Hosted by: The Office of Student Life at The Ohio State University, UCLA Residential Life, & UCLA Volunteer Center
<aside> đź“Ť SATURDAY, OCTOBER 24th - 10 AM to 4:30 PM PST, 1 PM to 7:30 PM EST
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The Digital Activism Collective Conference is a free, virtual experience that aims to help participants understand their role as leaders in today’s world by honing in on their passions and developing new skills to contribute to digital activism and positive social change. This is a highly interactive, cohort-based conference that will provide participants with the opportunity to meet people from UCLA, The Ohio State University, and beyond! This means that you'll experience the conference in small groups led by a facilitator. We have intentionally built this experience for participants to build community while learning new concepts and skills. Any college student is eligible to register regardless of university affiliation! Join us for keynote speakers, individual and group activities, and workshops to begin or further your activism!
Dr. Andrea (“Drea”) Letamendi is a Licensed Clinical Psychologist who received her Bachelor’s degree from Cornell University and her Ph.D. from UCSD. Dr. Drea currently serves at UCLA as the Associate Director of Mental Health Training, Intervention, and Response for Residential Life and the Interim Director of the Resilience Center at UCLA, called RISE. Dr. Drea’s specialty areas include post-traumatic growth, psychological resilience, and suicide prevention. She has been featured in the popular press, including the Los Angeles Times, The Boston Globe, The Guardian, and the Atlantic surrounding her work using media to engage the public around issues of disparities like race and ethnic underrepresentation. Dr. Drea extends her professional work into public health education by intersecting psychological science with superheroes. For over 10 years, she has served as a psychological consultant for Marvel, Warner Bros., and DC Comics. Dr. Drea shared her personal story of overcoming imposter syndrome and discovering resilience in her TEDxUCLA Talk, called “Capes, Cowls and Courage."
Charity Martin-King has a civic, business, and non-profit career which spans over 20 years. Mrs. Martin-King is an entrepreneur, activist, and published author. Her non profit experience includes The Ohio State University; Young Scholars Program, Ohio Dominican University; Village to Child Program, The Mayor's Office of Education; Columbus Youth Commission, and I Know I Can. She is the former owner of Urban Spirit Coffee Shop, a social justice based coffee house. She coached basketball in Columbus City Schools for 20 years. She is a highly decorated coach boasting 9 district championships, 4 Regional Championships, and 2 State Final 4 appearances.
Mrs. King’s Honors include: Outstanding Christian Leader by the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Ohio Dominican University Advisor of the Year, Statewide Governor's Award; Excellence in Community Education, Tom Joyner Morning Show “Hardest Working Entrepreneur”, Columbus Landmarks Design Award, Who’s Who Black Columbus “Interesting Personalities, Who’s Who Cambridge, Columbus Alive “People to Watch”, CDC Micro Entrepreneur Award, Iota Phi Theta 9 Who Care Award, All-AP Coach of the Year, Columbus City Schools Coach of the Year, Jump 25 Hall of Fame, and more! She has been recognized by the Ohio Senate, Columbus City Council, Governor Ted Strickland, and Senator Ray Miller.
Coach King, as she is affectionately called, serves her community with particular emphasis on five core values; DISCIPLINE, INTEGRITY, SCHOLARSHIP, PURPOSE, and LEADERSHIP. She is often invited to lead conferences, train young leaders, and speak to church and civic groups. Subjects include “The Five Links in the Chain”, “How to be a Trailblazer”, and “Leadership in Perilous Times”.
Charity Martin-King is a proud product of Columbus City Schools. She is a graduate of The Ohio State University with a dual degree in Political Science and African American Studies. She is a member of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc. She and her husband have two sons.
Jane Nguyen, a co-founder and core organizer of Ktown for All, has led outreach and policy advocacy since May 2018 when the organization was founded to counter-protest protesters of a proposed homeless shelter in Koreatown, Los Angeles. Nguyen is active with the Services Not Sweeps coalition as a founding member and serves on the board of Invisible People, a nonprofit that uplifts the experiences of unhoused people and produces news and educational materials that reaches millions of viewers worldwide.
As part of her residency in 2020, Jane Nguyen will fully dedicate herself to the work of building a grassroots coalition throughout Los Angeles that provides direct aid to unhoused residents, fights for dignity, and housing for all.
Hosted by: Terry Giang (he/him/his)
In the session, we will visit three examples where graphic design plays an impactful role in our world. We will discuss the importance of visual communication and reading between the lines.
Hosted by: Marieka Turner (she/her/hers)
In this workshop, we will be discussing the importance of artivism, how you can use art for issue awareness, and ways to make your voice heard. You will also have the chance to write your own poem about a social justice issue that impacts you.
Terry Giang
A self-taught graphic designer, specializing in printing and publications. I’ve been working in the creative industry since 2008. Hope to teach students everything I wish I knew when I was in college.
Marieka Turner
She is a Best of Button Poet for her poem, "Debt." She has also placed 6th in the world in 2017 and 3rd in the world in 2018 with the VCU Poetry Team at CUPSI (College Unions Poetry Slam Invitational). Marieka believes poetry is a powerful social justice tool as storytelling is a pivotal piece of advocacy.
Hosted by: Jordan Shyi (he/him/his)
This workshop will look to embolden those in attendance to know how to navigate crucial conversations around identity, oppression, power, and activism. As advocates and organizers, conversations are an important tool in winning allyship and partnership. Through activities and dialogue, we will learn together how inherent skills like active listening and courage can be used to tackle even the most difficult of discussions.
Hosted by: Dr. Alexander Braczkowski (he/him/his)
In this workshop Alex will be discussing the need for a good story (not equipment) as a platform for good filmmaking and photography. He'll use a few case studies on wildlife (both abroad and close to home) to show viewers some of the ways in which we can all engage in storytelling projects, even using iPhones as the main tool. Alex will be coming live via Zoom link from Australia where he is currently based at the Resilient Conservation Group, Griffith University, working with Dr Duan Biggs on large carnivores and issues surrounding the illegal wildlife trade.
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Jordan Shyi
Jordan currently serves as the Acting Director for the Office of Leadership & Experiential Learning within the department of Student Centers and Activities at Rutgers University – New Brunswick.
Dr. Alexander Braczkowski
A scientist and National Geographic and Disney+ wildlife filmmaker working on storytelling and science projects on big cats and wildlife globally.
Hosted by: Keanna Ross (she/her/hers) & Viviana Siles-Osejo (she/her/hers)
Reconstruct your idea of what activism means and join Keanna & Viviana for a conversation about how they were able to reclaim their voice through digital art. Challenge the way you view activism and learn how you can incorporate meaningful work into your life right from the comfort of your home.
Keanna Ross
Outside of school, Keanna finds personal therapy through photography and art. She enjoys portrait photography and has captured photos during peaceful protests for the BLM Movement in Philadelphia and New Jersey.
Viviana Siles-Osejo
Viviana Siles-Osejo is a Student Affairs Professional at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).