The sustainability in our work comes in our civic leadership programs, through which we raise up the next generation of Chinese American civic leaders in the United States.
We are aware that the work done in our society today must fundamentally be informed by youth as we are building a better tomorrow for their leadership. Our youth empowerment program is uniquely designed to be youth-led, for the youth, by the youth. ORIGIN is a 10-week, 3x a year program that trains youth facilitators to empower their peers to become civic leaders in the Chinatown community. High School youth come together to identify key issues facing the community and address them through project design and implementation. They also come together to process their experience as AAPI youth in this country, balancing history, family, and their own values and passions, to shape their identity as leaders today and tomorrow.
Youth Empowerment
Our signature Youth Empowerment program, ORIGIN, has been empowering youth to become civic leaders since 2010. Today, we welcome a cohort of High School students each semester (including summers) to design and implement their own civic projects while also exploring their identities as AAPI youth.
Advocacy Training
Through our Civic Education efforts, we work to identify community members who are interested in organizing their friends and family members to learn to raise their voices for issues they care about. We are able to provide training to these residents throughout the year, especially equipping them for our annual Asian American Action Day.
Impact
Our Civic Leadership program is grounded in the belief that everyone can become a civic leader at any age and time. We aim to make our program accessible and equitable, providing stipends when we can to compensate the advocate’s time investing in their community’s future.
100% of students interviewed upon completion of the programming reported increased confidence in leadership skills such as public speaking, project facilitation, and community collaboration.
YOUTH EMPOWERMENT
“I feel like I can do something to make my community better.”
By identifying issues independently, ORIGIN empowers our youth to know that how they see the world is powerful and valuable.
“Since joining Origin, I have become a better person, more understanding, because I think that one of the roles that we have is to make people feel welcome and like they're meant to be here.”
—Julia
“I have hope for our future.”
Through project planning and implementation, our youth goes from classroom learning to real life problem solving, providing them with a sense of agency and validates their ability to change their world, one community issue at a time.
“[Being with] this whole group of people who all really care and are passionate, that's honestly really inspiring and gives me hope, in general and in life.”
“I learned how to appreciate Chinatown.”
In order to identify an issue and implement a solution, our youth have the chance to get to know their Chinatown in a deeper and more meaningful way. By incorporating Chinatown history into identity discussions, we also invite our youth to think of Chinatown as not only a static place but a living thing that has a role in their world. ORIGIN helps shape and raise up the next generation of civic leaders in Chicago’s Chinatown.
“For me, Origin has been pretty important to me because even though I grew up going to Chinatown, I didn't live in the area. The project-based portion of Origin changed my perspective to think about what the community needs are and to put myself in that. It has made me think a lot more about my relationship to Chinatown and my responsibility to give back to the community“
ADVOCACY TRAINING
“I didn’t know I can advocate for what I need, now I do.”
Through civic education and practice, our residents are empowered to defend, influence and promote legislation or policy reform. Our residents become active advocates in different public places such as community meetings, City Hall, and General Assembly.
“Before I joined CBCAC to go to Springfield for Asian American Action Day, I didn’t know you can just walk into our representatives’ offices and talk to them about what I care about, it was so empowering.”
— Wongtai (Annie)
Support Our Civic Leadership initiatives!
Are you invested in the next generation of Civic Leaders and increasing representation of AAPI in the public sector? Give today to expand our programs and ensure an equitable future for all!