2025 has been a year of change – geopolitical, professional, and personal. I’m no stranger change. I’ve always had a knack for somehow finding myself in the middle of it – revolution, political upheaval, war. That said, I won’t pretend that these past few months haven’t felt especially challenging. It’s been a difficult year for my colleagues and friends at home and across the globe, and many of us are still picking up the pieces and trying to figure out what’s next.
It’s been about six months since our USAID project was terminated. Like many others across the world, I suddenly found myself without the mission and team that motivated me to work harder than I thought I could – often well past business hours and through the weekends. I’m immensely proud of what we were able to accomplish, while also saddened that we weren’t able to deliver the rest of the critical support we had planned for Ukraine in 2025.
Although that chapter closed prematurely, I decided to stay in Ukraine a little longer. This country has been my “second home” for over 14 years, so it’s a hard place to leave behind – especially now. With Ukrainians continuing to endure Russia’s brutal war, I decided to stick around and look for other ways to make a positive impact – and maybe help build something new. I’m still optimistic that we can work across borders to make life better for each other. Communications can play a role. Technology can play a role. And, crucially, we play a role.
Over the past few months, I’ve started exploring what that means – what we “idealists” can teach people in other sectors about communicating effectively and genuinely, and what we can learn from those same people in other sectors.
I want to share some of what I’ve learned over the years about communications and international development, as well as what I’m learning now as I try to build new things alongside my new colleagues in the technology sector. Maybe there’s something interesting in it for you, too.
–CC
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