The underdog is often the team to watch at international sports tournaments. Having risen above challenges and shown up the naysayers, triumphs are sweeter, even when the victory is just having made it so far. The VIVA World Cup, a tournament for teams not represented in the official soccer world—from Northern Cyprus, to Western Sahara, to Tibet—features perhaps more inspiring stories of overcoming adversity than most. But this year, Darfur United will no doubt stand out as a team that truly beat the odds. Read More »
Since the early 1900s countries around the world have celebrated International Women’s Day as a time to recognize the role of women in society and mobilize against injustices specifically impacting half of the world’s population. At Enough, rather than confining our commemoration to just one day—March 8—we’re giving a special focus to women all this week, to highlight how the conflicts we’re working to end affect women and girls, and to recognize the work of heroes advocating on their behalf.
For Day 2 of our International Women’s Week coverage, Meghan Higginbotham of Enough’s Darfur Dream Team profiled one of the inspiring young teachers she met in a refugee camp in eastern Chad. Read More »
Editor’s Note: This post is intended to provide a contextual background for understanding the complex issues that the Enough Project works on. It is part of the series Enough 101. Read More »
Thanks to the support of hundreds of U.S. students, schools, youth groups, individual donors, and partners like Jewish World Watch, the Darfur Dream Team Sister Schools Program was able to raise and disburse $300,000 for primary education in Djabal refugee camp in eastern Chad. The funds are making a tangible, positive impact on the quality of education for the more than 4,000 Darfuri refugee students enrolled in schools in Djabal. Read More »
In this guest post for MTV Act, I wrote about my overwhelming impressions from visiting Darfuri refugee camps in eastern Chad recently on behalf of the Darfur Dream Team Sister Schools Program. Read More »
I recently returned from spending two weeks in Darfuri refugee camps in eastern Chad. It was an incredible trip and, thanks to modern technology, I was able to regularly share my experiences with Darfur Dream Team Sister Schools, or DDT, participants and supporters through Enough Said and Facebook. One such experience was meeting Umda Tarbosh, an inspiring leader and dedicated teacher at DDT partner school Darasalam A in Goz Amer camp. Read More »
Today was my last day in Djabal refugee camp. After anticipating this visit for so long, I'm sad to leave eastern Chad and the people I’ve met. But after spending more than a week visiting Djabal and Goz Amer refugee camps, I'm returning to D.C. even more determined to increase support for refugee education here. Read More »
I have just five days left in Chad. In a few weeks, I'll be sharing an interactive trip diary with written entries, photos, and videos documenting my first visit to the Darfuri refugee camps in eastern Chad. Until then, here is a brief update on our team’s first few days. Read More »
This month the U.N. refugee agency released a report with extra significance for the work of the Darfur Dream Team. UNHCR’s “A Global Review on Refugee Education” outlines the importance of education for refugees and the challenges UNHCR faces in providing quality education. Read More »
WASHINGTON – American high school and university students have written letters to Darfuri refugees, which will be hand delivered this Thanksgiving by the Darfur Dream Team Sister Schools Program. The Sister Schools Program works with U.S. schools and donors to support education for the Darfuri refugees and build connections between American students and their Darfuri peers.
Meghan Higginbotham, Sister Schools Program assistant, will deliver the letters during a trip to two refugee camps in eastern Chad this week. She will also be asking refugee students what they want to be when they grow up and what traditions they celebrate.
“I’ve watched countless hours of video, scrolled though thousands of photos, and read compelling and entertaining stories from the camps. I already feel so connected to the students and teachers of Djabal and Goz Amer refugee camps,” Higginbotham said. “This experience will definitely deepen that connection. I’m excited to share this moment with other American students and activists.”
The conflict in Sudan’s Darfur region has killed 300,000 people since 2003. Another 300,000 have fled their homes for the refugee camps in neighboring Chad, where a lack of resources and access to education are major problems. The 12 refugee schools in the Sister Schools Program are paired with more than 225 American schools. Students in the U.S. raise funds to help build and rehabilitate school buildings, recruit and train qualified teachers and provide students in the refugee camps with school supplies and sports equipment.
“Throughout the trip, I’m going to be collecting the stories and aspirations of Darfuri refugees and sharing those on the Darfur Dream Team Facebook page and Enough Said blog,” Higginbotham said. “The reality for the Darfuri refugees is that these camps will continue to be their makeshift homes until its safe for them to return to Darfur.”
About Darfur Dream Team Sister Schools Program
The Darfur Dream Team is a dynamic partnership of organizations and professional basketball players working together on the Sister Schools Program, an initiative linking American middle schools, high schools and universities with 12 schools in 2 Darfuri refugee camps in eastern Chad. The Program works to provide a quality education to every refugee child from Darfur and, develop personal connections between students from Darfur and the United States that promote mutual understanding.
