Take the Blogging Abroad Challenge for Cross-Cultural Impact
If you’ve been keeping a blog while you’re abroad, and…
- you haven’t been giving your blog the attention you originally hoped for it, or
- your posts have been getting bland, or
- you’re not feeling inspired to write anymore, or
- you just don’t know what to write about
…then a blogging boot camp challenge is just what you need!
We first starting blogging seriously when we become Peace Corps Volunteers. That first blog was actually awarded for fostering Peace Corps’ cross-cultural exchange goals, which inspired us further. We were even flown to D.C. to discuss best practices for promoting cross-cultural understanding online.
We’ve since been travel blogging from 30+ countries and enjoyed working with fellow culture bloggers through a former passion project called Blogging Abroad, where the Blog Challenge was born.
We originally ran this blog challenge live, with cohorts of over 100 bloggers around the world. Now it’s available for you to start any time you like.
Take the Blogging Abroad Challenge >
If you’d like to participate, here’s what to know:
- You’ll get a PDF with 12 weekly prompts. Each prompt comes with additional instructions and 5+ creative ideas to approach the theme.
- Our prompts will challenge you to get those creative juices flowing again and to craft inspired, meaningful blog posts that will keep your readers coming back for more.
- Give yourself a week to write your response to each prompt on your own blog.
- Use our bonus blog checklist to refine your post and make an even bigger impact with simple steps before and after publishing.
- If you don’t have a traditional blog, you can also use these prompts for social media posts, email newsletters, or video/vlog ideas.
- When you publish a post for the challenge, you’re welcome to share the link in the comments below this article. In exchange, we’d love for you to link to our blog.
- Participation is pay-what-you-want! Sign up here to get your prompts and instructions.
Below we’ll highlight some of the best examples from past participants for each theme of the Blogging Abroad Blog Challenge Boot Camp.
Challenge #1 = Your Why
Why are you are abroad? What led you to pursue your current adventure?
Highlights from participants
Everyone has a unique, compelling version of their “Why.” Here we’ll highlight a few posts that were particularly creative and effective:
- Katey-Red in South Africa wrote a letter to her 10 year old self
- Lianne used easy-to-follow headings and engaging pictures to depict her various stages of life and reasons why she’s living and traveling abroad long-term
Challenge #2 = Home
Share your own “home away from home” or, generally, what the homes are like in your host community.
Highlights from participants
We invite you to check out the Blog Challenge blog post links at the bottom of this post, but first, here are a few interesting highlights from this round of responses:
- Trenton in Mongolia shared images of his ger taken by his little host siblings
- Rebecca and Chris in Moldova made a quick, fun video of inviting friends and family to visit their home
- More highlights can be found on the Blog Challenge pinterest board
Challenge #3 = A Day in the Life
What is it like to live in your host country? What does a day in your shoes look like?
Highlights from participants
- Amy in Ethiopia created an awesome collage of Peace Corps life through video and social media screenshots from others in her cohort
- Siobhan in Mozambique modified the lyrics of Vanessa Carlton’s song, Just A Day, to share her story
- Michael in Colombia shared a series of tweets throughout his day
- Jamie in Namibia created a fun video slideshow of her typical schedule
Challenge #4 = On The Road
What sights, sounds, smells, and stories do you encounter out on the road in your host community?
Highlights from participants
As usual, we like to highlight a few of the many great posts that have come in for this particular prompt:
- Jett in Paraguay tells a sweet short story from a bus ride
- Katey-Red in South Africa penned A Field Guide to Amajuba Minibus Taxis
- Matt and Anne in Morocco share the US equivalents of things they see in the streets
- Rebecca and Chris in Moldova posted past instagram photos from the walk to school
Challenge #5 = I Never Knew
What surprised you about your host country when you first arrived? What did you never known until you visited?
Highlights from participants
For today’s series of higlights, we’re focusing especially on creative and catchy titles. In the world of blogging, a post title can be the difference between someone clicking to read your post or ignoring it. Check out some of these great titles:
- 10 Ways to Use Heaven (Beyond Radio Codes)
- The Hitchhiker’s Guide to Mozambique
- 5 Community Codes We Never Knew About Morocco… And 1 We Realized About America
- Amazing what a piece of cloth can do
Challenge #6 = Community Member Profiles
Tell us about someone in your community!
Highlights from participants
As usual, we have a great set of submissions for this week’s challenge. Many of the posts this week are especially touching, and it was hard to narrow down a short list of highlights, but here we go…
- Christine in Ethiopia translates a short but sweet video interview with her host sister
- Jett writes a lovely tribute about her Paraguayan guardian angel
- Julie’s Community Member Profile from Mongolia shows how short and simple can be just as effective
- Robert and Julie share four mini profiles from their community in Morocco
Challenge #7 = Money
Tell us about the cost of living in your host country. What can $1 buy? What is surprisingly expensive or cheap?
Highlights from participants
Our bloggers got especially creative with this challenge. Here are some highlights from their posts about Money in their host countries:
- Jess in Belize gives a new perspective on the cost of gas in her host country
- Michael polled his fellow volunteers in Colombia and put together great charts depicting how far $1 US will go
- Matt and Anne in Morocco created their very own Price Is Right game
Challenge #8 = Details
It’s time to go micro! Hone in on one particular detail of your life abroad, in pictures and/or words.
