On Wednesday, February 26, 2020, Millennial Action Project Founder and President Steven Olikara participated in the NEXUS USA Summit, an annual event that brings together social entrepreneurs and philanthropists in order to impact today’s world.  The event took place at the United States Institute of Peace. Olikara was a featured speaker during the opening night plenary, which included speeches from: Jason Carter, the Carter Foundation; Sara Minkara, Empowerment Through Integration; Bob Dalton, Sackcloth & Ashes; and many more influential leaders.

In the evening, the plenary opened with a tribal welcoming which was followed by a speech from Bob Dalton, Founder of Sackcloth & Ashes, a 1-to-1 organization that donates a blanket to a local homeless shelter for every blanket purchased from them.  He spoke about the impact of his business and how his mother’s fall into homelessness changed his perspective on people without homes. Other speeches included a moving presentation from Jason Carter, grandson of President Jimmy Carter. He spoke of his grandfather’s foundation and the impact that it has had eradicating Africa’s Guinea worm problem.  His message was that small change makes the biggest difference, saying that by starting with your community, you can improve the world. Many other speakers presented similar stories of inspiration, showing the powerful work they have done in the world.  

As the last speaker of the night, Olikara spoke about the impact that music has had on his worldview.  He told the story of his time as a musician in his hometown of Milwaukee, WI community. “Every time we would play to a multi-racial audience, these were expressions of American democracy in action...We live in a highly divided, divisive, dysfunctional democracy where it feels like our voices aren’t translating into real action.” Steven’s message was that radical change is needed. He referenced a recent shooting that occurred that same night in his hometown, saying that radical change is needed, “We need to bring what we have to the table to create solutions.”  Steven concluded by once again referencing his time as a musician. He compared the call-and-response nature of jazz to politics, saying, “Democracy is a call-and-response political system, you have to listen before you can create change.”