Class 8

Luis has two years of experience working in the field of International Development. He holds a Masters of International Affairs from Ohio University and a B.A. in English from Universidad de Sevilla. As a graduate student, he worked for the Healthy Living Initiative at the Tropical Disease Institute. The program is a long-term initiative supporting the socioeconomic development of rural communities as a key component to the control of Chagas disease in the southern Ecuadorian province of Loja. After completing his graduate studies, he coordinated a development team in Loja during the implementation of program activities in the summer of 2011. After Ecuador, he returned to his home country Spain where he collaborated with Solidaridad Internacional – Andalucía by assisting the International Development department. He worked during the closing term of the 2011 in the revision, editing, and translation of final and technical reports, as well as updating the database of funding sources. Additionally, he participated with the development of upcoming projects and the renewal of existing projects for 2012. Concurrently, he took courses on local development and international development project evaluation. Luis previously worked in education at the Modern Languages Department and the Disability Services Center at Ohio University. A native of Spanish, he also speaks English, French, and Portuguese.



Host Organization: Fundación Escuela Nueva. Bogotá, Colombia

Karina holds a Bachelors of Arts and Science in Latin American Studies with minors in Spanish and Political Science from the University of Delaware. Karina has over two years of experience in the non-profit sector, where she has managed three non-profits as an Account Manager for Potomac Management Resources.
As Account Manager for the Women in Housing & Finance Foundation, an organization with a mission to promote personal finance counseling and charitable services primarily to low-income women, Karina played a vital role in distributing grants to local charities in Washington, D.C. Karina’s dedication to the Hispanic immigrant community in Washington, DC has led her to teach English to recently arrived adolescents and help them with the process of enrolling in school. Karina has taught Civic classes at CARECEN, an organization which advocates for the rights of the Hispanic community. The course helped to prepare immigrants for their citizenship class, as well as promote civic duties. She has participated in a tutoring program for CentroNia,a bilingual public charter school. Karina participated in the Planning Committee that executed a fund raiser for the See Forever Foundation. Karina served on the Fabretto Children’s Foundation DC Committee.

Host Organization: Fundación Carlos y Sonia Haimes, Cartagena, Colombia.

Mikang has over six years experience in the nonprofit sector and holds a Bachelor of Law degree from the University of Abuja and a Barrister at Law from the Nigerian Law School, along with professional certificates in Monitoring and Evaluation, Project Management, Democratic Leadership, Intellectual Property Rights, Gender and HIV/AIDS. She is pursuing her Master’s degree in Law at the University of Abuja in Nigeria. Mikang started her career as a legal practitioner before venturing into the nonprofit sector. She has worked extensively on DFID, USAID, Global Fund, IHA and MSH projects. As a Program Assistant and later Program Officer with the National Democratic Institute, she organized and conducted trainings on legislative strengthening and anti-corruption mechanism for policy makers, staff of the legislature, CSOs and MDAs on pro-poor reforms and the achievement of the MDGs in Nigeria. Mikang worked with various CSOs in establishing the first ever CSO Liaison Office in the National Assembly. Additionally, Mikang worked at CiSHAN as the Manager, Human Rights, Gender and Advocacy before becoming the Director advocating for the rights of people infected and affected by HIV/AIDS and other health related issues. She has travelled to over 20 States providing technical assistance to CBOs/CSOs. She interned at Perchstone & Graeys, was the one-time Vice-President of the Legal Aid Council providing pro-bono services to prisoners and juvenile delinquents. She has been awarded various scholarships and awards including the Summer University Program of the CEU and Open Society Foundation on Human Rights and Drug Policy and is a member of the Nigerian Bar Association and FIDA.

Host Organization: Population Action International

Joyeta is a public policy enthusiast from India with over two years of experience in the non-profit sector. An Economics graduate from the University of Delhi, Joyeta has worked on several socio-economic and political projects with organisations like the Centre for Research, Planning, and Action and the Centre for Civil Society in India. She has also worked on the rights of street vendors and organised a national consultation to evaluate the protection of two national rivers while interning at Manushi Sangathan. At Social Watch India, where she most recently worked, Joyeta enhanced the Members of Parliament Composite Performance Index. She has done significant research on the functioning of the Parliament in India, and assisted in writing the Citizens’ Report on Governance and Development, the annual publication of Social Watch India. Joyeta is passionate about developing and working on national policies related to urban housing and sanitation, and has visited slums around the city to evaluate their sanitary conditions. One of her goals is to create a viable community development model to improve issues of housing and sanitation. Joyeta is a Director at the Youth of Policy and Dialogue, India’s first youth-led think tank. She has successfully led the organisation to grow and, with her team, recently conducted a national event, The G20 Dialogue Series.

