Immigrant Squared

In September 2022 I had the honor to present at the 2022 DC Startup Week (in Washington DC). My session was titled "Why Every Entrepreneur Should Have a Podcast, and How to Start One". This podcast episode is  the original audio from the session (excuse the noise from the audience). Stay tuned for a surprise announcement. 

Are you an immigrant entrepreneur? would you like to share your journey and grow your community? reach out via email [email protected] , my website www.alisadel.com, or Instagram @alisadel_ to inquire about being a guest on the podcast. 

#startupimmigrant #alisadel #unlockyourpotential #immigrantsquaredpodcast #Immigrantentrepreneurs #immigrantstartups #immigrantpodcast #immigrantjourneys #immigrantstories

ליה אוקון היא מורה לעברית באולפנים לעולים חדשים ובת למהגרים מרוסיה שהגיעו לארץ בשנות השביעיים. ליה התחילה ללמד עברית את הסבים שלה מגיל 6

היא תמיד הרגישה חצויה בזהות שלה, הרבה פעמים חברים שלה ילידי הארץ לעגו לה שהיא מסתובבת עם עולים חדשים. היום ליה מאד שלמה עם שתי הזהויות שלה. המטרה של ליה היא לעזור לעולים החדשים להשתלב בחברה ולא רק ללמד אותם עברית.

ליה עובדת על מיזם כדי להביא ישראלים ילידי הארץ לאולפנים בכדי שיעזרו לעולים החדשים לתרגל עברית.

דיברנו על כמה זה חשוב לעזור לעולים להשתלב בחברה אבל גם לשמר על הזהות והתרבות מהבית.

ליה גם סיפרה על ההבדל בין העלים החדשים ב 1990, והעולים שברחו עכשיו מאוקראינה, והיא חושבת שהחברה הישראלית צריכה להראות יותר סבלנות, קבלה , והכלה כלפי העולים החדשים.

Simone is a child of Ethiopian immigrants and a comedian in Washington DC. Growing up he struggled with his identity being Ethiopian at home and American outside. Now as a father, he teaches his child to embrace her multicultural identity. Simone believes that comedy can bring people together across cultures. His new storytelling comedy album is coming out soon where he shares a dating story about how he broke up with a spy.

Follow him on Instagram @Simone_Comedy and stay tuned for updates about his shows in the Washington DC area. https://linktr.ee/simone_comedy

I had the pleasure of hosting Will, the President and Co-Founder of KAMA DC. KAMA DC is a volunteer-run non-profit organization that allows immigrants in the Washington DC area to share their skills, stories, and experiences.KAMA is based on a model that started in Austria in 2008 to showcase the skills that immigrants bring with them to their new communities.

Will is also an immigrant from the UK. He shared why he resisted the label of immigrant, how he finally embraced it, and why being in the DC area helped him come to terms with his sexuality.

If you would like to participate in the wonderful events KAMA DC is organizing please check out their website www.kamadc.org and check their Instagram for updates @kama.dc

Audrey immigrated from Taiwan to fulfill a lifelong dream to study and live in the US. Her biggest challenges have been her mindset, overcoming the imposter syndrome, and being far away from her support group while going through personal problems.

Getting out of her comfort zone and interacting with locals helped her realize that we are all humans that have the same needs, and we should not be worried about things like our accent. Her advice for other immigrants is to have the courage to stand up for yourself.

Audrey is also passionate about helping immigrants, and I reshared with her my story. We quickly discovered that we had similar experiences during our immigration journeys.

Checkout her community on Instagram @firstdoorway and reach out to her @audreycpchou if you would like your immigration story to be featured in her book.

Klarina immigrated to Israel as a teenager, and while she struggled learning Hebrew, studying English became her bridge to the Israeli identity. Klarina managed to interpret her immigrant story in Israel through the writings of American poets. She believes that if you learn a new language you create a new self. Writing poetry in Hebrew helped her to deal with the grief of losing her father. Klarina shared two of her poems with us on the podcast. Klarina also spoke about her PhD in English literature, explaining the complicated relationship between a mother and a daughter across cultures during immigration. We discussed the struggle as kids of immigrants when their parents are absent emotionally because they are busy and overwhelmed with their immigration journey.

Klarina's poetry book in Hebrew is available here https://www.klarinapoetry.com/ 

Don’t forget to subscribe, rate, and leave a review for the podcast.

#immigrantstories #immigrants #unlockyourpotential #alisadel #immigrationandpoetry #poetryforimmigrants #immigrantpoets

I had the honor of hosting the President & COO of Welcome.US Anya McMurray on the podcast. Welcome.US was founded in response to the fall of Kabul in September, 2021. In partnership with the US government, Welcome.US has been helping to resettle over 80 thousand Afghans in the US. They also expanded their help to support Ukrainians who are fleeing the war.

Anya talked about the value and responsibilities that sponsoring a refugee can bring to your life, and her own sponsorship story. We also discussed how immigrants in the US are giving back to the community by sponsoring and helping those who are going through the same struggles they did.

"The more Americans do this work (to welcome newcomers) the less they will care about where people come from".

Please visit www.welcome.us to learn how you can help welcome newcomers to the US.

#fallofkabul #afghanrefugees #unitingforukraine #ukrainianrefugees #welcome.us #immigrantstories #helpingrefugees #beawelcomer #helpnewcomers #unlockyourpotential #alisadel #Immigrant²podcast

Links to previous podcast episodes can be found on my website www.alisadel.com

Suzie migrated to Singapore from China when she was 4.5 years old. Despite experiencing some discrimination, she assimilated by learning Singaporean English-Singlish. Suzie studied abroad in Paris, and Beijing, before arriving to the US. Coming to the US to study at Johns Hopkins University has been the easiest transition for her thus far, although she is still exploring her "US identity". Suzie feels at home wherever she can be herself and feel accepted in the society, she finds comfort by cooking a Singaporean dish once a week.

Checkout some Singaporean recipes she shared with me here

To learn more about the Peranakan Community click here

Additional links to the podcast can be found on our website 

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