Belly Dancin’ with Asali
January 16, 2012
Name: Asali Naima Locke Ellison
Nationality: African American
GYV Staff/ Participant during: Staff in 1999 and 2003
Education: Bachelor of Arts, Sociology – Hampton University
Occupation: Professional Dancer & Instructor as well as Graphic Designer
Most Interesting Country Visited: Egypt and Turkey
Favorite GYV Memory: Dancing and creating with the “Crazy Sisters of Siochain!” For some reason both years I worked at GYV I was assigned Cabin Siochain and each time the ladies I got to live and work with were always Phenomenal! Oxanna and Ebru were the perfect co-counselor cabin mates I could have ever asked for. The camp experience truly changed and inspired my life!
Volunteer/Civic Engagement since Global Youth Village: Member of S.G.I-USA Buddhist organization that promotes world peace and culture. Board secretary and volunteer for Camp Butterfly, programming volunteer for Teens on the Move and A.M.E.N. (African Male Empowerment Network) in Pittsburgh, resident artist at Johnson Elementary School in Chicago, workshop presenter at Bellevue Hospital day school in New York.
Biography: Asali Locke-Ellison has a knack for motivating others. Although a Pittsburgh, PA native she’s lived in New York, Atlanta, Virginia and Chicago where she’s worked, volunteered and delivered workshops in the corporate, non-profit, education and performing arts sectors. With an analytical brain and creative drive her diverse background has allowed her to present her thesis research topic “How to Overcome Conflict in Black Male and Female Relationships” at the Eastern Sociological Meetings in Baltimore, MD; create and facilitate an after school arts program “The C.A.F.É Club” (Creating Art For Expression) to students at Johnson Elementary school in Chicago; conduct workshops for “Teens on the Move” (a local youth program in Pittsburgh) and work with ARCH Productions (Artists Raising the Consciousness of Humanity) in Atlanta as director to a cast of teens in a touring theatre production to promote awareness about the dangers of drinking and driving. Asali currently serves on the Board of Directors of Camp Butterfly, a Chicago-based organization that promotes advocacy for girls of African descent.
A recent newlywed, in July 2010 Asali got married to her husband Brian whom she met in 2008. Today she is self-employed as a graphic designer, professional dancer and instructor of North African and Middle Eastern dance (aka “Belly dance”) where she performs American Cabaret, Egyptian, Turkish and Whirling (Sufi) dance styles. Not just a soloist, she performs as a duet with her husband a skilled fire/poi dancer and designer. Her goal is to help women and young girls “rediscover how cool it is to be a woman” and to employ the power of dance in a manner that evokes respect and admiration from themselves and others in a healthy and positive way. To learn more about Asali visit www.shimmysoul.com.
Kenyan Participants
January 9, 2012
Your program is a special initiative and selection process and includes in-country assistance with application, visa process, group flight details and a chaperone for groups of 10 or more. Please contact the following person:
June Kirubi Project Coordinator
Telephone: 720-451-345
Email: pamojaworld@gmail.com
Option for Kenyan participants: Three-week program with international and US youths at the Global Youth Village and 6- day Community Involvement Program (CIP) in Washington DC
Ages: 14-18
Dates: July 17-August 4
Fee: $3,300
Workshops – Put knowledge into action!
January 3, 2012
Workshops meet every week day at our international summer camp. The instructors are gifted trainers with dynamic teaching approaches to get everyone participating. Our program also offers you the opportunity to get some valuable leadership training. Hearing everyone’s thoughts, building listening and assessment skills and developing techniques to convey your point of view and return to your own community with new abilities to promote change.
Summer 2012 offers:
- First Morning Workshop: everyone takes Dialogue and Peace Building
- Second Morning Workshop: you choose either Crossing Cultures Through the Arts or Green Your World.
GYV offers in-depth training. Instructors show the interdependence of topics, draw on successful models of problem solving from around the world and help you see how one person can make a difference.
Take all this new knowledge and create a plan of action to make a difference in your hometown!
Watch slides from recent workshops
Dialogue and Peace Building
Learn peace building skills and how to respond productively to conflict and prejudice. Understand conflict styles, learn mediation techniques, and how to create a better balance of power. Explore non-violence movements, and how to constructively deal with anger. Develop listening and feedback skills and study facilitation techniques.
“I have accomplished the goal of being able to speak in a large group. I learned about dialogue and conflict resolution.
Now I can go back home and resolve conflicts whether they are personal, family, or community conflicts. I can start to make change.”~ Philip Kane, Northern Ireland
Crossing Cultures through the Arts
The arts play an essential role in preserving and transmitting culture as well as commenting on the issues of the day. Work with Artists-in-Residence who have specific expertise in storytelling and music from around the world. Build writing and interviewing skills. Create stories, video blogs and more using the peers at GYV as your youth voices. Work with professional musicians and ethnomusicologists exploring different musical styles e.g. Middle East, American roots music, African influences in American music.
Green Your World
Explore the natural world and the complex issues facing our ecosystems. Learn how to be a friend to the environment through changing your every day habits to incorporate sustainable living practices. Discover the meanings behind concepts like eco-tourism, permaculture, fair trade, green building, organic agriculture and renewable energy.
Watch Video from workshops in the past:
