A supermarket nutrition tour this afternoon became the 100th activity of Learning Life’s Citizen Diplomacy Initiative (CDI).
Launched in August 2016 and now Learning Life’s flagship program, CDI engages lower-income American families in live dialogues and project collaborations with lower-income families in other nations to nurture more caring, capable global citizens. The first live internet dialogue, on August 27, 2016, connected two American families in Washington DC with a family in Dakar, Senegal. The second dialogue, on September 4, 2016, connected two American families with four Salvadoran families in Porto de la Libertad, El Salvador. Since then, we have completed thirty-three live dialogues with families in Washington DC, El Salvador, Senegal and Jordan, and sixty-seven project steps and supportive educational activities with our families in DC.
Each project is composed of a series of steps or meetings, plus some supportive educational activities for our families or their kids in DC, where Learning Life staff are based. For instance, the first project completed in 2017 engaged CDI families in DC, Dakar and Jerash, Jordan in taking and sharing photos of their respective communities to learn about cross-national community patterns and changes. Steps in the community photo project included pre-surveying the families and introducing them to the photo project, families taking their first round of community photos, getting training in photography then taking a second round of photos before sharing and discussing them, culminating in an international community photo album of some 70 photos selected from the nearly 500 photos the eight participating families took.
Supportive activities are intended to deepen our families’ understanding of material relevant to the projects they undertake together. Accordingly, the first activity, on September 10, 2016, brought CDI families living in Washington DC on a tour of the Anacostia Community Museum in DC to learn about the community history of the nation’s capital. CDI families and kids in DC have since been to a number of metro area museums, embassies, cultural festivals, and other events. In the future, Learning Life hopes to offer such supportive educational opportunities to our families outside DC when we have staff on the ground in those communities with which we work worldwide. In the interim, through our new mentoring program, we will soon be offering American mentors to our CDI kids abroad who want a mentor to talk to via the internet to enrich their learning about the wider world, and to connect them to educational opportunities.
Stay tuned for more news of developments in Learning Life’s Citizen Diplomacy Initiative!
Intern Spotlight: Marley Henschen
This is the third in a series of spotlights on our summer 2018 student interns. Learning Life’s students this summer are assisting with planning, fundraising, curriculum development, and international family-to-family projects focused on community photography and food culture as part of our Citizen Diplomacy Initiative (CDI). Marley Henschen, interviewed below, is, among other things, helping with research, outreach for the DC World Affairs Pipeline, and youth activities and family outreach in Washington DC’s Ward 8.
Where were you born and raised?
I was born in Laconia, New Hampshire, but moved to Scituate, MA at a young age and was raised there. I loved growing up in Scituate because I could spend the summers in beautiful weather at the beach but also got to experience cold winters and snowstorms. Although I do not think I will ever move back, it is a place that will hold my heart and I love to go back and visit.
What school do you attend, and what is your year and major there?
I am currently a senior at The Catholic University of America here in Washington, D.C. I am in an accelerated program to receive my Master’s in Sociology and Business Management. My degree is concentrated in globalization and public policy.
What do you like to do in your free time?
I have been doing dance for as long as I can remember. Now, I am the captain of the dance team at Catholic University, which takes up a lot of my free time. I also work as a waitress and a coffee shop barista. Although I work because I need the income, I genuinely enjoy working in customer service jobs where I can interact with other people. I also volunteer when I can with The Homeless Children’s Playtime Project which works with homeless children in Washington, D.C. When I’m not working or dancing, I love exercising and going to the beach.
Is there a life experience you have had that has particularly shaped you thus far? If so, what is it, and how has it shaped you?
An experience that has shaped me was when my family adopted my younger cousin two years ago. He came from a tough background and did not have the support or guidance he needed to become successful. Although my mother has eight children of her own, she selflessly decided to take the situation into her own hands and take care of my cousin. This has inspired me to help others even when it is inconvenient for myself. It also made me very grateful for everything I have and the family that I have to support me.
What are your career plans?
Upon graduation, I would like to take time off to volunteer, preferably abroad in Africa. When I’m finished doing volunteer work, I hope to move back to Washington, D.C. and work for a non-profit that directly helps children.
