Choul Dow Wich is a peacemaker from South Sudan who grew up in a refugee camp for 15 years. In South Sudan, there was a civil war that displaced not just him but most people in the country. This experience came with a number of challenges as he was separated from his parents and the person who took care of him.. Such a childhood can lead a person to have resentment, but Dow chooses not to blame, and through what he experienced, he has the courage and resilience to work for himself and for other people.

Dow has a family of his own, as he is married and has three children. His journey led him to work for an organization called the  Nonviolent Peaceforce (NP) in Iraq. They work to protect areas that have been impacted by conflict and this connects with Dow because he himself was in a position where he needed that protection.  He joined NP in 2021 and is still working there. The reason he is interested in ALI is because of what he has witnessed with the people he has worked with. These people have been displaced, and abused, and their family members have been killed. Having similar experiences, he can connect his life to the work he does. Enabling people to be able to protect themselves through words will bring hope in their lives and these are skills he believes he can learn through ALI. 

As a refugee Dow is passionate about the protection of his people. His dream for his country is that the people would feel as though they are safe and they have a home. His safety was threatened when he had to move away from home so he wants to provide what he did not have for his people. It is not just about the materials they can be given, but how they can be empowered as leaders. He states that leadership is the key that is missing because it prevents “the violent displacement and kind of insecurity of the people”. People depend on humanitarian aid instead of working to develop and build hope for themselves. Giving them hope is not just defending them with guns but it is about providing a space for them to talk about their past experiences.

ALI will help him support the people he works with by turning their negative experiences into positive ones. In order to do this, he needs the right strategies which he will learn from the program. He wants to ensure that he shares what he learns so that they can also impact change and make a difference.