UNDER 30 CHANGEMAKERS
We asked Changemakers‌
WHY DO YOU DO
WHAT YOU DO? Here are their Stories of Purpose.
TABLE OF CONTENTS 0.1
Tara Byrne
1.0
Latasha Kinnard
1.9
Andre Damain
0.2
Michael Gasiorek
1.1
Marvin Matthews
2.0
Genevi Lu
0.3
Marian Zizzo
1.2
Nitya Timalsina
2.1
Yogin Patel
0.4
Maxine Schiffman
1.3
Tian-Yuan Zhao
2.2
Nick van Breda
0.5
Anita Wing Lee
1.4
Mansi Kakkar
2.3
Roy Schreik
0.6
Steve Dean
1.5
Stanley Fritz
2.4
Emily Bonani
0.7
Neil Limaye
1.6
Mallie Rydzik
2.5
Koen de Couck
0.8
Katrina Bayog
1.7
Sam Clitheroe
2.6
Justin Boogaard
0.9
Rushir Parikh
1.8
Lauren Paer
2.7
Nicole Andrea Rapista
!
!
0.1 Tara Byrne- Our Story of Purpose
!
I recently looked back in my Facebook History to find that the date I started Under 30 Changemakers, July 28th, 2013, was just a few days after I was kicked out of the home I grew up in. I remember my mother looking me in the eyes and saying, “I don’t know who you are anymore.”
!
During that period of time, I was struggling to redefine myself. I couldn’t shake the thought that there was something deeply missing from the life I was creating as an entrepreneur.
!
I found my missing piece in a 5-day program that made me into the person I could be proud of. The Compass Project was an experiment in holistic social entrepreneurship. It was that one little word, “social”, latched on to “entrepreneurship” that would forever change my direction and purpose.
! !
! ! !!
I believe there are indelible marks left by people, places, and experiences that leave our souls saying, “This is too big for you to walk away from.” Compass Project's mark left me with the little seed of my Otherness, the part of me that was rarely seen or understood. My purpose was to connect those who could create a better world while celebrating the parts of ourselves that we were ashamed to share.
!
I wanted a place where people could create their own life, discard the status quo, and impact the underserved on a massive scale, all while being surrounded by those who would fight alongside them. My purpose is to empower Changemakers to have the humility to see the world as it really is, and the audacity to change it into what it could be.
!
Tara is the founder and ringleader of Under 30 Changemakers. She is addicted to partnerships and their potential to create a better world.
MICHAELGASIOREK
! LEVERAGE YOUR STRENGTHS.
0.2
!
!
Michael Gasiorek
!
You are the most powerful thing on the planet. I truly believe that. Human will - our grit, our ambition, our ingenuity - is our planet’s greatest consistently creative force. We plan for the future, we create sophisticated technologies, we actively work to overcome our nature. Agriculture created our first civilizations. Now science and medicine allow us to challenge our mortality, an invisible web connects billions of us, and all of mankind’s knowledge is accessible in 0.32 seconds -- just a Google search away. I do what I do because I believe in limitless human potential -- that we are gods in the chrysalis.
!
What has always set us apart are our tools -- yet the whole list of them happened in the timespan of a cosmic blink. An IBM engineer’s spare computer can educate an Indian slum. A scrap wind turbine can power a chain of African
!
villages. A few seeds in the hands of urban farmers can restore the blight of once-great Detroit.
!
My greatest goal is to build and spread better tools. My leverage is technology, education, and enterprise. I’d like to see the next 5 billion people connected. I’d like to know they have unfettered access to everything they’d like to learn in a language they understand. I’d like to see them find their tools: to architect the business empires, pen the books, write the songs, shoot the films, paint the art, to control their culture and change our world. I do what I do because I believe effective tools in the right hands are leverage for our collective greatness.
!
Michael travels, schemes, and helps others into their journey’s next steps. He is the Chief Strategist of Under 30 Changemakers.
0.3
! Marian Zizzo 
!
I believe in a world of universal connection. By sharing our happiness with those around us, I believe we can influence and encourage others to take action and change our routine habits. On October 1, 2013 I began my first happiness project. I called it the #OctoberHappinessProject and set out to watch the sunrise every day in October. It was one of the most beautiful months of my life. I sat on the roof of my apartment, above the Golden Gate Bridge/ Marin Headlands and along the rocky shoreline in Sausalito. It allowed me the time and space to sit, to think and to breathe. It gave me the inspiration to believe I could be a creative person. I documented my happiness project by capturing a photo or video to share with my network each morning. Often I would place special objects in the foreground and dedicate the sunrise to an individual. One morning I included a postcard in the sunrise shot. As I snapped the picture, the postcard
blew away, off the roof and down to the street. It was a little #flyawaypostcard. I was certain this card would be gone forever, but found it waiting for me when I opened my front door. And so was born my next happiness project. My #NovemberHappinessProject became the #flyawaypostcardproject. I created a postcard with the image of my favorite sunrise from the #OctoberHappinessProject. Each morning, I sent one new postcard to a friend. At the end of the note, I invited them to pay it forward and send their own #flyawaypostcard. It was an incredible experience that gave me joy when I anticipated them opening their mailbox. A month later, on December 31, 2013, my good friend Cassie Crow shared with me her creative idea to accept my invitation to pay it forward on the #flyawaypostcard. What happened in the following months, and continues to happen today, has been beyond my wildest dreams. Through her blog, A Conscious Girl’s Guide,
! !
Cassie launched a series of #101Daysof_____ projects. She shares her story, growth, struggles and happy moments with the world. She began with #101DaysofAwakening, followed up with #101DaysofConnection, and is currently sharing #101DaysofKindness. So why do I share this story? Cassie has told me that my happiness projects have changed her life. And now others are saying that very same statement to Cassie. People are inspired. They are taking action. They are changing their habits. And they are paying it forward. And we LOVE it! Cassie has also been giving me fuel in the past months and continues to push me to follow my heart. Thank you, dear Cassie. Amidst all the change I aspire to make in this world, and the many projects I have cooking on the burner, this is the story I choose to share
! ! !!
! !
today. Many of YOU changemakers are half my age. I read your stories and the accomplishments you already have under your belt and am amazed. You inspire me. And in turn I strive to inspire others. Cassie has also been giving me fuel in the past months and continues to push me to follow my heart. Amidst all the change I aspire to make in this world, and the many projects I have cooking on the burner, this is the story I choose to share today. Many of YOU changemakers are half my age. I read your stories and the accomplishments you already have under your belt and am amazed. You inspire me. And in turn I strive to inspire others. Thank YOU. I am so blessed to be a part of this connected world.
