I Am, We Are (IAWA) was inspired by the philosophy of ubuntu (oo-boon-too, n.), a South African phrase meaning "humanity" or "I am because we are." The term is derived from the phrase umuntu ngumuntu ngabantu, which translates as, "a person is a person through other people."

IAWA partnered with LearnServe International to bring their 2021 Global Summer Fellowship to South Africa. Over five weeks, IAWA Alumni and students from Kitsong School and Mmanape High School, engaged virtually with youth from the Washington, DC area of the United States and Zambia. The social entrepreneurship program culminated in a final pitch competition where one venture from each country could win a seed grant of $100 to help launch the venture. The IAWA winner was Amogelan Moatshe whose venture addressed access to vaccinations for rural populations in his community.

Our Alumni Ambassadors had the opportunity to put IAWA's principle of social responsibility into practice by attending a Special Olympics South Africa (SOSA) Young Athletes Coaches training at Temogo Special School in the North West Province of South Africa. Three of IAWA’s Alumni Ambassadors, Otshepeng, Petronella and Tshwetso, had the opportunity to learn and interact with Special Olympic Athletes at the Young Athletes transitioning training and mini basketball practical session that took place in August.

This summer our Founder and Chief Executive of Hope, Meisha Lerato Robinson, was excited to finally be able to visit our Alumni Ambassadors in South Africa after more than a year away! Because of the Coronavirus pandemic, travel had been limited since early 2020, so when Meisha had the opportunity to travel to South Africa once again, she jumped at the opportunity.

We’re now hiring part time Youth Wellbeing Advisors in Maryland and Rustenburg, Youth Program Managers in MD and Rustenburg, and a Digital Media Coordinator in South Africa! We are looking to fill these positions ASAP. Statements of interests and resumes are being received at info@iamweareyouth.org or apply for our South Africa positions on za.indeed.com and for the MD positions on indeed.com.

We are excited to share our newly launched “I Am” merch line, now available at iamweareyouth.org/merch. The shirts capture the power of “I Am…” statements. It is a declaration, an affirmation, or a negation over your life. IAWA youth learn that what you say is what you think, what you think is what you feel, and what you feel is what you become so words have power.

Thanks to you, our IAWA family, I Am Here, our 5th Annual Reception and Art Auction, I Am Here, on December 5,2020 was our most successful fundraiser ever! In the midst of a pandemic, our virtual celebration and art auction raised $15,000 more than last year! All proceeds will go towards launching our new leadership development program, Morafe, enabling high-school youth in our flagship program in South Africa to convene monthly with youth in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area.

In February for Black History Month, we launched our We Are Black History project where we interview IAWA members, ambassadors, and supporters to share their stories of how they are living Black history. Often, we think of history as being only in the past, but we are all living history right now, so we want to share the stories of our amazing community members! Watch our first two videos of IAWA Founder Meisha Lerato Robinson and Ambassador Thembi.

Morafe is an inaugural program we are launching in response to COVID-19 restrictions and how these changes impact our traditional 4-year program. Morafe will be a virtual, abbreviated version of our core curriculum serving 10th graders in South Africa and the United States of America for a unique, cross-cultural, immersive, virtual learning experience. The program will take place over a 6-month period, during which youth will meet two Saturdays a month for two hour sessions, youth will participate in 3 wellbeing workshops, parents will be invited to participate in a parent workshop, and youth will have one-on-one wellbeing advising throughout the program.

Because of your support, last year we surpassed our fundraising goal and had huge success with our Annual Reception and Art Auction. We are excited to use those funds to launch our new program, Morafe. Morafe will work with Laurel High School in Prince George's County, MD, USA and Mmanape High School in the Northwest Province, SA. We are also expanding our team to ensure we have ample resources to support the youth in the program. We recently brought on Erin McIlraith as our Digital Media Coordinator and Montana Marks as my Assistant. With their support, we are looking forward to better consistency in our communications and expanding our reach.