In the last few years, I’ve met not one, but two remarkable young women named Anya. Both have worked hard to find ways of earning a living doing something they enjoy. Our last guest blogger was Anya Kemenetz. In this post, meet Anya Kandel.

Part Two ~ ANYA KANDEL, Social Entrepreneur

I met Anya Kandel last January. We were both presenters at a leadership conference for high school students and their mentors. I watched in awe as this 26 year old handled a room of 300+teens and adults with ease—a feat that can take years for some presenters to do well.

Anya has strong skills in communication, story-telling, theatre, visual arts, cross-cultural appreciation and communication. Her interests are making the world a better place and helping teens learn how to transform themselves into the young adults they want to be. To teach teens how to begin that transformation, Anya uses art and storytelling.

Anya has the skills of a veteran speaker. She is gifted, relaxed, lively, educational, challenging and playful.

One of the most intriguing parts of her presentation was teaching us “Yes, let’s…” Anya would pose a question to someone in the audience. The questions were not simple, but after the third, “Yes, let’s…” response, the atmosphere in the room shifted. Table groups began to strategize how they could make something happen, rather than simply close off discussion by answering, “No,” too often the usual response when teens suggest a new idea, activity or project.

At 24, Anya found her best career fit was to create her own job through creating a non-profit called Momentus International. Anya describes the work of Momentus as an ongoing international conversation through art.

Anya looks for how to get things done, not for excuses as to why they can’t be done. In that, her interest in teens and connecting with cultures outside the US, she and I are sisters-of-the spirit.

Anya also represents my road not taken. At some point after graduation with a Cultural Anthropology degree, I lost the courage to explore where my gifts and interests could take me in the world of work. I settled for finding where I could fit. While my career in careers used my skills with people and my knowledge culture and cultural dynamics, I still wonder what might have been had I possessed Anya’s courage of vision.

Momentus is now trying out a new project called the Flag of Intention. Local groups will create 10×10 flags that will be tied together in a communal flag that represents our collective intention to better our local communities. If you or a group you belong to want to be a part of this pilot project, contact Anya at www.momentusinternational.org/flag/

At 26, Anya is approaching elder status in her own generation. As a guest blogger, Anya has posted the following letter to young people. In it, she details some of the global changes that will affect their lives, now and into the future.

“You are our future leaders. Beyond the United States is a world where borders are continually changing, vanishing, and being redrawn. However, no matter how much borders change, they are also the points where bridges are being built for the growth of our global economy, our global environmental health, our communal future. As young people, we are the also the bridges that will be shepherding our global community into the future. This idea can be both inspiring and daunting, but you are not carrying the entire world on your shoulders alone. . We have each other—and we need each other—to build all of our futures in a sustainable way. To do that successfully, we need to learn how to communicate across borders, whatever form they may take. That is the mission of Momentus International: Using art and story telling to learn ways of communicating across borders (psychological and physical) and to teach those skills to others.

Many people claim that our youth are our future. Do adults really hear them? Not many and not often, which is a shame, because your insights into our world are unique glimpses into our future. By working with young people around the world, I have noticed this inequity gives you power. When you do make yourself heard, people will listen, because you challenge the adult expectation that you will remain silent. And, when you come together as a group, you are many and your message will travel further.

Communicating is really just a form of storytelling, and storytelling is easy. We do it all the time. I love storytelling, because it is not so much the story itself that is important, but the process of storytelling, where we hear and listen to each other. And, it can really help you find a job too! Everyone likes to be heard, and stories do not require any prerequisites other than living. Ask people—professionals, coaches, teachers, parents, friends, people you think are impressed by—how they got to where they are today. Once they realize that they are being heard, there is a better likelihood that they will hear you, help you, and introduce you to a new person (and a new story).

Also, young people in Ghana have asked you questions. You can add more to your story by answering their questions. Watch them here. Young People in Ghana Asking Questions Students display their Flags of Intention

Keep on telling your story.

Respectfully Yours, Anya”
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Anya Kandel is typical of many in her generation who have a drive to create something lasting that works. A surprising number of young adults have become social entrepreneurs developing sustainable projects that will continue to improve the lives of those who participate.

Does being a social entrepreneur sound like a job you’d enjoy?