streets of New York. That didn’t work out because of school and schedule conflicts with my going through the college process. But after talking to my art teacher and making up a plan with her, she’s allowing me to do my zine in art class during the school day. I’m going to start producing a magazine next week. I have everything planned out and I am super excited.

By donating and creating a page for the Volunteer-a-Thon you’re helping so many kids have the opportunity to come to the wonderful, wonderful YEA Camp. Please, if you can donate, share a page. or even create one that would mean the world! To learn more about my project, click here.

Support YEA Camp

To support Mia and the other members of the YEA Camp community, click here. You can read more about her project and others or even create your own page. 

If you are able, please consider making a tax-deductible donation to YEA Camp this year. Your dollar will go three times as far thanks to our generous matching donors.

Interested in joining us at camp next year? We recently announced the dates for YEA Camp 2020 and are currently running an Early Bird special. Register by the end of the year to receive $250 off your registration. Do you know someone who would be great for camp? Nominate them here!

• Youth Camp: in Ventura, California (July 5 – 12) and Charlton, Massachusetts (August 1 – 8)
• Adult Camp: in Lanoka Harbor, New Jersey (July 18 – 24)

The post YEA Campers Triple Impact through Volunteer-a-Thon appeared first on YEA Camp.

This summer, I was able to go to the truly life-changing place that is YEA Camp. At camp, I met so many young people with the same passion as me. This made it easy to make lots of friends that helped me expand my knowledge and encouraged me to make change in the world.

I have always been passionate about social issues, but I’ve never really known how to advocate for change. At YEA Camp, I was given the tools that I was missing to be an activist. Through workshops like Activism 101 and Dealing with Haters, I gained the confidence and knowledge that I needed to be the activist I was striving to be.

At camp, I spent a week learning about social issues that I care about, building my skills and confidence, eating delicious vegan food, and making fun memories with my new friends. Camp was very educational, but it was also fun! When we weren’t getting the necessary tools we need to be difference-makers, we were having a dance party or laughing or playing gaga ball.

Now that I am home from camp, I am so grateful that I had this experience. I now have a specific action plan. I know that I am confident and educated enough to be a good activist. And now I have a group of young activists that believe in me and are there for me if I ever have questions or need help.

Hannah White is a 15-year-old student from Pennsylvania. She is passionate about the environment and plans to work with a local grocery store to reduce plastic bag use. She is also working on including environmental activism in her poetry. Hannah was a camper during the 2019 Massachusetts session of YEA Camp and she is excited to hopefully come back next summer.

If you’d like to develop more confidence in yourself to become an activist you care about, join us at YEA Camp for teens or YEA Camp for Adults! Don’t want to wait til summer? Good — we need more changemakers now! Check out our free ebook, The Beginner’s Guide to Changing the World for help getting started or taking your change-making to new heights!

The post YEA Camp Helped Me Develop the Confidence to Be an Activist appeared first on YEA Camp.