Service Action Proposal Reflection

I know this is just a proposal, this gave me a sense of purpose. I did not think I could try to think of an idea to help out an organization significantly, and although I do not have the specifics, I do know a general idea that I could potentially put into motion. I did not think I would be able to do something like this a year ago from now, and I feel really good for being able to. The relational leadership model definitely helped me outline a proposal like this, which I am grateful for learning it. I honestly do not know what I expected initially, but I had fun with it and I am glad that it was a project, because I just have a better understanding of how to organize and possibly plan things. 

My perspective did not change of the selected area. I am already involved in Planned Parenthood Generation Action, and I am continuing to learn more about that organization. I have always been one for social justice, and this is one of the ways I can help promote that more specifically. I realize now that reproductive rights are incredibly layered and complex. Intersectionality is a big part of this movement, and I really would like to help that, as promoted in my service proposal. 

I am always eager to learn, especially about different subjects. My strengths, input and learner definitely shined in looking for a topic I normally would not have done. Usually I would have done something with environmentalism, but I wanted to get out of my comfort zone. As for my strength of context, I could see the reasons why we have these issues now, due to religion and the oppression of women, race, and LGBTQ+ people. My achiever and ideation strengths helped me think of an idea for a service action proposal, and thoroughly envisioned it. However, I had to settle on one simple idea, which was the one I am presenting with. Some other ideas were too complex, and I had way too many, thanks to that ideation strength. I narrowed down to the one that was more feasible. 

The root causes of the issue I selected has been on the issue of sexuality, and being comfortable with sexual things. Sex has been considered as a taboo in our culture for generations, due to religion. The oppression of gender, races, and LGBTQ+ people does not help this either. People need to become more comfortable with their own bodies, and talking about sexual and reproductive health. Sex organs also attain to your general health too, and should be included in health education and just in general, to avoid those problems. In order to solve the taboo of talking about issues like these, general education and exposure is needed, especially on an intersectional level. This is why I would want speakers of various backgrounds to come and speak to us. Political and religious climate would also hinder the success of this project, considering it could be censored or not funded. 

The big takeaway, as mentioned, has been that I actually could organize an impactful event. I did not think I would be capable of thinking through this type of process as a “barely” adult, but this gave me confidence that I could. Again, knowing the relational leadership model helped a ton, and I know this has made an impression on me. I know I will be able to use this process easily in the future. As a village member, I can appreciate other peoples’ ideas and could also adapt bits and pieces of their ideas to make my proposed event better, if it ever did happen. Conversing with others, even if their topic is not the same, gets you more perspectives and thinking more about your own. The village has helped me grow as a person, a learner, and most especially, a leader in this way, as it reflects the relational leadership model.