Amies Ecrits: Connecting the world in a time of isolation

How can we become more connected in a world of isolation during the age of COVID-19? As our schools closed and laptops opened, we decided it was more important now than ever before to reach out to others around the world. 

We discovered Two Rabbits this summer, and immediately fell in love with their tireless and creative efforts to combat education inequality. Together with Sarah, we thought of ways that we could use our strengths to contribute to Two Rabbits’ mission, learn about the Baka culture, and broaden our horizons. 

What better way to do this than through a pen pal program? With guidance from Sarah and the Two Rabbits team, we developed Amies Écrits: a pen pal program that blends traditional and virtual letter writing. We brought together a group of four U.S. students and four Baka youth teachers to exchange letters each month. We hand-write our letters, take a picture, and share them through WhatsApp.

Amies Écrits combines our passions for French, community service, and leadership, and shares these joys with our new friends in Cameroon. It has been incredible to cultivate friendships with pen pals who we never would have had the chance to meet otherwise. Despite our different cultures and primary languages, we have formed immensely rewarding friendships through letters in our shared secondary language of French. In every letter, we uncover new commonalities between our vastly different lives.

Not only does Amies Écrits broaden our understanding of the world, but it also enables us to have a mindset that strives to enrich and support one another, rather than to “help” those considered to be “in need”. We are now certain that we want to devote our futures to making an impact in the world we live in, just as Two Rabbits and their team is doing everyday.  We want to truly thank Two Rabbits for giving us the opportunity to develop this program, and we are beyond excited for what the future holds.