Get Right Livelihood on the Ballot

UCSC’s Right Livelihood College (RLC) connects activism and academia, boosting urgent and long-term social change. We link students with winners of the Right Livelihood Award and the movements they are part of – some of the world’s most successful changemakers – to build solidarity with global movements and be more effective in our social and environmental change work. 

Founded in 2013, we are the only campus in North America in the global RLC network spanning five continents. Based on our success, UCSC has been invited to lead and coordinate this global RLC network, providing us a unique opportunity to increase student engagement and make major contributions to people and the planet. 

We have the leadership, network, and legacy of successful activism to build on and are considering adding a fee measure to next year’s ballot to amplify student engagement. The fee would go directly to fund student activism on our most important issues via workshops and training with changemakers, scholarship and grant opportunities for undergrad research, travel, and projects, and student leadership positions. See rightlivelihood.ucsc.edu/vote for more. 

Frequently Asked Questions:

Q: What are you trying to accomplish?

A: We’re focused on power and opportunities.

• • Power. The power of students to organize, and empower current and future students
    • Students reclaiming their power
    • We want to invigorate the culture of student activism on campus
    • People want to win on campaigns, esp. on affordable housing / housing justice
  • Opportunities 
    • If a fee measure is on the ballot and passes, it will give you something as a student
    • Build your resume
    • Leveraging unprecedented access to Laureates and the social movements they’re part of
  • How do we do this? By creating a fund for student activists for workshops/trainings, grants, scholarships, research positions, field studies, and investing in the mobilization of student knowledge.

Q: What would winning this campaign, if it’s on the ballot, allows us to do?

A:

• • Renewed culture of strategic student activism on campus in order to win campaigns around issues such as housing justice, racial justice, sustainability
    • A weekly networking meeting for student activists, with food and tea. Meet “who’s who” from student orgs
    • Larger quarterly gatherings and strategic planning meetings for student activists 
    • Workshops on community organizing 
  • Events to support activist culture
    • Annual lecture/workshop with Right Livelihood Laureate
    • Summer institute with specific theme each year hosted at Santa Cruz open to our international network 
  • Research and education to support undergraduate excellence 
    • Study Abroad travel scholarships (this year going to India, next year Chile) 
    • Seed and Innovation grant= allow students to apply for projects with laureates that we would be able to connect them with laureates and fund them 
  • Funding for student staff and internships
  • Supplies (printing, student media etc)

Q: What do Right Livelihood students do now?

A: We (1) build networks to empower current and future students, (2) build community and train ourselves through workshops and events, (3) Student staff positions – gaining valuable skills as community organizers and research assistants, and (4) have classes, internships, and field studies.

Q: What do you support?

A: We have 190 Laureates from 80 countries supporting intersectional and systemic change in wide range of topics including culture and education, human rights, gender and racial justice, health, peace, sustainability. Click here to learn about the Laureates.