Agustin Mumare, Argentina
Camila Iruleguy, Uruguay
Maria Galia Kademian, Argentina
Davi Soares, Brazil
Sara Urzua, Chile
Our experience in the SUSI program has been amazing so far. Throughout the weeks, we have been able to exchange our opinions with other participants on different topics such as feminism, racism, and social entrepreneurship. We have learned that the battle for social justice should be fought by combining our efforts, and we are excited to share with our own communities how important it is to be conscious of the role we play in society.
During the course of this past week, we’ve had sessions about systematic oppression to minority groups, as well as classes about the importance of leading from a feminist and anti-racist point of view. During the inter-institute session, we were able to hear from our friends in the University of Arizona about their ideas on the historic fight against segregation and racism. One important part of the program is listening to our professors compare the realities of our own countries in Latin America and the United States. This allows us to better understand the reality we live in, and to be inspired regarding the different ways our communities have managed to mitigate certain very important social problems. Our favorite moment from the program so far has been the debate activity, where we were able to work as a team. We got to know each other’s strengths and learned a lot about our individual ideas and points of view. This is enriching to us all, because we can form a network of people who have the same desire to act and change our world. The best part? We get to apply everything we learn from the classes and from each other in our own communities. We are constantly inspired by the work every single one of us has done in our hometowns and countries, and we look forward to sharing and applying what we’ve learned in hopes of helping our communities solve different social problems.
Even though we’ve only been able to interact with each other through zoom and social media, we’ve formed a strong connection and have had a lot of fun talking to each other, creating a beautiful friendship. We feel like even if we’re all from different countries and have diverse cultural backgrounds, we learned a lot about each other and this has only helped to make our bond stronger. Our similarities are just as important as our differences. We can’t wait to meet everyone in person!
All opinions expressed by the program participants are their own and do not represent nor reflect official views from the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs of the U.S. Department of State, or of the Institute for Training and Development, Inc.
