I am the director of the Global Lives Project and also a graduate student in Sociology at the University of São Paulo, thanks to a two-year scholarship from the Rotary Foundation. My passion lies at the intersection of art & media, social change, and education. As an undergraduate student at UC Berkeley, I studied international development and political economy. During my junior year in college, I traveled to Tanzania, India, the Philippines, Mexico and England as a student on the International Honors Program in Global Ecology. I have published my writings and photography in a number of academic journals and magazines.

Some other past world-changing experiences (more to come)

• World Social Forum - Jan 2005 (Brazil); Jan 2006 (Venezuela)

Though at times chaotic, the two WSFs that I participated in were some of the most important experiences I've ever had. With hundreds of events taking place each day and activists hailing from nearly every country in the world participating, I learned about struggles I'd never even heard of, made connections that I continue to maintain, and most importantly, I basked in the sensation of truly feeling a part of a very very very big movement of people that believe that, as the event's slogan goes, "another world is possible."

• International Children's Foundation Center - Apr 2005 - present

As a consultant to the ICFC's director Daniel Whitman, I developed a project proposal and budget materials and have continued to consult on strategic planning and fundraising for the eventual construction of an international center for youth leadership to be built near São Paulo, Brazil.

• Kensington Research Group - Apr - Nov 2004

Grant-writing and project evaluation in the non-profit and education sectors with a specific focus on low-income communities in California were my responsibilities at KRG. Working with a small, but incredibly talented team, I learned a ton about the professional side of the non-profit world.

• White House Council on Environmental Quality - Aug 2000 - Jan 2001

During my sophomore year of college, I spent a semester as an intern at the White House Council on Environmental Quality, where I researched hot environmental issues to prep Clinton and Gore for meetings and travel, went to lots of neat press events, met lots of people who wear suits and ties everyday, and learned firsthand about the complex games of power and influence that go into governing our country. I also squeezed in nearly two months as a paid "Confidential Assistant" at the Office of Management and Budget during the final days of the Clinton administration. Much of the progress made in the projects that I worked on was immediately reversed by the Bush administration.

• Greenpeace - Nov 2000; Jul 2001

As a member of Greenpeace's youth delegation to the Kyoto Protocol conferences (COPs) in the Hague, Netherlands and Bonn, Germany, I was a registered conference delegate, putting on a suit and lobbying bigwigs from the US delegation and those from other countries as well. Much more fun (and arguably more effective) was the street theater that we organized outside, receiving press attention from around the world (I'll get a picture up here soon...)

• Earth Week 2000 at UC Berkeley - Oct 1999 - Apr 2000

During my first year in college I had a crazy idea that it would be a good idea to organize a massive week of environmental consciousness-raising activities and festivities. With the help of a trusty team of a few dozen committed volunteers (thanks!!), we managed to raise nearly $20,000 and put on 50+ events during the week, including lectures, panel discussions, habitat restoration work, music, dance, theater, and more. Though there were a few glitches and I didn't make it to too many classes during that semester, I learned a whole lot and the event was overall a huge success. Here's a series of articles from Grist Magazine that I wrote about the experience. The most exciting part is that I'm long gone and it's still alive (see above link)!

• Bay Area Action (now Acterra), Palo Alto, CA - 1998-1999

Took part in the BAA Schools Group and worked as an intern during the summer before starting college. A super-charge local environmental activist group, BAA was my first serious introduction to the non-profit world. Learning from inspiring silicon valley folks about everything from creek restoration to electric cars, I organized events around Earth Day (Earth Week at Mountain View High School) and got so excited about the whole thing that I even enrolled in a night class in environmental studies at the local community college with my two best friends.