Global Dialogues

Whether gazing at banners hung across college campuses or listening to politicians campaign for our votes, today’s youth live in near-constant exposure to terms like community, progress, and solidarity. Of course, it is far easier to speak about courage and conviction than it is to tackle the challenges we face. To create and sustain inclusive communities around the globe, young people must look beyond the big picture and take specific, meaningful action. Instead of painting in broad, abstract brushstrokes, a helpful place to start is considering: What is the next right thing to do? This question, though simple, sparks action from intention.

Such a perspective is informed by my own experience. One afternoon last fall while studying abroad in Dakar, Senegal, I found myself in a quiet, dusty community called Khar Yalla. In Wolof, the lingua franca of Senegal, Khar Yalla means “waiting for God.” At first glance, its residents might appear to be doing just that: children wade through stale, disease-ridden water to buy bags of rice their families struggle to afford. A few years earlier, devastating flooding drove Khar Yalla’s coastal families inland, far from their ancestral fishing grounds.

My friends and I assured ourselves that we were in no position to help as we wandered aimlessly around Khar Yalla. But on the bumpy bus ride back to Dakar, we bounced ideas off one another: What if we bought a bus and drove people to the beach for work? Could we somehow compel the government to act? Later that week, I wondered aloud whether we should go back to Khar Yalla, which seemed like the next right thing to do.

Soon enough, we stood once again in Khar Yalla’s desolate town square. Without knowing it at the time, we began creating our own international, inclusive community: we spoke with Khar Yalla’s elders and young people alike, asking questions but prioritizing listening. We quickly learned that we were far from the first Westerners to bring such grand ideas to town. To avoid making our own well-intentioned, yet ineffective contribution, we asked residents directly what would be impactful. Putting our heads together, we decided to produce a short film, create a fundraising website, and apply for grants. The process was tedious, and involved hours of interviews and translation. Within a week of launching our page, we raised over $4,000 and reached thousands of viewers in Senegal, the United States, and Europe.

Instead of lamenting the plight of Khar Yalla without action, our group worked with its residents to ask: What is the next right thing to do? We incorporated local stakeholders, relied on one another, and sought outside financial support. What could have been merely an idea instead became a tangible solution to an issue faced in a pocket of the world entirely different from our own. This model offers both insight and hope into the challenges faced by today’s youth, and compels young people to work together to find solutions, not disagreements.

Jack Willis (SFS'26) is a senior in the Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University.