Guest post from the Green Dot team at the YWCA of Silicon Valley!
Imagine you are walking down the hallway of the YWCA Silicon Valley and you notice a small green dot taped to the wall. You ask yourself, “What is this?” But as you do, you notice another dot ahead and then another, until you are taken to a wall covered in Green Dots. Happily these dots are not mold; instead they are the beginning of the Green Dot Strategy Launch in Silicon Valley. Looking closer you notice there is writing on each Green Dot. Upon further investigation, you realize each dot contains a vignette, a story recounting how someone exhibited a behavior, choice¸ word¸ or attitude that promoted safety for everyone and communicated an utter intolerance for violence in our community.  

            This is what you would have experienced if you walked down the hall of the YWCA Silicon Valley last week for the Week Without Violence. The initial Green Dot stories were written by the Green Dot team and their Rape Crisis Center co-workers, but as the week went on, more and more dots popped up, like the outbreaks of an epidemic just like in the film  “Contagion”. YWCA staff and clients were encouraged and motivated to post their own Green Dot stories both from the inspirational stories on the wall and a persuasive presentation given by one of the Green Dot team members.
The goal of this endeavor was not only to educate and involve YWCA staff and clients in the Green Dot movement but also to encourage advocacy for the Project so that the Green Dots could continue to flow both inside and outside of the YWCA, especially as the launch of the Green Dot Strategy at De Anza College in January approaches….
Stay tuned for more updates, but in the meantime-
Let your green dots flow!

For more information on Green Dot at the YWCA of Silicon Valley, please contact Stacey, Della, Leandra, or Joan from the YWCA!
Della: dduncan@ywca-sv.org
Stacey: scarlotta@ywca-sv.org
Leandra: lpeloquin@ywca-sv.org
Joan: jfriessnig@ywca-sv.org