Beyond Borders, Close at Heart: The Experience of Yemen’s Chevening Class of 2024
Anwar AlFutaih
One of the most beautiful gifts of Chevening is the international community it weaves in your life. One day you open your eyes and discover that people from every corner of the world have suddenly populated your life, each with their own story. Conversations, group work, and many a mundane moments made us friends who see the world through each other’s eyes. What was once a group of strangers turned into a network of people who have each others’ back.
Within this global community, Yemeni scholars found a sense of home. Yemen’s Class of 2024 has been a haven for me, and I believe it was for all of my fellow scholars. We were from different disciplines and different cities, but we watched out for one another. We shared thoughts, advice, encouragement and helped each other through every challenge of living abroad.
We became a family. We found each other accommodation, guided each other through new systems, shared resources and celebrated each other through the stressful days. A simple gesture, a check in message or a cup of tea, had an amazing impact; we shared our successes and our challenges, supported each other with sincerity and represented Yemen with pride wherever we went. None of us had to travel this journey alone.
Class 2024 will remain in our memories as a group who managed to turn a year of scholarship into lifelong friendships and a true sense of community. The friendships we have made with the international community and with each other will stay with us as we go back to working for a better future for Yemen.
