By Tiyana-Madlen Zlateva (YES 2018-2019, Bulgaria, placed with AFS-USA in Polk City, IA)

Last month I was extremely lucky to be able to participate in a women’s empowerment workshop in Bulgaria, called “GLOW Girls”, with one of my closest friends and fellow YES alumna Zhanet Velkova (YES 2018-2019, Bulgaria, placed with ACES in Oregon, OH). We attended the workshop with other Bulgarian girls. Together, we improved various professional skills such as teamwork, leadership, decision making, time management, and communication. One of my favorite sessions was about self-esteem!

Participants were split into two large groups and would attend different sessions in the morning and switch in the afternoon. These sessions would include presentations and discussions that would help us with our professional development. We were also separated in smaller groups of five girls each. We had different activities together, which helped us prepare for the upcoming debates. The debates were the finale, when we got to show off everything we learned throughout the workshop. Every night we had themed parties, during which we connected with the many wonderful participants from across Bulgaria. By the end of the workshop we found another big family that we are a part of!