Zachi Elias

Starting at age 5, volunteering at a local shelter alongside his family helped Zachi build an awareness of social fairness. These early experiences, together with being born and raised in Washington DC, laid the foundation for his interest in housing equity, and afforded him the amazing opportunity to become the youngest and first high school student on birdSEED's Advisory Board.

His strong interest in history led him to study and create a blog on the underrecognized contributions and sacrifices of Black African soldiers in World War II, and he is developing a research paper intended for publication on this issue. Zachi launched a History Film Series in his school's History Club, to start conversations among his classmates about these and related historical topics. He also attended the summer program at the National History Academy and will attend The National Institute of American History and Democracy.

Volunteering hours with the American History Digital Transcription Project, Zachi transcribed historical documents, such as narratives from enslaved people and American soldiers. He has tutored affordable housing youth residents and serves as a student worker for a small anti-violence initiative for youth in affordable housing. Through a training program at a local social justice non-profit, he improved his photography skills to highlight social issues including housing, and he will expand on this as a recipient of his school's Visual Arts Fellowship.

Zachi appreciates the opportunity to play a part in birdSEED's efforts to address disparities in housing ownership.