A warm welcome to our new Program Manager and many IVLP groups, and a reflection on our first YLAI cohort

YLAI Kalamazoo Fellows show off their certificates at closing ceremony in Washington D.C.

Congratulations to the 2023 YLAI alumni

June went by in the blink of an eye for the Global Ties Kalamazoo team. We can hardly believe that it is now the middle of July! Thanks to everyone on our board and in our community who volunteered their time to connect meaningfully with the incredible international guests we’ve welcomed recently, across a variety of different exchange programs. We are gearing up to host our sixth cohort of IYLEP - High School Arabic next week.

We wrapped up our very first YLAI - Young Leaders of the Americas Initiative - cohort ambassadorship in mid-June, and we’ll never forget the incredible experiences we shared with this engaged group of young entrepreneurs from across the Americas, who spent a month in Kalamazoo working with Fellowship Placement Organizations (FPOs) Mondays-Thursdays, and spent their Fridays with the Global Ties Kalamazoo team and meeting with businesses and organizations in our region.

Check out our YLAI photo gallery here.

One of the Kalamazoo fellows, María Isabel Amorín, placed in the top 10 in a solutions pitch contest among all the program participants across the country, and earned the opportunity to present her work on a biodegradable, crustacean-shell-based water treatment polymer at the closing forum in D.C. Thanks again to the City of Kalamazoo’s Water Reclamation Plant for having such a rich partnership with Maria, and thanks again to all our incredible FPO partners for this program:

City of Kalamazoo – Public Services
El Concilio
Confections w Convictions
Discover Kalamazoo
KRESA CTE – Kalamazoo Regional Educational Service Agency, Career and Technical Education
KVCC Valley Hub – Kalamazoo Valley Community College, Food Innovation Center
KYDnet – Kalamazoo Youth Development Network
PMN – Public Media Network
RAWK – Read and Write Kalamazoo
Room 35
Sarkozy Bakery
Southwest Michigan First

Here’s a little of what Global Ties Kalamazoo Executive Director Jodi Michaels had to say at the closing ceremony of the program, as certificates were distributed in Washington, D.C.

Many of you have had life changing experiences that you will carry with you in all that you do as you build better futures in your home countries and across the Americas. I have been involved in this rich space we call international exchange for more than 25 years and I must say, you taught me so many new things. I am thrilled that we are about to have our very first twelve alumni from Kalamazoo. And I want to congratulate all of you here in this room, for all that you have learned and left behind in your host cities, enriching yourselves and all of our communities here in the United States as well.
The moment the Kalamazoo cohort arrived at the airport, I knew this group would be special. The initiative, the drive, the flexibility, the willingness to engage deeply and try new things – and to do all of this in a place that you had never heard of before, is a testament to all of your incredible strengths. You are truly inspiring humans and you will continue to do amazing things.
All of us in cities across the country spent our Fridays together as a cohort. From our first Friday session in Kalamazoo, with the mayor, where he shed tears as he spoke of his career journey, to our trip to Lake Michigan, where many of you splashed around in the freezing cold water of this seeming freshwater ocean, I will truly cherish the time we spent together.
I encourage all of you to continue to build the networks you have started in your cities, and with each other. Continue to nurture the lifelong relationships that are still in their infancy, continue to dance, and continue to be the amazing change makers that you all are.

IVLP connects Kalamazoo with the world

The YLAI cohort weren’t the only amazing change-makers to visit our region in June. We also welcomed three International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) groups including Rule of Law and the U.S. Judicial System, Women's Political Participation in Tamil Nadu, and a Dismantling Racial and Social Injustice program for Brazil.

“It was amazing hosting this group of antiracism artivists from Brazil,” said Global Ties Kalamazoo Executive Director Jodi Michaels of this group of artists/activists. “Their reflections on the underground railroad museum in Schoolcraft … freestyling on Westnedge with Kalamazoo hip-hop emcees … taking a deep dive with Leatrice Fullerton on intersectionality … and a rich conversation with Dr. Mundy, Liis Lahti, and Rhiki Swinton at ERACCE on many of the differences and similarities on anti racism efforts in Kalamazoo and our guests' communities all across Brazil … We would welcome this group back anytime! We really hope that some of our Kalamazoo folks will be able to attend the opening of the very first museum of hip hop in Latin America on December 9th (founded by program participant Rafael Diogo Dos Santos).”

