#27 Trump's Immigration Policy Impact on Grassroots Organizing in Immigrant Communities with Professor Alex Gomez

#27 Trump's Immigration Policy Impact on Grassroots Organizing in Immigrant Communities with Professor Alex Gomez

Professor Alex Gomez is a dedicated border historian with a passion for shedding light on the intricacies of the US-Mexican border region. His academic journey includes a Bachelor’s degree in Latin American History, a dual Master’s degree in Latin American Studies with a focus on the US-Mexican border region, and a Master’s degree in Latin American Literature from SDSU. He is pursuing a Ph.D. in Refugee and Migrant Studies at Linköping University in Sweden. For the last 25 years, Professor Gomez has guided both college and high school students along the US-Mexican border region to better understand globalization and migration patterns. He does this in hopes of sparking a renewed sense of urgency in young people for creating a better world.

#26 Feeding the Hungry in Austin, TX with Kaeden Cameron of Made to Serve

Kaeden Cameron is one of the leaders at Made to Serve [https://madetoserve.org/], a Austin, Texas based Christian nonprofit committed to reaching out to the homeless community by providing free meals. Kaeden comes from a background in technology as an engineer at Apple but made it a point to find like minded people in his community who wanted to address the hunger facing the homeless population in Austin. Kaeden serves as an example of how everyday people without substantive experience in nonprofit operations can come together and have an outsized impact on their local community. Made to Serve has provided nearly 7000 meals. They are over 100 volunteers strong. The organization consistently hits the streets of Austin every Saturday and Sunday. You can catch these folks around downtown Austin every weekend and join their mission.

#25 Uniting a Neighborhood and Advocating for Change with Pastor Justin Adour

Pastor Justin Adour [https://www.reh.nyc/justinadour] is the Founding and Senior Pastor of Redeemer East Harlem [https://www.reh.nyc/], a Presbyterian Church in and for East Harlem. He also serves as the Executive Director of Pray. March. Act. [https://www.praymarchact.com/], a civic discipleship coalition that helps churches understand the root causes of injustice in New York City and mobilizes them to pray, march, and act for policies and practices that promote justice. Pastor Justin began pastoring in NYC 16 years ago and has served in pastoral ministry for over 20 years. From Youth Pastor to Campus Ministry to eventually securing his Ph.D. in Theology and leading REH, Pastor Justin has been a fixture amongst NYC’s Christian leadership.

#24 Building Peace and Community with "Marginalized" Kenyan Woman and Children with Dr. Karambu Ringera

Dr. Karambu Ringera [https://ipeacei.org/staff/dr-karambu-ringera/] is the Founder and President of International Peace Initiatives [https://ipeacei.org/about-us/], an organization providing children who's parents have passed, women living with HIV/AIDS, survivors of violence, and communities with the tools and resources to move from violence, poverty, and crisis to stability and self-reliance, thereby building resilient communities. Dr. Ringera earned her Ph.D. in Intercultural Communication in 2008 from the University of Denver. She earned a Masters Degree in Media from Natal University, South Africa, as well as a Master of Theological Studies from the Iliff School of Theology in Colorado. She received her Bachelor of Education degree and Postgraduate Diploma in Mass Communication from the University of Nairobi, Kenya. She has won several awards recognizing her international leadership and activism.

#23 How Seeing Excellent Service Work Anywhere Inspires Hometown Action with Tristan Choi

Tristan participated in a Students Shoulder to Shoulder [https://shouldertoshoulder.com/courses/nepal/] field study with The Small World [https://www.thesmallworld.org/], a nonprofit focused on sustainable development, rural education, and women’s empowerment in Nepal. Upon finishing his field study, Tristan returned to his hometown of Portland, Maine and was inspired to analyze needs in his own community. Tristan's story serves as a powerful narrative reinforcing the idea of the greater scale that one act of service can have through inspiring action in others.