Organizer Spotlights

This week, we're spotlighting Ohio-based organizer, Lynette Cashaw-Davis. Follow along to see how she is making an impact in her community! 1) What are you working on now—the change you are feeling the most urgency around making in the world through your organizing? Developing a coalition of community organizations and individuals to look at addiction and recovery through the lens of equity and inclusion, and commitment to the elimination of disparities, stigma and discrimination by embracing culture-informed practices in recovery spaces. 2) If you could give a new organizer one piece of guidance, what would it be? Follow your [...]

University of New Hampshire student and organizer, Bella Dziak, is working towards increasing food security on her school's campus. 1) What are you working on now—the change you are feeling the most urgency around making in the world through your organizing? My team and I are working towards increasing food security for students who utilize the dining halls at University of New Hampshire. We are requesting our administration change the mandatory unlimited meal plan option for those living in dorms on campus. Many people who have dietary restrictions due to allergies, religion, and ethics are unable to value their [...]

Robyn Finnicum is an organizer in Nevada advocating for higher standards in recovery housing. Check out her journey below! 1) What are you working on now—the change you are feeling the most urgency around making in the world through your organizing? I am working with a team of organizers in Nevada to advocate for standards in recovery housing in the state. Through group and individual listening sessions, we identified one of the biggest barriers to recovery in Nevada is the lack of safe and inclusive recovery homes. Women and men shared a need for family housing. The LGBTQIA community shared [...]

This week's spotlight goes to Sean Wilson, an activist who grew up in Milwaukee. As someone with 17 years of lived experience and direct involvement with the criminal legal system, Sean has made it his mission to help others and make progress for real reform in a system that is broken. 1) What are you working on now—the change you are feeling the most urgency around making in the world through your organizing? We are working and collaborating with 13 leaders who have been directly impacted by the issue of mass incarceration in 13 of our priority states and [...]

This week’s organizer spotlight features Aaron Kucharski, an organizer based in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. 1) What are you working on now—the change you are feeling the most urgency around making in the world through your organizing? In my own personal organizing I am working to move a bill through the SC statehouse that would put Narcan in every high school across the state. In my own community I am working with my local Recovery Advocacy Project team (RAP - GrandStrand!) to do direct outreach with people who are experiencing housing insecurities or struggling with substance use by organizing [...]

This week’s organizer spotlight features Cassidy Conley, a youth organizer from Detroit, Michigan (and participant in the 2023 YEP Winter Summit): 1) What are you working on now—the change you are feeling the most urgency around making in the world through your organizing? There are so many issues to be addressed, and it is impossible to solve them all on my own; this is why creating a safe environment for BIPOC, Women, and LGBTQIA+ youth to actively participate in this movement makes all the difference. I am currently working on a few different projects including ensuring youth turnout to [...]

This week's organizer spotlight features Susan Butler-Graham, an organizer with Mothers Out Front (and participant in the 2021 virtual WiLD Academy): 1) What have you learned from “falling off the bike” as a leader? I've learned to ask for help. Contrary to what I learned growing up, no one is expected to do this work alone. In fact, it's impossible to do alone. Being an organizing leader means bringing the difficulties and decisions to the rest of the team, and solving the problems together. That's both freeing and empowering. It's not easy for me to ask for help, but it's [...]

This week's organizer spotlight features Samia Karimi, an organizer with ARTogether (and participant in the 2021 virtual WiLD Academy): 1) What have you learned from “falling off the bike” as a leader? Perhaps the most frightening thing about leadership is diving into pure uncertainty. You have to get comfortable about making decisions without knowing all the facts, without knowing the right people, without knowing where you will end up, or without knowing whether the people you are trying to help may no longer be alive next month. These past few months, I have been diving in head first, along with [...]

This week's organizer spotlight features Lauren and Caleb Langworthy, farmers and organizers in western Wisconsin (and participants in the 2021 virtual WiLD Academy): 1) What have you learned from “falling off the bike” as a leader? We’ve learned the importance of developing leadership capacity and intentionally delegating areas of responsibility by “falling off the bike.” It is easy to hold on to the responsibility and burden of an organizing project with good intentions—thinking that you’re protecting the time of others. However, the independent mindset that is ultimately at the root of these behaviors is detrimental to the act of organizing [...]

This week's organizer spotlight features Ashley Daniels, an organizer with the Carolina Federation (and participant in the 2021 virtual WiLD Academy): 1) What have you learned from “falling off the bike” as a leader? I've learned (repeatedly) that the fissures and deep disrepair experienced in organizing is 9 times out of 10 caused by isolation. The times that I've felt inadequate or unbelonging to a movement was because, in isolation, I had begun to create stories about how others might be assessing me. Likewise, the times that I've connected with people who had been removed from the group, they were [...]