Finding Diaspora Clarity of Intention and Purpose

This moment is calling many of us to lead with deeper clarity and greater intention. For diaspora changemakers, especially those living in the United States, this period has reminded us that diaspora leadership is not only about what we do, but how and why we do it.

At The Diaspora Academy, our programs continue to show us what diaspora leaders need most: clarity, connection, and guidance.

• Through the Diaspora Leadership Program, we’ve seen participants gain confidence in defining their values and communicating their impact.
• In our coaching sessions for entrepreneurs and nonprofit founders, we’ve helped leaders turn complex ideas into clear roadmaps, from launching educational platforms to organizing community mental health initiatives.
• And in our diaspora advocacy trainings, changemakers are learning how to lead campaigns rooted in justice, strategy, and story, especially on issues like immigrant rights, humanitarian access, and equity in global development.

These experiences remind us that our work is most effective when it centers reflection, healing, and practical planning.

Many of us are juggling professional obligations, caregiving roles, political fatigue, and a desire to give back. That emotional load is real. But we are also seeing a surge of courage and creativity from diaspora leaders who are choosing to keep going, even when the road is unclear. The key is not to do more, but to move with alignment. This moment is asking us to organize not just around causes, but around our core.

Recommendations and Tips for Diaspora Leaders

Here are a few of the most important lessons to carry forward:

1. Your Diaspora Wellness Is Connected to Your Diaspora Impact: Leading while grieving, organizing while exhausted, and showing up while stretched thin is not sustainable. Part of serving your community requires that you're also able to serve yourself.  Prioritize your mental and emotional well-being as an act of leadership.
   
   
2. Your Clarity of Purpose is Stronger Than Overextension: You do not need to do everything. You need to do what is aligned with your values and capacity. Let clarity guide your energy.
   
   
3. Being Hyphenated Is Powerful: Your diaspora journey is powerful. You don't have to choose between identities - you are dynamic and have every right to honor your hyphenated experience. Claiming the fullness of your identity gives you access to unique insight and influence.
   
   
4. Diaspora Leadership Is Service, Not Sacrifice: You don't have to choose between supporting the community or choosing your wellbeing. You can do both. You can care and serve your diaspora community without erasing yourself. Service should never come at the cost of your peace or purpose.
   
   
5. Now Is Your Mebrahti Moment: In Tigrinia, a language spoken in my ancestral homeland, Eritrea, mebrahti means “light”.  This is your time to name your light, trust your vision, and move with confidence. It begins with one decision: to lead with purpose.

The path forward requires both courage and care. It is about knowing what to release, what to hold on to, and what to build next. The work we are doing together - here and now - is necessary and transformational. 

Join us on July 19 for our next live session, Discovering Your Mebrahti Moment, and reconnect with your leadership path.

The Diaspora Leadership Program returns in October, offering a deeper opportunity to strengthen your ideas, vision, and strategy.

Let this be your time to focus on what matters most. To you, your people, and the change you're meant to make.