Franke Global Leadership Initiative (GLI) Oral Presentations
Presentation Type
Presentation - Campus Access Only
Faculty Mentor’s Full Name
Devin Carpenter
Faculty Mentor’s Department
Office of Student Success
Abstract / Artist's Statement
Brave Spaces, Radical Openness, and Youth Loneliness
Global Leadership Initiative
Globally, young adults face potentially isolating social pressures. Today’s youth feel frequent anxieties about fitting in, finding success, and uncertainty of the future, and these anxieties are exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Young adults worldwide report feeling more anxious, more depressed, and more lonely. However, deliberate community building, the creation of art and writing as a means of self-exploration, and the creation of spaces designed for acceptance fend off these feelings of loneliness. How might we acknowledge social pressures on young adults and create a brave space to build community through self expression?
Many university campuses host creative writing workshops. Our team discovered this style of course has the potential to create both a radically open space in which young adults can come together, as well as the opportunity for self-reflection via writing and/or creating art. Holding these community-centered workshops will make the social pressures young adults experience feel surmountable. We will ensure these workshops embody the idea of brave spaces by acting as facilitators, allowing participants to drive each lesson, and creating an environment free of animosity and judgment. By establishing a capacity-building brave space, our project addresses the myriad social pressures facing young adults today.
Category
Franke Global Leadership Initiative
Brave Spaces, Radical Openness, and Youth Loneliness
UC 220
Brave Spaces, Radical Openness, and Youth Loneliness
Global Leadership Initiative
Globally, young adults face potentially isolating social pressures. Today’s youth feel frequent anxieties about fitting in, finding success, and uncertainty of the future, and these anxieties are exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Young adults worldwide report feeling more anxious, more depressed, and more lonely. However, deliberate community building, the creation of art and writing as a means of self-exploration, and the creation of spaces designed for acceptance fend off these feelings of loneliness. How might we acknowledge social pressures on young adults and create a brave space to build community through self expression?
Many university campuses host creative writing workshops. Our team discovered this style of course has the potential to create both a radically open space in which young adults can come together, as well as the opportunity for self-reflection via writing and/or creating art. Holding these community-centered workshops will make the social pressures young adults experience feel surmountable. We will ensure these workshops embody the idea of brave spaces by acting as facilitators, allowing participants to drive each lesson, and creating an environment free of animosity and judgment. By establishing a capacity-building brave space, our project addresses the myriad social pressures facing young adults today.