By Rendon Reinarz, Graduate of the UT LBJ School of Public Affairs
This summer, I am lucky to experience multiple cultures during my summer internship for the National Democratic Institute (NDI). While I am working with the NDI Ukraine team, I was unable to travel to Ukraine for my internship due to the ongoing war and have been placed in Kosovo for the summer. In many ways, I get the best of both worlds: I have had the privilege to live and experience Balkan culture and hospitality while contributing to work that I find particularly relevant to help Ukrainian democratic institutions as they continue to fight for their future in the context of war and Russian aggression.
In many ways, my summer has been marked by war. For my wonderful team and colleagues in Ukraine, war is a part of their daily lives. Weekly meetings consist of missile updates and stories of sleepless nights in shelters. More than one of our meetings have been held in a bomb shelter. This team consists of some of the most resilient people I have met, and I feel honored and humbled every day to get to work for their team.
I am lucky to contribute to a number of programs for the NDI Ukraine team. For the majority of the summer, most of my work has focused on the development of their Training of Trainers (ToT) Program, which seeks to further integrate Ukrainian veterans into politics and civic life. With relatively low public trust in the government, the war has strengthened public perception of Ukraine’s armed services as the protector of democracy, and the institution receives the highest levels of trust among the population. The ToT Program aims to bring veterans into political life as actors and agents of change in politics. My internship has consisted of meetings to assist in developing a strong curriculum for veteran political education and meetings with US and local partners to understand the core aspects needed for effective political education.
While this has been my primary task for the summer, the Ukraine team has given me a chance to contribute across many of their projects. In collaboration with their Political Participation Team, I have helped to monitor ongoing political developments in Ukraine, comparing and updating the teams’ Annual Challenges and Opportunities Report. With Ukraine’s EU Accession negotiations officially opening this summer, researching how Ukraine is attempting to reform their governance structures to fit EU standards has been a fascinating subject.
With the communications team, I am active in developing a website story for the work NDI does with political parties and Parliament in Ukraine to highlight NDI’s unique work in this space. I also contributed to the development of initial concepts and brainstorming for future programming opportunities. Finally, I worked to analyze trends in the information space and perspectives of partners working within the Ukrainian media ecosystem to understand challenges and opportunities facing this sector in the current context. My experience with the Ukraine team is very well-rounded, as I get to contribute to multiple projects that are actively working to strengthen Ukraine’s democratic institutions.
While I haven’t worked directly with the NDI team here in Kosovo, my time and experiences living in the country are equally as valuable to the work I am doing in my internship. As stated previously, this summer has been marked by war; while the conflict in Kosovo ended 26 years ago, the war and its lasting repercussions are still very alive today. Prior to coming here, I heard how much Kosovo loved the United States for its role in ending the conflict and supporting Kosovar independence, but experiencing the hospitality of the people firsthand has wildly exceeded my expectations. American flags are flown across the capital city of Pristina to show love and solidarity with the country that Kosovars attribute to the existence of their state. A local cab driver whose father was killed fighting for the Kosovo Liberation Army told me, “the US is like my mother.”
The stories I have heard from people here are both devastating yet beautiful, highlighting the resiliency of the Kosovar people. Coming from the United States, I understand how truly privileged my life has been to be relatively untouched by war, and I have a newfound understanding for the ways that conflict leaves a lasting imprint on a country.
Aside from the historical legacy of Kosovo, Pristina is a great place to be a young person for the summer. The coffee culture in the capital is unmatched, and I’ve quickly developed a list of favorites that I grab on the way to the office in the morning. Exploring new restaurants and falling in love with Albanian cuisine has been a highlight of this summer. With the World Cup going on this summer, getting out in the streets to watch games with the local population has been fun and memorable. Pristina is also a great central location in the Balkans; weekend trips to North Macedonia and Albania have been memories I’ll cherish forever.
Finally, exploring Kosovo itself has been such a treat. Gracanica Monastery is about 20 minutes outside of Pristina and gave me an interesting look into the lives of local Serbian communities in Kosovo while exploring the beautiful architecture of the church. I also took a daytrip with my mom to Prizren, Kosovo’s historic center. While very different from the bustling city life of Pristina, it gave me an interesting look into the lasting impression of Ottoman culture on the country.
Overall, this summer has been an amazing one. While my time has been split between two different cultures, both have taught me about the devastating effects of conflict, the resilience of communities, and the importance of democracy work. I feel confident that my lived experiences in Kosovo and work with the NDI Ukraine team have prepared me for my future career aspirations and have given me cultural knowledge and expertise I wouldn’t have received otherwise. I will leave my time here deeply changed and cannot wait to see how the knowledge I gained in the Balkans and Ukraine will manifest in the next phase of my life.