69: Giving Hope, Around the World — Rebecca Davis and Bashir Karenzi

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">This week on 5.6.7.EIGHT, Aleksandra speaks with Rebecca Davis and Bashir Karenzi of</span> <a href="https://mindleaps.org/en/"><span style= "font-weight: 400;">MindLeaps</span></a> <span style= "font-weight: 400;">— a nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing the education of vulnerable children around the world through creative arts. Davis, who is the Founder and Executive Director of MindLeaps, holds several degrees and had an extensive dance career prior to taking over the nonprofit. Karenzi, who is Technical Director at MindLeaps, hails from Rwanda, holds a degree, boasts an accomplished dance resume, and speaks five different languages.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Both Davis and Karenzi have witnessed first-hand the lifechanging impact of dance on societies and the world and have dedicated their lives to helping vulnerable populations succeed through the arts. On the podcast, they deep-dive on MindLeaps’s incredible mission, retell some of their most inspiring stories, detail how the company works on an operational level, and look back on an amazing journey that got them to where they are today.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><strong>Moving Quotes:</strong></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Many times, I think dance is seen as entertainment or as a discipline that we do with our bodies. But dancers have really seen how it’s changed the way they think about themselves and their world. It has a huge effect emotionally and mentally.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“We are strong because we were broken.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Dance triggers a belief in possibility — if I can do these steps that I only see on TV or only see ‘cool kids’ doing, then there’s an understanding that I can do more in life and I’m capable of it."</span></p> <p> </p> <p><strong>Bullet Points (w/ timestamps) - Highlighting key topics discussed:</strong></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">2:58: Rebecca and Bashir describe their organization —