A non profit program in Alaska that fosters inclusive community set out to link Alaska youth with Uganda youth via Zoom and letter-writing as part of an international internship.
And then COVID happened, and the experience morphed into “International Understanding in a Time of COVID-19.”
The dozen students met through a facilitated Zoom meeting. They became pen pals and began writing about life during the pandemic. From that experience, one set of pen pals collaborated on a song they wrote together; another young Alaskan was amazed at how her Ugandan counterpart was using the extra time during COVID to teach herself to tailor her own clothes. The Alaskan shared the abundance of a subsistence lifestyle.
The story of a young Ugandan boy beaten in a market place as he went to buy food for his family during the allowed curfew hours prompted discussion about the protest movement in the United States over excess police force, and the lack of protest in Uganda.
In today’s program, we’ll hear from some of the young Alaskans who participated in the program, what they created from the experience, and the status of their connection to their Ugandan counterpart.The non profit is called See Stories, and its director, Marie Acemah, will be on the program as well.
Join us for a story of understanding, connection and light in an unsettled time.
HOST:
GUEST:
- Marie Acemah, director, See Stories
- Emma Tomeo, Miska Alexia, Josephine Lewis and Denise Bamurange, all students in Alaska who participated in the cultural exchange.
LINKS
- See Stories website
- COVID. Culture. Creativity. Connection. Information about the international internship and resulting projects by student participants.
PARTICIPATE:
- Call 550-8433 (Anchorage) or 1-888-353-5752 (statewide) during the live broadcast (2:00 – 3:00pm)
- Send e-mail to hometown@alaskapublic.org before, during or after the live broadcast (e-mails may be read on air)
- Post your comment or question below (comments may be read on air
- LIVE: Monday, July 13, 2020 at 2:00 p.m
- RE-AIR: Monday, July 13, 2020 at 8:00 p.m.
- PODCAST: alaskapublic.org/hometown
