Develop Global Youth Leaders in NYC and DC!

Global Kids wasted no time getting the school year off to a busy start exploring issues including global health, poverty, climate change, environmental justice, discrimination, and human rights through workshops, field trips, guest speakers, mentoring, and hands-on service projects. We are proud to see our youth demonstrate the values of global citizens and develop the knowledge, skills, and motivation to participate in shaping public policy in an ever-changing, complex world.The following report highlights just a few of our students’ accomplishments from Fall 2018.

GK Leaders Fight for Climate Justice at COP 24

Four Global Kids Leaders from John Adams High School, William Cullen Bryant High School, High School of Medical Professions and The Beacon School traveled to Katowice, Poland from December 4th through December 12th for the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, COP 24. As an official conference exhibitor, our GK Leaders facilitated interactive workshops about water pollution at two local Polish Schools in partnership with the Japan-based human rights organization Peace Boat. Our GK Leaders together with Polish students participated in discussions on methods for spreading climate change awareness.

GK’s COP 24 experience culminated with the climate march where our students came together with many environmental organizations and activists to demand climate justice. The experience proved transformative for our participants. One GK Leader Luis Guaman expressed, “I’ve learned from COP 24 that we are capable of doing anything if we work together. It was an amazing experience to meet many people from around the world working towards the same goal - to reduce carbon emissions and work for a sustainable future.”

Action Civics!

Civic engagement was a key component in the activities and student action projects our students participated in and developed this Fall: Q300 middle schoolers conducted an election day action project which involved interviewing voters about their choices and key issues of concern; youth from William Cullen Bryant High School volunteered at Floating Hospital; students from Careers in Sports High School conducted a peer survey to determine what kind of new school clubs they would like to see, the High School for Public Service hosted a school-wide voter registration, and a faux election day took place at the High School for Global Citizenship to encourage youth to register and exercise the right to vote. In addition, students showcased their creativity by designing peer education posters describing the history of youth-led movements for distribution on school campuses.

College-bound GK Leaders

Through Global Kids’ College and Career Readiness Program, students began their research on colleges, financial aid, choice of majors, internship opportunities, and application submissions. A college kickoff event was held at our headquarters and at GK school sites which provided support and resources regarding college selection and the application process.

Global Kids organized out of town trips for over 170 students to visit universities and colleges during the fall months. Trips included campus tours, college student interactions, learning about majors, and financial aid sessions. This fall our students visited: Pace University, Cooper Union, The New School, SUNY Cobleskill, Union College, SUNY Albany College, University of Pennsylvania, Temple University, Wentworth Institute of Technology, University of Massachusetts, and Monroe College.

Japan and South Africa Talk Back Events

In November, Global Kids hosted an event, Global Kids: Youth Ambassadors in Japan, to hear from students who took part in the summer’s service learning trip to Japan. Our students detailed their exploration of themes including radiation, water quality, and community health, described the lessons they learned from Futaba Mirai School students regarding their efforts to change public perception of their community following the Fukushima nuclear disaster, and shared their video projects that documented stories of community resilience. Global Kids is grateful to the TOMODACHI Initiative and the Japan Foundation for making the trip possible.

In collaboration with the Marion Barry Youth Leadership Institute and the D.C. Department of Employment Services, fifteen GK youth participated in a panel discussion where they described their experiences from their two-week summer trip to South Africa and showed their video documentary project.