Over the Globe

In this episode I am joined by Elizabeth Holokolosova from Donetsk, Ukraine. She shares her memories of watching the fighting in 2014 from her kindergarten, growing up through years of displacement, learning Arabic, and studying in three schools at the same time. Over the Globe is a podcast created as part of Classrooms Without Walls, an initiative that provides teens in conflict zones with access...

In this episode, Sadia, a student with Afghan roots who was born in Pakistan, speaks about traveling to Afghanistan and unexpectedly getting stuck there, working at a photography studio, and facing challenges as she tries to continue her education in Pakistan. Over the Globe is a podcast created as part of Classrooms Without Walls, an initiative that provides teens in conflict zones with access to...

In episode 113, I am joined by Kateryna, a fifteen-year-old from Akkerman, Ukraine, who talks about her hometown, the day her school was hit by a missile, and writing a poetry book with Voices of Children. Tune in to hear about ancient fortresses by the sea, the beauty of the Carpathian Mountains, and Kyiv’s Book Arsenal. Over the Globe is a podcast created as part of Classrooms Without Walls, an...

After fleeing Ukraine for Poland, Arina found a sense of relief and purpose by helping others at a bus terminal. When she returned to Ukraine, she continued volunteering, this time supporting children with special needs. Listen to this episode to hear about her refugee experience in Poland, what children with Down syndrome have taught her, and her work with the leadership organization Future Empow...

In this episode, I’m interviewing four teenagers from InnerEcho, a trauma-informed digital tool and educational initiative created to support young people who need mental health resources. Through online and offline events, InnerEcho connects youth from different countries, encourages open conversations about mental health, and provides practical tools for self-healing. In this episode, we discuss...

In this episode, Veronika Verloochenko, a high-school student from Ukraine, speaks about her hometown, Dnipro, and about her English speaking club, Star, which now has over 3,000 subscribers on its Telegram channel. How does she promote the club? Who are the volunteers behind it? And what challenges does a person face when creating a new project? Listen to this episode to find out. Over the Globe...

In this episode, I’m joined by Solomiia Krukivska, a sixteen-year-old from Ukraine, who talks about living with nine other people in a single-floor building in France, her interest in marketing, and how the war has changed our generation.  Over the Globe is a podcast created as part of Classrooms Without Walls, an initiative that provides teens in conflict zones with access to education. If you wa...

In this episode, I’m joined by Sofiia Honcharova from Ukraine, who talks about how she fled to Germany and then returned to Ukraine, science during the war, and how to keep your inner spark alive when it feels like the world is against you. Over the Globe is a podcast created as part of Classrooms Without Walls, an initiative that provides teens in conflict zones with access to education. If you w...

In this episode, I am joined by Hannah, a nine-year-old from Myanmar, who talks about what a typical day at school is like for her, what she would like to change about it, and what adults do not understand about being nine years old. Over the Globe is a podcast created as part of Classrooms Without Walls, an initiative that provides teens in conflict zones with access to education. If you want to...

This episode is a little different from my usual interviews, where I speak with a teenager from a war-affected country. Instead, this is a trilateral conversation with Lars Peter Nissen and Ross Skowronski, where the three of us take turns in asking and answering questions. We decided to come together because each of us is involved, in different ways, in humanitarian aid and support for people aff...

After the start of the full-scale invasion, Roman was forced to flee Mykolaiv and relocate to Uzhhorod, where he began volunteering to support people going through challenges similar to his own. In September, he moved to the state of Maine in the United States as a FLEX exchange student. In this episode, he talks about volunteering as an internally displaced person in Uzhhorod, what it is like to...

In this episode, eleven-year-old Anna from Myanmar shares her perspective on the situation in her country, while also talking about Chinese New Year, badminton, and her love for Stray Kids. Over the Globe is a podcast created as part of Classrooms Without Walls, an initiative that provides teens in conflict zones with access to education. If you want to support CWW or learn more about their work,...

