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.

Hello! My name is Phoenix Turner, and I am 12 years old. I went to the first ever virtual winter YEA Camp. 

My IOI was anti-racism. Through camp I was taught so many ways to be a better activist and changemaker. The workshops this week were not just factual, but also fun. This camp has been a great experience I could never forget (nor would I want to). I have made great friends at camp that I hope to stay in touch with. 

Not only am I very passionate about anti-racism, but I am passionate about LGBTQ+ equality, climate change, mental health and animal rights, with many more in between. I have been wanting to go vegetarian for a long time, but I haven’t had the courage to ask my parents to let me. Through camp and making friends who are already vegan and vegetarian, I gained the courage to ask my parents, and they said yes! 

YEA Camp has made such a big impact on my life, and it will for other young activists too. There are so many things to learn at camp to not only help you be a better activist but to help you through life. I would 10/10 recommend YEA Camp to changemakers. If you want to make a change in your world and community, come to YEA camp!

We absolutely loved having Phoenix and all of our amazing campers at our first-ever winter session of YEA Camp!  They’ve given us so much inspiration and lots of ideas for the future. We’re going to be developing more virtual programming, and we’d love to hear from you if you’re interested! You can reach out to us in the chat box or through our Contact page.  Follow us on Instagram or Facebook for all our latest updates!

The post Virtual Winter Camp Officially Gets a 10 Out of 10 Recommendation for Changemakers appeared first on YEA Camp.

In November, YEA Camp launched the first-ever “Volunteer-a-thon” designed to encourage people to get more involved in community service and activism, and to do it publicly with greater accountability. The best part? The Volunteer-a-thon is a fundraiser, with all money raised going to the YEA Camp Scholarship Fund. For many campers who participated, it was an opportunity to pay forward their own experience to make it possible for someone else to attend in the future.

Each year, we receive dozens of financial aid requests from passionate activists who want to experience YEA Camp but do not have the monetary means to do so. In 2019, YEA Camp granted financial aid to 51 of our 100 participants and full scholarships to 17 of those participants. Overall, you helped us fund over $66,400 worth of financial aid. 

None of that would be possible without the generous support of our YEA Camp community. That is what made the Volunteer-a-Thon so special for us. By participating, our campers were paying forward their experiences to the next summer of activists. 

What was the Volunteer-a-Thon anyway?

Instead of trying to raise money by training for a marathon or selling cookies, members of our camp community created a donor page asking for they’d ask their loved ones to sponsor to their activism. 

Mia Jay-Pachirat is a two-time youth camper from New York City whose Issue of Importance (IOI) is climate change. For the Volunteer-a-Thon, she created an art zine focused on NYC-specific solutions to climate change. 

When asked about her experience with the Volunteer-a-Thon, Mia said, “It really pushed me to keep my action plan and other little activism acts to the front of my mind!” You can read more about Mia’s experience here. 

B.T. Salle Widelock attended YEA Camp in 2019 and pledged to volunteer 30 hours for local organizations in his community. “I had an amazing experience at camp. That great experience can only be made possible with others’ help.” We are so honored that 7 members of B.T.’s family donated a total of $850 to support YEA Camp and B.T. — and thanks to two generous donors who offered matching gifts, those funds mean $2550 for our scholarship fund!

For some, the Volunteer-a-thon was all in the family. Camper Marley Goldman and her mom Gail are working to end the use of rodenticide in Washington state. Marley says, “I want other young aspiring activists to get the same kind of training and support that I did so that they can pursue whatever cause is important to them.”

We already shared with you about our amazing former campers Dima Bischoff-Hashem, Audrey Watson, and Danielle Holtz also participated in the Volunteer-a-Thon. You can read their reflections on camp and their projects here. 

And YEA Camp director Nora Kramer participated in the Volunteer-a-thon, too! Nora’s project was to reach out to at least 100 former campers from over the years to see if she could support them in her activism. Nora reported back that this was a huge success! “It was so inspiring how many of our campers shared their positive experiences of YEA Camp and even sharing that their memories from YEA Camp were some of the happiest memories of their childhood! Several donated to our Volunteer-a-Thon, several offered to volunteer and are now working on cool projects for us, and one camper even wrote this blog post reflecting on her experience at YEA Camp, looking back 5 years later! It was an honor and pleasure to be back in touch with such phenomenal people!”

You can see — and you can still support! — even more amazing changemakers who created fundraising pages here. We are so grateful to everyone who participated!

The Final Results

We were so excited to pilot the Volunteer-a-thon this year and so grateful to the fourteen members of our community who created pages and helped us raise almost $6,000! 

Thank you to everyone who dedicated their time, energy, and dollars into this exciting new program. We could not have done it without you. 

It’s not too late to make a final donation to our Volunteer-a-Thon to help YEA Camp make a bigger difference for even more people!

Time to register for summer 2020!

Are you interested in taking your activism to the next level? We’ve announced the dates for this summer and would love to have you there. 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 Habor, New Jersey (July 18 – 24)

The post YEA Camp Celebrates Success with First Ever Volunteer-a-Thon 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.