We empower young people to work towards achieving the peace they envision in their communities through interdisciplinary projects and events
What We Do
EnvisionPeace is our “initiatives branch,” created as a result of seeing the success of our two former initiatives, ArtPEACE and LeadTalks. ArtPEACE used the power of art and creativity in fueling movements to build peace, while LeadTalks presented young people with inspirational role models who have overcome adversity to become a leader. Understanding that there will always be a myriad of issues to address, we decided to merge the two teams together to create one whole “initiatives branch,” that can focus on numerous tasks at once. As a result, EnvisionPeace’s overarching mission became to empower young people to work towards achieving the peace they envision in their communities through interdisciplinary projects and events
Upcoming Event:
Our first in-person Leadership and Peacebuilding Conference!
Our Latest Speaker:
Justin Graves
Justin Graves (M.A.Ed.) meets one new person every day. He uses this goal to learn from those who may be different from him, to seize opportunities to help them, and to help everyone feel a little more included. This exercise in engagement and service stems from a belief that inclusion and compassion have the power to change our lives and our world.
As founder and owner of HESONWHEELS (hEEz-AWn-wEElz), Justin uses his platform as a motivational speaker, community leader, mentor, and blogger to educate on the importance of social engagement, community inclusion, and disability advocacy. His unique brand of inclusion-advocacy has been featured in various media forms and even recognized by the First Lady of the United States, Michelle Obama, and the Obama presidential administration.
As a two-time alum of Virginia Tech (’12, ’14), he is one of the proudest Hokies you’ll ever meet. Serving as a director on the board of the university’s international Alumni Association, he embodies what it means to be an ambassador of Virginia Tech and is generous with his time, talent, and treasure as an active alumnus of the university.
A charismatic, engaging, and authentic presenter, Justin aspires to give back by spreading his inspiring message, "life is all about what you have done for other people." He wants everyone to know that being a successful leader, follower, community member, and a human being could be less about our achievements and so much more about our mindset.
You may be surprised to learn that while HESONWHEELS is Justin’s passion job it’s not his day job. By day, he serves as a management and program analyst for information technology and human capital at the Department of Homeland Security in Washington, D.C. He began his career at DHS in 2007 as an intern and, today, is responsible for student programs as well as the recruitment, engagement, and recognition of 500+ IT and cyber federal employees. By night, he is dog dad to 14- year-old beagle-hound mix named Charlotte Petre-Graves.
You can learn more about Justin, his work, and his pup, Charlotte, @HESONWHEELS on most social media platforms or by visiting HESONWHEELS.COM
Past Speakers
Sarah Parshall Hagos
Sarah Parshall Hagos is a Restorative Justice Specialist with Fairfax County Public Schools. In addition to supporting Restorative Justice and Restorative Practices implementation across the school district, Sarah also manages the program data and student led restorative justice honor councils. In addition to sharing her story, Sarah facilitated a workshop that led to an engaging dialogue on the effectiveness of restorative justice.
Cheyenne Boyce
Cheyenne has worked for and participated in a variety of programs designed to promote cross-cultural understanding and international education. Currently, she is the Director of Program Development at the Confucius Institute U.S. Center. Prior, as an English Teacher Assistant, Cheyenne founded a Multicultural Club at her school and designed and facilitated a cultural exchange program for her students in Kedah, Malaysia, with students from a partner school in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia. Cheyenne joined us to highlight how promoting peace education and cross-cultural understanding can create positive changes in the broken education system.
Isra Chaker
Isra Chaker is a civil right activist, campaigning expert, and public speaker. She serves as the Senior Refugee, Migration and Protection Campaign Lead at one of the leading international NGOs in the world, Oxfam; where she uses her campaigns expertise in managing this campaign that advocates for vulnerable people such as refugees, asylees, temporary protected status (TPS) holders, and opposes discriminatory policies such as the Muslim Bans. Isra shared how the Muslim Ban affected her career and how it inspired her to do more work in peacebuilding.
Shane McCarty
Shane McCarty is an Organizational-Developmental Psychologist who is co-creating a culture of more care and less harm. He is a co-founder of the nonprofit organization, Promote Care & Prevent Harm, which conducts research on how power relates to care-harm, develops training programs and consults for organizations on how to leverage promotion/prevention science toward safety, relationships, mental wellness, and peace behaviors. Shane joined us in sharing concepts on promotive and preventive habits and how it’s connected to youth community organizing.