Fellows

Adriana is a researcher from Cartagena de Indias, Colombia, with eight years of experience in the non-profit and international cooperation sector. She earned a Master ‘s in Communication from Pontificia Universidad Javeriana, as well as a B. A. in Sociology from Universidad Nacional de Colombia. Her work has been focused on the development of monitoring and evaluation tools of different types of public policy directed to vulnerable people and groups for nearly a decade. She has knowledge and experience of intercultural communication, particularly in relation to the ethnic and gender approaches for the attention and reparation of conflict victims.

Adriana has developed participatory tools and other research methodologies for the assessment of public policy that broadly fits into development and more specifically into peacebuilding and transitional justice. Through her experience in international aid, especially OIM, MSI, and FAO, where she has worked with topics as varied as rehabilitation and satisfaction measures, climate change, ethnic justice, public health, land restitution and food security, she has engaged with different conflict-affected regions.

Adriana has volunteered as a support link in the Colombian Red Cross during emergency situations, such as floods and earthquakes, in the Caribbean region and is trained in first aid assistance. Through these experiences, she developed strong research and communication skills in widely varied cultural contexts, allowing her to quickly develop rapport while implementing projects on the field. Adriana enjoys focusing on research with communities for peace building and policymaking, and has a passion for advocating for human rights and women empowerment.

Host Organization: American Red Cross

Role at Host Organization: As a Research and Engagement Fellow, Adriana will work under the Knowledge Management Program Manager to conduct and coordinate research and learning activities of the Global Disaster Preparedness Center (GDPC). The fellow will gain hands-on experience in qualitative and quantitative research activities relating to disaster preparedness and cutting-edge technology innovations, as well as knowledge management, information dissemination, and learning outcomes. In addition, the fellow will assist with outreach and engagement with Red Cross and Red Crescent National Societies and external partners to help raise the profile of GDPC’s work. An interest in and basic knowledge of disaster preparedness and international humanitarian assistance is essential and experience working in or with the Red Cross is preferred. Our fellows work alongside us as integrated members of the GDPC to carry out professional level work in a supervised atmosphere.

Andrea studied architecture in Los Andes University, with a minor in Asian Studies and Language and Italian Culture. Then she did complementary courses in Project Management and Finances in the same university. Andrea worked as a fellow with Atlas Service Corps in 2008 and worked in Washington DC in an organization called Think Impact, as International Development Officer. In 2009 she coordinated the Global Development Ambassadors program in South Africa. In 2010 Andrea came back to Colombia and she founded Heart for Change, a nonprofit organization that designs and implements social impact projects through volunteerism and citizen participation in Colombia and Latin America .

HFC has since mobilized more than 2.000 volunteers to Colombia and has partnerships with the Ministry of Education (MEN), the Ministry of Commerce and Tourism (MINCIT), The International Cooperation Agency from the Presidency (APC), The National Training Service (SENA), PNUD, Embassy of Sweden, Purpose, among others. Andrea has worked as a representative in Colombia and a consultant for Partners of the Americas, ITDP and Ventures, and she was selected in 2015 for Gerente Magazine as one of the 100 most influential leaders in the Colombian society, in the category of nonprofits and social activists. She loves animals and reading.

Host Organization: Student Movement for Real Change / ThinkImpact

Andrés has four years of experience working with nonprofit social organizations. He holds a Postgraduate Degree in Conflict Resolution from Javeriana University and a Master of Arts in Gender and Peacebuilding from the United Nations-mandated University for Peace in Costa Rica. Andrés has participated extensively in movements advocating international disarmament, disability rights, and nonviolent action and peacebuilding. In particular, his work addresses the differential needs and circumstances of women, men, girls and boys during conflict, war, and humanitarian crises. Andrés is a certified psychologist and has provided psycho-social rehabilitation services for over 400 landmine survivors and other victims of violence. Additionally, he has worked in victim assistance for internally displaced persons and facilitated conflict resolution workshops for the reintegration of ex-combatants. Andres is particularly interested in conflict resolution, landmine removal, internal displacement, and the prevention of gender-based violence.

