FINDING YOUR CHALLENGE ZONE by GYA admin Photo: Trek EpicA comfort zone is a nice place to be. It is easy, it is relaxing, it is…well, very comfortable. It is important for us to occupy our comfort zones regularly: a comfort zone minimizes stress and anxiety, gives us a sense of control over our lives and environments, and allows us the satisfaction of feeling like we have enough—love, support, nourishment, care—even for just a moment. This is an essential space for humans to maintain if we don’t want to exist in a constant state of adrenaline- and cortisol-fueled movement through…
Leadership
Career Starter’s Guide to Gap Year and Experiential Education by Elizabeth Bezark This is the guide I wish I had seen on my first visit to the Gap Year Association website when I was fresh out of college with a plate that was full of passion for the field, but empty of professional experience. Experiential education can be a challenging field to break into! However, if you stick with it, you’ll make incredible connections and form enriching relationships while you build experience and land your first jobs. I developed a Career Starters Guide to Gap Year and Experiential Education, which…
My Experience as a Black Participant-Turned-Leader of the Rising Earth Immersion by Psalms White, originally published under the same title on the Eco Institute Blog. Posted with permission from the author. As I do believe in a higher power, it feels like divine intervention that my path has converged with the Eco-Institute’s —a hidden gem just 20 minutes from The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where I received my undergraduate degree in May of 2020. While I was in college, I had no knowledge this space even existed before my friend Abbey participated in the Eco-Institute’s Rising Earth…
Kai Johnson on Leadership & Transformation with Kai Johnson To Gap is to Grow. To Gap is to Transform. My first gap year experience came during my sophomore year of University. Like so many others, I had gone on to university because it was “what you do.” After a year of excessive drinking during my freshman year, I ended up with multiple drinking tickets before starting my sophmore year, and a court mandated drinking education class. I was confused, depressed, and lost. I had no idea why I was in school, no idea what I wanted to study, and no…
Voices Project Video: Alison Sever on the Big Questions & Gap Year with Alison Sever Alison is a gap year alumna (’09) and served as chair of the GYA Alumni Committee until 2019. She has mentored dozens of gap students on diverse gap experiences all over the world. Alison’s facilitation style is largely influenced by her background in outdoor education and her training in contemplative practices including yoga instruction (RYT-200, Yoga Alliance) and the Buddhism-inspired eco-philosophy The Work That Reconnects. Most recently she is growing her edge as a gardener, herbalist, and fermenter as means of revitalizing the human-Earth relationship….
What Matters More Than Talent: Meta-Learning By Blake Boles I once led a six-week leadership retreat for five young people taking self-directed gap years. I rented them their own apartment in the bustling town of Ashland, Oregon, and challenged them to devise a clear set of independent learning goals, which they would pursue with daily mentorship from me and my co-leader. One student wanted to learn about biology and Kendo; another wanted to improve her photography and web design skills. So I sent them away to interview biologists, martial arts instructors, photographers, and designers. My students boldly introduced themselves to…