Project ReGeneration

Project ReGeneration fosters a network of solidarity for young people in Santa Cruz county by creating safe, progressive thought spaces and by supporting leaders and programs that inspire, educate, and mobilize youth and young adults.

In seeking to revitalize the youth participation in our community, Project ReGeneration creates spaces where youth can learn about active nonviolence, gain leadership skills, share their talents, participate in inter-generational dialogue, and explore what community means to them. Project ReGeneration also acts as a resource hub for youth-initiated projects and a launchpad for emerging activists.

Under the principles of nonviolence as practiced by Martin Luther King Jr., Gandhi, Dorothy Day, Cesar Chavez and Dolores Huerta, we support young individualsโ€“regardless of economic class, family background, sexual orientation, or other identifiersโ€“ to practice active nonviolence in their lives and in their community.

In the summer of 2011, two college interns were motivated to take on the task of introducing the RCNV to younger generations within the Santa Cruz community. As a result, Project ReGeneration was created. Project ReGeneration began to revitalize the youth participation in the community by creating spaces where youth could learn about active nonviolence, gain leadership skills, share their talents, participate in inter-generational dialogue, and explore what community means to them. “Nonviolence is a practice”, as Gandhi would say.

ReGeneration believes that the nature of nonviolence is creative, and the core of nonviolence is compassion.  Coupled with a commitment to social justice issues, ReGeneration recognizes that the arts, in all forms, are sites of imagination, commentary, and resiliency for all time.

Mission Statement

Project ReGeneration fosters a network of solidarity for young people in Santa Cruz county by creating safe, radical-thought spaces and by supporting leaders and programs that inspire, educate, and mobilize youth and young adults.

Project ReGeneration seeks to revitalize the youth participation in the community by creating spaces where youth can learn about active nonviolence, gain leadership skills, share their talents, participate in inter-generational dialogue, and explore what community means to them. A resource hub for youth-initiated projects, Project ReGeneration is a launchpad for emerging activists.

Under the principles of nonviolence as practiced by Martin Luther King Jr., Gandhi, Dorothy Day, Cesar Chavez and Dolores Huerta, we support young individualsโ€“regardless of economic class, family background, sexual orientation, or other identifiersโ€“ to practice active nonviolence in their lives and in their community.

Why the Youth?

We believe in building a society that does not seek complacency in the normalization of  violence, so we are creating safe, positive spaces where youth can reclaim a sense of agency necessary to explore creative and practical tools for achieving fundamental change. Project ReGeneration hopes to instill a sense of empowerment and respect in todayโ€™s youth for themselves, their communities and the future they all intrinsically create and share in.

Why the Arts?

The arts, in all forms, are sites of imagination, commentary, and resiliency for all time. The universality of art supersedes culture and age, making it an ideal catalyst for bringing together and supporting communities locally, nationally and globally. Project ReGeneration respects and acknowledges that art is culture, and by making art accessible and encouraging our community as a whole to partake in the creative processes, we hope to excite open and honest dialogue, sincere solidarity, and positive social change.

Why Nonviolence?

Nonviolence is a practice. We believe that the nature of nonviolence is creative, and the core of nonviolence is compassion. By experimenting with nonviolence through our creative processes, we can begin to explore alternatives to the violent structures that hinder our potential to thrive as a human community. By creating safe spaces that challenge authority and recognize the power of the individual as well as that of the collective, we encourage people of all ages to re-imagine the ways we relate to one another.

Why Inter-Generational Dialogue? 

The people of the past are responsible for the present. Older generations of our community are important resources of knowledge and experience. In our experience with older Santa Cruz community members, we have found that the many express a desire to share their insight. It is Project ReGenerationโ€™s hope that by creating a space where inter-generational dialogue can flourish, we can all collaborate towards creating a present and future that remembers and respects where we have been and where we want to go. When we recognize the tradition of our human society through this lens and apply the knowledge we learn, we can take steps towards the future that are truly progressive.

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