250. Preventing a Lost Generation + Building a Small Business Incubator for Refugees: The Mission of Hello Future - Charlie Grosso
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Overview
Meet Charlie. She's on a mission to prevent a lost generation. This founder, techie, photographer, and creative dreamer followed her heart and passion until it landed in Syria, and she's never looked back. Her organization, Hello Future, is transforming the refugee youth experience from alone, stuck and forgotten to connected and empowered💪 If you have a heart for refugees or innocence caught amidst war - then this conversation will touch your heart.
💡Learn:
Founding story of Hello Future
Why greater digital literacy is needed globally
Org's innovative education model that's transforming the refugee youth experience
The current state & challenges of refugees around the world
Today’s Guest
Charlie Grosso Founder + Executive Director, Hello Future
“We want to unlock the power of the internet for them by shifting the framework by exposure. We want to lock their own human potential by teaching them tangible skills, and by teaching them transferable 21st century skills that does not lock into a particular vocation.”
Episode Transcript
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Episode highlights
Charlie’s story and journey to where she is today (2:47)
Transitioning from the for profit sector to social impact (7:00)
The founding story of Hello Future (12:00)
An overview of the programs at Hello Future (14:00)
Current statistics regarding refugees around the world, education gaps, and challenges they are facing (16:00)
Transforming the refugee youth experience from alone, stuck and forgotten to connected and empowered (22:00)
Charlie’s dreams for Hello Future (27:00)
A powerful story of philanthropy in Charlie’s life (29:00)
Charlie’s One Good Thing: Give them a time and listen and also let them feel heard. (34:00)
powerful quotes
“I know what it feels like to be alone, stuck, and forgotten by the world. I had very challenging and difficult teenage years. I was sent away to live in America, with strangers, I didn't speak the language, I couldn't go home, it was just really, really hard.” -Charlie
“I was having conversations with refugee teams or refugee families at its time. And from a consultant background, I was really interested in their relationship to technology.” -Charlie
“Their experience with the internet is radically different than ours.” -Charlie
“Our 101 program, I kind of think of it as a kitchen sink of ideas. It combines digital literacy, digital basic moments, and when we talk about digital basics, I mean, basic productivity tools that you and I use every day.” -Charlie
“We decided to work with teens just to kind of fill that service gap.” -Charlie
“Secondary school attainment for refugees as a whole is 34%, which means that most of their education stops at sixth grade. University attainment globally is 3%.” -Charlie
“There's bakeries, mosques, and greenhouses. So it's this attempt to make a life of where they are despite of how rough the circumstances are.” -Charlie
“Teenagers are great vectors of viral spread, right, they can teach up, they can teach down, they can teach laterally, their adoption rate is super speedy. So I think that's really powerful.” -Charlie
“We want to unlock the power of the internet for them by shifting the framework by exposure, right. And we want to lock their own human potential by teaching them tangible skills, and by teaching them transferable 21st century skills that does not lock in into a particular vocation.” -Charlie
“We want to future proof these kids with hard skills, soft skills, entrepreneurial skills, and leadership skills. As these kids have demonstrated, they have the insights, they have better insights than I do and any NGO worker who's on this ground. They live in the community, they’re part of the community, they understand the community in a way that I never will.” -Charlie
“So why don't we teach them what we know. So they can be community leaders, and they can be changemakers. And then we really get to local capacity building instead of always external players coming in and trying to fix whatever it is we're trying to fix.” -Charlie
“Hello Future came out of listening to the families that I was interviewing, not on a narrative that I wanted them to conform to.” -Charlie
“It matters so much to these kids to be like, Oh, you, Jonathan, Becky, like you guys are, you guys are important people in this world with important jobs, and you looked at my school project and, and gave me feedback on it. And that made me that made me feel real, that made me feel important and seen. That's everything.” -Charlie
connect with charlie
connect with hello future
Website / Facebook / Twitter / Instagram / Ways to Help
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Episode Sponsored by
Studio Selfie
Julie Confer, Becky Endicott, Jonathan McCoy & Charlie Grosso
