Flourish In The Foreign | Black Women Living & Thriving Abroad

*Support for this episode comes from author Reno Smith, whose books "Listen to Your Children" and "Smart Money Skills for Parents of Teens" offer practical tools for parents raising kids abroad. Find them by searching Amazon for author Reno Smith.*

What are the conditions under which Black women flourish?

In this Season 7 finale of Flourish in the Foreign, Christine reflects on how six years of interviews, writing, and research transformed her understanding of migration. Revisiting this season's themes of Migration as Relief, Migration as Wellness, and Migration as Liberation, she shares why those ideas ultimately led her toward a new area of inquiry she's actively exploring: Migration as Black Futurity.

Drawing from Richard Wright, Octavia Butler, Black feminist thought, public health, Afropessimism, Afrofuturism, ecology, and the stories of women featured throughout the podcast, Christine invites listeners into the evolution of her thinking—not as a finished theory, but as a research journey.

The episode also marks the beginning of a new chapter as Christine prepares to begin her PhD in Migration Studies, where she will continue investigating Black women's flourishing, migration, belonging, and the conditions that make different futures possible.

• Why Flourish in the Foreign has always been about flourishing
• Richard Wright and the question of "blooming"
• Migration as Relief, Wellness, and Liberation
• The limits of existing migration narratives
• Afropessimism and Afrofuturism in conversation
• Why Christine is exploring Migration as Black Futurity
• Ecology, belonging, and integration
• Black women's flourishing as a research agenda
• Why Christine is pursuing a PhD
• What's next for Flourish in the Foreign
• 
  

Interested in Christine's doctoral research?

Explore her research agenda:

christinejob.com/research

Continue the conversation by subscribing to Love Letters from Elsewhere, Christine's Substack exploring migration, diaspora, Black women's flourishing, and building a life well lived abroad.

Interested in working with Christine?

Migration Advisory • Strategic Consulting • Speaking

christinejob.com

Buy Me a Coffee (https://www.buymeacoffee.com/flourishforeign)

Episode Credits:

Christine Job — Creator, Host, Producer & Editor

Zachary Higgs — Theme Music

In this episode of Flourish in the Foreign, Tania Beasley-Jolly, a Black American woman living in Düsseldorf, Germany. She has spent about 11 years living abroad across Belgium, Singapore, and Germany. Tania shares how art history and opera shaped her international path, how expat moves affected her career, identity, marriage, and motherhood, and how she built community through “cultural ambassadors.”

This Episode Covers:

• Expat Move to Belgium
• Singapore Expat Bubble
• Düsseldorf Lockdown Reality
• Marriage Lessons Abroad
• Motherhood and Raising a Third Culture Kid
• Career Pivot and Writing a Book
• Aging Abroad
• Migration as Wellness

To learn more about today's guest, visit their show notes page at flourishintheforeign.com/episodes/tania

To learn more about today's guest, visit their show notes page at flourishintheforeign.com

Ready to go deeper? Subscribe to Love Letters from Elsewhere — Christine's Substack on migration, diaspora, and building a life well lived abroad: christinejob.substack.com

Interested in working with Christine? One-on-one migration advisory, strategic consulting, and speaking: christinejob.com/work-with-me

Episode Credits:

Christine Job — Creator, Host, Producer & Editor

Zachary Higgs — Theme Music

In this episode of Flourish in the Foreign, Jordynn McKnight, a creative director living in Amsterdam, shares her path from growing up in Northern Virginia in a creative, curiosity-driven family to studying abroad in Milan and completing a master’s in interactive media that included work in the Dominican Republic. After working in New York design agencies and being laid off, she applied widely and moved to Geneva, ultimately leaving and moving to Amsterdam after a 2019 visit. She discusses wellness practices, reflections on aging abroad, and preserving African American culture while living abroad.

This Episode Covers:

• New York to Geneva Leap
• Choosing Amsterdam Next
• European Work Life Balance
• Aging Abroad
• Wellness Through Rituals
• Dating and Feeling Seen
• Migration as Wellness
•  

To learn more about today's guest, visit their show notes page at flourishintheforeign.com

Ready to go deeper? Subscribe to Love Letters from Elsewhere — Christine's Substack on migration, diaspora, and building a life well lived abroad: christinejob.substack.com

Interested in working with Christine? One-on-one migration advisory, strategic consulting, and speaking: christinejob.com/work-with-me

Buy Me a Coffee (https://www.buymeacoffee.com/flourishforeign)

Episode Credits:

Christine Job — Creator, Host, Producer & Editor

Zachary Higgs — Theme Music

In this episode of Flourish in the Foreign, Zamzam Khalfani, a Bahamian educator now in Maputo, Mozambique, shares how leaving Nassau at 20 shaped her identity, faith, and wellbeing. Raised in one of the Bahamas’ first Muslim families, she sought a larger Muslim community and connection to African roots, moving to Senegal to study French and later earning a master’s degree. For professional development and financial freedom, she relocated to China. After COVID-era lockdowns that brought xenophobia and concerns for her children’s mental health, her family moved to Mozambique.

