Mutual Support, Grassroots Collaboration, and Building Community

Taiji comes from Clovelly, a beautiful seaside town with dramatic mountain views in the south western side of Cape Town, South Africa. At the beginning of April, he and a few of neighbours decided to start a Community Action Network (CAN). ‘My aim is to connect people. All people have value. We all have something to offer to our communities. Sadly, oftentimes we become so lonely and caught up in our personal lives. We think, “I don't have time to be involved in the community.” But I think that community is about mutual support.

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Young Playwrights for Change 2020: Emily Ge and Shared Ignorance

At the 2020 AATE National Conference, the two winners’ YPC plays were announced, and virtual performances were presented with actors bringing the texts to life. I had a chance to catch up with this year’s Runner-Up Emily Ge about her experience creating her play, Shared Ignorance. The theme for this year’s YPC Program was Take A Stand, encouraging young people to share their stories and perspectives on how they use their voices to change the status quo.

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Youth Unite Through Music During Tumultuous School Year

Distant Cousins, a band of three seasoned musicians based in LA, collaborates with students to produce new live music, through this education-focused, Cousins in the Classroom program. Recently, they worked with 8th grade graduates of Gindi Maimonides who were cut short of their graduating year because of the Coronavirus shutdown.

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