Rachel Barnard's project, “Young New Yorkers”, is a powerful example of creativity as a force for good. 

It’s a diversion program for young people who have been arrested in NYC that uses art and creativity as an alternative to the criminal legal system.

An Australian-born architect, Rachel won a fellowship in 2011 from Columbia University's architecture school for her proposal for "Young New Yorkers", a public art platform for teens who had been arrested as adults. Her project went on to become a radical new alternative to jail for teenagers who had been arrested and prosecuted classified as adults.  As she confesses during the podcast, she pitched the idea to a judge explaining that she’d won a fellowship to fund the project - but somehow forgot to mention that her fellowship was in fact, for Architecture!

Via a creative process called Mapping, she has assisted over 1,400 young people to exit the criminal legal system. In this role, she partnered with multiple criminal legal agencies including NYC Criminal Courts, Kings County DA's Office, NYC Department of Probation, and the New York Police Department.  

It's a stunning story of how lives can be changed forever with a clear vision, a lot of grit and a dash of creative magic.

Rachel is a coach, entrepreneur, and artist. She created the proprietary Map process that allows creative entrepreneurs to get unstuck and achieve their wildest dreams. She has been acknowledged in the media and has received awards and fellowships. She holds a Master of Science in Advanced Architectural Design from Columbia University and a Bachelor of Architecture from the University of Queensland.

LINKS:

Rachel Barnard - Special Guest

•  LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/rachel-g-barnard-49335751/
• Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/redgwenblue/
• Website - http://mapwithrachel.com
• Young New Yorkers - https://www.youngnewyorkers.org

Paul Fairweather - Co-host

https://www.paulfairweather.com

Chris Meredith - Co-host

https://www.chrismeredith.com.au

Two Common Creatives

https://www.twocommoncreatives.com/podcast