Inside the Activists' Studio NY
Workshop Descriptions and Presenter Bios
Pranks with a Purpose: A Report from the Front Lines of the New Creative Activism
Author, artist and “Billionaires for Bush” founder Andrew Boyd will explore the creative side of the new activism in this humorous and inspirational multi-media presentation. Taking participants on a 20-year journey—from sit-ins and guerrilla theatre to culture jamming, media pranks and viral campaigns—Andrew demonstrates how to add intelligence, humor and artistic savvy to any political campaign. This is a must for anyone working directly or indirectly toward social change.
Workshop participants will analyze recent creative campaigns, learning how to adapt artistic strategies to support political action and education. Together, we tease out the principles of effective creative action design, then (time permitting) apply them to the actions and campaigns that participants are currently engaged in.
The workshop explores:
* New approaches such as culture jamming, guerrilla theater, & media interventions.
* How to get high-concept / high production values on a low budget.
* How to use pranks and clever satire to get past corporate media filters.
* How to get your campaign to "go viral."
* How to invite open-ended grass-roots participation into actions and yet maintain artistic cohesion and a focused message.
* How to use the web as a tool for disseminating not just information, but ready-made organizing and message-making tools.
Andrew Boyd is an author, humorist, and a 20-year veteran of creative campaigns for social change. He founded the 2004 media sensation "Billionaires for Bush." He's written two books of political humor, "Daily Afflictions" and "Life's Little Deconstruction Book," both from W. W. Norton, and one how-to creative action manual, "The Activist Cookbook." He's a founding partner of Agit-Pop Communications, a "subvertising" agency cranking out award-winning flash animation and on-line video for environmental & social justice campaigns. Last year he co-produced "Stop the Clash of Civilizations," which was awarded YouTube’s Best Political Video of 2007 - woo-hoo. He lives in New York with his wee laptop.
Radical Redistribution: Fundraising for Change
In the endless to-do list of activist organizing, fundraising is often the “scrubbing the moldy bathtub” chore that makes us wince and cringe, and that we hope will magically take care of itself.In this workshop, we’ll talk about why fundraising – and money- can feel uncomfortable in progressive spaces, and how to transform that discomfort into a powerful tool for change.Participants will learn concrete strategies to incorporate fundraising into our everyday activism, how (and who) to ask for money, no-fail planning for longer-term sustainability, and what we can do to reclaim philanthropy as a radical action towards lasting change.
By participating in this workshop, you will:
* Learn how to create a meaningful, challenging, and totally achievable fundraising plan for any campaign, action, organization, or project.
* Find a new way of talking about money in progressive spaces.
* Gain tools for sharing your newly found fundraising prowess with other activists and organizers in your community.
Miriam Barnard is the Senior Director of Development at The Fortune Society.She has nearly a decade of experience in organizing, advocating, fundraising, and strategic planning for a broad range of activist and advocacy groups, from small, volunteer-driven actions to political campaigns to large, established, non-profit organizations.Prior to her current position, Miriam served as the Associate Director of Major Gifts at GLAAD (www.glaad.org) and the Director of Development at Wingspan (www.wingspan.org), where she became a nationally leading voice in ethical fundraising within the LGBT movement. Her mission-driven fundraising strategies have been put to work to support movements to end gender based violence, promote migrant rights, and create comprehensive criminal justice system reform.
Activism – Now for the Sane and Healthy Too!
Activism needs a serious make-over. We are change agents, but we don’t have to be martyrs who completely sacrifice ourselves to the cause in unhealthy ways. Whether you’ve been burnt out before, are headed towards burning out, or want to understand how to avoid even getting close, this will be an honest conversation about how to find the balance. During this workshop, participants will explore what activism means to them and think about ways to maintain a healthy life while remaining committed to the work of change. This is a perfect workshop for those who want to think about how to create sustainable lives as activists. We will share stories and strategies in a supportive atmosphere.
By participating in this workshop, you will:
* Reflect on your own activist habits.
* Work to develop a healthy philosophy around your activism.
* Share strategies for maintaining a healthy balance.
Jen Chau is the Founder and Executive Director of Swirl, Inc. (http://www.swirlinc.org), a national multi-ethnic organization founded in 2000 that challenges society's notions of race through community building, education, and action. In addition, she is the National Director of People Development and Human Resources at New Leaders for New Schools (http://www.nlns.org), a national non-profit education reform organization. Jen co-founded New Demographic (http://www.newdemographic.com), an anti-racism training company, and continues to work on race issues and leadership through her roles within Swirl and New Leaders for New Schools.
Jen is pursuing her Masters in Organizational Change Management at Milano, The New School for Management and Urban Policy. She graduated from Wellesley College with a BA in Women's Studies. She currently lives in New York City and writes about her experiences every now and then at The Time Is Always Right (http://jenchau.typepad.com/).
