Copyright Sue Dion-Gerzabek
The Internet has created the conditions for working globally from Santa Cruz in ways we could have never imagined twenty years ago. Yet, individual activists still struggle to find like-minded people in our community with whom to share our journey.
Many feel shut down by the attitudes of neighbors and co-workers. They say we should focus on reducing homelessness, protecting the Monterey Bay, and improving local schools. We don’t see these borders. The geography of our giving is wider. For us, a child in Rwanda deserves as good an education as a child in Live Oak.
None of us prioritize global over local issues as more significant or meaningful; we simply focus on the issues and people that call out to us and fit our skill sets. We all volunteer for and contribute money to organizations and causes that address both global and local issues. But the global part of our giving does not have a ready community.
To help create this community for myself, I selfishly started a MeetUp Group for locals interested in international social justice.
Our First Meeting in November 2010
On a cold and dark evening, four hardy souls joined me at Dharma’s, a local vegetarian restaurant. We fell into conversation so easily that you would have thought we were long lost high school friends.
I remember the astonished and grateful look on Cory Ybarra’s face when we told her we wanted to hear every detail of her work with disabled children in Tanzania and Peru.
Lisa Poll’s face lit up when I asked her to share her story. She recounted the anxiety and excitement she felt as she prepared to exchange her life as a Deputy District Attorney for one as a manager of programs for children orphaned and affected by AIDS in South Africa. This mature attorney had the look of a giddy teenager splat across her face.
One year later, we are over sixty members strong, a network of internationally minded activists living in the central coast.
Why Meet In Person When You’ve Got the Internet?
Essential but not sufficient. That’s how I describe technology and the Internet. Despite the much-lauded aspects of the Internet, the cell phone and cheap air travel which have created an environment in which local citizens of Santa Cruz County can volunteer time and give resources to far-flung communities, people still need people. As they say in Wolof (a native language of Senegal): “Nit, nit moy garab-am.” “Humans are their own best medicine.”
Like a Friday night poker game, we assembled on Tuesday night at a round table in downtown Santa Cruz. Instead of throwing down cards and placing bets, we shared stories about peace building, fundraising, social media, Africa and not getting burned out. We munched on crackers and hummus, savored a freshly baked raw apple cake and drank tea and red wine.
These energetic individuals raise money and spend time getting to know people in small villages and towns in order to make a difference for those living on less than a dollar a day. This roundtable was not in New York or Washington, D.C. It was in Santa Cruz, California – a town known for beaches, surfing, and the redwoods.
Like most good things, the engagement of our community in international causes is not well known nor does it have a platform. Our local community foundation focuses on local priorities, a clear focus that embraces our community in an important and rightful way. Yet, where do we build community for those working and volunteering in organizations with a global reach? How do we build networks, learn best practices and validate this work?
The Santa Cruz International MeetUp gives us a forum here in Santa Cruz County. It is a place to meet with like-minded individuals and create a sense of fellowship, the kind of peer group learning that propels our work. We have a sister organization in Silicon Valley called Collaborate for Africa led by dynamic J.P. Morgan financial planner Jeff Chow.
The Internet has created the conditions for working globally from Santa Cruz in ways we could never have imagined twenty years ago. We are connected to communities around the world and we can network with like-minded people here in Santa Cruz.
We need face-to-face relationships to confront our challenges and to get honest feedback about our next steps. We are consultants, donors, journalists, academics, and individuals. We are like Lisa Poll, one of our first members, who now blogs from Zambia and South Africa about what it is like to be on the frontlines of community and personal transformation.
We need community.
Join us at The Santa Cruz International MeetUp.
Member Organizations / Partial List
