June 2016

Two weeks down already. It is going by so fast. The organization that I am working with, Brilliant Detroit, still continues to amaze me. I’m thankful everyday that I was placed here this summer. Brilliant Detroit is an organization whose mission is to create “Kid Success Neighborhoods” by building high quality early childhood experiences.We see families […]

So… What is my job description? I am currently an intern with Food and Water Watch. It is a non-profit organization (completely unfunded by the government) that champions healthy food and clean water for all. Currently, my responsibility is to work on the Detroit water crisis, which is the crisis of water shutoffs taking place

There is so much power in your voice. I am currently working with the Friends of Parkside on their annual health fair. While the end result of putting on a health fair for over 200 people is absolutely amazing it is a lot of working getting there. Luckily, I made some progress on getting vendors

I am working at the Southwest Detroit Business Association.  The non profit organization functions as though it is much more than just a business association, they are almost a form of local government or community organizing support.  I explained a lot about the main project I am helping with on last week’s post, but I

Last week felt pretty high intensity — I was meeting new people, adjusting to a new work environment (and living environment), and trying to figure out what exactly I would be spending my summer doing. But though last week was a little crazy, the intensity has not faded. And I love it. At EcoWorks, and

Rounding out my first official week working as an intern with the Osborn Neighborhood Alliance (ONA), I am proud to say that have become more understanding, as well as appreciative of all of the knowledge I have attained through conducting good old fashion research. With my first week behind me, I did not realize how

My first two weeks have already come to a close and I’m really enjoying myself. I work at Friends of Parkside which is an organization that works tirelessly to provide services for residents of the Parkside Villages housing neighborhood as well as for other residents on the east side of Detroit. I’m working almost exclusively

In case any students in future years with the program are reading this, major shoutout to Green Garage. It is an amazing building full of spectacular people who want to do great things with and for the people. It’s a great place to network with other people in the nonprofit / triple bottom line world

Well considering my first week I saw drug houses, packs of wild dogs and someone shoot at a house, my second week  in the neighborhoods was relatively subdued. I have fallen into a decent routine where I am able to get most of my research work done in the morning and then am able to

The community organization I’m working with is Focus: HOPE. Founded after the Detroit Riots in 1967, Focus: HOPE’s mission is to fight racism in practical ways. Over the years, they have developed various job training and food security programs. Personally, I will be working mostly with their Hope Village Initiative (HVI), which is a holistic