The world can be a harsh, unfair place. The one thing we can control is our own energy. So why not use it to be a force for kindness and equality?

Wealthy American parents can buy grades, standardized test scores, and admission to elite universities. The most recent example comes from 2019, when 50 rich families were charged with using their money to cheat the system.

Ivy League schools produce international aid workers and businesspeople and journalists and leaders. Imagine how much fuller their education would be if they learned alongside a member of the population they intend to help.

You can’t help everyone, I’ve learned. But you can do something. And something is more than nothing.  

I helped put together more than 30 individual college applications, and then coordinated the passport/visa/travel process for the two students who were accepted.

Malawi’s official language of instruction is English, but few of your teachers are fluent. There aren’t enough qualified math and science teachers either, so it’s entirely possible you’re learning math from someone who doesn’t understand it, in a language they don’t speak.