Join us to hear from Raquel Reyes, director of programs & operations at PODER of Idaho. We talk about the daily anxieties experienced by families of mixed immigration status, reflections on the recent election, and the many ways immigrant communities contribute to a vibrant economy and culture.

You can connect with PODER on

Instagram (poder_idaho)

and find Platicas con Poder, hosted by Raquel, on YouTube: www.youtube.com/@PlaticasConPoder.

Raquel, born in Los Angeles, has lived in Idaho since she was 2 years old. She attended elementary and high school in Wilder, a small agricultural town about 40 miles from Boise. Her life’s work has been in social justice, and she has been a vocal advocate about the injustices she has seen in the workplace. Her background is immigration, and she helped found an immigration program at the Community Council of Idaho known as Familias Unidas, Immigration Legal Services. Raquel has been married to her husband for 19 years. She has 3 adult children, 6 grandchildren, 3 dogs, 3 cats, 2 goats and lots of poultry.

The Ukrainian Welcome Center in Nampa has served more than 700 people displaced by the war in Ukraine. The center's Executive Director Tina Polishchuk and recent School Impact Coordinator Joni Leipf share how their summer program brought a sense of normalcy and an opportunity for healing for students who haven't had a normal school year since before Covid.

Learn more about the center's Adopt-a-Family Christmas campaign at www.ukrainianwelcomecenter.org.

Lisa Meierotto is the Program Lead of Boise State University’s Global Studies program, which she helped create. Along with teaching, Lisa researches intersections between global migration, human rights, and environmental justice.

Lisa grew up in Idaho and lived in Ecuador, Cuba and Costa Rica while earning her degree in global studios and anthropology. She has a master’s degree in international development and a Ph.D in cultural and environmental anthropology.

In our conversation, Lisa shares about what drew her to global studies, what it’s like to be a newcomer in a different country, her research at the southern U.S. border, and displacement trends facing communities around the world. We focus on the history of colonialism and ongoing resource extraction in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the top country of origin for refugees resettling in Idaho.

The Pace4Peace 5K was founded by a local group of people with the goal of raising awareness for the people of the Democratic Republic of Congo and bringing the community together. Boise has a strong Congolese community, and the DRC has been the top country of origin for refugees resettling in Idaho for several years. Hear from some of the race organizers - Boise State students Ani Carnell, Sayed Mirbacha, and Samuel Bisoka - on their vision for this community event and how you can be involved. The 5K is on Saturday, October 19th in Boise with music, food, and activities. Funds raised will go through the African Community Development Inc. to meet needs in the DRC.

Register on Eventbrite and follow @pace4peace5k on Instagram for updates.

Chandra Upreti is a dedicated advocate for refugee rights and resettlement. Born in Bhutan, he experienced displacement at a young age, fleeing to Nepal as a refugee.

After spending 17 years in Refugee Camps, Chandra was eventually resettled in Twin Falls, Idaho, where he found a new home and purpose.

With over a decade of experience in refugee resettlement, Chandra was recently named the field office director of the resettlement agency in Twin Falls, which is affiliated with the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants.

Chandra also serves on the board of directors for nonprofits including the Unity Alliance of Southern Idaho, EveryBody House, and Housing Coalition Region 4.

Chandra holds a bachelor's degree in Human Resources and a Master of Business Administration from Idaho State University. He and his wife own the Saffron Indian Cuisine restaurant in Twin Falls.

Sangam Kumari has experienced many transitions in her life. When she was 4 years old, her family moved from India to Nepal. She took an even bigger leap at the age of 8, moving without her family to America with a family friend. Sangam’s career has also transitioned from environmental engineering, in which she has a Ph.D., to social work, where she feels a true heart calling. She’s currently earning her master’s degree in social work from Boise State. Six years ago, Sangam transitioned into motherhood.

She has also experienced the transition from a collectivist to an individualistic society, and learning to hold space for both. She is the first to say she is still on the journey of finding herself and her community. Sangam shares her insights and ongoing learnings with us in today’s episode. She will also lead a workshop at the Idaho Office for Refugees’ upcoming conference, the Northwest Conference on Resettlement, focused on gentle yoga and meditation techniques in the lens of conscious, compassionate community.

Friends call Yi Feng the "Mental Health Guy" for doing many things relating to mental health for the ‎past 12 years. He is a Registered Social Worker, Certified Master Solution Focused Practitioner, ‎Certified Narrative Therapist, and Organization Development enthusiast, seeking to build mentally healthier workplaces and more socially impactful ‎organizations. ‎ Yi Feng hails from Singapore and visited Idaho in May 2024 as a fellow with the Young Southeast ‎Asian Leaders Initiative (YSEALI).‎ While in Boise he worked with Mike Krause, Chief Coaching Officer of Global Bound LLC, to 'make good trouble' ‎and improve workplace mental health. Yi Feng shares interesting insights about Singapore, his first impressions of Idaho, and his approach to belonging and well-being.

Today we hear from Joel Ntando, coordinator of the Refugee Speakers Bureau at ‎the Idaho Office for Refugees. Joel has a background in theater and academia. He ‎lived and worked in South Africa for 14 years before resettling in Idaho and is ‎originally from the Democratic of Republic of Congo. He shares what World ‎Refugee Day means to him personally and what it means for everyone on a global ‎level.