Hello, it’s Ramadan!
“The entire month is meant to help Muslims shake off the complacency of daily life and jumpstart spiritual growth, piety, and generosity to others.” - from “What you need to know about Ramadan”
To those who are observing, Ramadan Mubarak! To non-Muslims wanting to learn more about this annual month-long practice which includes fasting between dawn and sunset, frequent prayer and giving to charity, among other aspects, have a look at some of these succinct, user-friendly resources:
Ramadan.day offers an easy to read summary in a Frequently Asked Question format which might be useful for students.
A one-page run-down on the significance of fasting during Ramadan can be found on Iftar.fyi
Illustrator and author, Huda Fahmy teamed up with Aya Khalil to create this excellent free printable poster on how best to accommodate students during the month of Ramadan.
Finally, this generous Twitter thread by Fatima offers great advice for non-Muslims during this key month of Muslim observance.
International School educators, get your PD lined up for this summer!
A 3-Day Online Retreat for DEIJ Practitioners is being offered by a dream team of international school veteran facilitators: Alyssa Perreras, Emily Meadows and Darnell Fine! The scheduled dates are June 28 - July 1st, 2022, 3 - 6pm CET, each day. Details can be found here. I would love to have a few colleagues join me for this remarkable learning opportunity!
Become an International Accreditation Evaluator! What? This might not be on your immediate priority list which I fully understand. However, it’s hard to talk about seeing and making change in the international school ecosystem if those charged with visiting schools are not comprised of more diverse and equity-conscious team members. I’ve just committed to a 4-week training this summer which will qualify me to participate on visiting teams in the future. I’ve participated on visiting teams in the past (2009, 2011) and the experience is unparalleled in terms of professional learning in the broadest sense.
I want to direct your attention to some other sources of interest that crossed my path recently and seem worth sharing.
“Elite International Schools Have A Racism Problem” by international school alumna, Natalie Obiko Pearson, provides an excellently researched look at the international school hiring ecosystem. Disappointing but hardly surprising.
A tab I’ve had open on my laptop for days is the Democracy Report 2022, compiled by the Varieties of Democracy (V-Dem) Institute which measures the shifting levels of democracy in 202 countries over the last two centuries. Not my usual reading fare, I have been struck by some of the general findings about rising autocracy. If you read closely, the trends towards dictatorships are stomach-turning and alarming:
“In summary: The worldwide wave of autocratization is deepening, engulfing more countries, and seems to be changing nature.”
The surge in autocratic regimes in Europe, the Americas, Asia and Africa should give us all pause. These trends are not coincidental. Climate disaster, escalating and accelerating inequality, the attack on human rights of LGBTQIA-identifying folks, persistent global and local racism are happening at the same time that the billionaire class continue to amass more wealth and political leverage. We ignore these connections at our peril.
As I’ve composed this newsletter, I’ve found it challenging to close it out, ideally on a positive note. I know you’ll forgive me if I don’t but I want to keep trying, also for myself. So just when I was about to let this go, my Twitter feed delivered a simple reminder of what’s possible.
What I liked about this video was seeing young people of varied backgrounds describing positive developments: growth in themselves and in their community. Peace and belonging are things we build. They don’t just happen. Listening to these students made me feel hopeful. Perhaps it will spark a little hope in you, too.
I wish you all a season of awakening, of blossoming, of warmth and sustenance.
Be well,
Sherri