/ By Tamieka Briscoe / The image of a cardboard box has been inextricably associated with urban homelessness for decades. Enter Tina Hovsepian, a Los Angeles native and architect with a desire to combat one of the city’s most devastating challenges—and who responded in 2007 with a simple, cost-effective defense: Cardborigami. Cardborigami, a nonprofit startup,…
Robert Fersh is the President of Convergence, an organization based in Washington, DC that he founded in 2009. We’re inspired by Fersh’s passion for bringing people together who, despite having drastically different points of view, manage to come up with solutions that go the distance to incite meaningful change in the world. Robert is going…
/ By Debra Rainey / Changemakers from across the country will gather at Upswell in Los Angeles, November 14-16, to move boldly toward our common goal to make positive change, improve lives, and create a better world. We’ll also honor one exceptional leader whose life’s work has exemplified the lofty ideals that we’re striving to…
/ By Debra Rainey / Our community of changemakers is chock-full of emerging leaders doing amazing work in neighborhoods across the country. So imagine how difficult it is to identify and recognize one accomplished changemaker whose work makes them a leader among outstanding next-generation leaders? Take our word for it, it’s really tough. But, each…
Apple Sepulveda is a pediatric occupational therapist at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. She also serves as Interim Chair/Vice-Chair of 2020 Mom, an LA-based organization dedicated to maternal mental health, that is no stranger to the Upswell blog. Previously, we have shared Q&As with 2020 Mom Board Chair Kiley Krekorian Hanish and Executive Director Joy Burkhard.…
Jim McCorkell is founder and CEO of College Possible, a nonprofit organization that helps promising low-income students prepare for college and graduate from college – and he’ll be joining us in November at Upswell! Jim grew up as part of a low-income family, and his parents were unable to finish high school or attend college.…
If you’re working to address a social challenge, create positive change, and improve lives – and you’d like to do all those things in a more efficient and effective way – then you’ll want to hear what Ann Mei Chang has to say when she takes the stage this November in the Upswell Public Square.…
As you might expect, Carola Secada’s experience in planning multiple community dinner experiences throughout LA for Upswell changemakers has been interesting, inspiring, and sometimes overwhelming – all at the same time. More than “just dinner,” she’s working to provide Upswell attendees with community experiences that reflect LA’s vibrant range of cultures and food offerings, and…
/ By Debra Rainey / Upswell is for changemakers, but what are you trying to change? The world, of course. But that’s a pretty tall order. What if you could spend 60 to 90 minutes changing yourself – your outlook, knowledge base, skill set, toolbox, or network? Could you leverage those changes in pursuit of…
It’s hard to overemphasize the opportunity we have in front of us. In November, 1,500 diverse changemakers are coming together in Los Angeles. Or, to put it another way, we’re all going to have access to tens of thousands of years of knowledge, experience, success, and even a few failures. Upswell is being built to…