From Here to Human builds bridges through storytelling

(Left) Eli Hauber with children in Uganda during his internship with All We Are.

By Eli Hauber, a member of the Rotaract Club of UNC Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA

Rotary has this funny way of finding you, not the other way around. It meets you where you are, smiles, extends a hand, and pulls you in for a big hug.

I was sixteen when I got my big hug.

Struggling to adjust to high school, I was changing who I was to fit in. My peers made me believe leadership meant being loud. Standing at the front of the room. Having answers. But when I started an Interact club, Rotary introduced me to a different kind of leadership, the quiet kind that listens before it speaks. The kind that puts service above self and measures success not in applause, but in the sparks it ignites in others.

We weren’t changing the world — at least not yet. We were recycling fruit, building libraries, learning to coordinate, care, and show up for others. Interact is kinda like a kid learning to ride a bike. It’s messy and unpredictable, but it’s the seed — full of potential. It’s where dreamers can dream big dreams and begin turning the unlikely into reality.

Now, all my seed needed was a little rain and sunshine.

My first Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA) was all that and more. I find it impossible to convey just how life-changing RYLA is and what a turning point it turned out to be in my life. Surrounded by people just like me, I discovered there was a place for me in the world. A place where I didn’t need to fear failure or judgment. A place where my best self could begin to take form.

When I returned as a counselor and eventually a co-director, I watched new leaders undergo the same transformation. Seeing my younger self in them, I realized the magic of RYLA doesn’t wear off after the closing ceremony. It lingers in every act of kindness, every moment of courage, and every time we put service above self. The magic is in the ripple effect that turns four days into a lifetime of impact that quietly changes the world.

At UNC Chapel Hill, Rotaract became my next laboratory for impact, where I experienced Rotary’s global ecosystem of action for the first time. Brothers and sisters of one family united by one cause. Through my club’s mentorship program, I met Nathan Thomas, a past district governor and founder of All We Are, a non-governmental organization working to make sustainable energy more affordable and accessible in Uganda. One conversation led to another, and soon I found myself on a plane to Africa.

(left) Hauber installs solar panels during his internship with All We Are in July 2024

I spent a month living, working, and sweating under the equatorial sun in a bright red jumpsuit, helping install solar systems in rural schools and health care clinics. Traveling solo through one of the country’s poorest regions, I was surrounded by a reality that stripped away every filter I’d ever lived behind.

During my morning motorcycle rides through rural villages, I’d watch the fog lift off the jungle and wonder how I could fix everything around me. My mind raced for an answer that simply didn’t exist. But somewhere in the laughter of the children who ran beside me, I found my answer: All We Are.

I alone will never be able to fix what’s broken. Not because I don’t care enough, or because I don’t speak enough languages, but because the job isn’t meant for I. It’s meant for We. Rotary is an enduring reminder that sustainable impact is never a solo act. Progress is powered by people, by the collective “we” who choose to act, to care, and to keep going when the road gets rough.

That lesson became the heartbeat of From Here to Human, a storytelling initiative I later started to build peace through conversation. I wanted to extend Rotary’s spirit of connection by including the voices of ordinary people to reveal the invisible threads that weave humanity together. Whether it’s a street musician in Paris or a shepherd in Costa Rica, I continue to encounter the same truth: we, the people of Earth, are far more alike than we are different. We want to feel seen, heard, and loved. To experience peace, to belong, to be happy. And it’s these things that matter.

When we invest in the next generation, when we listen, mentor, and take a chance on them, we’re not just shaping leaders. We’re shaping the future of our planet by building bridges between generations, nations, and peoples who will soon be leading the global pursuit of peace.

Rotary hasn’t just given me opportunities. It’s given me an unshakable belief that no obstacle is insurmountable when we Unite for Good.

Eli Hauber is a business and global studies double major at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, a Daniels Fund Scholar, and a Benjamin A. Gilman Scholar.