!
Marian mentors women social entrepreneurs and partners for-impact companies for funding at Sausalito Ventures. She is co-leading our 2015 Changemaker Summit Planning Committee.  
0.4
! Maxine Schiffman
!
Growing up in an entrepreneurial family, I witnessed the positive impact business has on the lives of others and knew that I wanted to become an entrepreneur myself.
!
I want to see more people chase their creative dreams, realise their uniqueness and capitalise on their talents and strengths. Because hiding behind self-doubt and fear is not just harming yourself - it's harming everyone around you too.
!
Aside from running the blog, I've been part of an exciting e-learning start-up, went backpacking in Asia and after receiving scholarships, decided to do my master's degree in digital marketing this fall.
After having moved from Germany to England to attend high school, I came across this quote in one of Dale Carnegie’s books: “The mind is its own place and in itself can make a heaven of hell, a hell of heaven” ~Milton Realizing the way I was thinking made life hell for me, I started to embark on my selfdevelopment journey. Soon, I discovered that the right knowledge can transform lives.
!
Being an information junkie by heart, I knew I had to find a way to use my intense passion for learning to create value for others. With 'The Leader of Tomorrow', I created a blog & creative outlet where I share my personal journey and everything that I learn.
!
!
My vision for the future: growing my blog into a business and transforming the life of others through my work. Because: "Knowledge is power. Information is liberating. Education is the premise of progress." ~Kofi Annan
!
Maxine blogs at The Leader of Tomorrow where she helps others tackle their fears and doubts.
“HIDING BEHIND FEAR AND SELF-DOUBT IS NOT JUST HARMING YOURSELF- IT’S HARMING EVERYONE ELSE AROUND YOU TOO.” -Maxine Schiffman
Do what you came to do.
0.5
!
! Anita Wing Lee !
!
My story of following my passion and purpose began in 7th grade, when I got an assignment to create a magazine on a social issue. To my teacher's dismay, I handed in a booklet with countless images of stick thin models and articles about pro-eating disorder websites. So began my decade-long struggle with my body and weight.
Africa. Every time I would come back to Canada from a summer abroad, I wondered, "how come no one else is doing this?" I had tasted freedom, expansion and touched the potential we’re ALL capable of. I had so many friends who wanted to travel, and most of them never did. I got to travel the world without going broke. In fact, I got paid for most of my trips!
I was terrified but felt like I couldn't break free from the body-obsessed messages I got from the media. So I resolved to change the way advertising agencies portrayed young women and after experimenting with dozens of media formats, I realized that the Internet would be my media. When I couldn’t learn what I wanted in the college, I jetted off to go make my backpacking dreams come true at 20 years old. Over next three years, I worked, interned, volunteered and studied my way through 21 countries in the Americas, Europe, Asia and
I realized that I did a couple of things differently throughout my university years that helped me land those once-in-a-lifetime opportunities. I started The Passion Playbook to help you launch your most inspired career. I share my experiences and everything I've learned along the way, so that you can do it for yourself. Yes, it will be work, but it's so worth it to taste true freedom and live with passion.
!
!
!
What keeps me going everyday is the fact that you, (yes, YOU, reading this) have so much
“IT’S SO WORTH IT TO TASTE TRUE
FREEDOM
AND LIVE WITH PASSION.” -Anita Wing Lee
potential just waiting to be unlocked. Plus, the more of us who learn to tap into our passion at an early age, the better our world will be. I know that following your passion is the best career advice, whether you want to work in an big business or from hut on the beach. (I've been done both. The beach is definitely better.)
!
Thing is, I didn't start out this way. I was actually a really shy child! But if I can go from the little girl who couldn't stand up for herself to trekking across an African desert totally alone, I know you have it in you.
!
I know now that my purpose in life is to show people how to transcend their limitations by changing the way they think. If you think you don't have the time, money, health, talent or support, I want you to know that you can overcome those things. Learn how to exude passion, take inspired actions and anything is possible. I was put here to show you how.
!
Anita teaches students how to get paid internships abroad at AnitaWingLee.com.
0.6
! Neil Limaye I started sleeping a few hours into my life, but I only started dreaming at 14 years old. It took 14 years to realize how sheltered I've been all my life, thinking that hackers are evil, the internet is a fad, and the traditional, IBM business style is the best way. I looked beyond the nightly news and saw great change and great good brought on by entrepreneurs, the internet, and mobile computing. Imagine what wouldn't have happened had things like social networking, access to information, and crowd-funding not existed. We wouldn't have the power to educate anybody with an internet connection through KhanAcademy. We wouldn't have groups of people like Under 30 Changemakers communicate and collaborate with such efficiency. We wouldn't even have potato salad! Well, we would have, but it wouldn't have $55,492 in funding from the world. I do what I do because there are still issues in our world that are so commonplace, they're not
seen as problems. Imagine if we looked at the unwieldy and limited cell phones, the sluggish internet speeds, or the bulky screens that dominated the 1990’s — what if we just shrugged and said “that’s life!”. If we did that, we wouldn’t have smartphones more powerful than the machines that took humanity to the moon. So why are we treating today’s problems like this? Why do we still use so much paper? Why are we still relying on fossil fuels? Why is some information still so hard to access? Why can’t we make public figures more accountable?
!
We’re going to fix all of this with technology, no doubt, but we can’t get there with our current mindset. The entrepreneurial passion and drive we've seen this past decade and a half needs to increase. I have faith that, with this growth, the next 5 years will see more advancement than the last 14. I can either watch it happen or be a part of it. Let’s make sure the people of 2065 appreciate the work we do in 2015.
!
Neil matches mentees to mentors at Mentor Mentored.
“THERE ARE STILL ISSUES IN OUR WORLD THAT ARE SO COMMONPLACE THEY AREN’T SEEN AS PROBLEMS.” -Neil Limaye
STEVE
DEAN
CONNECT THE
! WO RLD
! !
!
!
