Power in Youth-Led Philanthropy

The Chicago-based Mikva Challenge Foundation has long believed that young people have the ability to challenge entrenched power structures and thereby exert political influence. I worked at Mikva for four years before returning to graduate school and saw firsthand how it generated programs that would help youth analyze and engage political power. Its core curriculum focuses on having youth identify issues they care about and then advocate for those issues by appealing to the decision-makers who influence and shape public policy. To successfully appeal to decision-makers with power, Mikva has found that young people first need to develop the skills to analyze power in decision-making structures.