In this episode, I am joined by Anastasiia Semylit, a sixteen-year-old from Sumy, Ukraine, who was forced to flee to Bucha in 2024. In this episode, she shares what life in Bucha is like, what it means to take a seven-hour train journey back to her hometown every couple of weeks, and how playing the ukulele helps her deal with stress. Over the Globe is a podcast created as part of Classrooms Witho...

In this episode, I am joined by Kira, a sixteen-year-old from Ukraine, who talks about what her athletic training is like during the war, how she feels during competitions, and how writing helps her cope with the current situation. Over the Globe is a podcast created as part of Classrooms Without Walls, an initiative that provides teens in conflict zones with access to education. If you want to su...

In this episode, Zainab from Afghanistan takes us on a journey from studying Public Policy and Administration at Kabul University, to being denied the right to education, yet continuing to pursue it, receiving scholarships from American universities, and building her life today as a Computer Science and English teacher and a business owner. Over the Globe is a podcast created as part of Classrooms...

Over the Globe has reached 100 episodes. To mark this milestone, I’m taking a step back to reflect on the first 99 and trace the common threads running through these stories. What challenges do people in the countries I’ve covered face most often? How do they cope? What makes them stay, what pushes them to leave, and what brings some of them back? This solo episode brings together recurring themes...

In this episode, you’ll hear from Maryam Rasouli, a teenager from Afghanistan, speaking honestly about what comes after an education ban: the weight of despair, the stubbornness of hope, and the quiet strength that comes from not letting the restrictions take over her life. She also describes what it’s like to study for A Levels online with almost no resources, yet still refusing to give up. Over...

In Episode 98 of Over the Globe, Daria Prymak takes us from the quiet streets of Rivne, where opportunities for young people can feel limited, to the fast-paced, unpredictable life of Kyiv. She also shares how she found her voice through Youth Journalism International, connecting and collaborating with young journalists from around the world. Over the Globe is a podcast created as part of Classroo...

In this episode, Fatima shares what it means to keep learning when education is forbidden. Despite the Taliban’s ban, she continues studying online, pursuing both the British A Levels and the American school system, while reflecting on the differences between the two and what it takes to stay motivated in uncertainty. She speaks about leadership as daily courage and responsibility, and about her w...

When the Taliban banned girls’ education, Zahra’s world went quiet. For a whole year, she sank into depression, unable to study, to plan, or even to imagine a future. But little by little, hope found its way back. She started attending lessons online, then, with time, she began teaching others too. Step by step, she rebuilt her life, and that journey eventually led her to being accepted to a unive...

In this episode, Kateryna Panasenko, a teenager from Ukraine, opens up about what it feels like to study at a Ukrainian school in Spain - to carry home with you, even when you’re far away from it. We talk about scouting, the friendships and challenges that come with it, an Erasmus project in Zakopane, and the energy of an organisation called Urban Rukh. Come with us on a journey through the sun-so...

When you’re a child, fleeing your country because of war can feel strangely unreal - almost like an adventure you never asked for. That’s how it was for Anastasia Kravchuk. She had always loved travelling, and moving to Portugal felt exciting: a new language, new streets, new beginnings. In this episode, Anastasia opens up about what life in Portugal was really like - the people she met, and the m...

Bana’s home in Gaza was destroyed, and she was forced to move again and again - until she ended up in the Nusierat refugee camp. There, she has been unable to go to school or to dance dabka, the dance that once made her feel truly free. Listen to this episode to hear Bana describe life in the camp, what her days were like before everything changed, and the dreams she still holds onto despite it al...

Sasha grew up in Pokrovsk, a city in Donbas where Miner’s Day mattered more than New Year’s and summers meant sleeping in tents at scout camp. In August 2024, everything changed: Pokrovsk moved to the frontline, and Sasha had to leave for Kyiv. This year, she’s starting over again - now as a FLEX exchange student living in Ohio. In this episode, Sasha talks about the city she still calls home, how...

In this episode, we meet Manezha - a young woman who refuses to let restrictions stop her from learning, dreaming, or helping others. Despite everything, she continues studying English and even teaches it to Afghan girls who otherwise wouldn’t have access to education. In this conversation, she also takes us behind the scenes of her journey to the Global Encounters Camp in Pakistan — an experience...