0.7
! Steve Dean For as long as I can remember, I’ve found the status quo to be intensely restrictive. I rebelled against religious dogmatism in middle school, educational regulations in high school, and relationship norms in college. Today, as an entrepreneur and digital nomad living across 10 cities, I challenge notions of locational and vocational rigidity on a daily basis. I’ve been uniquely lucky in my ability to choose my own path every step of the way, but billions of people around the world don’t have the freedoms or opportunities that I’ve had. I’m motivated to change that, and I’ve found that the best way for me to make sustainable changes is to connect people so that their collective efforts can rapidly scale, or even better: to create platforms for connecting those people. I've connected people to jobs, to apartments, to roommates, to cofounders, to new friends, and to new romances. I feel totally
!
! ! exhilarated when I can connect people so perfectly that their newfound interactions send positive ripples into the world. I’m only one person, though, so I’ve needed to scale my own capacity for connecting. On the relationship front, I became a dating consultant, speaker, & writer. I use my DateWorking consultancy to introduce thousands of people to new ways of forming positive, sustainable friendships and relationships.
!
What’s next? Five years from now, I want to create businesses and institutions that can connect individuals not just romantically and professionally, but also educationally and civically. As of today, the technology for these massive scale changes is all ready and available. It’s just not all connected. Yet.
!
Steve matches young professionals to employers with his startup, JobSuitors. He is a superconnector for changemakers everywhere.
0.8 Katrina Bayog
!
Some people are lucky enough to know what they want to do early on in life. I’m not one of those people. Growing up in a society where a college degree equates to being successful, one has few choices but to follow the norm. When I entered university, I had no idea what I really want to pursue or even what I was passionate about. Eventually, I decided to take a gap year to give myself a break and think more about my life choices.
!
Fighting for what you believe in is not easy. It’s so much easier to stay in your comfort zone and just wait for life to pass you by. But then at the end of the day, you have to take the risk, to venture out of your comfort zone and conquer your limits. Three years after that decision I decided to create a non-profit organization called Catalyst. Catalyst is a non-profit, nonpolitical organization which focuses its activity on youth empowerment and social voluntarism.
It aims to provide a platform for the youths to develop their leadership potential through different capacity building and community engagement programs.
!
This year, we launched “The Catalyst Project”. This is a series of leadership workshops and social entrepreneurship trainings targeting outof-school youths, troubled kids, and youth from far-flung communities. The project aims to empower these youths to dream, inspire them to lead, and eventually assist them to start their own projects in their respective communities.
!
Why am I doing this? I don’t have a definite answer yet. All I know is that this project makes me feel alive. It’s difficult to balance studying for your university degree and heading an organization at the same time. Add this up with other organizations I’m working with, and all the requirements I have to pass for school. But then
!
I guess it’s true that you can never be tired when you love what you’re doing.
!
Working for Catalyst made me look at life with a different perspective. I want to inspire people, help these kids shape their dreams, and create leaders out of them. Changing the world is a crazy idea. It’s difficult, it’s not pragmatic, but then it is also possible. And yes, I am crazy enough to think that we can actually do it. Crazy idea. It’s difficult, it’s not pragmatic, but then it is also possible. And yes, I am crazy enough to think that we can actually do it.
! ! ! ! ! ! !
Katrina is the Executive Director of Catalyst, a youth empowerment and social good training ground in the Philippines. She is also a digital artist and designer.
DANCE BREAK! !
Check out our collaborative Changemaker Playlist on Spotify.
0.9
! Rushir Parikh
!
My passion is creating: making things that make people’s lives better, whether it be creating apps, robots, or services. I am not the best at what I do, but I will find the answer to any problem, no matter how long it takes. I spend my free time researching and prototyping, seeking out mentors and completing internships. I have grown up tuning out the unimportant. When I was little, I wouldn’t leave my room until I finished my LEGO masterpieces. The same is true today--I strive to complete. Similarly, I welcome failure (my clumsy hands broke a handful of my LEGO masterpieces while they were in the works), writing down what went wrong in my notes for my next project. The high school atmosphere can be monotonous: the same classes and schedule each day. At my school there is little room to grow outside of sports and traditional academic subjects. I’ve had to search for mentors and opportunities beyond what my school offers, to learn the
! ! !
unique skills that I need to accomplish my goals. Mark Twain said “I have never let my schooling interfere with my education.” His is an optimistic perspective that I apply to my daily life; I haven’t ever let anything get in the way of pursuing my dreams, and I never will.
!
My mom tells me stories of growing up in India, the rigorous coursework and demanding schedule that she endured, and the endless hours of studying she needed to do every night. She says that I am lucky to be born in America, surrounded by opportunity, but I feel like it’s even harder here. In America I have opportunity, but it seems limitless: an endless amount of choices. In India my choices would be limited, and I’d be unable to backtrack and go through another door.
!
For as long as I can remember I’ve wanted to leave a lasting, meaningful impact on the world. Growing up without siblings and with a
hardworking single mom gave me time to dream about my future, and I knew that I needed to prove to my mom that I could succeed because she risked everything for me. I would plan out “CIA missions” and act them out, going so far as to hire my friends as fellow agents, as we scaled trees and went spelunking.
!
During freshman year I met my first mentor, Aza Raskin, who taught me the importance of helping communities grow. Junior year I decided to give back to all the bloggers and news sites that had given me so much valuable information, so I created Clerk. Clerk was an idea for an app that would allow you to make small “micro” donations to the bloggers you like the most. Many people take running a blog for granted. Although bloggers may have revenue coming in from ads on their website, I felt that I should add to it.
!
Everyone wants to leave a positive impact on society, but few have experienced the satisfaction of creating something from scratch and having that product help hundreds of
people. Although Clerk was never put out into the open, the idea reached hundreds of people who suggested improvements, features, and thanked me for creating it. Clerk was a vision for an easier future for bloggers where they wouldn’t worry about where their next paycheck would come from. Clerk was just the beginning. For me, building something isn’t just creating without purpose: it requires vision and planning. My vision is to lead the future intersection between global cultures and technology.
!
My story is simple. Growing up without access to experts or creation studios has forced me to become my own expert and to seek out those things myself. I have identified the important goals in my life, such as creating a successful startup that I am actively pursuing, and with my persistence, I know that I will succeed.
! !
Rushir is a developer, photographer, and designer.
!
LATASHA KINNARD Break the Cycle.
Change the World.
1.0
! Latasha Kinnard
! I believe that we can change things. !
I believe that every single person has a purpose. From the time that I was birthed into the world and took my first breath, there was a plan especially for me. Something that I alone could do. To some people it might sound crazy, but for me, it is the fuel that drives me to embrace my individuality and walk in my purpose even when other people think I’m crazy.
