ACTIVISM AND ADVOCACY ACADEMY
Summer 2025 Theme: Human Trafficking
Dates: May 18 to June 6, 2025
Location: Ft. Lauderdale (NSU Campus in Davie)
Hosts: Department of Conflict Resolution, Halmos College of Arts and Sciences
AAA Description:
The Department of Conflict Resolution at Halmos College in Nova Southeastern University is thrilled to announce the Activism and Advocacy Academy, a three-week summer program. This intensive summer program provides knowledge and practical skills training to those who want to use activism and advocacy to bring social change through peaceful means. Rooted in the theoretical foundations of peace and conflict studies, the Academy will give you the skills to navigate real-world challenges with confidence, courage, and compassion.
Activism and advocacy are about more than raising awareness; they must lead to strategic, informed action. The Academy will help participants understand how change happens, explore how social mobilization happens, and explain why the final goal should be conflict transformation for every activist and advocate. As an academy participant, you will gain insight into how power, identity, and justice issues shape social change efforts, preparing you to be a leader who engages with complex issues from an informed, nuanced perspective.
This program will be led by academics, practitioners, and activists and is designed for graduate and undergraduate students, non-profit professionals, teachers, concerned citizens, and continuing education seekers. The curriculum will cover everything from the dynamics of human trafficking to prevention and intervention methods, empowering participants to be effective agents for change.
AAA 2025 Theme:
The Activism and Advocacy Academy is designed to teach you everything you need to know about effective advocacy and activism, regardless of the issue you’re passionate about. Each year, we’ll choose a specific theme to shape the program’s focus, bringing in organizations and speakers whose work involves advocacy and activism within that area.
This year, our theme is human trafficking—all forms of trafficking. You will learn from key organizations and experts working to combat human trafficking, gaining insights into their strategies, challenges, and successes. While the focus is on human trafficking this year, the skills, frameworks, and lessons you’ll learn will apply, for example, to advocating for causes like environmental justice, racial equity, gender-based violence, and beyond.
Having a theme allows us to provide a concrete, real-world lens through which you’ll explore the universal principles of effective advocacy and activism, preparing you to address any issue you are passionate about.
To enrich the learning experience, we will invite a few NGOs to present participants with a real-world challenge related to this year’s theme. Over the three weeks, participants will work collaboratively on solutions, which they will present to the NGOs at the end of the program. This practical exercise, coupled with expert feedback, offers an invaluable opportunity to apply what you’ve learned and develop skills to transform your activism and advocacy into impactful action.
AAA Director: Dr. Pushpa Iyer
AAA Core Faculty: Dr. Pushpa Iyer, Dr. Cheryl Duckworth, Dr. Judith McKay, Dr. Ismael Muvingi, Dr. Mary Hope Schwoebel
AAA Participants: NSU graduate and undergraduate students, non-NSU undergraduate (only seniors) and graduate students, Community Members, Teachers, NGO Professionals, Activists
AAA Speakers: Expert Academics, Non-Profit Leaders, Local and National Activists
Final Award: Certificate of Completion awarded to all students who complete the three-week academy
Mode of Instruction: Lectures, Field visits, Speakers, Role-Plays/Simulations, Self-Reflections, Breakout sessions, Documentary-Discussion Sessions, Designing interventions (Case Study)
Course Credits: Six credits (2 courses equivalent) for NSU students. Students will need to register for the course.
Fees Structure:
USD 200 of your total fee is non-refundable deposit
Accommodation is dorm rooms (Single rooms with attached bathroom. You will need to bring your own towels, bed sheets and toiletries).
Fee with Accommodations (Due April 15, 2025)
Early Bird Rates (March 31, 2025)
NSU Undergraduate & Graduate Students: USD 2200 (or USD 2000 Early Bird – March 31st)
Non-NSU Undergraduate & Graduate Students: USD 2800 (or USD 2600 Early Bird–March 31st)
Non-Student/ Professionals: USD 3400 (or USD 3200 Early Bird – March 31st)
Fee without Accommodations (Due April 15, 2025)
Early Bird Rates (March 31, 2025)
NSU Undergraduate & Graduate Students: USD 1400 (or USD 1200 Early Bird – March 31st)
Non-NSU Undergraduate & Graduate Students: USD 2000 (or USD 1800 Early Bird–March 31st)
Non-Student/ Professionals: USD 2600 (or USD 2400 Early Bird – March 31st)
TO APPLY, CLICK HERE.
Questions? Email dcrs-aaa@nova.edu