-By Lisa
When I began simplifying, I found there to be an almost automatic reordering of my priorities and values. I moved away from consumerism and gravitated towards minimizing my negative impact on the world and increasing my positive influence.
But becoming aware and waking up to life can be glairing. There is so much bad news in the world, so many people are pointing fingers and highlighting the problems that it is easy to wallow in the muck. I am not saying we should minimize the injustices in the world, rather, I think it is important to notice the folks who are doing good work – so the rest of us can gain inspiration and hope from their journey and be reassured that one person really can make a difference.
One of these people is Tyler Spencer.
Tyler is a University of Virginia alum who graduated in 2008. During his time at UVA he spent two summers volunteering in South Africa, setting up HIV prevention programs in diamond mining communities. Tyler did an incredibly valuable thing with those trips: he absorbed the experience of another culture and used that understanding to improve life where he lives.
And so The Grassroot Project was born.
Tyler knew that HIV was a significant issue in Washington, DC-- with a staggering 1 out of 20 adults having the virus-- and he realized the sports-focused curriculum he used in South Africa could be adapted to fit the specific needs of DC youth. Tyler is a sports enthusiast and he uses that to guide the work he does, “I am a very competitive person…growing up, I channeled that through sports, but now I love applying that edge to a cause that is so much greater.”
Being just a couple years out of undergrad and founding your own non-profit can be a tad hectic. Add to that his recently earned Rhodes scholarship and plans to study at Oxford -- and the guy has a full plate. But Tyler’s passion both motivates him and gives him a chance to slow down, “sports have always been my way of changing pace. I am really looking forward to going back to rowing while at Oxford.”
This year, Tyler launched the Team Up campaign, a sports-based HIV/AIDS education program uniting 15 at risk youth in Washington, DC and Soweto, South Africa. Each student in DC was partnered with a teammate in Soweto, and for six weeks they participated in the same program. The campaign culminated in June 2010 with a ten day trip to South Africa where the teammates were united. The partners participated in an AIDS awareness event and even attended a World Cup Soccer match. “To be able to see our kids from DC interact with South African kids their own age—who are facing many of the same struggles as they are—was unbelievably powerful.”
As with any complicated global problem one of the biggest obstacles to change is apathy. “The more you learn about any given issue, the more insignificant you can feel. For me, I’ve always continued doing public service because I genuinely enjoy it, and I feel that if people just quit when they get frustrated and discouraged, the problems we are working to alleviate will only get worse.” So Tyler focuses on the reciprocity between his organization and the kids he works with and keeps a clear goal in mind, “I simplify my approach by just trying to constantly remind myself that listening and responding to our youth is going to be the most important thing in making any gains in HIV prevention.”
So, what’s next? Closing the loop. Contingent on funding, he hopes to bring some of the kids from Soweto to visit the US.
“Sometimes the questions are complicated and the answers are simple.” –Dr. Seuss
We know it might seem silly to have a quote from Dr. Seuss be the mantra for your website, but we are true believers in it. The issues – about how to deal with everything ranging from HFCS to HIV, childhood obesity to global hunger -- are complicated. But, as Tyler found, when you can break it all down to a simpler answer that is manageable and effective – that’s where we make a real change.
If you want to know more about Tyler and his organization, check out the Grassroot Project website, and the Team Up blog that the kids wrote about their visit to the World Cup in South Africa.
For more from Lisa, check out www.justherejustnow.com
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