!
I have never been a fan of the status quo. I am rebellious by nature and sometimes I have to check myself to make sure that I am not being contrary just for the heck of it. I started off following all the rules. I did well in high school so that I could go to a fancy college. I excelled in college so that I could land a job with a fortune 50 company. I went to work every day early and left late to make sure that I could quickly move up the latter.
!
There was one problem… I did not feel like I was doing what I was born to do.
! So I quit. !
I left my job in corporate America to pursue the calling that was in my heart: educating young adults about personal finance to break the cycle of generational poverty and to reduce growing economic disparities. When I do this work, I know that I am changing lives like only I can. When I am spreading the message of financial literacy I don’t care if I have plenty or if I have little. I feel so fulfilled knowing that this is my space and that I am doing all I can to operate in it. This is how I was meant to touch my corner of the world.
!
Latasha teaches 20-somethings how to manage, save, and build their wealth at Start Young Financial Group.
1.1
! Marvin Mathew
!
My mom raised two kids in New York, alone. If you know anything about NY in the 90’s, it wasn't easy back then. We made it work. Her leadership in my life taught me compassion, courage, and perseverance. She taught me not to look at things and judge. Rather, I learned to study things and create; to fix things that are broken; to help folks who aren't being helped. Problems aren't solved with the same thinking that created them.
!
Thus, I run an innovation & strategy practice that works between with industry, government, and NGOs to connect the dots and solve some of our most pressing problems. This work has allowed me to work closely with a few fortune 500 brands, but it is our work with The United Nations around solving problems through helping governments and businesses influence youth-led entrepreneurship, innovation, and ICT that I am most proud of. Beyond working with this intergovernmental organization to solve
!
problems I am really passionate about solving problems in my home city- New York.
!
If we can build a sustainable city government that is understanding and responsive to peoples needs while also building sustainable business into our practice, we’ll have succeeded in building a sustainable future for ourselves and our children. This means studying things and creating solutions, fixing what is broken, and as a result of it we will help the folks who aren’t being helped- a hand up, not a hand out.
! ! ! ! ! !
Marvin speaks, connects, and collaborates with social good initiatives from around the world. He helps Under 30 Changemakers partner with social good communities for Millennials.
“LEADERSHIP CAN BE LONELY SOMETIMES, BUT NO ONE IS ALONE HERE. I’VE GOT YOUR BACK. REACH OUT.” -MARVIN MATHEW
1.2 Nitya Timalsina
!
So many things drive me to do what I do but what inspires me most is knowing that there are other dreamers like myself. The whole world may tell us that ‘we’re crazy’ or ‘what we’ve set out to do is impossible’ but we know in our hearts that this is meant to be. Our world has so many problems but there are countless people who dedicate their lives to helping others and solving the puzzle. Until the age of 11, I grew up in an impoverished part of Nepal while the country was undergoing civil war. Walking down the streets of Kathmandu, I actually saw people eating from house-sized garbage piles. I saw school buses and tires torched along many roads. I breathed through mind-boggling amounts of pollution and witnessed atrocities committed against humans and animals alike. In the villages, I teared up while talking to preteenage girls who had already been married
and coerced into thinking that their goals in life included: (1) having children, (2) pleasing their husband and in-laws, and (3) working at home and in the fields. It broke my heart to see people, my fellow human beings, and our planet in such condition and I vowed to try to make a difference. I have talked to people from so many different backgrounds but in the end, it was a discussion with my grandmother that truly opened my eyes and solidified my decision to dedicate my life to social entrepreneurship. She was married before she was even 15 years old and never received the chance to go to school or lead her life on her own terms. Nevertheless, she still managed to teach herself how to read and write (quite well, I might add) and taught her children to strive to learn constantly and become the best versions of themselves. She showed me
!
that anyone, no matter their background, can change the world. I consider myself lucky to have grown up in Nepal as well as the U.S.; the U.S. has given me motivation and tools to make a difference while Nepal has given me perspective and a little bit of rage (you know, the kind that makes you restless and impatient to accomplish your goals). I'm still finding my way around and learning as I go but am encouraged by what I’ve seen so far. I know that if I'm able to make a lasting difference in the life of one person, I will be happy. Among other things, I'm working on a nonprofit (which started as a CGIU commitment but has become so much more) and a social enterprise that could revolutionize the energy industry in third world nations. I am simply restless when it comes to getting things done. I can’t wait to just get out there and devote all of my time and energy in trying to make a difference. I can’t wait to see more of the world, learn more, and connect with more changemakers.
!
Nitya Timalsina is the She leads the Event Planning Committee.
! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !
1.3 Tian-Yuan Zhao
Why I do what I do is simply because I'm alive we have this one life to live, one chance to give, and one time to thrive, so why waste it? Why waste this one marvelous opportunity to shine, to be who you're meant to be, and to realize your one true potential. If you were a hard drive but were used as paperweight, how would you feel? Essentially, what you were born to be, the gifts that have been bestowed upon you, the character, personality traits, and passions that all make up who you are, wasted. If you let yourself settles you do a greater disservice to us all.
!
My worst fear in life is to survive - to merely exist in limbo, damnation, a zombie - in other words: to be average, plain and simple. Why I do what I do isn't merely a desire, want, or choice; it's a need, responsibility, and obligation that I have to myself and the environment, society, and people around me.
!
Ever since I was young, I’ve always admired the “Renaissance men and women” of the world. Great ideas come from networks of ideas, they are an amalgamation of things that came prior. Nobody can claim to create anything alone, all creativity is a cycle of the creation and destruction. Because of this, my dream job is to be a Product Designer/Manager, dream career is to be a serial/social entrepreneur and VC, and my dream life is to be a Renaissance Man.
!
Tian-Yuan designs front-end for social good and tech startups.
1.4 Mansi “Meera” Kakkar
!
My birth name is Mansi, but I prefer Meera for two reasons.
!
One. Its Meaning. Meera means sweetness & light. Two. The Reference. Meera was a historic saint/goddess in India who dedicated her life to what she believed in, despite opposition from family, friends and society.
!
After a period of spiritual exploration in my early adulthood came a ‘moment of awakening’ which soon became a ‘moment of obligation.’ And this internal obligation carved my vision of change and compels me to infuse meaning into every aspect of my life.
!
