California – Generation Change

Music keeps California teens off the streets

braendlina — Wed, 06 Aug 2014 08:59:11 +0000

Richmond, a small city in Northern California just outside of San Francisco, is known for two things: rap music and gang violence, which often leads to drive-by shootings and homicides.

But on Richmond’s southern edge, there’s a building called the RYSE Youth Center. The center was opened to give youth a safe haven from the realities of the streets.

Twenty-year-old Xavier Polk has taken full advantage of the opportunity and introduced a free music production class where he helps teenagers develop their musical talents – and stay off the streets and out of trouble.

Listen to the report by Anne Hofmann and Aaron Mendelson in Richmond, California:

http://blogs.dw.com/generationchange/files/RYSE-Center-Richmond.mp3

Xavier Polk teaches a free beatmaking class at the RYSE Youth Center (Photo: A. Mendelson)

Fiften-year-old Janelle Thomas is working on her own track in Xavier’s class (Photo: A. Mendelson)

Student Emandre Winston uses the keyboard connected to the music production software to work on his own track in Xavier’s class (Photo: A. Mendelson)

The mural on the outside of the RYSE Youth Center in Richmond, California, where Xavier teaches his beatmaking class to give teenagers a safe haven (Photo: A. Mendelson)

Feeding forward in California

mueserk — Fri, 27 Dec 2013 10:32:38 +0000

Every day, 263 million pounds of consumable food is thrown away in the United States – enough to fill a football stadium to the brim. At the same time, nearly one in six adults doesn’t know where their next meal will come from.

As president of Feeding Forward, a non-profit organization that fights food waste and hunger in the local San Francisco Bay Area, Chloe Tsang is working to change that.

The 20-year old student at UC Berkeley spends her spare time overseeing the website and app Feeding Forward created to make private food donations quick and easy.

Listen to the report by Anne-Sophie Brändlin in Berkeley, California:

http://blogs.dw.com/generationchange/files/Feeding-forward-in-California1.mp3

Anyone who has more than 10 pounds of leftover food can snap a picture of it and post it to the website or the app. Feeding Forward then takes care of the rest. (Photo: Feeding Forward)

Chloe Tsang convinced Samuel Hernandez, the supervisor of Golden Bear Café at the UC Berkeley campus, to donate leftover food through Feeding Forward’s website (Photo: Anne-Sophie Brändlin)

Soccer gives refugees in San Diego a chance

mueserk — Tue, 20 Aug 2013 11:47:58 +0000

For many refugee children, attempting to adapt to life in the US can be challenging. Language barriers, cultural differences and post-traumatic stress disorder are all obstacles to overcome on the road to resettlement.

But one young recent graduate from San Diego is attempting to make life a little easier for refugees – through soccer. Twenty-six-year-old Mark Kabban’s soccer program, Yalla, has proven to be a huge success with over 200 children participating since it was founded in 2009.

The project makes the most of the children’s enthusiasm for soccer to improve their prospects in education and work, granting them an opportunity to succeed.

Listen to the report by Mischa Wilmers in San Diego:

Soccer gives refugees in San Diego a chance

Mark is a role model for his “kids”

Succeeding in sports gives the kids the confidence to set their sights high