Daily Archives: July 23, 2019

DC, Internews, and Beyond by Daniel Herschel

This entry was tagged Internews Washington D.C. and posted on by

Trying to summarize my experiences in Washington, DC, so far this summer, despite the short time that I have been here, is a somewhat challenging task.  I have learned a great deal of new information, whether it be at work or while experiencing the city. Much of this information I have taken at face value, trusting in the knowledge of those more experienced with DC than myself.  But as I have begun to acclimate to DC life and met more and more people, I am beginning to process my early experiences and make my own connections. And in some cases, I am starting to challenge some of my initial assumptions and things I have been told. My first few weeks at Internews were fairly quiet.  I met with Jon, my supervisor, was given a desk space and laptop, was introduced to my coworkers who were in the office that day, […]

Shattering Concepts by Braxton Jenkins

This entry was tagged CoCoDA El Salvador Indianapolis Nicaragua and posted on by

“CoCoDA is a lifestyle,” said one of the Latin American employees in the annual organization board meeting, while I was in El Salvador. Later in the meeting, he said, “CoCoDA is a tool,” for the communities we work with. Those statements essentially wrap up how immersive, transformative, and intentional community development in Central America is for the people who devote their careers to the mission of this organization. As a person who spends much of the day theorizing how to fight for equality, the CoCoDA Board meeting was an oddly unfamiliar environment. Before traveling to Central American communities, I watched the Board of CoCoDA evaluate its position and discuss next steps in lieu of its past. This resonated with me because I was watching a large team of people brainstorm ideas to actually help real people. Part of CoCoDA’s model is to partner with NGO’s in the countries they work […]