I am currently working towards creating solutions for poverty in the Bay Area with a focus on Early Childhood Education. This opportunity fits in line with my passion for meaningful ‘education’, which goes beyond bells and books, as a means for change.
The tools I use are entrepreneurship & human centered design powered by the belief that we are all unique, connected and perfect in our imperfections. A few determined, unreasonable people is all it takes to reach the tipping point for change. I am humbled yet proud to be part of this community edging us closer to that point.
!
Mansi uses human-centered design at the United Nation’s University for Peace.
1.6
!
!
! !
Stanley Fritz
Mallie Rydzik
For as long as I can remember, the road to success and happiness has had obstacles. When you are born with nothing, or in my case very little, you learn how to maximize your resources. I have a deep passion for knowledge and self improvement and this has driven me to teach myself social media marketing, Wordpress, political consulting. The more opportunities I receive the better at it I want to become. This is the work that brings value and happiness up my life. Giving a platform to those without a voice is my purpose.
When I was in graduate school, I experienced a mental health breakdown that led to diagnoses of OCD, depression, and binge eating disorder. While those illnesses had been dormant (or only somewhat active) throughout my life, the stress of molding my life to fit the expectations of others is what ultimately catalyzed the breakdown. I looked around at others in my generation who had tackled higher education and high-stress careers‌ simply because they had been told to. I now work with fellow 20- and 30-somethings on charting their own paths by creating businesses to sell their expertise online. No one should have to sacrifice self-care and sanity just because their elders suggested they should.
!
! ! ! ! !
Stanley podcasts, writes, and leads movements for underprivileged Millennials. He is the creator of Let Your Voice Be Heard Radio.
!
!
Mallie blogs, podcasts, and coaches the underfulfilled and overeducated Gen Y-ers. She is the creator of The Off-Road Millennial.
1.7
SAM CLITHEROE FUCKS GIVE
WHERE THEY MATTER.
1.5
!
Sam Clitheroe
!
I am a 21-year-old college dropout. I am now the Giver of Love and Happiness at a kickass company called Mindvalley; my role is to provide awegasms on the daily. I am incredibly driven by becoming a remarkable badass, dreaming the impossible, and living an epic life. I absolutely love personal growth and becoming a better man.
!
I have a massive goal to become a millionaire by the time I’m 26 years old. Because why not? Other goals of mine are: creating an inspiring documentary, writing a NY Times Bestseller, building an empire, traveling the world, and dancing on The Ellen Show.
!
I’m a spiritual hustler who doesn’t give a fuck about limitations, judgements, or what you think of me. I meditate and write in my man-diary everyday because I believe in that woo-woo spiritual journey shit. Everything I do comes from a place of love, because I just want to
! !
inspire you by being real. This is what matters to me.
!
Life should not be taken too seriously; this is why I like to be edgy and add a light-hearted flavor to everything I create. I’m an avid reader because I heard the ladies love it (and I guess my addiction to learning is a bonus). Lastly, I’m an aspiring entrepreneur who loves to create. You can find me creating YouTube videos, writing, and living the adventure.
!
My purpose in life is to inspire you to not give a fuck Period.
!
Go after impossible goals and tell people about it. Explore the boundaries of what is humanly possible. Get outside of your comfort zone in every which way. Be a world-changing badass. Live an epic life. Let everything you do serve the purpose of giving to others.
!
Sam vlogs and dreams of everything at MindValley.
1.8
! Lauren Paer
!
After a summer in New York City, living off Union Square and working on Wall Street at Goldman Sachs as an investment banking intern, I returned to Philadelphia for my senior year of college. A pit formed in my stomach- I would need a job or grad program lined up in 9 months and I had no idea what I wanted to doother than not investment banking. I was stressed and restless. I was terrified I’d end up in a boring, pointless job or one that robbed me of time to have a life. In high school, when I nervously confessed I had no idea what I wanted to be when I grew up, adults unanimously echoed, “you have plenty of time!”. Conventional wisdom was “get into a good college and the rest will take care of itself”. But the top college I worked so hard to get into guided me towards jobs I didn’t find remotely meaningful with hours I deem inhumane. The investment banking analyst mantra was “just a couple of years”. Which is kind of a lie anyway,
!
but I remember thinking, “2 years of this and something very important inside of me will die”. The more I think about it, the crazier it gets that we don’t give students more and better guidance on how to figure out what work they’re well-suited for that is meaningful to them. Our obsession with preparing students for college has crowded out time spent preparing them for life after college, which is a lot more important and much different.
!
Years after my i-banking internship, I finally found myself in a job that had everything I thought I was looking for. It was interesting, my strengths were valued, I was learning a ton and the hours were doable. Surprisingly, it was back in finance. I was working in a 3-person, $150 million hedge fund. For one beautiful moment, I felt professionally on top of the world. But as the months passed, my satisfaction waned. Fairness and justice have always been core values of mine. And few things are more
unjust than the post-crisis US financial/ economic landscape. High-level fraudsters were not only not prosecuted, they were bailed out and given a series of additional gigantic gifts by the Federal Reserve. Incredibly, they were allowed to keep their ill-begotten gains, which they used to fund thinly-veiled political bribes. I seethed watching greed and corruption shredding the fabric of our society. And then my gaze turned on myself. Who was I? A financial soldier of the 1%, working hard to make the rich even richer. I felt like a hypocrite, a charlatan… until I left. I’m on a journey traveling, connecting, brainstorming and experimenting. I’m searching for professional roles that are interesting and an expression of my values. I do it because I want to make a dent in the universe. And if I’m gonna go making a dent in the universe, I want it to be a dent I’m proud of.
!
Lauren is an economist and writer fighting for the rights of the 99%. She is also hard at work planning Under 30 Changemakers Summit.
1.9
! Katie Harp
!
I’m 21 years old and I struggled with depression and anxiety for 9 long years before taking more than a year off to figure out how to be happy again. I found a lot of helpful resources and techniques (besides the typical medication and therapy, which did little to help me) and finally fell in love with life again. I want to share what I’ve learned with other people who are still struggling, and spread hope and awareness about mental illness. I am the founder of Resilient, a mental health app that helps you discover resources, tips, and inspiration for recovery.
!
The fact that more than 170,000 people agree with this statement is why I do what I do:
! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !
Katie is the founder and creator of Resilient, a free mental health app to support mental illness recovery.
ANDRE DAMIAN I AM NOT THE VICTIM, I AM THE HERO.
2.0
!
