Jonah Stone

I am Sudanese by nationality, born in 1987 in South Kordofan State, Nuba mountain region, Hieban County, in the Locholo area. I was a student at Kauda High School from 2008- 2009, and Juba Union High School in 2010. Because of the war that broke out during 2011 in South Kordofan State, I wasn’t able to enroll at university. Policies applied by the Sudanese government made it nearly impossible for me to access university; by denying my right to participate, I was excluded and made a tool of the state in every aspect. I was accused of being or supporting the rebels, and was confined within the country before the triumph of my departure. When I entered CILAS for the first time I smelled the aroma of knowledge whispering in my ears. I joined CILAS to discover the innermost thoughts and ideas that my heart has been searching for since childhood. Growing up I was considered the zero class, but because of CILAS I may one day engage with profound ideas and, if we still exist in this world, may one day even challenge them. I gain understanding at CILAS from the diverse student community made up of different levels of experience and knowledge, all learning actively through imagination, normalizing the idea of a community where each person contributes his or her own perspective and point of view. CILAS has inspired me with big ideas. I used to think of these ideas as remote and extraordinary, but through CILAS the connection between these ideas and the world seems to be coming closer. At CILAS, the drivers and articulators of learning possess the expert capability of existing within the complex conjunction of fragility and concreteness. With them I am confidently serving my community by offering myself as a teacher.