{"id":564,"date":"2017-10-10T14:27:09","date_gmt":"2017-10-10T21:27:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/eahgrad\/?p=564"},"modified":"2017-10-16T10:40:28","modified_gmt":"2017-10-16T17:40:28","slug":"changemakers-rising-power-liberation-wisdom-blossoms","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/eahgrad\/2017\/10\/10\/changemakers-rising-power-liberation-wisdom-blossoms\/","title":{"rendered":"We are the Changemakers: Rising Power, Liberation and Wisdom Blossoms"},"content":{"rendered":"

Resist. Persist. Insist.<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Invest. Nurture. Thrive.<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Inform. Inspire. Act.<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Activate. Educate. Legislate.<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

These are the words I read on large posters as I entered the Sonia\u00a0Sotomayor room at the CH2M Hill\u00a0Alumni center at Oregon State University. The buzz that filled the room was energizing as women and their allies gathered for a day centered around change making in many different forms. I entered the gathering hall. Although I was expecting for this day to be inspirational, I <\/span>wasn\u2019t prepared<\/span> for was the power surge I received from the passion and force shared by the speakers throughout the day. Luckily, I was not alone on this adventure, one of my dear mentors and dance sister Antigone was there. We spent the past year working together with teen girls from high schools around using the healing art of tribal style belly dancing to facilitate discussion around body image, identity, earth stewardship and much more. Kristina, a fellow Environmental Arts and <\/span>Humanities student<\/span>, also shared this experience. We were amazed by the speakers\u2019 courage and their stories. Their gentle and loving reminders for radical self-love and self-care spoke to my heart that day.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Corvallis Changemakers<\/a> was a <\/span><\/span>conference for women & their allies that was \u201c[C]reated by a group of friends in Corvallis, Oregon who, inspired by the upsurge in activism in our community and our nation, seek fresh voices, ideas, and tools to effect change.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

I want to share a little bit about the keynote speaker, Walidah Imarisha<\/a> <\/span><\/span>and what she calls visionary fiction. Walidah is a writer, educator and poet. <\/span><\/span>During her presentation, Dreaming New Just Worlds: <\/span><\/span>Visionary Fiction and Organizing, Walidah walked through the importance of imaginative spaces, offered through visionary fiction for exploring contemporary and historical problems. In addition to inspiring and transforming the way we imagine and re-imagine the realities of the future. She emphasized the power of the of our imagination through creative outlets, such as writing, to decolonize our minds. Using fictional <\/span>storytelling<\/span> as a catalyst for change requires some clarification about what the goals are within this genre.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

A few points about visionary fiction:<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n