Featured Reflections

“Increasingly Aware of Life”: Ceremonies, Markets, and “Adventure” in Togo
PublishedAugust 25, 2023 by Sasha Faison

DukeEngage Togo collaborates on several projects with two Togolese villages, Kuwde (in the mountains) and Farendé (on the plains). Most …
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“I thought that I wasn’t getting anywhere”: Creating a Digital Platform to Help NGOs in Jordan
PublishedAugust 25, 2023 by Leah Nickelsburg

In this first year of the DukeEngage Jordan program, students worked with partnering organization ILearn on a variety of projects …
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“The Transformative Power of Collective Action”: Reflections from DukeEngage Marine Lab Students
PublishedAugust 25, 2023 by Jack Balint-Kurti, Ian Connolly, Nikki Jakkinpali, Jake Marrs, Gabe Mendoza, and Jack Sanitate

As partners at the Duke Marine Lab, we have spent the last six weeks collaborating with a variety of education …
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“Making Thirteen-Year-Old Me Proud”: Teaching Girls STEM in Orange County
PublishedAugust 24, 2023 by Emma Huang

Working with Girls Incorporated (Girls, Inc.) of Orange County, Calif., DukeEngage Orange County students teach at a four-week, STEM-focused summer …
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“One of the Hardest Things I’ve Ever Had to Do”: Working with Refugees in Cape Town
PublishedAugust 24, 2023 by Malachy Sullivan

DukeEngage Cape Town works with organizations providing assistance to migrants, refugees and asylum-seekers in Cape Town, South Africa. This reflection …
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The meaning of a summer, not the meaning of life
PublishedOctober 31, 2022 by Hana Stepnick

Both before the summer and now, I was a bit taken aback that DukeEngage asked us these questions. They’re comically, …
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Make sunshine, not shade.
PublishedOctober 20, 2022 by Anna Schilling

On Thursday, 21in’21 (a grassroots organization promoting womxn-identifying candidates for local office) had its first meeting for the newly formed …
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Engineering healthcare solutions in Uganda
PublishedOctober 20, 2022 by Tommy Klug

This summer’s DukeEngage Uganda cohort brought together eight Duke engineers and eight Ugandan engineers from Makerere University with the goal …
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Dancing in the Dark
PublishedOctober 13, 2022 by Andrew McCallum

I can’t dance. When the music starts playing, I can only manage to flail around like I’m the Scarecrow from …
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Building social resiliency through story-telling
PublishedOctober 11, 2022 by Tommy Klug

The COVID-19 pandemic was isolating for many, including kids who lost opportunities for social interaction and development. To address this …
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I am the Sun.
PublishedOctober 11, 2022 by Shernice Martin

This poem is inspired by a NYC sunrise, witnessed at 5:45 am from my window. It was written as a reflection …
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Snapshots from DukeEngage Paraguay
PublishedOctober 11, 2022 by Tommy Klug

This summer, eight DukeEngage students spent two months in Asunción, Paraguay working on sustainable development issues. The project involved students …
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A new theory of change
PublishedSeptember 30, 2022 by Hyonjun Yun

As Duke students, we often think in the grandeur. We wish to create systemic change. We wish to create groundbreaking …
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Letter from the Director of Studies (WISER-Kenya)
PublishedSeptember 29, 2022 by Kennedy Mikula

The 2022 DukeEngage team to Wiser was so resourceful. The team had a variety of relevant skills ranging from technology, …
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Oil and trouble: Reflections from Ghana
PublishedSeptember 29, 2022 by Harrison Chen & Chinomnso Okechukwu

DukeEngage Ghana students led educational and awareness efforts in Cape Coast this summer regarding the harmful effects of used motor …
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Fearless (Ben’s Version)
PublishedSeptember 22, 2022 by Ben Joo

Three weeks ago, I would’ve adamantly told you that I dislike performances, practicing the violin, or even simply applying the …
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American democracy: looking through a new lens
PublishedSeptember 14, 2022 by Juliana Alfonso-DeSouza

Walking into the office of Longwell Partners at 1100 Vermont Ave for the first time, I was petrified and questioned …
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Life Trapped in a Folder: Part II
PublishedSeptember 13, 2022 by Kay Maldonado

Introduction: Rory Smith and Kay Maldonado From the moment we walked into Catholic Charities Legal Services, we could tell there …
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