I’ll admit that I was afraid of going there the first time. It’s consistently in the top 5 dangerous countries in the world, but who are making these lists anyway? Some office bound UN reporter probably. Whenever I see a South Sudanese person anywhere, I am always interested in them and their story, because more often than not, it’s an interesting one.

The Obakki Foundation has been drilling water wells in multiple regions in South Sudan since 2010. They’ve put millions of dollars into donor funding straight into the ground. I’ve seen drastic political change in this time since my first trip in 2011 where the country was coming off a peaceful split from northern Sudan 6 months prior. Since then it’s been engulfed in civil war stemming between tribal feuds that have been perpetually in vengeance for generations.