Sprog 2016 Trainer Application is now open!

Want to make a difference in the lives of youth organizers and do your part to fight for a just and sustainable world? We’re looking for a new team of Sprog Trainers for 2016, and we want you to apply! Learn more about the role here and submit your application (below) by Feburary 5, 2016.

Apply here: http://www.sierraclub.org/youth/summer-sprog-training

About Sprog: 

Sprog is a grassroots leadership training program that teaches tools for environmental and social justice activism to young folks across the country. Whether you’re already involved in a campaign or advocacy group, or you’re just starting to explore possible ways to make change in the world, Sprog’s program gives you the knowledge to make an impact in your community.

Why should I attend Sprog?

Sprog is an intensive week-long training program run by young people, for young people! Sprog will give you the tools to become a leader and make a substantial difference in the future of your community and your planet. It will connect you with a supportive network of youth activists in your region who fight similar battles and share similar passions. Past Sprog participants have described it as one of the most inspiring and fulfilling weeks of their life.

What will I learn?

Trainings at Sprog provide a comprehensive set of skills and knowledge for young people to succeed as grassroots organizers. While each training team forms its program around the interests of the participants, most Sprogs cover training topics such as:

• Campaign planning: identifying campaign goals and targets, writing strategy statements, crafting tactics, using a campaign matrix
• Leadership development: building effective bases and coalitions, working with communities, demonstrating self-care and personal productivity, facilitating group discussions
• Anti-Oppression: identifying and confronting oppression, running campaigns for justice, emphasizing anti-oppression as central to all environmental organizing
• Media: creating outreach material, interacting with reporters, writing Op-Eds, holding press conferences

For an example of the daily schedule for Sprog, click here!

In addition to daily lessons, Sprog participants learn from each other through sharing stories from their own experiences fighting for change in their communities. Whether discussed over a communal dinner or during a beautiful night hike, the experiences and advice that folks bring to Sprog is an incredibly valuable piece of the program.

So, is Sprog right for me?

Yes! Sprog’s interactive learning sessions are created to engage folks from a wide variety of backgrounds— in fact, it’s the chance to hear and share organizing stories from these diverse experiences that makes Sprog so unique. Generally, participants at Sprog range from 14 to 28 years of age and have an interest in youth movement activism. You don’t need to have any background in environmental organizing to attend, you just need to have an interest in making the world a better and more inclusive place! We especially encourage non-student youth and those who have activism backgrounds outside of the environmental movement (e.g. labor organizing, social justice work, education reform) to apply.

Click here for more information about tuitions and scholarships. 

If you have any questions about Sprog, please contact Tim Harlan-Marks at tim.harlan-marks@sierraclub.org