Hello dear readers! In lieu of our 45th issue (which will arrive in your inbox tomorrow as a special Saturday treat) we are so excited to bring you something a little bit different today that we are really excited about.
When we created this newsletter, we did so with the intention of wanting to explore and collect as many reflections of place as possible. The spectrum of experiences of place seemed too large for us to grasp on our own, and since the very beginning, we’ve been committed to giving space to as many diverse voices as possible.
We knew that the concept of Place would resonate with people, but we could have never predicted to what extent. Perhaps the most beautiful thing about putting something out into the world is allowing it to become something to someone else, and to take on new forms of meaning to different people. It’s even more special when one of those interpretations makes its way back to you. This is exactly what happened when our friends over at The Gen started reading Place, and has led to our very first collaboration (!).
The Gen (@thegenofficial) is a global community which aims to bring people of cross-cultural backgrounds together to connect over shared experiences stemming from intercultural upbringings. It was founded by Hansen and Teo, who, after going on a country walk together and realising they had each encountered similar challenges being the children of immigrant parents, decided to create a space for real, open discussion. The Gen hosts community workshops and roundtables, provides resources to learn for intergenerational cross-cultural experiences, AND runs a crowd-source blog in the form of a newsletter like Place.
Naturally, when we all got to talking, we knew we had to collaborate and share our platforms with eachother’s audience. So much of what Place publishes has resonated with The Gen’s members, and likewise – what The Gen has accomplished so far in their roundtables and blogs resonates deeply with a sense of Place.
Over the next month, in addition to our regular Friday dispatch, we will be publishing a weekend collaboration with The Gen, featuring writers and artists from both Place and The Gen’s communities, arriving in your inbox on Sundays.
But before that, we really would love if you could head over to The Gen’s Instagram and landing page to learn more about the space they are creating. Be sure to subscribe to their Substack, leave a comment if you have a similar experience to share, and keep an eye out for their Sunday Spotlight, where they feature a different member of The Gen community and their story.
To kick off our collaboration with The Gen, we’ve curated a list of Place picks of The Gen’s blogs that highlight a deep connection to Place. Check them out below and let us know what you think in the comment section!
Alex spent some of his formative years between Africa and Europe, before moving to Canada to attend McGill University. Now finishing his Master’s degree in Berlin, he discusses identity and what it is like to “repatriate” to a country that he has never actually lived in.
‘Be Yourself’, for real this time...
The Gen's resident and self-described 'punk rock and pint-loving American-Thai-British chick' lets loose on what it was like growing up between different cultures and finally understanding what it means to be yourself.
A thread for roots, a thread for flight
Sai was born in India, and grew up in North America before living in the UK and the Netherlands. In this blog post lends her voice to discuss identity fragmentation, likening her experience to one of a pancultural tapestry.
See you tomorrow for a walk through the past and future of Bombay.