This project week had the objective of teaching middle school students from the Public School of Silverton in Colorado about Africa. As the name Nguvu za Afrika (African Power) already indicates, this project week had the goal of empowering the African Continent and breaking down some of the misconceptions that arise about this continent.

    Part of the reason why I decided to create this project week trip back into Silverton it's because I was the only African represented in the project week during my first year. It was very satisfying to know that the initial goals of the project week were met and we still have contact with the students in the school who are working on a final project that will be presented to their peers.

    While designing this project week, it was difficult to create a schedule that would include in a holistic view of content that could be taught to the middle school level and keep the students engaged. The schedule was based on teaching general facts about the African countries represented in the trip, and we were able to include UWC students from other regions who were happy to learn about our culture.

    Something interesting about this project week was the fact that it got me thinking about the border issues in the United States and Mexico, because of the big amount of Mexican children in that small school. In fact, I had the opportunity to meet a girl that had just arrived 2 months before us who came from Mexico and she only spoke Spanish. In many ways, having a UWC student form CLAD came in handy because he was able to communicate with her and help her with her project in the end. This makes me recognize the uniqueness of our group because everyone to bring constructive insights in order to make this project week great. The team also made my role as a leader less overwhelming because we were able to distribute the tasks and EVERYONE was able to teach every school day and collaborate with each other and be effective.

    The beautiful landscapes we found in that small town in a remote area was also gratifying. We were able to visit avalanches spots when we got there, which according to one of the teachers, has more avalanches per hour than anywhere else. We got to learn more about the area and the mines that are there located.

    In addition, we also got to know more the students, some whom I got a second chance to know better from last year. I learned a lot about how united their community is and their backgrounds through meaningful and deep conversations and many of them I still have contact with. I went back to the school with the objective of teaching more about where I come from in the first person but instead, I ended up learning with them what is truly like to live in a community and work as a team for mutual benefit.