Fellow Stories
True gap year stories from Fellows abroad!
Check out the latest blogs from Global Citizen Year Fellows in Brazil, Ecuador, and India!
Category
Class Year
Country
Selfishness Vs. Selflessness
Chloe Bobar
2010-09-29
My mind serves as an arena for the constant conflict between selfishness and selflessness. I want to believe that my actions are inspired by the latter of these forces, but as I sit here trying to answer the question, “What do I want to achieve out of my Global Citizen Year?” I cannot help but feel as though many of...
Read MoreBridges
Joe Giallo
2010-09-28
One day, probably about a week ago, we were doing an activity where we had to speculate and journal about our identities. It was an exercise in self-examination, and how identities affect the stories we tell. I was ranting, as is my habit in private journal entries, but that’s not really important. What is important...
Read MoreBlood, Sweeet, and Tears
Joe Giallo
2010-09-28
Allow me to introduce you to Sweeet. That’s his street name. You might also know him by Sterling, his handle for the Street Sheet newspaper, or Christophe (that’s phonetic, never saw his name in print), his given name. I met Sweeet on the streets of San Francisco, working on a project for GCY. What was...
Read MoreWhat is Empathy?
Lily Shaffer
2010-09-26
I’m hungry. It’s 11:02 on Friday night and I’m really freakin’ hungry. This is because I had approximately 2/3 of a cup of rice for dinner. Tonight, we had an Oxfam hunger fast. Of the 29 Fellows, five got to eat a typical, delicious (and I mean, unbelievable IONS food) dinner with drinks, dessert, utensils—the...
Read MoreThe beginning of a journey
Liza David
2010-09-21
It has been so exciting to finally start this journey. Before, it was an abstract idea; something to tell people offhandedly, “Oh yeah, I’m going to Ecuador”. And even now, the idea of going to Ecuador is only somewhat of a reality. After all, I am still in the United States, albeit I am across...
Read MoreEnter Stage Right
Joe Giallo
2010-09-21
So, hey y’all. Coming from Raleigh, North Carolina, it’s me, Joe. As a Global Citizen Year fellow, I’m really excited and can’t wait to get out in the field in Ecuador. I’m taking a bridge year in order to flesh out my understanding of the world, and sort of fill in the gaps left in...
Read MoreReaching out
Caroline Pocock
2010-09-21
I’ve always been the adventurous type. Ever since I could wobble on my own two feet, I’ve been seeking out new challenges and experiences that have the potential to broaden my horizons and strengthen my knowledge of myself and the world in which we live. Coming from a small town (Rutherfordton, NC population: 4,000) has...
Read MoreMy first blog post
Alberto Servin
2010-09-21
Hi there! I’ve spent the past few days here at the GCY training and it’s been amazing. It’s only been a couple of days in the program and I’ve already learned an overwhelming amount of information. It was a lot to take in, but it has definitely gotten me excited for Ecuador. It’s something I’m...
Read MoreIntroduction
Peter Saudek
2010-09-21
I was born and raised in Lexington, Massachusetts, and recently graduated from Lexington High School. I love music, basketball, the outdoors, and people. I decided I wanted to take a bridge year before college when I was applying to schools and I didn’t know exactly what I wanted to study, and did not have a...
Read MoreA brief intro to my story
Cameron Kaufman
2010-09-21
I moved to New York City after living in Paris for five years. Living there was one of those defining moments that irrevocably changes your life. As an American Jew in a strict French Catholic school, you could say it was slight culture shock. It was extremely hard having to be in situations that I...
Read MoreMy Commitment
Lily Shaffer
2010-09-20
What a whirlwind these past five days have been! Once we arrived at IONS last Wednesday, we were immediately put into action meeting each other, attending workshops, and working on personal and leadership development. I realized from the very first night what I had not come to realize before we arrived here: there is a...
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