College campuses are incubators for people wanting to make societal change.
Learning and researching, organizing and activism, giving direct service, philanthropic efforts, policy and governance, and social entrepreneurship can help people realize their goals. Regardless of civic engagement approach, the fundamentals stay true.
Organize. Energize. Mobilize.
To organize is to prepare yourself and others. Once a person is awakened to the subjections at-large and realizes the societal figures are simply shadows on the wall, the logical next-step is to persuade others and, in unison, actively dispute the propaganda of those in power.
To energize is to support in different spaces, in different networks, and at different times. Think of energizing as a battery; a battery gives the necessary energy to power an item, yet the energy is temporary and a new battery is eventually needed. Such is energizing.
Creating social change is tiring and resource-depleting, but it’s worth it. Nonetheless, energizing oneself and others in different struggles is needed to keep the tension in resisting.
To mobilize is to do just that, putting the labor-intensive effort into enacting meaningful changes in society. Thus organizing and energizing are required to have an effective mobilization strategy.
Whether within state organizations, independent of state organizations, or countering such efforts, being engaged in civics is paramount to having an equitable and just democratic society.
Civically Engaged Scholars (CES) is a program dedicated “to prepare students for a life of engagement with systems, institutions, and community partners; thus, assisting communities to achieve liberation and self-determination by providing foundational knowledge to approaches and tools of civic engagement.”
To learn more about the different approaches to civic engagement and to join CES, visit www.tinyurl.com/begin-CES.
