GlassBuild 2024: Building the Next Generation

This year's GlassBuild once again brings labor into the spotlight. During Tuesday's GlassBuild Main Stage session—Building the World We Want to See: Building the Next Generation—Emily Pilloton-Lam shared her experiences working with young people on construction projects to serve local communities. "I believe that young people are incredibly talented and underestimated when it comes to being able to do real-life impactful work," she says at the beginning.

Teaching high school in North Carolina, Pilloton-Lam created a one-year program where students built things to fill community needs, including a farmers market in an agricultural town. Students fully designed and researched the project and presented ideas to the town. "This project came together like a homework assignment," says Pilloton-Lam. "They were out every day, building the project together. It was incredible, everyone wanted to see this come to life."

As an added bonus, 10 businesses started because they now had a venue to sell their products. "The point is to have the opportunity to build something that you're proud of, the feeling of pride and contribution to your community," says Pilloton-Lam.

In another project, students fully built two tiny homes at Opportunity Village in the California Bay Area to address the housing shortage. During this project, she noticed that young women were as talented, creative and technically knowledgeable as any other student, but there was a dynamic of self-censoring themselves and social negotiation. Pilloton-Lam started working with small groups of young women to create an intentional and welcoming environment just for young women—and out of this, Girls Garage was born. "If we're going to build a truly equitable and beautiful world, it has to be inviting to everyone," she says. "A truly equitable and diverse community."