Three MFAD graduates are recipients of the 2010 Sappi Ideas That Matter awards.

Ashley Stevens (MFAD ’10): “The Ah Project”

Irina Lee (MFAD ’10): “First Person American”

Lara McCormick (MFAD ’07): “Build it Green! NYC”

The Ah Project:
Those close to someone with a mental illness are affected just as much as the person with the illness. The Ah Project is a community targeted to people close to someone with a severe mental illness (schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and depression). The centerpiece of the project is a website, where people use a variety of formats to express how a mental illness has affected their lives. The goals of The Ah Project are to provide support, help rid the sense of isolation, and to change the conversation around mental illness. By providing a forum for communication, support, and resources, The Ah Project helps loved ones reach the stage of acceptance more easily.

First Person American:
First Person American is an initiative by Irina Lee and The Peopling of America™ Center, part of the Statue of Liberty-Ellis Island Foundation. We focus on stories of modern immigrants in the US, and explore what it means to be American through the lens of the immigrant in an expressive, personal and narrative style. First Person American aims to change the public’s perception of immigrants and to interject a new voice through deep and poignant portraits of people who immigrated to America. The mission is to have a transformative effect on individual immigrant and non-immigrant lives and communities.

Visit the beta site:
www.firstpersonamerican.org

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Congratulations to these and the other Sappi winners.
See them here.