upcoming grant deadline: 05/15/2024

upcoming grant deadline: 05/15/2024

Dao-yuan Chou

view profile
Dao-yuanchou

2005 Leeway Transformation Award – $15,000

For Dao-yuan, finding the creative means to tell stories of struggle – from her talks with women in the Philippines who are fighting for land reform to garment shop workers in Philadelphia’s Chinatown demanding just working conditions – as part of an accessible people’s history, is the driving force of her work. Dao-yuan’s writing has grown deeper in the last few years while working as a member of the CommunitY Organizing Collective, working alongside youth from Chinatown. The way she perceives her writing has shifted, by being engaged in struggle on the ground, changing the context for what she believes makes storytelling about revolution compelling or relevant in current times. As a Chinese person born in the U.S., she has worked hard to figure out ways to respectfully reclaim the revolutionary history of China, one that is wiped out of history books and replaced with glorified “dynasty history.” Working with CYOC, Dao-yuan sees the importance of this history in current struggles, as well as the larger movement. Her writing seeks to “creatively present a relevant and galvanizing picture of social change through people’s stories.” In efforts to create accessible and functional art, her projects utilize a multi-disciplinary approach, including: life narratives, oral histories; historical accounts of people’s struggle; storytelling; and critical analysis. As Dao-yuan is able to increasingly integrate her writing in an accountable way to the struggles themselves, she sees her art having an “impact on folks on the ground in people’s movement, as a way to popularize their work, garner support, and provide the opportunity for reflection and analysis.”

APPLY FOR A

Leeway grant?

Window of Opportunity Grant

The Window of Opportunity (WOO) grant provides financial assistance of up to $1,500 to Leeway grant and award recipients to help them take advantage of imminent, time-sensitive opportunities to support their art for social change practice. The Community Care Fund (CCF) provides financial assistance of up to $1,250 to Leeway grant and award recipients to support with immediate and essential emergency needs. [read more]

deadline
Upcoming events
04/025:30 pm - 7:00 pm

4/2 Transformation Award (LTA) Awardee Panel + Info Session (In Person)

Have questions about the application process for the Leeway Transformation Award (LTA)?

[learn more]

04/185:30 pm - 6:30 pm

4/18 Transformation Award (LTA) Info Session (Virtual)

Have questions about the application process for the Leeway Transformation Award?

[learn more]