This Episode Covers:

• Childhood in Nassau
• Choosing Senegal
• Teaching in China
• New Start in Mozambique
• Motherhood and Discipline
• Migration As Wellness
• Defining Wellness Practices

To learn more about today's guest, visit their show notes page at flourishintheforeign.com

Ready to go deeper? Subscribe to Love Letters from Elsewhere — Christine's Substack on migration, diaspora, and building a life well lived abroad: christinejob.substack.com

Interested in working with Christine? One-on-one migration advisory, strategic consulting, and speaking: christinejob.com/work-with-me

Buy Me a Coffee (https://www.buymeacoffee.com/flourishforeign)

Episode Credits:

Christine Job — Creator, Host, Producer & Editor

Zachary Higgs — Theme Music

In this episode of Flourish in the Foreign, historian and writer Dr. Richelle Clark describes living abroad for over 20 years and now residing in Oahu, Hawaii. She pursued journalism, landed a Stars and Stripes job in Germany, and deployed to Bosnia and Kosovo. She lived in Brazil, and later, Portugal became her “happy place” and home.

This Episode Covers:

• First Overseas Reporting in Germany
• Landing the Stars and Stripes Job
• Covering Kosovo as a Black Woman
• Brazil Move and Language School
• Moving to Portugal
• Integrating Family and Starting a PhD
• Portuguese Academic Culture Lessons
• Portugal as Home and Identity Reset
• Blackness Abroad vs America
• Migration as Freedom Mindset

To learn more about today's guest, visit their show notes page at flourishintheforeign.com

Ready to go deeper? Subscribe to Love Letters from Elsewhere — Christine's Substack on migration, diaspora, and building a life well lived abroad: christinejob.substack.com

Interested in working with Christine? One-on-one migration advisory, strategic consulting, and speaking: christinejob.com/work-with-me

Buy Me a Coffee (https://www.buymeacoffee.com/flourishforeign)

Episode Credits:

Christine Job — Creator, Host, Producer & Editor

Zachary Higgs — Theme Music

In this episode of Flourish in the Foreign, Courtney Bowden shares her transformative journey from burnout and grief in the U.S. to finding peace and purpose in Mexico. After the tragic loss of a close friend and feeling disillusioned with the American Dream, Courtney takes a leap of faith to move abroad. She discusses her childhood in a sundown town in Michigan, and the various factors that led her to settle in Mexico’s Yucatan region.

This Episode Covers:

• Growing Up in a Sundown Town
• Pandemic and Decision to Move Abroad
• Reflections on Life in Mexico
• The Great Migration and Its Impact
• Aging Abroad
• Pride in Black Identity and History
• Wellness and Decolonizing Life

To learn more about today's guest, visit their show notes page at flourishintheforeign.com

Ready to go deeper? Subscribe to Love Letters from Elsewhere — Christine's Substack on migration, diaspora, and building a life well lived abroad: christinejob.substack.com

Interested in working with Christine? One-on-one migration advisory, strategic consulting, and speaking: christinejob.com/work-with-me

Buy Me a Coffee (https://www.buymeacoffee.com/flourishforeign)

Episode Credits:

Christine Job — Creator, Host, Producer & Editor

Zachary Higgs — Theme Music

In this episode of Flourish in the Foreign, Meka Walters shares her extraordinary journey of living and working across various countries, from Japan to Burkina Faso to Bhutan. She discusses significant challenges such as losing her job and contracting malaria. She delves into her teaching experiences, spiritual growth through yoga, and her current work with the Bhutan Wine Company.

