Project Overview

The Poetic Justice World Tour is an international creative venture that will involve extensive travel and coordinated activities in 14 countries. During a nine-ten month period, I will  write poetry and collaborate with others to organize poetry activities at schools, orphanages, community centers, and arts organizations. This journey will channel the creative power of poetry in order to give voice to the world’s impoverished and disadvantaged communities (whose voices are often muted). In addition, this project will use poetry as a conduit to promote cultural awareness; inform a greater understanding of social justice on an international scale; and engender healthy dialogue around other global issues related to poverty, racism, and gender discrimination. In order to accomplish these purposes, I will work in partnership with The International Volunteer Headquarters and other local and international arts and poetry organizations.

Destination Dates

Guatemala (2 weeks) 6/6-6/20

Costa Rica ( 1 week) 6/20-6/28

Peru – Lima (5 days) 6/28-7/4

Peru – Cuzco (5 weeks) 7/5-8/16

Spain (10 days) 8/17-8/26

Italy (10 days) 8/26-9/6

France (5 days) 9/6-9/11

London (18 days) 9/11-9/29

Kenya – Nairobi (4 weeks) 10/1-10/30

So. Africa – Capetown (4 weeks) 11/1-11/29

So. Africa – Johannesburg (5 days) 11/29-12/04

India – New Delphi (5 weeks) 12/06-1/10

Thailand – Bangkok (1 week) 1/10-1/17

Thailand – Chang Rai (3 weeks) 1/17-2/03

China – Beijing/Shanghai (10 days) 2/03-2/14

Japan – Tokyo (7 days) 2/14-2/21

Sydney – Australia  (3 weeks) 2/21-3/17

Background

As the founder of WordSmith Poetry, I am committed to organizing conscious and progressive events that prominently feature local talent and harness the power of words to inspire and transform. The WordSmith Poetry Jam, a monthly poetry reading, began in 2009 as a vehicle to promote the power of performance poetry in Charlottesville, Virginia. The Poetry Jams have been well received by the larger community and, overall, deemed a huge success. WordSmith Poetry has coordinated other poetry events and collaborated with local community and literary festivals that share the organization’s vision.

Inspired by the success of the Poetry Jams and the impact of the art form, I have been working to further develop my capability as a poet. My vision is also fueled by my desire to explore the power of arts in community transformation; prior experience working with youth; and love for diverse peoples and cultures.

Mission

To use poetry as a creative tool to highlight the beauty of different cultures and generate awareness about social injustices in other areas of the world.

Purpose

• Develop a portfolio of poetry that creates a portrait of the world. The project will feature poems written from around the world, including the works of citizens from the countries I visit. I will write poetry during this trip to document the unique culture and beauty of each country, along with the challenges that stem and flow from poverty and social injustice. The public will have the opportunity to gain a glimpse the world and hear about my experiences through essays, poems, pictures, and videos posted on the website and travel blog.

• Use poetry as a dynamic tool to inform, inspire, and empower those who are often voiceless. In order to give members of marginalized and oppressed communities an opportunity to speak to the world in their own words, I will coordinate and facilitate a series of planned workshops and poetry modules with other volunteers, arts and poetry organizations. These poems will be collected and posted online with the goal of a printed publication upon return. Friends, artists (musicians, photographers or videographers), and poets will also be invited to join the effort by traveling with me to volunteer, help document the trip, or coordinate/facilitate an art workshop.

• Promote poetry by organizing community readings. A major goal is that the poetry workshops will culminate into community poetry readings that give participants the opportunity to perform their work publicly. I intend to organize at least five readings in the regions visited. I will record portions of these readings for posting on the project’s website.

Audience

The primary audience will be low-income children, youth, and adults in the developing countries where I will volunteer and visit.

I will develop a module of at least 10 age-appropriate interactive poetry lessons and activities that I will facilitate in schools, orphanages, or community centers. These sessions will be presented as workshops, complementary lessons to English classes, or as part of extracurricular activities. The participants will respond to poetry prompts; engage individual and group speaking and writing activities; learn writing techniques; and collaborate to create group poems. The poetry activities will gear audiences toward describing themselves as well as elements of their lives and communities,and expressing their feelings and thoughts on specific topics or relevant social issues. I will also facilitate a signature poem, “Where I am From,” in every country. This will be an autobiographical piece that gives participants an opportunity to explain their background by describing their homes, community, traditions, family sayings, etc. This poem, in particular, will demonstrate how poetry can be used to create a powerful mosaic of the world .

The secondary audience will be (YOU) the viewers of the project’s website, blog, and final presentation. This will include friends, family, sponsors, and various organizations that take a particular interest in the arts, community development, and social justice issues on an international scale.

Timeline

This project is scheduled to be implemented over a period of nine-ten months, from June 2010 – March 2011. Click here for a draft timeline (click the tab at the bottom that says “Project Timeline”).

Destinations

This project includes six months of volunteering (teaching English and coordinating other educational activities) in five developing countries: Costa Rica, Peru, Kenya, India, and Thailand through the International Volunteer Headquarters. During the remaining months of the project, I will travel to London, Spain, France, Italy, South Africa, China, Japan and Australia writing poetry and networking with international arts organizations to capture poetic voices through attending or facilitations poetry workshops/events.

Project Expenses

The budget for this project is $26,500 including flights, accommodations, passports, vaccinations, program frees, activities, and equipment. Funding will be pursued through individual donations, grants and a fundraiser. Click here for the project budget.

Project Deliverables

The major deliverables for this project include a multi-media presentation with poems, pictures and video documentaries to capture my experiences as well as the poetry, stories, and experiences of those I have served and collaborated with along my travels. The ultimate goal is to develop an accompanying printed publication.

The website, publication, and presentation will provide a platform to increase cultural awareness and discuss social justice issues that require greater exposure. I hope to deliver presentations as a learning and discussion tool to arts and community organizations upon return. This dialogue can spur activism and encourage other artists to offer their skills for community development and social justice purposes.

Partners

WordSmith Poetry is behind the project website and travel blog, and will use its network of poets to develop a workshop series. This organization will also develop a fundraising campaign and website to generate individual donations to match grant funds. WordSmith Poetry will sponsor a fundraiser to garner financial support for this project and pursue grants from the Open Meadows Foundation, The Lucius & Eva Eastman Fund, and Barbara Deming Memorial Fund, Inc. as additional sources of funding.

The International Volunteer HQ (IVHQ) provides safe, high-quality and extremely affordable volunteer placements in developing countries. The assigned work varies, but generally consists of providing tutoring to local students, setting up small workshops, assisting local teachers, and organizing educational games and activities. IVHQ will provide volunteer placements teaching English and working with local populations in Costa Rica, Peru, Kenya, India and Thailand. This organization will help provide access to various low-income populations where I will facilitate poetry workshops. Click here for my volunteer verificaton letter.

All Souls Charlottesville is my local church in Charlottesville, VA. All Souls is interested in supporting Christian artists as well as community development projects and programs on a local and international scale. All Souls will be a project sponsor and fiscal agent.