DIVAS for Social Justice will be  launching Forward, A Social Justice Maker Space For All in Bedford Stuyvesant on June 29th, 2019. For the past 8 months DIVAS for Social Justice has worked collectively with Dr. Kayla DesPortes of NYU’s Human Computer Interaction and the Learning Sciences  and her students to transform the community based organizations’ storefront to a social justice maker space. Ayanna Seals, a PhD Candidate at NYU and a consultant with One Source Consulting has been a major force in driving the project forward for DIVAS for Social Justice.
DIVAS for Social Justice, a community based organization has been serving New York City for the past 11 years. The mission of the organization is to encourage and empower youth to use technology for social change. The community based organization has a track record of successfully creating multimedia based community projects that have tackled issues such as gentrification, access to healthy food options, and reproductive justice. In serving both Central Brooklyn and Southeast Queens youth, the organization has made a commitment to provide a holistic approach to incorporate social justice and technology though the involvement of all community members.
In partnership with Dr. DesPortes the organization conducted a Community Design Session and invited local community residents to provide feedback and have a voice in the design of the social justice maker space. Maker Spaces often are not affordable spaces only accessible through paid memberships. DIVAS for Social Justice will be offering free and sliding scale memberships for all community residents.
The launch of Forward, A Social Justice Maker Space for All will take place on Saturday, June 29th , 2019 from 11AM-4PM. This is a free event for the community. Some of the  following interactive activities will take place:
Virtual Reality Activities– Community residents will have the opportunity to experience virtual reality technology and gain knowledge of the importance of accessibility to the technology by creating and designing their own google cardboards.
Take What You Need Garden– There will be planter garden on wheels that will provide free herbs  to the community and emphasize the importance of healthy eating. Seedlings will also be made available to the community on June 29th.
Build LED Projects- Community members will be able to build and take home their own DIVAS LED pin. You’ll get the chance to solder electronics learning the process engineers use to connect components together.
To learn more about FORWARD, please contact us at: cj@divasforsocialjustice.org
https://steamforward.webflow.io/
