What do YUGA members do?
YUGA, Plan USA's youth group, is a network of young people taking action (in their schools, families and communities) on global issues. Learn more about YUGA
By Corrie Bonham, Plan USA intern
Whether raising money, increasing awareness, or encouraging political involvement, YUGA members certainly have been active in their schools and communities to make a difference.
Youth from Connecticut to Florida have been planning fundraisers, benefit concerts, and advocacy events to raise awareness and money to combat a variety of global issues. Though many see them as merely young students, this group of youth has actively and successfully worked to combat significant worldwide issues, including HIV/AIDS relief, global poverty, the Darfur genocide, water-related diseases, and climate change.
Students from Cranston High School East (Rhode Island) held a ‘dress-down day’ for teachers and sold jewelry made from recycled materials to raise money. Instead of smaller projects, YUGA members in Newton, Connecticut were busy planning several large-scale fundraisers for their entire community. Starting the year with a clothing drive for the nearby Hispanic Cultural Center, they quickly moved on to planning a poetry reading, “Poetry for Poverty,” collecting donations and raising awareness about global poverty. The chapter also organized their own school-wide flea market, raising money for clean water projects in Cameroon. They ended the year with a Global Voice Benefit Show at their local teen center to raise money for refugee camps in the Darfur region of Sudan.
Not only did YUGA members focus on raising money for global projects, but they helped to raise awareness of global issues in their high school communities as well. High school students in Wayland, Massachusetts organized two fair trade workshops to inform their peers about the difference between fair trade and free trade practices. At the Canterbury School of Florida in St. Petersburg, students focused on education about HIV/AIDS, the genocide in Darfur, and eradicating extreme poverty. Newton, Connecticut YUGA members were even seen at their town’s Earth Day Fair, raising awareness of climate change and its effects on Darfur.
Several YUGA chapters have also become politically involved in fighting extreme poverty, disease, and other global issues by getting their peers to sign and support pending legislation. High school students in Newton, Connecticut signed petitions in their school cafeteria to support the Education for All Act. In coordination with their support for climate change, students in Wayland, Massachusetts supported the Climate Protection Act along with their work for a recycling program at their school.
In coordination with Plan’s Global Connections project, several schools have been actively involved in “School to School,” a partnership between American high schools and schools in other countries — including Nicaragua, Indonesia and Liberia. These programs help connect American culture, values, and the day-to-day life with the experiences of youth in other parts of the world. By sharing the basics of their lives, the School to School program helps connect the physical and cultural gaps between similar aged youth and facilitate conversation about poverty and injustice throughout the world.
Whether strapping on rubber gloves to collect recyclables like students at Cranston High School East or dancing the night away at dance-a-thons, YUGA members are certainly not afraid to get their hands dirty. As Melanie Levine of Wayland Massachusetts states, these projects and campaigns “help me put my ideas into action” and help students take an active role in helping to solve global issues. With their accomplishments behind them, YUGA members are excited for a summer to relax and reboot for another successful year.
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To learn more about starting a YUGA chapter at your school or getting your current club, class, or other group involved in a YUGA campaign, you can contact us at yuga@planusa.org. (To get a jumpstart, you can always download our How to Start a YUGA Chapter toolkit.)
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Whether raising money, increasing awareness, or encouraging political involvement, YUGA members certainly have been active in their schools and communities to make a difference.
Youth from Connecticut to Florida have been planning fundraisers, benefit concerts, and advocacy events to raise awareness and money to combat a variety of global issues. Though many see them as merely young students, this group of youth has actively and successfully worked to combat significant worldwide issues, including HIV/AIDS relief, global poverty, the Darfur genocide, water-related diseases, and climate change.
Students from Cranston High School East (Rhode Island) held a ‘dress-down day’ for teachers and sold jewelry made from recycled materials to raise money. Instead of smaller projects, YUGA members in Newton, Connecticut were busy planning several large-scale fundraisers for their entire community. Starting the year with a clothing drive for the nearby Hispanic Cultural Center, they quickly moved on to planning a poetry reading, “Poetry for Poverty,” collecting donations and raising awareness about global poverty. The chapter also organized their own school-wide flea market, raising money for clean water projects in Cameroon. They ended the year with a Global Voice Benefit Show at their local teen center to raise money for refugee camps in the Darfur region of Sudan.
Not only did YUGA members focus on raising money for global projects, but they helped to raise awareness of global issues in their high school communities as well. High school students in Wayland, Massachusetts organized two fair trade workshops to inform their peers about the difference between fair trade and free trade practices. At the Canterbury School of Florida in St. Petersburg, students focused on education about HIV/AIDS, the genocide in Darfur, and eradicating extreme poverty. Newton, Connecticut YUGA members were even seen at their town’s Earth Day Fair, raising awareness of climate change and its effects on Darfur.
Several YUGA chapters have also become politically involved in fighting extreme poverty, disease, and other global issues by getting their peers to sign and support pending legislation. High school students in Newton, Connecticut signed petitions in their school cafeteria to support the Education for All Act. In coordination with their support for climate change, students in Wayland, Massachusetts supported the Climate Protection Act along with their work for a recycling program at their school.
In coordination with Plan’s Global Connections project, several schools have been actively involved in “School to School,” a partnership between American high schools and schools in other countries — including Nicaragua, Indonesia and Liberia. These programs help connect American culture, values, and the day-to-day life with the experiences of youth in other parts of the world. By sharing the basics of their lives, the School to School program helps connect the physical and cultural gaps between similar aged youth and facilitate conversation about poverty and injustice throughout the world.
Whether strapping on rubber gloves to collect recyclables like students at Cranston High School East or dancing the night away at dance-a-thons, YUGA members are certainly not afraid to get their hands dirty. As Melanie Levine of Wayland Massachusetts states, these projects and campaigns “help me put my ideas into action” and help students take an active role in helping to solve global issues. With their accomplishments behind them, YUGA members are excited for a summer to relax and reboot for another successful year.
* * * * *
To learn more about starting a YUGA chapter at your school or getting your current club, class, or other group involved in a YUGA campaign, you can contact us at yuga@planusa.org. (To get a jumpstart, you can always download our How to Start a YUGA Chapter toolkit.)
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