welcome to my blog - thanks for stopping by!
as many of you may already know, i will be traveling to mali, west africa this summer. in mali, i plan to shadow my professor's sister-in-law who does humanitarian work around the capital, bamako. i hope to get a feel for what organizations she is running/working with and find or create a project to work on that suits my skills and interests. i want to learn more about the dynamics of social activism in mali, especially with relation to the constantly evolving nature of women's rights and responsibilities in all aspects of malian society.
i also plan to continue studying mande dance and culture while in mali. i think that sharing in cultural practices such as dance and music will allow me to connect with others and grow as a dancer, artist, and activist in a unique way. learning more about the potential for the arts in activism - the ways in which this potential has been, is, and could be explored further - is important to me.
while this will certainly be a challenge, my hope is that through connecting with others - whether through my experiences in mali or communicating with you through this blog - will help me work through those harder times with resilience, humility, and strength.
i leave on july3rd. return on august 28th.
electricity and internet connection permitting, i'll be checking my gmail and facebook as well so feel free to stay connected through those means.
love and peace,
michele
