“How can young people best advance human fraternity in a divided world?”
When I first encountered this question during the Human Fraternity Fellows Program, my immediate thought was that difference often breeds division. Each of us is born into certain affiliations: our culture, religion, race, or background. These are usually the first things we notice when meeting others. For me, that’s because I instinctively look for familiarity first. Too often, difference becomes a barrier, a signal that “this person is not like me,” and therefore, we have nothing in common.
However, my fellowship experience challenged that assumption. Activities such as In Your Shoes helped me realize how similar we truly are, even in our differences. When we take the time to listen to others’ experiences, we find shared emotions, struggles, and hopes beneath the surface of our distinct identities.
For young people, creating safe spaces to speak openly about our experiences and perspectives is an essential step forward. Labels, while important for identity, should not become tools for polarization. Instead, they can serve as starting points for deeper understanding. Many of us grow up simply inheriting traditions, faiths, and cultural norms without ever truly questioning them. We rarely ask why things are the way they are, or why we are discouraged from engaging with people who are different from us. To advance human fraternity, young people must begin to ask questions of our families, our communities, and especially of those we assume we cannot connect with. I love questions because they invite us to learn.
My own life has been shaped by this journey of questioning and engagement. Growing up in a Christian household with parents who were church leaders, I once believed that my closest circle should only include people who shared my faith. Yet through international education and dialogue with peers from diverse backgrounds, I came to see that difference is not a threat to my values, it is an invitation to deepen them. Ultimately, at the heart of many religions, especially the Abrahamic faiths, are shared principles of compassion, justice, and care for others.
Moving forward, I believe that young people must be intentional about growth. This means reading widely, listening actively, and engaging meaningfully with others’ lived experiences. It also means acknowledging the divisions that exist in our world, especially when we come from positions of privilege. Doing so helps us practice empathy and recognize the humanity in others beyond their labels. Our identities matter—but so does the shared identity that unites us all: being human.
The Human Fraternity Fellows Program showed me that dialogue across difference is not only possible—it is powerful. Seeing young people from across the world sit together to have honest, sometimes difficult conversations proved that peace begins with the simple act of engagement. When we choose to see difference not as a source of conflict but as a space for growth and understanding, we begin to embody the very spirit of fraternity that the world so urgently needs.
