There’s no “slow” button on Maya Shea Penn.
The busy teen writes a blog, runs her own nonprofit, is working on an animation series and is expanding her eco-friendly clothing and accessories line.
If you haven’t uttered “whew” yet, keep reading.
The 13-year-old recently learned that some girls in developing countries had to miss school because they didn’t have sanitary products. So she got to work and is designing a line of environmentally safe cloth products that she hopes to send to those girls, perhaps in partnership with another nonprofit.
Maya also recently wrote, illustrated and published her second book, “Lucy and Sammy Save the Environment,” in an effort to teach younger kids about pollution and the importance of recycling. She received a $1,000 grant from the Pollination Project, which awards seed money to people making a difference in their communities. The money will help Maya reach more young readers in schools across the Southeast, including those in Atlanta.
Common threads that run through everything Maya does are her love for the environment, her encouragement of budding social activists and her desire to get girls to think outside traditional fields.
“Everyone has been blessed with a gift, and you should use your gift to help others,” said Maya, who lives in Canton with her parents. Maya, who is home schooled, learned a lot about giving back from her parents, Deidre, a gifted musician, and John, who owns a media and technology development company.
Maya only uses organic material for her clothes, which are mainly sold online, at festivals or through special events. Roughly 20 percent of the profits from her clothing company, which she started when she was 8, are donated to various charities.
Maya, her mother and other relatives pitch in to make the garments and handbags. “I’m really passionate about spreading the word and encouraging other people to do their part,” said Maya, whose family recycles and has an organic garden in the backyard. “Every small action can make a huge difference. I’ve been blessed with a big, diverse world. I live in it, so why shouldn’t I take care of it?”
Maya is part of a growing trend of youthful do-gooders.
Experts say it’s fueled in part by the wide reach of social media and the Internet.
Efforts include saving wildlife in Africa, asking for donations instead of gifts during special occasions and volunteering at homeless shelters.
“Through social media and an increasingly global society, young people have been empowered as leaders in their own communities and feel inspired to make their mark on the world at every age,” said Elizabeth D. Kaeser, the manager of youth leadership and recognition at New York-based generationOn, which inspires and helps equip youths to make a difference. “As schools embrace opportunities for in-school service and service-learning pedagogies, more students learn the steps needed to plan projects and support change. Many young people are not burdened by adult concerns about feasibility or cost, which makes them an insurmountable force for good.”
Maya’s work has been recognized by Black Enterprise magazine, Forbes and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference / Women’s Organizational Movement for Equality Now. She won the Black Enterprise Teenpreneur of the Year award for 2013. She has appeared on “The Steve Harvey Show” and will speak later this year at a TEDWomen conference in San Francisco.
The tech-savvy Maya built her first website a couple of years ago. Her self-confidence and poise is surprising, given her age
“She’s really hands-on,” said her father, John. “She maintains her own blog as well as the Maya’s Ideas Shop. She’s a little techno-whiz around the house. She’s been like that since she was little.”
Her mother said Maya came to her several years ago and said she wanted to start her own business, which made about $25,000 last year.
It began with headbands made of scraps found around the house. “As my business started to grow, I started to incorporate other things like hats and tank tops and bags,” Maya said. “I knew when I first started that all my products had to be eco-friendly and not harmful to the environment.”
Her parents make sure Maya has a balance in her life between school, friends, family and her passions.
The environment is key to those passions, and Maya lets nothing go to waste. She just made a bracelet out of candy wrappers. She uses empty bathroom paper rolls to store items. She created a necklace using the seed of an avocado.
“We live in such a throw-away society that there’s a lot of uses for everyday items,” John Penn said.
Father and daughter plan to team up on some major animation projects this fall at their studio, Penn Point Productions.
“It’s really a blessing,” he said, “to have a kid who is self-motivated.”
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