This week on Social Citizens

Excerpts from this week's conversations on Social Citizens, which explores the potential impact of individuals who are combining their use of digital tools and people power to make change in their communities and around the globe.

Exploring the Millennial Generation's ROI

Guest blogger Maya Enista, Chief Executive Officer of Mobilize.org, shares about the upcoming Exploring the Millennial Generation's ROI convening hosted by Mobilize.org to explore the barriers between the Millennial generation and financial health.

"The current economic state for young Americans, and all Americans, is a frightening one. It tells the story of growing national debt; increasing personal debt; many instances of irresponsible spending and lending practices on college campuses and in low-income communities; inadequate health care coverage; and rapidly disappearing safety nets for our generation. These factors, coupled with the fact that we are living in a time of innovation and growth in our country, mandates that we find sustainable and creative ways to solve the problems of our society and ensure that in defining these solutions – we are not bankrupting our futures." Read more at Social Citizens

Giving a Face to the Invisible: An Interview with Mark Horvath

Kari interviewed InvisiblePeople.tv’s Mark Horvath, who epitomizes the “social citizen” by applying social media and creative ideas in innovative ways to truly bring about social change.

"Armed with just $45, a laptop, and a small hand-held camera, Mark Horvath set out on a journey that will forever change the face of homelessness in America. I had the opportunity to catch up with Mark this afternoon as he made his way back to California following a cross country road trip that documented stories of the homeless through a series of powerful, raw, and unedited videos -- all of which can be seen on his vlog, InvisiblePeople.tv. So, how do you raise awareness about a cause you are so passionate about with no money and no consistent resources to lean on? You put faith in the kindness of others, you leave a lot to chance encounters, and you leverage social media in ways that you never thought possible." Read more at Social Citizens

Young People First: Preparing for America's Future

Guest blogger Zach Kolodin is Co-Founder and Executive Director of Young People First, which aims to establish a powerful constituency of young people to advocate for long-term priorities in America, explains the Future Preparedness Index, being built to connect legislation to real world outcomes for young people.

"Although social media buzz revolves around the 24-hour news cycle, some Millennials are trying to move the horizon of the political debate a bit further into the future. Young People First (YPF) is single-mindedly committed to giving Millennials the tools to discuss, strategize, and hold political leaders responsible to a vision of a prosperous, sustainable future. YPF is building a Future Preparedness Index, with the help of young people (ages 17-35), to represent the Millennial Generation’s shared long-term interests. Future preparedness represents a vision of what a responsible government ought to provide: sustainable prosperity and security that benefits all Americans over the long term. So we are working with social citizens and youth-led organizations to produce specific future preparedness goals to which young people can hold their leaders accountable." Read more at Social Citizens