Andre Damian When I was invited to speak at a TEDconference, I was asked the question: ‘what is your story of purpose?’. To be honest, I had no idea what it was. I had done volunteer work at human rights and peace organizations, cared about humanity, wanted to do something that matters and had recently founded my own social enterprise. Great, but why? Even though I’ve done very different things (advocacy, public policy and business), I started to see a red line in my story. And this is where it began.
!
It started with pain. As a child, I grew up in fear of the man whom I called my father. He was a man of strong posture, with piercing eyes and hands that could cause a lot of hurt. You can guess what happened at home. Fortunately, that chapter of my life closed when my mom and I ran away from him. Even though that was just the beginning of our escape, we eventually found peace.
! !
After battling my demons, I decided to stop being just a victim of child abuse. I had to come back stronger than ever. I had to show that man how strong I had become. And I had to start opening my mouth. You see, no good comes from hiding who you are or what you’ve been through.
!
I joined the Youth Taskforce against Child maltreatment and we finally gave youth a voice in anti-child abuse public policy - a voice that has been missing for far too long. I’ve spoken with teachers, activists, decision makers but especially youth, to make my country a safer place to be in. Because of my efforts, my dream to speak in front of the United Nations also came true. Just a few months ago, I was standing in Geneva, telling UN officers to take us youth a little more damn seriously.
!
And then another one came true. I spoke at a TED-conference! I would never have dreamed of telling my story in front of a hundred-plus
counting audience with big cameras which would spread my words all over the internet. But I did. And it felt fucking great. Now, I’m living my other passion: running my social start-up, Leaders of Today. I always used to think corporate life was about cashing in the money and not giving a rat’s ass about anything else. But then I discovered that you can actually make a social impact by running a business shocker. Honestly, even though work in public policy gave me a lot of fulfillment, it brings a lot of frustrations when you notice that changing political issues is a hella long process. So why not take things into your own hands.
!
My tagline reads: “It’s true that young people can be the leaders of tomorrow, but I believe we can also be the leaders of today!”. With this mission, I lead my start-up Leaders of Today. We help to empower young people to become leaders. Why? Because we have amazing leadership potential, but somehow formal leadership training programs seem to only acknowledge either people who already have tons of experience.. or tons of money. So, time
to make a difference. We’re creating an online platform in which a community of leaders of today can learn about personal leadership, management and impact leadership through online courses. The best of the best will be challenged to participate in our offline programs: getting connected to corporate partners or starting your own social venue.
!
While it may sound like a long shot from tackling child abuse, in essence my work mission is the same: to believe in the power of youth. We’re young. We might be naive and inexperienced, but we do not lack passion and energy to make something out of our lives. We can thrive, we can make a change, we can matter.
! I’m Andre Damian. !
I’m not a victim of child abuse, I am the hero of my own damn story.
!
Andre empowers Changemakers to take global social action with his non-profit, Leaders of Today.
Sharing Is Caring iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii
iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii
iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii
iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii
2.1
! Gennevi Lu
!
All my life I have chased ideals imposed by society and dreams that I considered nightmares. It wasn’t until Summer 2014 when I realized my happiness lies in Latin America, the birth of the person I am today. As a first generation student and a daughter to an immigrant mother, my life through my mother’s perspective was defined by the “perfect career”: careers in the health sciences, engineering and law. I saw no other possible solution to support my mother and three younger brothers outside of those ideals until I was introduced to a world beyond boundaries. During high school I was selected to be a volunteer on a fully funded trip to Paraguay and as cliché as it sounds, this experience changed me. Since my first encounter in Latin America four years ago, I have never stopped returning to the place I now call my second home. All my travels throughout Latin America were paid by internships, scholarships and other volunteer
!
!
The first two years of my undergraduate career I pursued studies in the sciences. I have interned for the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, conducted neurobiology research with a professor at the University of Washington and force-taught myself web development. By the end of fall quarter during my sophomore year, something inside me snapped and I knew I couldn’t ignore my aspirations any longer. Whenever I had spare time, I would search for international opportunities and eventually I landed an internship in New York and Guatemala supporting rural communities in accessing quality education. Upon my return to the US, I decided to invest all my energy into
There is no pre-made manual for achieving the epiphany of life and there never will be. Happiness became the definition of my success. Once I devoted my time to my passions, my life took me to places I could only fathom... literally. My advice for the next generation of leaders: Emancipate yourself from others’ opinions & Work diligently beyond social boundaries towards your true dreams.
opportunities. Through those experiences I have gained the skills necessary to develop sustainable communities ethically and culturally as a global citizen, but even then, I managed to lie to myself about the person I really am, suppressing my passions in becoming a foreign officer.
pursuing a career as a foreign officer in the Office of Brazilian and Southern Cone. For Summer 2015, I will be a US Student Ambassador speaking with government officials and over 20 million visitors from around the world about solutions in counteracting world hunger at the Expo Milano USA Pavilion in Milan. After years of struggle in developing myself as an individual, I finally broke free from societal constraints known to me as nightmares.
!
Gennevi designs the community experience for Ubi Interactive, software that’s turning every surface into an interactive touchscreen.
2.1 Yogin Patel
!
My journey begins when I was born in India. It wasn’t long after I was born that we moved to North America, where my parents envisioned the land of opportunity. My father was an engineer in India, one that would be considered quite wealthy and influential. However, when he came to the States, his engineering degree was of vain and had to start from scratch. He couldn’t go back to school, because he needed to provide for his family- me and my mother. This is when my father got into the hotel industry. He worked hours and hours, waking up in the middle of the night to attend to guests. He was driven to learn everything. 10 years later, my father owns and operates five hotels across the United States, working every single day. He’s the man that works on the holidays, so that his employees can be with their families. I realized the importance of finding an inner drive to keep myself from deviating from my goals at an early age. My why revolves around my family.
Nick van Breda
!
I found my purpose when my gaming addiction got me into a position where I could either hide myself in a room for the rest of my life or start doing something for the rest of the world. Again when my uncle died just after his retirement (he ran a cow farm for over 40 years and dreamed of being an inventor after his retirement), I knew what I had to do. I quit gaming, started discovering the opportunities in the world and began surrounding myself with like-minded young entrepreneurs. I only needed a small success to start believing in myself.
!
Failure goes hand-in-hand with success. It happens when you make your first attempts in learning. Work on something with all your passion. You may fall, but it will never break you down. The best advice I have ever been given has been adopted as my purpose: “Dare to give and you can turn a dream into a reality�.