Why did you choose to intern with Learning Life?
I started babysitting and teaching dance classes to kids at a young age, and that is how I realized my passion for working with children. I wanted to intern with Learning Life because I love working with other people and helping the community as much as I can, especially when it involves working with kids. The mission of Learning Life to connect people across borders through learning is something that I not only support, but also would like to make part of my everyday life.
What is the most beautiful place you have seen on Earth, and why is it so beautiful?
The most beautiful place on Earth that I have ever seen is Rome, Italy. I have had the opportunity to visit Rome twice and both times the architecture and history took my breath away. I love learning about different cultures and being able to experience new things outside my comfort zone so traveling to Italy and seeing all the sites was amazing to me. My all-time favorite was when I was able to have dinner on the rooftop of a hotel that overlooks the Trevi Fountain.
Intern Spotlight: Anudeep Alberts
This is the second in a series of spotlights on our summer 2018 student interns. Learning Life’s students this summer are assisting with planning, fundraising, curriculum development, and international family-to-family projects focused on community photography and food culture as part of our Citizen Diplomacy Initiative (CDI). Anudeep Alberts, interviewed below, is, among other things, helping with community health-focused curriculum planning and development, and research on family supermarket tours as part of our food culture project.
Where were you born and raised?
I was born in Mangalore, India. I immigrated to the United States with my family around the age of 5, and I was raised thereafter in metro Boston, Massachusetts.
What school do you attend, and what is your year and major there?
Starting next month, I’m going to be a second-year medical student at Georgetown University School of Medicine.
What do you like to do in your free time?
I love reading a variety of books, including Stephen King novels. I also like hiking in Rock Creek Park in Washington DC. I love playing video games, like Borderlands 2, and watching Netflix. Right now on Netflix I really enjoy watching “Nailed It.” It’s a really funny show where normal people try to make complicated desserts.
Is there a life experience you have had that has particularly shaped you thus far? If so, what is it, and how has it shaped you?
In 2017, through a Master’s program in physiology and biophysics at Georgetown University, I had the opportunity to observe a surgeon remove a gallbladder “laparoscopically,” that is, through tiny holes in the abdomen assisted with a camera. It was amazing to see how technology can be used to remove an entire organ through such a minimally invasive process. I was able to hold the gallbladder afterwards and see the stones inside that had been causing the patient pain. It related what I had been learning in class to a living breathing person. I really valued the experience and seeing that convinced me that medicine is the career I want to pursue.
What are your career plans?
I plan on becoming a doctor, though I’m not sure what type yet. I think family medicine or general surgery could be interesting. So many things interest me though, I will have to see how medical school clinical rotations in different areas of medicine go starting in the spring of 2019.
Why did you choose to intern with Learning Life?
I learned about Learning Life’s food culture project and thought it was an interesting approach to teaching people and families about nutrition. I like their focus on lower-income families in Washington DC as well as their longitudinal approach, working with the same families over a span of years to increase local to global awareness. I feel that working with families in the long-term deepens our understanding of the issues they face and helps make the program more embedded in the community.
What is the most beautiful place you have seen on Earth, and why is it so beautiful?
I really enjoy walking and hiking in Rock Creek Park in Washington DC. There’s a really beautiful stream in the woods there that I like to visit to watch fish and ducks. It’s a very quiet area with a lot of shade where you can sit and listen to the stream. It’s a great way to de-stress.
Intern Spotlight: Yesica Sorto-Argueta
This is the first in a series of spotlights on our summer 2018 student interns. Learning Life’s students this summer are assisting with planning, fundraising, curriculum development, and international family-to-family projects focused on community photography and food culture as part of our Citizen Diplomacy Initiative (CDI). Yesica Sorto-Argueta, interviewed below, is, among other things, helping with research, outreach, CDI document translation from English to Spanish, and guiding families in Washington DC and San Salvador, El Salvador through their international food culture project.
Where were you born and raised?
