The German Bundestag and U.S. Department of State are proud to recognize Henry Moraja as the Congress-Bundestag Youth Exchange (CBYX) U.S. Participant of the Month for February 2026! Henry, a CBYX Young Professionals program participant from Denver, Colorado, was recruited by Cultural Vistas and is hosted by the Bufe family in Leipzig, Germany.
As a German Studies major, Henry applied to CBYX to develop his language skills and step out of his comfort zone through the program’s study and internship phases. In his communication and media studies classes at Universität Leipzig, Henry shared U.S. perspectives on public media and journalism that encouraged deeper discussions among his German peers. Now, during his first internship, Henry works as an archival assistant at the Saxon Economic Archives, learning indexing and preservation tasks. His next internship will be as an assistant editor at a publishing house for children’s art books. Henry is excited for the breadth of experience he will gain through these two very different opportunities.
Henry volunteers at a community language cafe in Leipzig, where he teaches people from around the world about America while learning about their cultures. He builds lasting friendships, sharpens his language skills and cultural awareness, and collects new perspectives to bring back to the United States.
Henry credits his host parents as instrumental in his German language development. They have created a kind and welcoming environment where he can ask questions and make mistakes, while learning the Saxon dialect. Both host parents grew up in small towns south of Leipzig, and their firsthand stories about East Germany’s transformation have given Henry a personal connection to German history. Henry is grateful to experience community life through his host family, attending church services, celebrating holidays, and taking day trips around Saxony.
Henry’s CBYX exchange year has built his resilience and confidence. The internship search has especially pushed him out of his comfort zone. Writing resumes and cover letters, sending cold emails, and doing interviews all in German has proven he is capable of the determination necessary to pursue any opportunity. The best advice Henry received before going on exchange was to say yes as much as possible. “By saying yes to new situations, even when I was nervous or felt like my German language skills were not up to the task, I learned so much about Germany, built life-changing connections, and expanded the limits of what I previously thought I was capable of.”
Congratulations, Henry!