Artists + Practitioners + Organizations

Via International promotes sustainable development by engaging and supporting leaders in emerging communities. The organization is driven by and centered on including community voices and strengthening (“formation”) community leadership. It is committed to meeting leaders where they are and working together to identify solutions that elevate communities. Via International works through the lens of asset-based community development, which builds off already present strengths and assets. It encourages a participatory process where people identify their needs and act to improve their quality of life, families, and communities.

Playwrights Project empowers people of all ages and backgrounds to voice stories through theatre, inspiring individual growth and creating meaningful community connections. Its vision is to sustain an inclusive, compassionate community that broadens minds through the power of creativity and theatre. It champions individual voices, with a focus on uplifting underserved communities through equitable, inclusive, and anti-racist practices that raise BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, and similarly marginalized individuals. Programs serve youth in San Diego schools and individuals of all ages who have experienced poverty, homelessness, foster care, immigration, substance use disorder, the justice system, and the military. 

San Diego State University Research Foundation is a nonprofit supporting San Diego State University (SDSU). The foundation supports and furthers the vision and research objectives of San Diego State University and helps faculty and staff find, attract, and administer their research and sponsored programs. SDSU-Imperial Valley fulfills its mission to generate new knowledge and attain distinction through excellence in its faculty's research, scholarship, and creative activity with support from the foundation. The Imperial Valley Campus is a satellite campus of San Diego State University in Calexico, near the U.S.-Mexico border. The community is devoted to exceptional research, teaching, student success excellence, and creative and scientific innovation.