Youth Outreach/Community Engagement
In it's home region of San Diego County, CA, Project YANO engages in direct outreach to young people through local high schools. It also gives conference workshops for students and parents. Additional outreach is done via booths at public events like the annual Chicano Park Commemoration and San Diego EarthFair. Project YANO also works in various coalitions on policy issues that can have an impact on career and educational options for young people.
Developing Resources
Brochures and fliers developed by Project YANO are used by other groups nationally to help young people make educated decisions about their future. Our resources include literature on the realities of military enlistment and war, as well as information on alternatives for college funding, job training and careers in peacemaking and social change. Since Spanish-speaking communities are especially targeted for aggressive military recruitment, most of our educational materials are bilingual, and we maintain a Spanish version of our Web site.
National & International Level Work
Project YANO's national work includes providing advice and training to grassroots groups with similar goals in other communities. Some of our materials are written specifically for activists seeking to start new educational projects, particularly in places where young people normally have little information on alternatives to the military. Project YANO serves on the steering committee of The National Network Opposing the Militarization of Youth. Project YANO has also had an international impact by sharing its extensive organizing experience with a growing movement to challenge the militarization of schools in other countries.