Ep 48: Multicultural advocacy platforms explained

Sonya Colattur is a high school junior and a passionate changemaker in her community. She is one of Arizona’s Junior Achievement 18 Under 18 recipients for 2022, she is a TedX Youth Speaker and she is also a member of the Arizona Governor’s Youth Commission. Sonya is the Founder of a 501©3 nonprofit organization, GrandPaws Pantry, which she started at the age of 10-years-old, to assist seniors with companion pets living in assisted living facilities. Her most personal contribution to her community is the youth organization, The Color Of Us, which she founded because of her own multiracial and multicultural heritage and the need to create a safe-space community for other multiracial/multicultural youth to share their experiences and creative talents. Through The Color Of Us, she has petitioned the AZ Board of Education to include multiracial literature in public school curriculums for K-12 grades. Sonya successfully advocated for Arizona Governor Doug Ducey to issue a proclamation recognizing June 7-14 as Multiracial Heritage Week in Arizona, making Arizona the 20th state in the nation to do so. Sonya is also a nationally ranked competitive archer who enjoys coaching beginner youth archers and introducing them to the sport of archery.