Concerned Citizen

Jeremi Brewer

Artist Statement

For our project we decided to focus on the executive director of the Academy for Creating Enterprise, Jeremi Brewer. Jeremi Brewer received his PhD from Texas A&M University, performing his doctoral research on culture, poverty, and necessity Entrepreneurship. Jeremi conducted the majority of his research in Mexico and Brazil. He is a Peery Fellow at the Ballard Center for Economic Self-Reliance. Since December 2011, Jeremi has worked as the Executive Director of the Academy for Creating Enterprise. The Academy for Creating Enterprise provides entrepreneurial education and ongoing support to individuals in developing nations. Specifically, the Academy focuses on taking education to markets where traditional job opportunities are scarce or nonexistent. They teach students how to develop and launch their own businesses. Through this newly-acquired self-reliance, their students are able to stay in their home countries, provide for the needs of their families, and strengthen their communities. We were able to film during one of Jeremi's classes at Utah Valley University, that is specifically reaching out to Native Americans living in the Valley. Lucky for us, Aralie's husband helps teach Jeremi's class at Utah Valley University. We were able to go and film during their class, which was very interesting and intriguing. It was great to see the effect that Jeremi's program and class had on the people. Many Native Americans were there, all genuinely wanting to take something away from the class. We were able to talk to a few of them, and they seemed motivated about starting their own business' because of the program and each had a great respect for Jeremi. It's amazing that one person can help and effect the lives of so many. We were inspired to focus on Jeremi for this project for a variety of reasons. The main reason was that we had a connection to him, due to Aralie's husband working for him, so getting in contact with him wouldn't be too difficult. Also, After watching the Neighborhood and stoop sitting videos in class, we really wanted to focus on someone who was interesting in people, and helping other people. Jeremi was the perfect candidate for that, his whole career being devoted to cultures and giving people a better chance. We were also inspired by the Bill Withers' song Lean On Me, and felt it related to Jeremi well. This song is about helping others, being their support, and that is exactly what Jeremi is for many people out there.