A World We Imagine 3

 

 

One common theme I found while discussing a world I imagine to live in is empathy. Most people stated that if there was more empathy in the world, we could facilitate an environment in which people can come together as one and work together to improve the world. At times, the root of this problem seems unclear and sprawling.

 

Mission

We at Bridge 21 believe that by exposing different cultures and perspectives to children at a young age, we can easily instill these values of empathy and compassion. Children are most impressionable when they are young. During these valuable formative years, we aim to gather children into one place and teach them numerous aspects of culture including language, customs, cuisine, and music to children.

The name “Bridge 21” stands for our mission statement, “Bridging the World Into One.” At the end of the day, we all want to live in a world in which we all feel comfortable in our own skin and our similarities and differences are celebrated. By bridging the cultural gap in our youth, we can address this problem at its root and fulfill this statement.

The significance of this NGO is insurmountable in our present day and age. Because of increasing globalization, it is imperative that we fulfill the mission of Bridge 21. This is why I am so passionate about this work. On top of this, I simply love exposing others to different cultures, especially those that had no exposure prior. Learning about something so unique and foreign is engaging and interesting, so sharing this with our youth is very gratifying to me.

 

Our Unique Business Model

Bridge 21 is an NGO that gets funding from grants and other individual donors. Bridge 21 is essentially a daycare but with a twist: we will focus on teaching different aspects of culture everyday. Children from ages 3-6 are the main demographic as they are not enrolled in school yet. However, there are supplemental afterschool programs that are offered to children up to ages 12. In this way, we can gather the community in an initiative that helps both children and working parents. 

The subject of culture is never taught in schools because it isn’t seen as valuable enough. Bridge 21 thoroughly disagrees. This is what sets us apart from other learning centers. While there might be classes that focus on one culture, Bridge 21 explores all cultures with the underlying theme of building strong empathy in children. Even areas with homogenous demographics can now be exposed to and learn to be accepting of people different from them. This is an invaluable social skill.

Because of the numerous long-term benefits Bridge 21 provides, such as instilling values of compassion, empathy, acceptance, and open-mindedness, we feel that Anima Mundi Development Partners would be perfectly suited to support us. Our model helps both parents and students in both the short-term and long-term. Bridge 21 is the key to addressing the root of the issue of division. By targeting young children during their formative years, we can shape the future generation to fit a world in which we dare to imagine: one of love, unity, understanding, and empathy.