“I love that they called themselves artivists,” said Global Ties Kalamazoo Program Manager Emma Baratta. “Using their art for activism is a big piece of it.”

Please join us in welcoming our new Program Manager, Emma Baratta

(L to R, Jodi, Beth and Emma with peace sign created for Community Living Options exhibition.

Global Ties Kalamazoo was thrilled to welcome our new Program Manager Emma Baratta (pictured at right), who recently earned her masters’ degree from Western Michigan University in Hispanic Studies/Spanish and joined our team in mid-June.

Emma has conducted research on self-determination of states, immigration and citizenship policies and the impacts of decolonization, as well as global bilingualism and Spanish and Latin American literature. She is passionate about voter education, immigrant rights and language accessibility among other things, and finds ways to engage with the community around these topics whenever possible.

Here’s what Emma had to say about her first week in the Program Manager role:

As a recent grad with a background in international and comparative politics, I felt like I found my dream job when I applied to Global Ties Kalamazoo and saw that I would have the opportunity to engage with people from around the world with the purpose of exchanging ideas and sharing cultural experiences. My passion for what I studied and the work that I have done comes from a deeply held belief that we all have something to gain from engaging with people who see the world from a different point of view than our own, and I knew that this job would allow me to tap into and grow that passion.
My first week certainly delivered on that goal as I got to interact with three IVLP groups visiting from all over the world. My very first meeting was with visitors from the SWANA region focused on rule of law. I appreciated their warm welcome into my new role as I helped to welcome them to Kalamazoo, and I learned a lot by joining them in their meetings and exploring the justice system in our community.
Next we welcomed an amazing group of Women in Politics from Tamil Nadu, India. These ladies fostered so many thoughtful conversations in their engagements with women leaders from across Kalamazoo. While many of the topics discussed in these meetings were difficult, what the participants and local leaders came away with was a sense of solidarity around the challenges that women of the world share. These meetings made it easy to see the powerful impact these programs can have not only for the participants but for our own community.
Last and certainly not least, I got to connect with an energetic group of Brazilian leaders - artists and activists - for a home hospitality dinner. The highlight of my time with them was getting pulled into a cornhole game where my teammate, Daiana, cheered me on the whole time (even though she did way better than me her first time ever playing the game)!
Overall, it was an amazing first week and I am looking forward to more engagement with visitors and local leaders and diving into the work ahead!

Global Ties Kalamazoo attends 2023 USGLC Heartland Summit

We had a great day at the 2023 U.S. Global Leadership Coalition (USGLC) Heartland Summit in Detroit! Jodi and Emma were joined by Global Ties Kalamazoo board member Michel Baradosa for a day of conversation about what U.S. global leadership means here in Michigan.

This summit was held in both Detroit and Sioux City, Iowa and we had the opportunity to hear from great leaders from both states and across the Heartland. U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell discussed the importance of global leadership in the Heartland, covering topics from food security and agricultural exports to the importance of coming together to make sure our region has a voice in Washington and around the world. We also had the opportunity to meet U.S. Rep. Haley Stevens after her engaging conversation about technology and global development with Google's Marcus Jadotte.

We loved getting to see our partners from the east side of the state and hear Global Ties Detroit President, Marian Reich, speak on a panel about the importance of global engagement in Michigan! The passion of so many leaders for global engagement and innovation has us feeling energized and inspired, we even took a Kalamazoo team pic on the stage!

Get Involved!

Next week we will be hosting Iraqi young leaders in Kalamazoo and have a line up of wonderful host families to welcome them as we explore leadership and disability rights together. You too can host young leaders in Kalamazoo before the year is out! We are seeking home hosts for a Youth Ambassadors Program from Central America in late October. Open your home to passionate young people, Spanish speakers, from Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Nicaragua, and Panama.

The teens all speak varying levels of English and always find a way to communicate. They will range from 15 to 18 years old, and their program is focused on environment and entrepreneurship. We would love to have you host with us!

Sign up to host

If ensuring that #ExchangeIsForEverybody matters to you, we invite you to consider supporting our work. Click the button below to donate, or text GTKZOO to 44321.

Thank you for your support,

Jodi Hope Michaels and the Global Ties Kalamazoo Team

*This blog post was originally sent as an email newsletter on July 14, 2023