When we first began planning the CoGen Voices Fellowship, we knew we'd face a few challenges. The group of 21 community changemakers was intentionally diverse — by age (15 to 81!), race, location, work, experience, and more. We'd have to meet many different needs and...
At CoGenerate, we believe in the power of cogeneration: a strategy to bring older and younger people together to forge bonds across differences, combat polarization and ageism, and help solve today’s toughest problems. If you’re involved or interested in cogeneration,...
https://youtu.be/OedAsZVTm9U?si=q20TIH8zuwPEhE0a Today in the US, more than 2.4 million children whose parents are unable to care for them live in grandfamilies, where they are raised by grandparents or other loved ones. Until recently, their experiences have been all...
Ernie, 80 and Cedar, 13, show off the rocks they decorated with symbols based on their conversation.Last month, I traveled to Chautauqua, a 150-year-old institute in western New York that brings thousands of people together for summer programs focused on lifelong...
On May 22, more than 1,100 people registered to learn more about the important cogenerational work our 2023 Innovation Fellows are doing. These 15 leaders are bringing generations together to solve problems and bridge divides. And each one has a unique and inspiring approach.
We kicked things off with Joseph Lam of Parents Are Human, who got the chat buzzing as attendees responded to one of his conversation cards asking them to recall a favorite childhood food.
Then we dove into group conversations, where two to four Fellows came together to discuss their intergenerational approaches to early childhood education, making activism and leadership sustainable for people of color, strengthening the connective tissue within local communities, improving mental health, getting more young people to vote, and using storytelling to increase engagement in climate change interventions.
We wrapped things up with a spoken word poem by Jon Adam Ross of the In[HEIR]itance Project, who pulled together key themes that surfaced during the event and left us with a sense of appreciation and awe.
If you missed the Innovation Showcase and want to watch the full event, we’ve got you covered. Click the play button below and you can stream an edited version.
With so much division and disagreement in our country, bringing generations together to solve problems and bridge divides has never been more important. But doing this work is difficult.
If you attended the event or watched the recording and are left feeling inspired to reach out to any of the Fellows – to offer ideas, connections that may be beneficial, offers to volunteer or make a donation – please do! You can find each one of their email addresses here. Just scroll down to the “Meet our fellows” section.
A big thank you to all the Fellows who made the event such a success. And to my co-host, Harriette Cole, who brings incredible warmth and power to everything she does.
I’ll leave you with some quotes from the Showcase, and I hope to see you at our next virtual event!
