Do you consider yourself an activist? Why or why not? How about if you’re still in high school and not old enough to vote? What if you care a lot but have no idea where to begin?

YEA Camp’s definition of activism: Taking intentional action to make a difference for others, with an eye for the big picture.

We at YEA Camp believe that “activist” isn’t a title you earn after attending a certain number of protests or living through a certain number of birthdays, or after achieving a campaign victory. Activism happens all around us every day, and it’s a mentality that can empower us to make a bigger difference in the world.

What does the term “activism” mean to you?

The following excerpt is taken from The Beginner’s Guide to Changing the World, our free ebook that you can download here. We hope it will be a tool to help you make a bigger difference.

What Is Activism?

We at YEA Camp didn’t think any of the dictionary definitions really did this term justice (no pun intended)! So we made up our own definition.

Activism (noun): taking intentional action to make a difference for others, with an eye for the big picture.

By this definition, we consider recycling a can activism if you do it to protect the environment — the big picture. Technically, if your motivation is to get the 5 cent deposit, that wouldn’t qualify as “activism” but still has a great result.

(However, the folks who helped pass laws to ensure people can get 5 cents for each returned can, regardless of the motivation for recycling, are absolutely activists!)

While, by definition, activism helps others, activism can also help you if you are being affected by the problem you are seeking to address. If it helps only you and there’s no bigger picture where others benefit as well, we wouldn’t consider it activism.

Other examples of things you can do that fit our definition of activism:

• Speak up when someone makes a prejudiced remark
• Vote or helping others to vote when done not out of one’s own self-interest but what’s best for society.
• Rescue an animal in need of a home, as a recognition of the big picture that shelters are overpopulated
• Reduce your ecological footprint like by going vegetarian or vegan (or even just eating less meat), driving less, and buying things second-hand. Again, if you do these things to benefit your health or save money, that’s great! Those have great results for society regardless of the motivation, but they wouldn’t be considered activism by this definition. (We say this not because we’re keeping score, but to clarify what we mean by the term “activism.”
• Raise or donate money for any not-for-profit cause. This could include finding a cure for a disease, helping a family in need, or an NGO.

Do you see the “eye for the big picture”? Activists see the need to do something when the government is not properly addressing or funding efforts to solve our problems, such as by providing affordable health care or safety nets. We could go on all day.

Here are some examples of YEA Campers doing activism –lobbying, leafleting, marching, and fundraising!

We actually do a workshop at YEA Camp called “A Million Ways to Make a Difference” because the possibilities are really never-ending.

The point is: We bet you’ve done plenty of activism already.

So are you an activist?

By our definition, we consider most people activists for something, even if they don’t realize it or think of themselves that way.

We see activism as something people do with different levels of regularity, commitment, and effectiveness. Most people consider someone an activist when that person has done “enough” activism to be worthy of the title. But this “enough” is an imaginary, arbitrary level that we can each decide and claim for ourselves.

We see activism as a perspective and a mindset that leads us to take certain actions.

At YEA Camp, we attract campers who have a wide range of experience.  Some are just starting out, while others have been doing some form of activism since they were little. We think of it like everybody who cares about something is an activist at heart. Some of us just need some more direction and focus to follow through.

Of course, there can be activists for “good” and “bad” causes. There are even people doing things that might unintentionally be counterproductive to their goals.

Ultimately, activism means helping those without power who are experiencing something harmful that could be stopped by societal action.

As activists, we need to figure out what those actions are, and how to make them happen.

Adopting an Activist Mindset

So, what’s the difference whether or not you think of yourself as an activist?

When you have an activist mindset, you start being on the lookout for how you can make the world a better place. You start taking actions (big or small) to bring about the change you wish to see.

Learn how to be an activist by reading our The Beginner’s Guide to Changing the World

When you think of yourself as someone who is making a difference, you start behaving differently. You think about how you can be more effective. You take action in the direction you want the world to go.

We think activists are heroes. They (we!) are devoting time, energy, or money and making sacrifices for the greater good.

Thank you for being an activist!

Now that you hopefully consider yourself an activist, want to learn more about making a bigger difference? That’s what we’re here for!

Download our free ebook, The Beginner’s Guide to Changing the World, to get tons of resources to help you make a bigger difference on whatever social justice causes are most important to you.

And if you’re between the ages of 10-17, join us this summer at YEA Camp! We have helped more than 1000 aspiring activists get started or get serious making a difference and would love to help you on your changemaking journey.

Thanks for being an activist and for all you do to make our world a better place!

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I came to YEA Camp because I wanted to find a community of people who were as ambitious and open-minded as me and to learn how to become a more effective activist. It was so inspiring to be surrounded by such a forward-thinking and open-minded group of young people aspiring to make a difference in the world just like I am.

I already thought that I was making an impact, which I was by being vegan, signing tons of online petitions, and writing to companies, but YEA Camp reminded me that there is always more that I can do. Everyday at YEA Camp we got to participate in motivational workshops that gave me great ideas. I cannot thank the incredible staff enough for molding me into a more effective activist through their influential workshops.

I feel that I now have the knowledge, confidence, inspiration, and group of friends that I need to make a difference. First, I am focusing on how I can improve my school. I have started taking action by working on getting the cruel practice of dissecting animals banned in my school and replacing it with an online virtual-alternative. To accomplish this, I have researched this issue and reached out to the head of the science department at my school urging him to ban the dissection of animals in my school. He has pledged to talk to the other science teachers about it. Thanks to YEA Camp, I have the courage and knowledge to have a face to face meeting with him and not. If he says no, I will then talk to my principal.

I also plan to advocate for Meatless Mondays at my school and hope to make them year round. Giving up meat one day a week is not only good for your health, but is also very good for the planet and for animals. Additionally, I aim to advocate for humane education in my school sometime during the school year. For those who don’t know, humane education is the use of education to nurture compassion and respect for all living beings. Humane education can play a key role in making our society more compassionate and caring, to take responsibility for ourselves, each other, our fellow animals, and the earth. I may not be able to get a class that is mainly about compassion and respect for living beings, but I will try to convince my school to host a public speaker who will talk about this.

I also really want to be more open about my activism with my peers at school. Last school year I was careful not to stand out too much when it comes to my activism. I didn’t want people to have a poor perception of me due to my activism. Before YEA Camp, I did not have the confidence and support that I needed to see such issues and take action on them in these ways. I will forever be grateful to the amazing staff and campers at YEA Camp for giving me the confidence and support that I needed. Thanks to YEA Camp, I see that being open about my activism can enable me to have a bigger impact.

I really hope that even more people can come to YEA Camp next year, because we desperately need more young people to have the knowledge, confidence, inspiration, and group of friends that they need to make a difference in order to change the world.

Noam Cohen-Weinberg went vegan about 2 years ago due to his passion for animal rights and wants to do as much as he can to help animals. He is 12 years old and was born and raised in Westchester County, New York. Noam Attended the 2018 session of YEA Camp in Massachusetts. It was his first time attending YEA Camp and he plans on coming back next summer.

If you want to take your activism to the next level, find out more about YEA Camp here — now with a camp for adults too!

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