We’re all determined to save the world. For the students at Davis Senior High School, they’re taking the initiative to do just that through the power of written word. Davis’ very own student-run The World Spectra Magazine launched its first publication last month.

Spectra is a nonprofit journal featuring student works on different perceptions of the world. Led by Davis Senior High School fourth-year and editor-in-chief Linda Ge, the magazine was founded in August 2012. Last month, the team of 14 Davis high school students contributed to successfully launching its first issue.

“We want to teach people to appreciate others,” said Ge in an email interview. “We want to learn from new voices and from experts.”

According to Spectra’s website, the magazine aims to bridge communities and cultures from all over the world. Spectra showcases a collection of works by people in their teens to their 60s, providing a wide range of experiences and perceptions about any human experience. The magazine publishes works in different forms such as articles, poems, photos and personal essays.

“I have always loved listening to people tell their stories and believe very, very strongly that if people actually listened to each other, then we would have a lot less problems in this world,” said Shelby Ziccardi, Da Vinci Charter Academy third-year and Spectra CEO, in an email interview.

The magazine is based in Davis and is run solely by nine students from Davis Senior High School and five from Da Vinci Charter Academy.

“Spectra remains entirely student-run: in learning how to produce the publication, staff members have had to learn about management, marketing, publishing and graphic design, all in our free time,” Ge said.

However, contributors to the magazine come from all over the world, including Bangladesh, Australia and Germany. Ge said that they are lucky to live in an internet era.

To recruit writers, the team relies mostly on flyers, social media sites and word of mouth, according to Elsa Young, Da Vinci Charter Academy third-year and Spectra public relations officer. It also recruits writers abroad.

“We are advertising Spectra abroad mainly by soliciting stories from international people, although we are also working with the UC Davis Humphrey Fellows and Team Blend (a student group at Da Vinci that travels to Nicaragua each summer) to spread our name,” Young said in an email interview. “Getting contributors from abroad is simply a matter of reaching out on social media sites (like Flickr) and emailing people we think will have a good story to share, regardless of whether we know them personally or not.”

Although the first issue is only available online, Spectra plans to publish both online and print publications thrice a year.

“We do plan on publishing our next issue in print,” Ge said. “The problem with printing our first issue was our lack of funds and knowledge about printers. We’ll be better-prepared for the next issue though.”

In order to bring communities together, Ge said that they plan to provide copies of Spectra to developing countries through physical print or e-reader editions.

“By publishing stories written by community members and then distributing them abroad, Spectra has the power to create understanding between different cultures and societies,” Young said.

The magazine is currently free to everyone. In the future, a “buy a copy, donate a copy” option may be introduced to compensate printing costs, according to Ge. She said that the team has also talked to various organizations and student groups about bringing Spectra to their travels in developing countries.

“We are excited about reaching an audience that would otherwise be unable to learn about how cultures outside of their own operate,” Ge said.

Ge said that the Spectra team believes in education, empowerment of minority groups and entrepreneurship. The members portray this partly through the knowledge they would offer students in developing countries, hands-on business and publishing experience the team gets and eventually sponsoring women entrepreneurs with small businesses.

UC Davis students can also get involved with Spectra by sharing their stories or through mentorship.

“We are extremely enthusiastic about reading and publishing true personal accounts from UC Davis students, whose own life experiences are varied and unique,” Ge said. “Additionally, we would love to receive mentorship in the fields of legal matters and business (particularly in accounting). If any readers have ideas as to how Spectra could collaborate with UC Davis student groups, we would love for them to contact us.”

To learn more about Spectra Magazine and check out the first issue, visit spectra.co.nr.

“We believe that when people truly understand one another and their stories, any conflict can be resolved, any bond can be created and a whole new way of life can be formed,” Ziccardi said.

JOYCE BERTHELSEN can be reached at features@theaggie.org.

Long legs strut down a walkway as photographers flash pictures of models and designers beam with smiles as their new fashions are on display. Yep, it’s that time of year again — the latest styles emerge with spring around the corner. What you may not know is that the Sac Fashion Week creates many opportunities for students right here at UC Davis.

Sacramento Fashion Week, which takes place from Feb. 24 to March 2, features 18 designers, six boutiques, a film on fashion exhibition, three workshops and a number of stylish parties. Originally launched in the spring of 2006, it launches designers and models into the fashion business and links entrepreneurs, makeup artists, photographers, advertising companies, hair stylists and many more.