This Episode Covers:

• Early Adventures Abroad: Japan and Korea
• Exploring Vietnam and Africa
• Sabbatical and Return to Vietnam
• Journey to Bhutan
• Identity and Experiences as a Black Woman Abroad
• Trans-Siberian Railway Adventure
• Living in Bhutan
• Working in the Wine Industry 

To learn more about today's guest, visit their show notes page at flourishintheforeign.com

Ready to go deeper? Subscribe to Love Letters from Elsewhere — Christine's Substack on migration, diaspora, and building a life well lived abroad: christinejob.substack.com

Interested in working with Christine? One-on-one migration advisory, strategic consulting, and speaking: christinejob.com/work-with-me

Buy Me a Coffee (https://www.buymeacoffee.com/flourishforeign)

Episode Credits:

Christine Job — Creator, Host, Producer & Editor

Zachary Higgs — Theme Music

In this episode of Flourish in the Foreign, Itiah Thomas returns to the show to share what she’s been up to since our last conversation. Itiah delves into her life abroad in Brisbane, from obtaining Australian citizenship to navigating professional evolution. She also shares her thoughts on aging abroad, retirement, and the wellness practices that keep her healthy and happy abroad.

This Episode Covers:

• Major Life Changes and Career Updates
• Reflections on Aging Abroad
• Future Plans and Retirement Goals
• Becoming an Australian Citizen
• Black Identity in Australia
• Professional Evolution and Entrepreneurship
• Reflections on Migration as Liberation
• Wellness Abroad

To learn more about today's guest, visit their show notes page at flourishintheforeign.com

Ready to go deeper? Subscribe to Love Letters from Elsewhere — Christine's Substack on migration, diaspora, and building a life well lived abroad: christinejob.substack.com

Interested in working with Christine? One-on-one migration advisory, strategic consulting, and speaking: christinejob.com/work-with-me

Buy Me a Coffee (https://www.buymeacoffee.com/flourishforeign)

Episode Credits:

Christine Job — Creator, Host, Producer & Editor

Zachary Higgs — Theme Music

In this episode of Flourish in the Foreign, Niana returns to share her thoughts on "Aging Abroad". Niana's first episode of the show was the very first episode of Flourish in the Foreign. This episode is being released on the 6th anniversary of the show. Celebrate and show your support through Buy Me A Coffee or by becoming a paid Substack subscriber.

Niana has been living in the Netherlands for eight years (abroad 13 total). She shares what she has been up to since the last time she appeared on the show: buying a car and a house, moving to a rural village, and becoming a mother of two. She explains Dutch prenatal care centered on midwives, options like home birth, and a hospital-adjacent birth house. Niana reflects on raising tri-racial Dutch children while intentionally passing on Black American culture, navigating Dutch emotional norms, career growth, aging abroad, wellness benefits of living abroad, and ongoing pride and longing for Chicago.

This Episode Covers:

Catching Up on the Past 6 Years

Aging Abroad

Career Growth

Pregnancy Abroad

Raising Tri-Racial Kids

Passing Down Culture

Wellness Abroad

Representing America Abroad

To learn more about today's guest, visit their show notes page at flourishintheforeign.com

Ready to go deeper? Subscribe to Love Letters from Elsewhere — Christine's Substack on migration, diaspora, and building a life well lived abroad: christinejob.substack.com

Interested in working with Christine? One-on-one migration advisory, strategic consulting, and speaking: christinejob.com/work-with-me

Buy Me a Coffee (https://www.buymeacoffee.com/flourishforeign)

Episode Credits:

Christine Job — Creator, Host, Producer & Editor

Zachary Higgs — Theme Music

In this episode of Flourish in the Foreign, Dr. Tiffany Lashelle Smith returns to share what she has been up to since our last conversation. She discusses the impact of pursuing her PhD and the evolution of her identity as a Black American woman living internationally. Tiffany reflects on aging, family relationships, and the concept of migration as a form of liberation. She delves into her personal experiences, highlighting how living abroad has transformed her perspective on life and wellness.

This Episode Covers:

• Living Abroad: A Journey Through Different Countries
• Life Changes and Pursuing a PhD
• Reflections on Aging Abroad
• Identity and Connection in a Foreign Land
• Family and Sacrifice
• The Reality of Living Abroad
• Defining Community
• Wellness and Self-Advocacy
• Update on Life in Dubai

To learn more about today's guest, visit their show notes page at flourishintheforeign.com

Ready to go deeper? Subscribe to Love Letters from Elsewhere — Christine's Substack on migration, diaspora, and building a life well lived abroad: christinejob.substack.com

Interested in working with Christine? One-on-one migration advisory, strategic consulting, and speaking: christinejob.com/work-with-me

Buy Me a Coffee (https://www.buymeacoffee.com/flourishforeign)

Episode Credits:

Christine Job — Creator, Host, Producer & Editor

Zachary Higgs — Theme Music