Friends, meet 17 year-old Ivy.

Wise and empathetic, Ivy traces one of her most important empathy-building moments back to a @globalimmerse Immersion Trip in Tijuana & San Diego:

“I remember walking into a shelter on the border and hearing from an asylum-seeking mother. She told us how she ran when her son was targeted by gangs, and I thought he must be an older boy, a teenager like me. Then, in walked the little boy who looked just like my little brother. Maybe 10 or 11 years old. I was overwhelmed thinking about all he’d been through at such a young age.”

Listening to Ivy share her story with such passion and clarity is inspiring—how many 17 year-olds talk and live with such empathy?! When asked why the way of #EverydayPeacemaking is so important, Ivy didn’t blink:

“Getting proximate to this kind of pain is invaluable. I see my generation and am concerned about just how desensitized we are. We see the huge numbers of people suffering or dying to COVID, for example, but we don’t register it because it’s just a statistic. But when you get up close and personal with the pain, it stops being a number and becomes something more personal. Immersion is what opens our eyes. And when our eyes are opened, it is impossible to walk away.” 

If you ever wonder about the next generation of peacemakers, remember Ivy. She and the many #EverydayPeacemakers of her generation give us so much hope that good things are ahead!

Author: Matt Willingham

Matt Willingham is a writer, photographer, and content creator with over ten years experience living and working in some of the hardest-hit conflict zones in the world. He and his wife, Cayla, are now based in San Diego where they’re raising three little peacemakers and working to promote empathy and understanding in their community.

@matt.willingham