To our readers,
This month, Novel Hand is one year old. In looking back at the past year, it’s impossible for me to separate the evolution of NH from the unprecedented global and national events of 2020, and from my own personal growth.
As a humanitarian publication, NH is reflective of what humans have gone through and how they have overcome this past year. So we wrote about COVID-19 and the national movement for racial justice following the death of George Floyd. But we also wrote about ongoing issues, like food insecurity and human trafficking. We’ve remained committed to writing about sustainable and equitable solutions to humanitarian issues, like microfinance and immigration policy.
Looking back at our first post is incredibly nostalgic for me. It’s a snapshot of who I was a year ago, but also a north star of what Novel Hand aspires to be. This paragraph in particular stands out:
However, I’ve also noticed a disconnect. While we care so much about current humanitarian issues, we distrust the organizations and institutions that are trying to solve those issues. We’re activists, engaging with important social issues, but there’s so much more to learn about these problems and how we can be involved in their solutions. Globalization and technology have increased our access to the most important humanitarian causes of our day, but they’ve also revealed how complex these issues are.
I’m proud of how well this paragraph describes our mission and of how we’ve stayed true to that mission. The disconnect persists, and distrust in institutions is higher than ever. As we face inequity and injustice, it’s easy to feel helpless. But innovation persists, and we are learning about new solutions everyday.
The first half of the year, I stumbled over my words as I tried to describe the purpose of Novel Hand. I gave a long, convoluted answer that sounded something like the paragraph above. We went through several similarly-convoluted mottos (a special shoutout if you were following Novel Hand in the “A project to educate and engage our generation about the best solutions to global humanitarian issues” days). So changing our motto to “Activism, Meet Impact” over the summer felt like dusting off that north star.
As I’ve prepared content for this month, it’s bittersweet to return to the topic of human trafficking, as January is Human Trafficking Awareness month. Writing on this topic again, I’m reminded that for all that we learn and write about humanitarian issues, our words are empty without action. COVID-19 has drastically impacted the mechanisms and scale of human trafficking around the world– and our articles don’t change that. The solutions, and our decisions to act on these issues, create change.
This coming year is certain to yet again be one of evolution for Novel Hand. We’re inviting a new class of interns to join Novel Hand next week. We’ll welcome new contributors to our team and say goodbye to others. Some of our team will graduate in the spring or start graduate school in the fall.
We will innovate around how we share what we’re learning. We’ll write about new topics and revise our perspectives on topics we’ve previously covered. We’ll make mistakes and learn from them.
Just as we’re returning to the topic of human trafficking once again this January, I’m reminded that the journey to create impact isn’t linear. As I’ve learned about humanitarian issues and led our team this year, I’ve discovered that this journey is more often circular and roundabout than it is moving from Point A to Point B. Rather than writing about a problem and its solutions, then moving onto the next problem, I’ve found myself returning to the same problems over and over, deepening my understanding and seeing solutions in a new light. In 2021, Novel Hand will write about dozens of problems and solutions that we haven’t covered before. But we’ll also return to the problems that we’ve already covered dozens of times.
Thank you for being a part of our journey to turn activism into impact. It’s such a privilege to lead this team and to inspire impact. This is just the beginning!
With love, Alexa
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