Karen Weliky

Escaping the Taliban Through Art

When Ghu Ali Danish Kamal and his family arrived in Portland from Afghanistan, they were provided with $722 in cash. He headed straight to the art store  

Sankar Raman

Coming Home to America

Living a half block from the beach may sound luxurious, but growing up in the 1970s in Cam Ranh Bay, Vietnam, Thao Nguyen said it was a sign of poverty. 

Mohammad Rahmani

Really Hard to Get Back Up

It was 11 in the morning on Aug. 9, 2021, when Mohammed and his family entered a German-run clinic in Kabul to receive their COVID-19 vaccinations. Later that night,  

Sankar Raman

Just Waiting for a Miracle

“Just waiting for miracles. That was pretty much my day,” Marceline Washikala reflects on her life growing up in a series of refugee camps. 

Alexandra Shyshkina

Longing To Return Home

“My family and I thought this would be over soon,” Volodymyr Shyshkin says. When Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, Shyshkin thought that the war would end  

Katie Livermore

Saving Ukraine from Miles Away

Misha Zyryanov grew up running around the slow paced town of Uzhhorod, Ukraine, smoking cigarettes where nobody could see him. The Uzh river separated  

Alicia Alvarez Mon

A Ticket To Opportunity

Alicia Alvarez-Mon found the sense of freedom she was looking for as she gazed over the roofs of Paris from her small attic room. She had just started her first […]

Sankar Raman

When the War Comes

When Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, everything changed for Natalia Dychko. As a child in Kyiv, she had never imagined that her country, Ukraine, would not always  

Sankar Raman

The Search for a New Home

After 11 years apart, Pyae Sone Aung finally has hopes of reuniting with his wife and son. Originally from a small town in Myanmar, Aung has gone from country  

Sankar Raman

Opening Doors for Others

In the vastness of the skies above, where dreams take flight, sits Safia Ferozi, the second woman to ever become an Air Force pilot in Afghanistan. She is leading

Sankar Raman

Fighting for His Survival

When Nasirullah Safi walked to school every day, he was never sure if he would be able to walk back home. He would pass walls strewn with bullets and hear

Sankar Raman

Songs that Help us Cope with War

Inna Kovtun was lying in her bed in Kyiv at 11 p.m. on Feb. 23, 2022, talking on the phone with the general director of her orchestra. She told him […]

Sankar Raman

Reinventing Her Success

Demet Tuncer Tanriover fondly remembers growing up in Istanbul. Her family’s apartment nestled in the quiet suburb of Levent, she walked to an  

Nino Paoli

Self-Expression through Journalism

Growing up in a small town in Montana, Angelo Nino Paoli did not foresee that he would want to pursue journalism. He loved writing, but was also an athlete

Sankar Raman

Breaking the Bamboo Ceiling

The Honorable Chanpone Sinlapasai does not know when she was born. Her Lao tribe did not document any life cycle events. For her American immigration paperwork,