Host Organization: Habitat for Humanity International

Asja has five years of experience in the non-governmental and private sector. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Economics from the University of Sarajevo, and a Master’s degree in International Relations and European Studies from the Central European University in Budapest, Hungary. During the past year, while working in the Outreach Programme of the European Union Special Representative in Bosnia and Herzegovina / European Union Delegation to BiH, she developed and became a part of an informal network of one hundred young professionals from all over Bosnia and Herzegovina who in 2011 created a common vision for BiH in four main areas that need to be reformed in order for the country to proceed with the EU integration process. For four years Asja worked at AIESEC, the largest youth-led international organization in the world where, together with her team, she led more than 150 members, coordinated and monitored different projects during the year, and planned and implemented a number of conferences. Immediately after finishing her undergraduate studies, Asja worked in the corporate sector as a marketing expert for Skoda cars in BiH. Through her professional work Asja has developed strong interpersonal, presentation, and project coordination skills. An alumnus of the Fund for American Studies and Hansen Summer Institute, Asja is dedicated to civil society empowerment, youth issues, and youth development.

Host Organization: Georgia Forward

Anna has nine years of nonprofit experience with different NGOs in Armenia and earned her Bachelor’s degree in Finances from Economics and Law University of Stepanavan, Armenia. While working as an Operations Manager at the Full Life NGO, she actively participated in projects focused on advocating for human rights and equal opportunities for people with disabilities, promoting principles of inclusive education within the USAID-funded “Strengthening DPO’s for Greater Outreach” project, and developing new projects and fundraising strategies. She was awarded with the Letter of Acknowledgement from the Governor of Lori Region for her efforts. Anna has worked at the Stepanavan Area Development Program regional office of World Vision Armenia as an accountant and volunteered with local environmental non-profits. In 2007 and 2008 she worked as an interpreter-assistant with international observers of OSCE at the parliament and presidential elections in Armenia. As a volunteer advisor she participates in pre-arrival orientations with students of the “Golden Bridge” Georgian-American Exchange Visitor Center. Through these experiences, Anna developed attention to detail, flexibility in cross-cultural communication, as well as strong skills in developing project proposals, budgeting, accounting and project coordination. Anna has a strong passion for human rights, equal opportunity, and gender issues. Above all, she champions sustainable development and social responsibility.

Host Organization: Lutheran Social Services of Minnesota

Adam has over six years of experience in the non-profit sector as a student and professional. He earned his Bachelor’s degree in Communications from Leyte Normal University in 2005 where he graduated cum laude, and is pursuing his Master’s degree in Management at the University of the Philippines. As a student, he was active in various school and community activities where he held significant leadership positions. He represented his province in the 4th National Youth Parliament, a biennial assembly of young people representing the various sub-sectors and geographical groupings nationwide to develop a legislative-executive agenda for youth development. Soon after he graduated, he was selected to join the pioneer batch of Global Xchange Program leaders, a six-month exchange program between the UK and Philippines. Managed by Voluntary Service Overseas (VSO) and the British Council (BC), the program aims to give young people from different countries a unique opportunity to work together to make practical contributions to local communities. Immediately after completing the volunteer exchange program, Adam began working as a Project/ Technical Officer at the Japan Fund for Poverty Reduction – Sustainable Livelihood Projects for the Poor in Southern Philippines, a grant project supported by the Asian Development Bank (ADB), where he was responsible for overall management of the project in the Visayas Network. At age 22, Adam became the youngest addition to World Vision Philippines as a Program Officer. In four years at World Vision, Adam acquired experience and skills in program management in development and humanitarian relief projects. in Bangladesh, Adam underwent training to set-up accountability mechanisms for development projects and programs. Through his pursuits in non-profit and volunteer work, Adam has grown into a a conscientious, passionate and relentless development professional and volunteer.

Host Organization: Operation Smile