Highlights from participants
This Challenge allowed for a wide range of topics to be covered. Every single post is interesting in its own way, so dig in to whatever cultural detail strikes your fancy: from morning sounds to pueblo classrooms, writing skills, or beads to doors and windows, and even rice.
Challenge #9 = Zany Moments
When living abroad, unfamiliar experiences come with the territory. Tell us about it!
Highlights from participants
- Jose in The Philippines discovers remnants of an usual, ancient tradition and successfully presents it in an objective yet interesting way
- Beth reveals the ins and outs of A Life Unplumbed in Lesotho
Challenge #10 = Quotes & Proverbs
Choose a cultural nugget of wisdom, quote, saying, or proverb to be the centerpiece of your blog post.
Highlights from participants
- Katey-Red drew her own visuals to demonstrate the languages in South Africa
- Matt and Anne drew out their many conversations in Morocco that include one particular phrase
- Christine focuses on a single word she likes and how it is used in Ethiopia
- Allison in Ecuador uses a list of common phrases that also reveal some cultural norms
Challenge #11 = Global Citizenship
Highlights from participants
These bloggers have impressed us! There was so many great, thoughtful posts this week. There is no right or wrong answer when it comes to reflecting on Global Citizenship, so we’d like to focus more on the formats and techniques a few bloggers used.
- Here’s a prime example of a post that covers a lot of ground while still being concise and easy to digest, thanks to the list and clear headings (Beth, Moldova)
- Here’s another great way to break down your thoughts into memorable headings. Bonus: including a cross-cultural translation! (Linda, Thailand)
- This blogger took the opportunity to highlight a member of his host community who personifies global citizenship (Kevin, Dominican Republic)
Challenge #12 = The Danger of a Single Story
Highlights from participants
Once again, there was so many impressive, thoughtful posts this week! Our highlights today focus on the note-worthy formats and techniques that certain bloggers have used in their responses:
- Mixing media always makes for an interesting post, as does letting your community members share their perspective in their own words via video (Christine, Ghana)
- If you know some common misconceptions about your host country, debunk those stereotypes one by one (Karen, Cambodia)
- This post does a good job of being guided by questions and highlighting key points to make it easily scannable (Morgan, South Africa)
- You can lead in with your own personal transformation regarding stereotypes and then interview a community member who helped you break them – bonus for another catchy title! (Gabby, Panama)
- The organization in this post is great with bullet points for the single stories, bolded key points, and concise paragraphs for each statement (Beth, Moldova)
Challenge #13 = Cultural Differences
Highlights from participants
It’s not hard to find stand out blog posts among this community of passionate bloggers! Here are just a few examples of great posts from the past week, with a few notes about how you can apply their strategies, too:
- Here’s a great example of sharing life lessons from abroad with folks who might follow in your footsteps. Also, a good reminder to always link back to your previous blog posts that relate to the new topic! (Liz, Mozambique)
- This is a fun, photo-centric post from the perspective of a village dog as a way to share cultural differences about pets. (Morgan, South Africa)
- The focus on one topic and the composition of this post, with super-sized quotes, super-short paragraphs to highlight ideas, bolded headings, plenty of space, etc. make this page really attractive. (Olivia, Madagascar)
- A “10 Things” tribute list with supporting stories and pictures is a great way to share why you’ll miss your host country. (Mark, Kyrgyzstan)
Challenge #14 = Hope & Change
Highlights from participants
These responses were especially encouraging to me. It was clear that many bloggers have been “feeling the weight of the world” and yet, they’re able to find hope, find ways to move forward, and encourage others. It’s not an easy thing to published a balance of positives and negatives, or to keep yourself in check when emotions are running high. Here are just a few examples of great posts from the past week with a cool spin on the theme:
- This post focuses on one aspect of her life that gives her hope and gives 5 reasons why with clear, concise, bolded arguments for each. (Beth, Moldova)
- A great way to keep a realistic balance in your post is pairing the challenges your host country faces alongside the hope and progress you see with each challenge (Cambodia, Karen)
- Sometimes poetry says it better than prose (Chris, Tanzania)
Bonus Challenge = Hospitality
Highlights from participants
- Blogging about blogging about Hospitality Posted by Kevin
This post is part of Blogging Abroad’s 2017 New Years Blog Challenge, week five: Hospitality.Normally, I put the above disclaimer/announcement at the bottom of each entry but this time it’s up top …
- Feeling the Love: Moz Style Posted by Liz Schutz
This post is part of Blogging Abroad’s 2017 New Years Blog Challenge, week five: Hospitality. Every Peace Corps Mozambique volunteer could easily tell you about hospitality. I think …
- Faces of Ghana. Faces of Hospitality. Posted by Christine
One thing that many travelers will gush about when they travel somewhere is the hospitality that the people of other countries show to them. There are very few countries that I haven’t heard …
- Seems like just yesterday: Memories here at the end Posted by chrisbiles03
With only about three weeks left in my village, my time here is certainly nearing its end. When every day seems like a week, but every week seems like a day, time moves on in an endlessly confusing …
Ready to start your own blog challenge?
Get the prompts, instructions, and our bonus checklist here:
You might also like:
Mistakes to Avoid + Best Practices for Culture Blogs
5 Ways Blogging Changed Our Peace Corps Experience