!
Nick co-founded a Netherlands media company, Articulum. He is on the Exec Team for Under 30.
2.2
2.3
!
Roy Schriek
!
Did you ever wonder how people get to start with doing their own thing? Building their dreams? It almost seems like those people are nowhere to be found. Yet you have stumbled upon this summary of interesting stories.
!
My ‘story’ began 2 years ago, where I started out on a project completely isolated from the outside world. My two brothers and I would research everything related to our goal and putting it in practice later. We had found a way to take in an incredible amount of information and clarify everything within a broader context. However, when putting things into practice, problems arise.
!
While in school, not feeling empowered at all, I was wrestling with failing communication systems, a pre-set ‘average’ trajectory for me. In short; I was in an environment where I was supposed to learn, but nothing is designed to aid me with that. Everything was mediocre.
!
! !!
This is when I decided to train my communication skills resulting in meeting the most inspiring people. From this point on, I was able (again) to gather incredible amounts of information for me to learn and to structure. This repeating process made me a smarter in a lot of ways. Having mentors for all kinds of subjects I would like to learn and being a mentor yourself is really rewarding. At one time, I learned from a friend how to network more efficiently. I came in contact with Tara (Under 30’s group admin). Here, I learned how to harness the power of cocreation. From this moment on I will create sustainable solutions. For me and everyone who wants to build a little extra positivity into their own environment. That is my promise.
! ! !
Roy designs systems for society’s biggest problems.
Emily Bonani EMIT YOUR OWN
FREQUENCY
2.4
!
!
Emily Bonani
!
“Everything changes when you start to emit your own frequency rather than absorbing the frequencies around you. When you start imprinting your intent on the universe rather than receiving an imprint from existence.” -Barbara Marciniak
!
I created the side image about a year ago while I was binge watching TED and I feel it’s a good thing to start off with.
! I am an artist and here’s why!
I was sitting in a junk yard searching for myself. Ok so it wasn’t exactly a junk yard-it’s a local space dedicated to capturing overlooked treasures before they end up in the landfill and making them public through their retail store. (The Repurpose Project, check it out.)
! !
!
I
“MY ONE PURPOSE IN THIS LIFE IS TO MAKE ART A PART OF DAILY LIFE.” -Emily Bonani
explode inside at the potential that lies in abandoned junk so this place was always my safe haven. One day I was basking in my explosions and the owner, Mike, asked what I was looking for.
!
“I just have this urge to build something. I know I need to build something large.” Mike immediately offered his services. He said I could work on my project right there in the yard and he’d help out with teaching me the logistics whenever he was around. (Mike’s generation put a lot of bad stuff into the earth and so he feels it’s his duty to help out the youth in fixing the mess his generation began.) And so I started building. The year before I had spent Spring Break in Key West with a bunch of fraternities and even more alcohol. This year I decided to stay up at school completely alone and work my ass off on this project. I spent every moment of my free time at this place. I didn’t have an end goal for this project, I just knew I needed to put myself in an environment other than the party culture I had
previously. I had faith that it would manifest what I needed into my life. Oh and it so did. This space was in the arts district of my town so many people frequented there. As I built it, people began to take interest. They were shocked whenever I told them that I was doing this simply because I felt the urge to. People continuously came by and told me how inspired they were to see someone doing something so publicly solely out of my own free will. They offered me knowledge and I began to learn as I talked to countless strangers daily.
!
There was a fundraiser in the surrounding area one night and I can honestly say this was one of the greatest nights of my life. I left chalk at the structure and encouraged people to write their soul. I came back to find my structure covered in thoughts and feelings from the community. People continuously seemed me to thank me for creating a public space for them to do this. A place that encouraged rawness, individualistic thinking, and creation.
!
My one purpose in this life is to make art a part of daily life. Why? Because in this world where all of our our problems we face are due to close minded thinking, creativity is really fucking important. Public art brings people together. It’s the one space that allows people of all types to express themselves-something we need to enforce the importance of more. I’m on a mission to make public art a vehicle for change beyond just a statement or one good experience. I believe that public art can be used to change the world through action. It will promote the local communities economy through the use of community programs designed and implemented by the community. It will act as a passion platform and incubator so people can make money off of what they love. I believe that creativity is essential to assuring our greatest evolution.
!! !
Emily studies creating public art spaces out of Gainesville, FL where she is studying Sculpture.
!
2.5
! Koen de Couck
!
‘Why do you do what you do?’. The question isn’t just relevant to entrepreneurs you know, it applies to all of us. If you ask me, the answer should always be: service to humanity. All other concerns (wealth, happiness, meaningful connections, leaving your legacy) naturally flow from that goal. And if your goal is to serve humanity as a whole, the next question is: what does humanity need? It needs connections.
!
At best humanity is still going through its adolescence. Globalisation hasn’t really taken hold yet. We still have multiple nations, races, competing local interests. The system has shortages here while overflow there. We desperately need basic infrastructure: power, water, housing, healthcare. But like any imperfect system those shortages exist separately from where the overflow of knowledge, skill and resources exist to fix them.
!
! ! !!
We still struggle to connect to the right people and find the right talent to join us.
!
Humanity is one big organism. It is a brain to which we are all individual cells, relaying messages to other cells in our network around us. One cell cannot hope to make meaningful change or face these major challenges. But wire billions together and you get a flexible system capable of independent action. It’s time to lift humanity out of its comatose state and fully connect the planet!
!! !! !! !
Koen develops tools to aid human connectivity for change. He uses data and design to make the world’s most impossible challenges, possible.
!
JUSTIN BOOGAARD
2.6
!
! Justin Boogaard !
For your sake, I hope you already know what gets you in the ‘zone’.
!
Some people call it ‘flow’, ‘wired in’, or ‘god mode’. It’s generally an activity that totally takes over everything you got. My sister - an anthropologist - once told me that our brains can process a limited amount of input each second. This is the reason why we can’t listen to two people talk at the same time. According to her, when you’re in “the zone” your brain is so engaged with what you’re doing that it can’t handle processing such trivial things as “time”, “hunger” or even “self”. For example, my mom’s zone is unlocked when she’s decorating our house. She can wake up at 5am, crack open a cardboard box of freshly delivered antique lanterns and upon the first whiff of 19th century bronze the house gets painted, all the rooms are remodeled and we have a new kitchen.