I was born and raised in El Salvador. My parents are Salvadoran immigrants that came to the United States 23 years ago. I was left in the care of my grandmother and eight aunts until the age of 4, when I was brought to the United States. Growing up in El Salvador and going back throughout the years has motivated me to help people who are at a disadvantage. I am fortunate that I am part of two cultures, American and Salvadoran, and I have the opportunity to combine this to help others.
I am a senior at George Mason University pursuing a bachelors in psychology with a concentration in child development. My interest in psychology began when I started at Northern Virginia Community College, where I learned more about the unfortunate abusive situations many children find themselves in. Throughout my life I have always wished to help others, and I believe psychology is the best degree to help me reach this goal.
What do you like to do in your free time?
In my free time what I enjoy the most is photography. I was enrolled in a course at George Mason in which I learned techniques. Most of the time I photograph nature and portraits of strangers. I believe photography is a creative form of expression that is open to interpretation, and that can open dialogue.
Is there a life experience you have had that has particularly shaped you thus far? If so, what is it, and how has it shaped you?
A Life experience that has shaped me is a class I enrolled in last year called “Community Engagement.” The course opened my eyes to many injustices that minorities face in the United States, including poverty, wage inequality and discrimination. Through the course, I volunteered in a nonprofit that works with children from a lower-socioeconomic status. One girl I worked with would complete her homework tasks quickly in order to get the little prizes — stickers, small toys — the nonprofit offered kids who completed their work, little prizes her family could not afford. It was a rewarding experience that made me want to be more involved in my community and in nonprofits.
What are your career plans?
My plans for the future include becoming certified in child counseling. I want to use play therapy to help children who come from harsh backgrounds. I wish to have my own practice but also give my services free to parents that cannot pay for these services. I have a sister with ADHD (attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder) and know the hardships my parents have to go through to get services for her, so I hope I can make it easier for others in the future.
Why did you choose to intern with Learning Life?
I chose to intern with Learning Life because I saw it as great opportunity to grow. Learning Life seems unique because it tries to create change in a way I had not seen before, connecting families around the world through the internet. This opens new experiences for the participants they otherwise might not have.
What is the most beautiful place you have seen on Earth, and why is it so beautiful?
The most beautiful or magical place on Earth I have seen is Disneyland in California. I had wished to go from a very young age, and I finally got to see it at age 14 with my sister, who was 2 or 3 at the time. It was particularly fun to experience my sister’s excited reactions to Disneyland, but my family and I all loved taking the rides and seeing the fireworks together. It was thus beautiful because it was a place where I shared amazing memories with my family.
Launched in August 2016 and now Learning Life’s flagship program, CDI engages lower-income American families in live dialogues and project collaborations with lower-income families in other nations to nurture more caring, capable global citizens. The first live internet dialogue, on August 27, 2016, connected two American families in Washington DC with a family in Dakar, Senegal. The second dialogue, on September 4, 2016, connected two American families with four Salvadoran families in Porto de la Libertad, El Salvador. Since then, we have completed thirty-three live dialogues with families in Washington DC, El Salvador, Senegal and Jordan, and sixty-seven project steps and supportive educational activities with our families in DC.
in DC, where Learning Life staff are based. For instance, the first project completed in 2017 engaged CDI families in DC, Dakar and Jerash, Jordan in taking and sharing photos of their respective communities to learn about cross-national community patterns and changes. Steps in the community photo project included pre-surveying the families and introducing them to the photo project, families taking their first round of community photos, getting training in photography then taking a second round of photos before sharing and discussing them, culminating in an international community photo album of some 70 photos selected from the nearly 500 photos the eight participating families took.
relevant to the projects they undertake together. Accordingly, the first activity, on September 10, 2016, brought CDI families living in Washington DC on a tour of the Anacostia Community Museum in DC to learn about the community history of the nation’s capital. CDI families and kids in DC have since been to a number of metro area museums, embassies, cultural festivals, and other events. In the future, Learning Life hopes to offer such supportive educational opportunities to our families outside DC when we have staff on the ground in those communities with which we work worldwide. In the interim, through our new mentoring program, we will soon be offering American mentors to our CDI kids abroad who want a mentor to talk to via the internet to enrich their learning about the wider world, and to connect them to educational opportunities.
