Sankar Raman

He Came by Stork, I Came by Plane

The first time Liani Reeves realized that other people saw her as Asian was in the fifth grade.  “Everybody decided that Michael Lee and I should  

Karen Weliky

I Am My Mother’s Daughter

To this day, Bandana Shrestha feels a sense of gratitude for the example her mother, Indira, set for her as she grew up in Kathmandu, Nepal.

Sankar Raman

Surviving A Minefield Of Terrors

Too often the stories of refugees from ravaged lands force us to confront unimaginable suffering, terror, and trauma. Binh (Ben) Thach harbored such a tale in  

Opening Minds With Education

After she earned her master’s degree, Rajika Bhandari was left with a grand, existential question. Where did she fit in, she wondered: Was it in the United States,

Sankar Raman

From the Old, Comes Something New

Some of Yumi Torimaru’s earliest memories are of flying through the streets of Nara, Japan, on her bicycle, focused more on how fast she could go than

Sankar Raman

Even the Angels Could Be Capricious

Shahryar Houranpay’s name translates to “the angels are with you.” “Shay,” the American moniker of this Iranian restaurateur, has needed all the angelic

Karen Weliky

Building a Future With Forgiveness

When Romy Ahounou was just a little boy in the Republic of the Congo, war broke out. “My parents put me and my brother in a suitcase and put us […]

Karen Weliky

Seffarine: Blending Cultures into Music

Lamiae Naki first remembers singing for someone when she was six years old. It was Friday, the holy day of Islam, with shops closed and families home together

Sankar Raman

Searching for Her Birth Family

A tiny slip of paper stating the place and date of her birth — Shaoyang, Feb. 24, 1995 — was the only thing identifying Olivia Wolf when she was found […]

Karen Weliky

Forging Resilience and Community

Rima Ghandour’s earliest memory is of being wrapped in her mother’s arms with her siblings around them, crying. The building shook as bombs exploded  

Nyibol Bior

Living the World in Color

In February, 2021, Nyibol Bior published a children’s book called “My Beautiful Colors.” She chose the title because, “Colors are metaphors  

Karen Weliky

More Than One Way to Fly

When her calligraphy teacher, Sekko Daigo, gave Rie O’Doherty the artistic name Sora, meaning universe or sky, it reminded her of her childhood

Luxe Studio Productions

Creating a Road Map to Success

Arthi Vasudevan makes a road map for where she wants to go in life, deciding on her goal and timeline and then thinking out the steps she will follow to […]

Sankar Raman

Finding the Roots of Home

Until she met her mentor, one of the best-known art dealers in Bangalore, India, Mrunalini Giri did not think of herself as an artist. “I was just somebody who painted