Every country. Every culture. One humanity.
My ambition is to visit every country in the world. The number of countries I’ve visited matters to me, but the bigger question is why I want to keep going.
A curiosity that began long before the journeys
I studied International Affairs at the University of Colorado Boulder because I wanted to understand how the world works: how societies organize themselves, why conflicts arise, and how history, government, culture, and economics shape people’s lives. Languages and travel have given me opportunities to explore those questions beyond the classroom.
I believe human dignity and fundamental freedoms should not depend on the accident of birthplace. At the same time, I’ve come to appreciate how complicated the relationship can be between freedom, security, institutions, and the societies in which people live. I don’t have a single political formula to offer, and my experiences have changed my mind more than once.
What makes a country a country?
A passport and a political map provide one answer, but they aren’t the only way people understand nations. In his 1882 lecture What Is a Nation?, Ernest Renan explored the role of shared memory and the continuing will to live together. Benedict Anderson’s Imagined Communities (1983) approached nations through the identities and shared understandings that bring people together.
Those ideas interest me because my journeys have taken me to places whose identities cannot be reduced to their status in an international organization. I use clear counting conventions, but I also want to hear how people understand the places they call home.
Learning without pretending to have all the answers
I’ve been surprised, challenged, and occasionally shocked by what I’ve encountered abroad. Travel has made me more curious, not more certain that I understand everything. I want this project to leave room for evolving opinions, difficult questions, humor, and the ordinary experiences that reveal something about a place.
I will share what I experienced rather than pretend to speak for an entire country or culture. My photographs and videos are central to that storytelling: I have nearly two terabytes of personal images to revisit, select, and eventually share.
A better world for all humans
Ultimately, I would like to see a world in which more people can live safely, freely, and with opportunity. I don’t claim to know precisely how humanity will get there. For me, visiting places, learning languages, meeting people, and sharing experiences are ways to keep asking the right questions—and perhaps contribute something worthwhile along the way.
Follow the journey through the World Project, or read more about my story.