Group Juggling: Practice for Performance
Positive leadership and team building is an essential skill for social change work. In this interactive exercise, learn more about how you can maximize your performance and the excellence of your team. This session will include an experiential exercise, group discussion, self-reflection and a de-brief about how to apply the lessons to your organizations. Participants will gain greater awareness of their own leadership styles and learn tools for reflecting on and improving team performance.
Shuli Passow is the Director of Community Initiatives at the Jewish Funds for Justice, where she supports synagogues and educators around the country to work for social change. She is a graduate of New York University, where she completed a Master of Public Administration and an MA in Judaic Studies as a Wexner Graduate Fellow. In addition to her professional experience in the Jewish community, Shuli worked in the private sector as a human resources analyst at Goldman Sachs. Shuli has been involved in several Jewish social change organizations, including AJWS, New Israel Fund, and Hazon.
The 6 Project: Cross-Cultural Solidarity and the Creative Spirit
Artist and activist Chelsea Gregory will invite participants to be part of a reading of material from The 6 Project- a performance piece that explores how race and identity shape our point of view. Participants will then have the opportunity to reflect on the ideas presented in the piece, and connect them to concrete strategies for building cross-cultural solidarity in social justice work. Whereas these conversations may often feel limited by fear and judgment, this workshop provides an open space to process race and identity, as well as a set of specific anti-racist organizing principles that we can apply through our work.
By participating in this workshop, you will:
* Learn to build solidarity rooted in authenticity rather than privilege and supremacy.
* Explore and develop creativity as a means for self-reflection around race and identity.
* Walk away with 10 concrete ways to embody anti-racist principles within your work.
Chelsea Gregory is an artist, activist and educator who works through the media of theater, poetry and dance. She recently completed a national tour with We Got Issues!, and is currently developing The 6 Project, a performance project that explores how race and cultural identity shape our point of view. Her work is published in several anthologies and she has performed at venues including the Hip-Hop Theater Festival, The Bioneers Conference, The US Social Forum and Chuck D’s “On the Real Radio.” She has shared the stage with performers such as KRS 1, Rebel Diaz and Kelly Tsai, and collaborated with The Urban Bush Women Institute on a piece exploring race in the context of Hurricane Katrina. As an educator she has consulted with organizations such as CODE PINK, Make the Road NY, The School at Columbia University and Voices UnBroken and led workshops at Columbia University, UC Berkeley, UMASS Amherst, The Liberty Science Center and The White Privilege Conference.
Fighting the Good Fight inside the Political Realm… Effectively!
Do you worry that most people working in politics don’t have the perspective of the people they are supposed to be helping and representing? Do you ever wonder how to get your voice at the table? In this workshop, Serena Zeise will share some basic tools for getting invited into the political world, ways to make an impact, and how to do so while maintaining your values and your sanity.
By participating in this workshop, you will:
* Gain perspective on why and how you can succeed in the political world.
* Explore how to marry your desire to fight for social justice and work inside a system which may not adequately protect the rights you’re fighting for.
* Discuss the importance of cross-sector collaboration.
Serena Zeise has ten years experience trying to make an impact from the inside out. In 1998, she volunteered with the Clinton Advance team doing logistics work for the President when he visited Los Angeles. She continued making connections with democratic leaders by volunteering with Vice President Gore’s fundraising team, which turned into an active role at campaign events including the Democratic National Convention.In 2000, she co-founded Youth Political Action Committee Los Angeles (YPACLA), a non-partisan PAC focused on increasing youth participation in the political arena. Upon graduating from UCSD in 2002, where she earned her BA in Political Science, she applied for AVODAH. As an AVODAH corps member, she worked at D.C. Jobs with Justice as the Community Outreach Coordinator. When she finished the program, she joined UNITE-HERE and began organizing non-union workers living in poverty. In 2005, she got a job working on the fundraising team for Villaraigosa for Mayor in Los Angeles. After he was elected, she was hired to work as the executive assistant for the Deputy Chief of Staff. Within a year, she was the Body Person, (Personal Assistant) to Mayor Villaraigosa. In 2007, she moved to New York to get her Master in Public Administration with a specialization in management and a focus on education.
Crash-Course in Internet Organizing
Learn how to run an online action campaign from start to finish, using the tools and techniques of the pros.
By participating in this workshop, you will:
* Learn how to structure and create an online campaign.
* Learn how to use various online tools, including social media and constituent relations management (CRM) software, to promote and build support for your campaign.
* Learn how to turn supporters into active members and donors.
Daniel Sieradski, founder of the popular blog Jewschool.com, is a writer, artists, filmmaker and activist devoted to documenting and promoting alternative Jewish culture. One of the Jewish Week's "36 Under 36," Sieradski has worked as an independent consultant to advise many innovative Jewish organizations on their marketing and technology strategies. Currently Director of Digital Media for JTA, Sieradski helms the online presence of America's most prominent Jewish news organization.