!
! ! ! !
I am trying to find my flow, and then use it to create my mission. Judging from people I look up to in history, unless your life points you to a purpose, the best way to do this is to commit to new things. Unfortunately, to that effect, I feel like I’m playing catch up.
!
I didn’t really learn anything in college. I learned a lot about myself through the people I met in college but I learned more through what myself 2.0 did after I left college. I worked at Lionsgate, left Lionsgate, started a company, killed a company and dated two remarkably different women. I could have leapfrogged my learning by using the time I had spent in school to tackle the real world head on. Indeed, most of my successful friends did just this - used college as a place to live for free while they explored their interests.
!!
So now I’m trying to find my ‘flow’. So far, candidates include gardening, engineering, living for free and ants. Though nothing quite beats ants, my most “changemaker” interest extends from a line of thought I’m working on that kinda goes like this: Tech could eventually (like over the next millennia) get so good that it’ll replace every mundane job humans currently do. At that point, it would technically be possible to produce and distribute food, water and energy without human labor. A state could theoretically nationalize this process and let its people eat and live for free. The thing that wouldn’t be free is the privatized housing. Traditional residential housing requires steady income to be secure - to make rent and mortgage payments. Does it have to be this way? Is there an alternative business model that would enable people to truly live for free, at least for the short term?
!
I’m not sure yet. But I’m actively pursuing the question. And at the end of the day, that’s all that being a changemaker really is.
Justin talks to many people to learn how to best solve their problems. He is Chair of Changemaker Relations for Under 30’s Summit.
! !
The Fantasy World of Ants
Nicole “Andy”
Rapista
2.7
! ! !
! Nicole Andrea Rapista
!
educator, youth inspirational speaker, writer, and wildchild.
I am a first-generation American, firstgeneration college student, low-income, and 23-year old Filipino-American woman. I come from an underrepresented background in social entrepreneurship and international development, but my narrative is not unique. It is the story of millions of other young men and women who struggle in the same socioeconomic background. I am bipolar and have PTSD; I am part of the millions of people who wake up everyday struggling to gain a sense of self and stability in an erratic but beautiful world. This is also the story of people with invisible illnesses who suffer through daily challenges but don’t have the safe space to discuss their problems without the fear and shame of stigma.
!
My name is Nicole Andrea Rapista and this is a story about challenging status quo, trailblazing, and breaking rules. This is a story about taking big leaps of faith, courage, and love. “He who has a why can endure any how.” -Nietzsche
I can remember it clearly as if it were yesterday: it was a hot September morning on my 17th birthday, and I had just woken up dazed, angry, and confused after my seventh failed suicide attempt. The first time was when I was 13 and I fell into severe depression. A destructive cocktail of the wrong crowd, absent of a healthy outlet, and lack of understanding of what I was going through led me into drug and alcohol abuse until seventeen.
I am also a co-founder and executive director of a nonprofit, youth delegate to the United Nations, award-winning social entrepreneur,
In the wake of that inward death, I read Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl. He reflected that while he was in the concentration camp, the people who had a strong sense of purpose and meaning in their lives were the ones who survived. I wanted to figure out what that meant for my life.
!
“This is the true joy in life, the being used for a purpose recognized by yourself as a mighty one.” – George Bernard Shaw
!
“I go to seek a great perhaps.” – Last Words of Francois Rabelais
I found my why, my purpose, and my meaning in service, love, and deep connection to others. These passions are manifested in my work with Watson Institute Philippines and International Youth Council.
I was born in the US, but I grew up around poverty in the Philippines where I saw how much human potential was wasted by a lack of opportunity and freedom. So I left Manila, Philippines to find my great perhaps and take leaps of faith into the unknown. I went to different schools and cities while working for nonprofits around the east coast.
! !
My hope for the Under 30 Changemaker Community is that you also find your meaning, passion, purpose, and truth, and to have the courage to follow that everyday.
!
Nicole is co-founder of Watson Institute, a twoweek social good accelerator in the Philippines. She is a UN Youth Delegate and Director of Social Innovation at International Youth Council.
!
REACH OUT AND WE WILL LISTEN.
UNDER 30
! !
CHANGEMAKERS
We are an online and offline community of Millennial Misfits, more than 1000 strong. Our purpose? To fight the life that was prescribed to us, creating a better world in its place.
!
You can find us on Facebook, supporting a Changemaker in rebuilding Nepal. You can find us on Twitter, discussing hot topics in our community in #U30Change Chat. You can find us in global Changemaker Chapters solving local issues using human centered-design.
!
Changemakers are activists, nomads, defectors, developers, inventors, and social tech entrepreneurs. No Changemaker is defined singularly, but in the depth of care they give each body of work they pursue until completion. Our intentional life is driven by a calling much greater than ourselves, our purpose.
!
!
PURPOSE IS WHAT YOU CHOOSE YOURSELF. NO ONE CAN SAY WHAT DRIVES YOUR LIFE- ONLY YOU. IT IS NOT MADE UP OF OTHER PEOPLE’S EXCUSES, FEARS, AND DOUBTS. WHAT IS YOUR LIFE? ANSWER IT.
Are You a Changemaker? !
Apply for Membership!
Global Opportunities + Peer Support for an Untraditional Path.
! !
San Francisco
August 6th-9th
! Purpose: To turn our tribe of Changemakers into a family. !
The second night of Compass Project I was on the kitchen floor until four in the morning sharing parts of myself I had never before said out loud with strangers. I had been given permission and a space to be my whole self, but it was not just “safe”. It pushed me to my edge, and in doing so gave me the courage to change my life so I could connect, support, and empower the young Changemakers of the world.
! I owe all of Under 30 Changemakers entirely to that experience. !
We are creating an event for all Changemakers, the ones who take the road less traveled and instead will the life they want into existence. Our first gathering will include the first ever Changemaker University, classes given by social enterprise schools from around the world, a design-thinking hackathon for homelessness, and workshops that will stretch your edges to emerge a bolder Changemaker. There is no going back from who you came in as to who you will become. I can’t wait to see you there. Much Love, Tara Byrne iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii Get $10 Off Your Ticket! iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii
!
BEING A CHANGEMAKER DOESN’T ALWAYS MEAN YOU CHANGE THE WORLD. BEING A CHANGEMAKER MEANS YOU CHANGE YOUR WORLD, EACH AND EVERY DAY.
THANK YOU FOR READING. iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii