Intervention Project 1 - Caterina Da Souza

First Intervention Project 

Caterina Da Souza 

Save the Turtles Movement💚🐢🐢

This project was inspired by the "Save the turtles movement". Saving sea turtles is essential from an ecological perspective for preserving biodiversity and the harmony of marine ecosystems. Seagrass beds, coral reefs, and other marine organisms all benefit from the presence of sea turtles in a variety of settings.

Sea turtles embody the resilience and beauty of our planet's oceans. Their ancient lineage spans millions of years, surviving countless challenges and changes. Yet, today they face a daunting threat that could extinguish their existence forever.

These marvelous creatures, these gentle wanderers of the seas, are entangled in a struggle against human actions. Coastal development encroaches upon their precious nesting beaches, disturbing their fragile life cycle. Pollution, from plastics to oil spills, contaminates their home, suffocating their chances of survival. And the relentless march of climate change warms our oceans, bleaching coral reefs that provide essential feeding grounds for sea turtles.

the first two pictures, show the design first created on paper with the result at the end 

In these pictures above, you can appreciate me using my shoes with my new style on 

"Skip the straw, save the turtles"💚😎😢🐢

The purpose for this intervention project was to create awareness about the real things that are happening in our world and to be more conscious about our plastic consumptions. I consider myself an artist but when it comes to fashion, even if I'm not that into fashion or take it as my hobby, I love it and I like to observe the different looks people can create no matter the style. I like to understand it, appreciate it and entertain myself watch people express themselves with fashion (no matter the style). Therefore, I know that there's people that also think and observe like me and I had the idea of painting a design that was catchy and also send my message on saving the turtles starting in a way that we all can by stop on using plastic straws that we do not need at the end of the day. Also, damaging our planet day by day. Change starts by just taking action and having the courage to express yourself to change things. I also while using my "skip the straw save the turtles" shoes. I showed an alternative use for straws, having a coffee using a stainless steel straw. to give ideas to people to realize the problem and finding a good solution and start changing at least some minds with my design of turtles and a short message that will stay in their minds for most of people that are curious like I am, with "why do my shoes look different" and realizing other problems that exists besides the ones that have and the change that we can make to at least help in a way our planet. Starting a new chapter of maybe stop using more plastic in many more ways.

It was a great experience connecting with this topic. It made me realize how much I can do for my planet. For the time I'm here with the blessing of being alive. First I realized that if I want to change the game I have to start by stop using plastic on my day to day. And its something that I like a lot about this experience. With life going so fast I feel like we don't get to thing a lot about other things besides ourselves that we don't realize how much we can do for our planet by just taking better decisions

In this pictures you can see me painting my design on my shoes💙🌊

Final Intervention: Why You Need to study Abroad

Traveling teaches you what you can't learn in a classroom. I understood this before I studied abroad in Istanbul, Turkey, for a year. When I returned, I got many questions from friends in my community about how to get a passport and general questions about what it's like to get on a plane, etc. However, when I met people who didn't look like me, they didn't necessarily ask questions but shared their own experiences of studying abroad. 

Usually, when you hear someone's study abroad story, it's them explaining how their family went on a summer vacation to Rome, Italy, and they loved it so much that to chose it as their study abroad for a semester. Only 6.4% of black students study abroad in their undergrad, while 70% of students that study abroad from America are white. I'd like to change that. Using the principles from "The Art of Activism" by Steve Duncombe and Steve Lambert, the solution is to "act as if" the world is the way that it should be. Acting that studying abroad when I've never traveled before was my activism without realizing it. 

Sharing my traveling and what it did for me was a part of my intervention project. I presented to my capstone gen-ed class LTED 380 about why everyone needs to study abroad. In addition to sharing my experience, I shared a study called studying abroad while black. This thesis helped me understand why people of color, black students, precisely why most of them don't study abroad and how we can change that narrative. In the end, I shared resources for everyone to use. 

The first was Skyscanner. It's a sight that allows you to see the cheapest flights anywhere for a specific amount of time that you search for. The second is gooverseas. Another website for you to visit other study abroad internships/ options. 

My final resource is an idea I've been holding back on for a while. There are too many people that don't think that traveling is accessible to them because they think traveling is too expensive or they honestly need to figure out where to start. That's where I literally intervene. Launching June 1st is First Time Travel, a traveling consultation where I walk you through how to book your flight, hotel, and activities, all based on your budget. This is specifically for first-time travelers, but all are welcome. The only requirement, you'd need to fill out your passport application and or already have it, which I have a video pinned to my Instagram here. 

I do plan on charging for this service, but the first 10 people that sign-up get it waived. I already post on Instagram how to travel on a budget, but this is taking it one step further, and I can't wait! You can follow me there, and please feel free to ask any questions! (@safa.mostafa_)

"In doing this, we bring the future into our present and normalize as reality a state that still only exists in our imagination" - The Art of Activism

Final Intervention: Caterina Da Souza (Final Project)

 Final Intervention: Caterina Da Souza 

Stop Sexualizing Women (body positivity)

The issue of sexualizing women is a complex and multifaceted one, and there are several reasons why society should strive to stop this practice. Here are a few key points:

Respect and Equality: Sexualizing women reduces them to objects of desire, undermining their autonomy, individuality, and humanity. It perpetuates gender inequality by reinforcing harmful stereotypes and diminishing women's worth to their physical appearance or sexual appeal. By combating sexualization, society can promote respect for women as whole individuals with diverse talents, abilities, and aspirations.

Body Image and Self-Esteem: The sexualization of women contributes to unrealistic beauty standards, leading to body dissatisfaction and low self-esteem among women and girls. It creates pressure to conform to narrow ideals of attractiveness, which can have detrimental effects on mental health and well-being. By shifting the focus away from sexual objectification, society can encourage positive body image and promote self-acceptance.

Professional and Personal Opportunities: When women are primarily seen as sexual objects, their abilities and accomplishments may be overlooked or undervalued. This can hinder their opportunities for professional growth, limit their choices, and perpetuate gender-based discrimination in various spheres of life. By challenging the sexualization of women, society can create an environment that allows women to be recognized and respected for their talents, skills, and contributions.

Healthy Relationships and Consent: Sexualization can blur boundaries between consensual sexual expression and objectification, leading to harmful consequences such as harassment, objectifying behavior, and the normalization of non-consensual actions. By promoting a culture that values consent, communication, and mutual respect, society can foster healthier and more equitable relationships.

Empowering Women: Combatting the sexualization of women helps empower them to define their identities on their own terms, free from societal pressures. By challenging stereotypes and promoting diverse representations, society can create an inclusive environment where women are encouraged to embrace their authentic selves, pursue their interests, and achieve their goals.

                                                      

Name: Proud to be a woman in this world so cruel, yet so beautiful

                                                This painting was inspired on a song written by Billie Eilish.   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZlvfYmfefSI

NAME: I'm not waiting for you to understand it, I will keep fighting 

It's important to note that stopping the sexualization of women requires collective efforts from individuals, communities, media, and institutions. By raising awareness, promoting education, and fostering respectful attitudes and behaviors, we can work towards a society that values women's autonomy, agency, and equality.

Final Intervention: Sydney & Caitlyn

Final Intervention: Beauty Standards & Mental Health 

Our project focuses on blending our past two interventions that often become connected through the negative effects that beauty standards have on our mental health. Sydney and I have both struggled with trying to maintain beauty standards both in the past and currently, and our mission is to help others realize they are not alone, and that this does not have to be our lives if we choose to treat one another better and treat ourselves with a bit more kindness. Normalizing body types and features from the body is what we are striving to promote. 

This is our logo. The plan would be to print out stickers and posters so people know that we are serious about inclusive body positivity. Every single body is worth being appreciated and loved not just by other people, but by ourselves as well. Stretchmarks, body hair, cellulite and curves DOES NOT equal ugly. Embracing our bodies brings us closer to our femininity and masculinity.

https://www.tiktok.com/@cath3l/video/7226875010055458094?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc&web_id=7228419150947272238

Our way of reaching an audience was going up to our peers & asking them hard questions. We opened the door to talking about a hard topic like body image and our friends got to talking. After some discussion, we decided to ask our peers to write it down in a set of notebooks. Whether it be a rant, a phrase, or a doodle, we gave them the chance to write about beauty standards and the effects it may have on their personal mental health.

Flash sheet I did for body positivity.

Sydney & I are both art therapy majors. It will not be uncommon that we come across patients who are struggling with their physical appearance and self esteem. Our intervention can serve the purpose of encouraging our future patients to be open to discussing their hardships with beauty standards. To put it simply, beauty standards are at the root of most mental disorders in patients. Whether is comes in the form of disordered eating or people pleasing, the impossible standards put on young students and adults leave lifelong affects.

I've created some of the art pieces shown today mainly to emulate the beauty that normal, healthy bodies have that no one has really paid attention to.

Dont believe us? Here's some stats:

• Young people between the ages of 15 and 24 with anorexia have 10 times the risk of dying compared to their same-aged peers.
• Males represent 25% of individuals with anorexia nervosa, and they are at a higher risk of dying, in part because they are often diagnosed later since many people assume males don’t have eating disorders.
• Among female high school athletes in aesthetic sports, 41.5% reported disordered eating. They were eight times more likely to incur an injury than athletes in aesthetic sports who did not report disordered eating.
• 70 million people internationally live with eating disorders. (National Eating Disorders Association)
• The median age of eating disorder onset was 21 years old for binge eating disorder and 18 years old for anorexia and bulimia nervosa. (Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 2010)
• Approximately 30 million Americans live with an eating disorder. (National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders)
• One study found that 35% of female and 10% of male college athletes were at risk for anorexia nervosa and 58% of female and 38% of male college athletes were at risk for bulimia nervosa.

(https://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/statistics-research-eating-disorders?gclid=CjwKCAjwge2iBhBBEiwAfXDBR2umw6e9UsOhqbUdPCp3XsdEZJbxgEjVUXyqUvyiZe1v9Fh0GXxisxoC6jIQAvD_BwE )

(https://www.singlecare.com/blog/news/eating-disorder-statistics/)

 

There were at least four artists that caught our eye. The 4 artist that inspire our intervention was Jenny Saville, Su Yang, Kelly Bastow and Frances Cannon. All 4 of these artists shines a light on beauty standards and focuses on positive body standards as well as the way we view the female form whether that is from plastic surgery or being natural. Each artist type of painting gives out a message to anyone looking at it.

Sue Yang

Jenny Saville

Frances Cannon

Kelly Bastow

Sources:

Duncombe, Steve. Lambert, Steve. The Art of Activism. OR Books, 2021. 

Drew, K. (2020). This is what I know about art. Penguin Workshop.

Final Intervention - Internet's Influence on children

 

Hello, I'm Rafael Alvarez and I have decided to make my intervention on the Internet's

influence on children. Technology has changed our personalities in some way or another,

and newborns are no exception. From the second children are born, what they remember and do

from their first couple years develops into their brain and giving them access to the

internet at such an early age is not good for their brain development. As someone who grew

up not ever really going out unless I had to and only every focusing what was on Youtube

from my entire childhood, I gotta say it wasn't really helping me in the long run. I didn't

understand how to talk to people normally or even think I was acting odd around people

growing up, being very oblivious because I hadn't really ever thought about it. I grew up

being very loud and yelling whenever I didn't get time to use the internet, that then went

to me doing the same thing whenever I was having trouble in school. All I ever had on my

mind was when's the next time I am gonna be able to scroll through Youtube again for I

would say about 10 years I say until early high school. During high school, I had found out

that not everyone really liked my odd behavior, something that I realize now that people

also probably didn't like during middle school except I was too oblivious to realize. Then

for the rest of my time I had decided to stay quite and never act like how I did previous

to high school, a complete personality shift just because I didn't know how to handle it and

all I could think of was acting edgy will have people tolerate me more probably. I had made

this artwork as a representation of how the internet can affect children if left

unsupervised to it for years, becoming obsessed with it and making their whole identity

around it.

Final Intervention

 Erik Narvaez 

 

Mental Health

Mental health is an important part of overall well-being. It encompasses emotional, psychological and social well-being and affects how people think, feel and act. Mental health problems such as depression, anxiety and stress can have a significant impact on a person's life and interfere with their ability to perform daily activities. That's why it's important to find ways to eliminate them and promote positive mental health. In this essay, we  discuss the importance of finding a way  out of mental health problems with relevant quotes. First, mental health problems can have serious consequences if left untreated. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), mental health disorders account for approximately 14 percent of the global burden of disease. In addition, people with mental health problems have a higher risk of developing chronic physical diseases such as diabetes and heart disease. In addition, the costs of untreated mental illness are high, with  annual costs estimated to exceed $200 billion in the United States alone (Insel, 2008). Therefore, it is very important to seek treatment for mental health problems and find ways to get rid of them. Second, overcoming mental health problems can significantly improve an individual's quality of life. For example, research shows that depressed patients who receive treatment have a greater chance of  significant improvement in  symptoms (NIMH, 2018). In addition, people who exercise regularly, eat a healthy diet, and practice mindfulness techniques show less anxiety and stress (Katz et al., 2017). Therefore, finding ways to deal with mental health problems can help people live happier and healthier lives.  Third, seeking help for mental health problems can reduce the stigma associated with mental health problems. Unfortunately, there is still a significant stigma associated with mental health problems that can prevent people from seeking help. However, by talking about mental health and seeking help, people can reduce the stigma associated with mental health problems (Corrigan et al., 2015). Therefore, overcoming mental health problems can benefit not only the individual, but also society as a whole. In conclusion, mental health is an integral part of overall well-being and finding ways to address mental health issues is crucial. It is important to seek help for mental health problems because they can have serious consequences if they are not treated. In addition, overcoming mental health problems can significantly improve an individual's quality of life and reduce the stigma associated with mental health problems. Therefore, we should promote positive mental health and encourage people to seek help when needed.

Knowing all of this I conducted a survey having different people answer question about their mental health and how they procced to go about this mental health problems. This also form a part to acknowledge the fact that people have mental health problems and the different ways that they can cope with it or try to understand why those feelings come and go through there lives.

If anyone else is interested in having a check up for themself here's the link to the mini survey;

https://forms.gle/JuqrXDLefxHoEshv6 

Karen's Final Intervention

Intervention 3: Generational Trauma

 

 

For my final intervention I decided to tackle generational trauma one last time, but with a twist. Because I’m a Media major and I’m extremely into cinematography, I have decided to create replications of film posters that discuss this concept. I have decided to create three versions of these posters. Activism on generational trauma is important for me to speak on because it acknowledges the lasting effects of these traumatic experiences and seeks to promote healing and justice for those affected.

 

In the Art of Activism there’s a quote that says, “when our goal is to work with others to change the world, a focus on having noble intentions is not enough (pg. 259).”I feel like this is one of those long-lasting issues that need to be acknowledged back-to back in order to make a difference and that’s why this quote resonated with me. One of the primary reasons why activism on generational trauma is so important is because trauma can have lasting effects on individuals and communities. Trauma can manifest in a variety of ways, including anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, substance abuse, and other mental health issues. Additionally, generational trauma can also affect the social and cultural fabric of communities, leading to issues such as poverty, violence, and intergenerational conflict. By myself raising awareness of the lasting effects of trauma, activism acts can help to promote healing and address these issues further.

 

Activism on generational trauma is also important because it can help to promote justice and accountability for past wrongs. In many cases, generational trauma has been caused by systemic oppression, such as racism, colonialism, or imperialism. By acknowledging and addressing the root causes of trauma, activists can work to dismantle these systems of oppression and promote a more just and equitable society. For instance, in the Art of Activism its mentioned briefly that “by experimenting with our own pieces and working with others who have different tactics and strategies, we increase the possibility of all of us having a greater impact (pg. 258).”

 

 

Another reason why activism on generational trauma is important is because it can help to promote intergenerational healing and resilience. When trauma is acknowledged and addressed, individuals and communities can begin to heal and move forward. By promoting healing and resilience, activists can help to break the cycle of generational trauma and create a brighter future for future generations, or in other words fix the cycle.

 

Finally, activism on generational trauma is important because it can help to promote understanding and empathy between different groups of people. For example, in page 61 of Kimberly Drew’s “This is What I Know About Art”, she mentions that “our activism, like any other part of ourselves, develops into something bigger than a singular experience.” While trauma, as well as activism can be a deeply personal and isolating experience, it’s also a part of a collective. We are all interconnected. By acknowledging and sharing stories of trauma, individuals and communities can come together and find common ground. This can help to promote understanding and empathy between different groups of people and promote healing and reconciliation.

 

In conclusion, I hope to build this form of activism on generational trauma in hopes to address the legacy of trauma, so we can then create a more just and equitable society for future generations. 

 

Some of the artists that inspired me for this final intervention are as follows: 

Patrisse Cullors, an artist and activist, that is also best known as one of the co-founders of the Black Lives Matter movement. Her art focuses on racial justice and has featured anti-gentrification and prison abolitionist programming during the pandemic and protests. Cullors’s reimagines art spaces as sites of care and community. 

 

Liu Ye - Chinese painter best known for his colorful, stylized images. He often depicts young children standing before paintings and the Dutch cartoon character Miffy. Liu’s work does not focus on the political and economic changes in China, but rather seeks to depict his own playful imaginings and interests. 

Titus Kaphar - Titus Kaphar is an artist whose paintings, sculptures, and installations examine the history of representation by transforming its styles and mediums with formal innovations to emphasize the physicality and dimensionality of the canvas and materials themselves.

Zanele Muholi - Muholi self-identifies as a visual activist, and their development as a photographer is deeply intertwined with their advocacy on behalf of the LGBTQ community in South Africa and beyond.

 

                                                                           Works Cited

Drew, Kimberly. This Is What I Know About Art. Penguin Young Readers Group, 2020.

Duncombe, Stephen, and Steve Lambert. The Art of Activism: Your All-purpose Guide to Making the Impossible Possible. OR Books, LLC, 2021.

Kooness, https://www.kooness.com/posts/magazine/most-popular-contemporary-artists. 

“Discover, Buy, and Sell Fine Art.” Artsy, https://www.artsy.net/. 

Ryder, Gina. “Intergenerational Trauma: How It Affects Families.” Psych Central, Psych Central, 15 Apr. 2022, https://psychcentral.com/lib/how-intergenerational-trauma-impacts-families.