20th Anniversary Stories

Kamisraki to everyone reading this, my name is Jair, and to some students, I’m known as “Mr. Ja” or “Mr. Yahir.” I’m an indigenous community organizer and advocate in the multiple struggles for climate and social justice. I am also a program facilitator for the Fly By Light program across multiple schools in the District. Hola!…

Kamisraki a todos leyendo, mi nombre es Jair, pero mis estudiantes me dicen “Mr. Ja” o “Mr. Yahir.” Soy un organizador indígena que lucha contra el cambio climático y por la justicia social. También soy facilitador del programa Volar por La Luz que se lleva a cabo en varias escuelas dentro del distrito.  Volar por La…

As the Program Associate at One Common Unity (OCU), I work closely, day to day, with the Program Director and Program Facilitators to ensure FLY BY LIGHT is the best it can be and that everyone has what they need to succeed. Of the five OCU pillars in our Fly By Light curriculum, social-emotional learning (SEL) is a…

As a FBL program facilitator, artist, photographer, activist and gardener, I am passionate about holistic wellness, nature, yoga, plants, social justice movement work, and cooking. I grew up in Washington, DC and am proud to be working here.  In Fly By Light programming, I use visual art, photography, dialogue and creative writing to support students…

by One Common Unity’s Program Director, Shaden Dowiatt  Fly By Light (FBL) is a youth development program that weaves together the pillars of Artistic Expression, Social Emotional Literacy, Health and Wellness, Environmental Leadership, and Social Justice. In the FBL program, youth leaders have the space to express, grow, transform and heal. Fly By Light is unique because it…

The birth of the Fly By Light youth program was the midway point; it was the decision to focus our energy and place all of our efforts toward one program. In this way we stopped spreading ourselves thin by trying to do everything, and instead kept our energy focused on just doing one thing really…

When Hawah reached out to me to film the follow-up reunion film to the original FLY BY LIGHT movie, it was not even a choice, but an immediate jump! For the joy of reconnecting and reflecting and playing once again in the mountains with young people, I simply love, and for the responsibility to continue…