Duane Ram, executive director of Sac Fashion Week, says that he and his team usually start planning almost a year in advance.

“You can’t come out to put on a full week’s schedule right off the bat,” Ram said. “In the early years we had a launch party and then a fashion show which in all took less than a month to produce. With a full week it can take up to a full year. We usually take a month off to recoup and then we start the planning. [By] November … we pretty much [work] full time on the production.”

Jillian Walke, a first-year design major at UC Davis, has never been to a professional fashion show before but wants to check out Sac Fashion Week.

“I like to learn and combine different elements from a variety of designers, so SFW would be a fabulous opportunity to observe many different styles and trends from plenty of designers,” Walke said.

Any designer, established or aspiring, can submit their work via sacfashionweek.com by submitting a letter of intent, a biography, a professional profile headshot, sketches and a press kit.

Although Ram said that designers of any age can submit work, the team working behind the scenes at Sac Fashion Week does look for professionalism and talent.

“I’ve never put an age limit for designers; however, we want to make sure that the designers are able to produce a full collection. If you send stick figures we are not gonna take you seriously. A featured designer [must] submit sketches and [a] storyboard for [their] collection,” Ram said.

Ram moved to the larger Sacramento area in 2005 and noticed that the fashion scene was pretty small, and that there were no large-scale events to showcase fashion.

“Everything was done in clubs and bars. Not that these venues were bad, it just wasn’t showcasing the designers very well. We have a lot of historic buildings and beautiful ballrooms that really highlight the city. Showcasing our designers there would be a benefit to everyone,” Ram said.

Sac Fashion Week works with the larger Sacramento area’s businesses and also aims to help college students build connections in fashion design, merchandising, public relations, creative design, photography, videography, event coordination, staging and lighting, modeling, advertising, journalism and more.

This includes opportunities for students like Annie Dick, a third-year dramatic arts major. Dick works as the head costume designer for a class she currently takes and believes studying fashion helps her with costume design.

“As a costume designer, it’s important to keep up with the latest fashion trends because you never know what kind of character you will be dressing on stage,” Dick said.

As someone who aspires to attend a special-effects makeup school one day, she would love to attend Sac Fashion Week.

“Makeup design is a passion of mine,” Dick said.

Sac Fashion Week transforms aspiring makeup artists, designers and models into individuals with experience in the business, according to Ram.

“We are preparing you for the ‘real world.’ If you want to showcase in New York Fashion Week you have to be ready. This is not a show just for your friends and family; it’s a business,” Ram said. “My goal is to get you the exposure and put you in front of important people. [For a designer], you must present a full collection of what you can do and hopefully sell those pieces.”

Walke agrees that for a designer to be successful, they must have a distinctive style.

“A designer needs to have a unique perception of design, and needs to be creative and innovative. Too many of the fashions we see on the market today are just a copy of the next designer’s collections, so a designer should want to bring something totally revolutionary to the table,” Walke said.

A large number of top-notch experienced fashion workers participate each year to present revolutionary designs like Walke mentions.

“[This year] we have about five core staff and about 30 interns. In all there are 16 designers with two assistants, six boutiques with two assistants. [We also have a] hair and makeup crew of about 30, staging crew of about 10 and about 100 models per day,” Ram said.

Together, everyone works to host a lunch party and fashion affair, a fashion forum, a runway modeling 101 workshop, a “social gone vogue” workshop, a hair and makeup workshop, a fashion on film workshop, a boutique show, two sets of designer showcases, VIP galas and official afterparties.

While the boutique became the first event to sell out this year, Ram says the Saturday showcase is the most popular.

Ram said that for him the most rewarding part about Sac Fashion Week is the fact that so many people have come out to support the show.

“In the past, I’ve always relied on ticket sales because we had a hard time finding sponsors. We didn’t have anything to show them and at the time the economy was down and money was tight,” Ram said.

However, despite the tough economy, Ram has always believed in the show and persevered. Today, ticket sales have improved and Sacramento’s interest in fashion is growing.

“Ticket sales are always slow in the beginning and I’m always worried that we would have an empty house. So it’s a good feeling to know that the community was supportive of the production,” Ram said.

ALYSSA KUHLMAN can be reached at features@theaggie.org.