Pan-Valley Institute

The Pan Valley Institute (PVI) was established in 1998 as a project of the American Friends Service Committee to support immigrants' participation in the civic life of California Central Valley. By providing opportunities for immigrants to come together, learn from each other, and develop strategies for exercising their rights, PVI seeks to strengthen local democracy and the voice of immigrants in the Central Valley. The Pan Valley Institute supports this process by facilitating popular workshops and cross-cultural relationship building. The guiding principles include the belief that consciousness building for social change requires vision and commitment to the long haul. Pan Valley Institute believes in people's inherent capacity to solve their own problems, guide their own learning and arrive at an understanding by themselves in collaboration with others. The Institute's theoretical approach is that there are no experts; everyone has something to bring to the table. We are only here to facilitate the process. This profile courtesy of Arts & Democracy.