Host Organization: International Peace and Security Institute (IPSI)

Angela Betancur has three years of experience in the nonprofit sector working with different social and development projects to support disadvantaged youth and women’s groups. Angela earned a Bachelor’s degree in Social Work from the University of Antioquia in Medellin, Colombia and received formal training in Art Therapy to work with communities in University of Saint Buenaventura. She is currently working with the at-risk youth population in areas of drug abuse, crime, prostitution, and teen pregnancy. Through prevention campaigns and group interventions she works to restore youth rights. She also worked at an organization for rehabilitating people with physical disabilities and youths with cognitive and mental disabilities. Her work there also included supporting the families of the youths. After graduating from college, Angela worked as a Toy Librarian planning activities for children, teenagers, and their families while addressing possible abuses and rights’ violations. She also worked as a research assistant for two projects concerning migration and transnational families. She is especially interested in youth rights and women’s empowerment. Angela’s focus in college dealt with verbal and gestural expressions concerning gender-based violence in the school setting.

Host Organization: Latin America Youth Center (LAYC)

Role at Host Organization: Angela will provide individual, family and group counseling services, diagnoses, treatment planning, and community support to approximately twenty-two youths and their families. She will work to create individual plans of care for her clients while consulting with qualified practitioners in the field.

Carolina has six years of experience in the nonprofit sector, and earned a Communications degree at the Universidad of Medellín. She recently completed postgraduate studies in Sociology and Political Sciences at FLACSO, Argentina. While working at the Organización VID, she helped to strengthen the image of the institution by redesigning their virtual media. Likewise, Carolina worked at FENALCO ANTIOQUIA; a nonprofit organization that unionizes medium and small traders, for helping them to strengthen their business. One of the most relevant goals that she achieved was being designated as a member of the Strategic Planning Team. Carolina has also volunteered as a teacher on Communication and Information Technologies, at an HIV childrens’ foundation. She taught a group of children how to use web tools for their own development and self-education. Through all these experiences Carolina has acquired significant skills such as: creating multimedia educational material, researching relevant information and pedagogical resources, and organizing memorable social and institutional events. Carolina strongly believes in the mixture of education, technology and communication, as a powerful key to fight poverty and improve quality of life.

Host Organization: Mozilla Foundation

Role at Host Organization: Carolina will help design and develop a distributed training program for teaching web literacy skills. She will leverage existing research and conduct their own light research to inform and support a global program that provides guidance/instruction/community support for people that want to teach others how to read, write and participate in the digital world.

Emily has six years experience in marketing and international business in the public and private sectors. Although her work experience has mostly been in the private sector, from 2004-06 she worked for the employee fund “Grancoop” at the Corporacíon Autónoma Regional del Valle del Cauca (CVC), a local government institution which seeks to exert an environmental authority and promote the sustainable development of Valle del Cauca, the Colombian state from which she comes. Emily has worked with various companies focused on searching for new solutions for generating employment, new business opportunities, and changing Colombia’s image abroad. Currently, she is a marketing director at Ilitia Materna where she designs communication, media, and public relations plans and manages overseas sales online. Previously, she was a marketing assistant intern at C.I. Hermeco Off Corss (2003-04). She has served as a volunteer, giving motivational and civic engagement lectures as well as teaching English to students at her university. Emily obtained her B.A. in marketing and international business at the Universidad Autónoma de Occidente in Cali, Colombia.

Host Organization: Ayuda

Marcela has six years of experience in the nonprofit sector working with human security and development projects. She earned a Bachelor´s Degree in Government and International Relations from the Externado de Colombia University, and a Master of Arts in National Defense and Security in Bogotá. With a deep interest in capacity building, sustainable development, youth rights and civil society strengthening, Marcela has participated extensively in technical assistance processes for the design, implementation and evaluation of public policies, especially in the human rights, public security, national defense and victims’ protection fields. While working as a specialized professional in the international cooperation field, she contributed in the completion of strategies to achieve sustainable development in Colombia. Previously, Marcela worked to promote the private sector’s contribution to the community in coordination with local government projects, primarily in the areas of violence and abuse prevention. Early in her career, as a consultant in Public Security, Defense, and Strategic Intelligence, she collaborated during three years with several public entities, both national and local levels, in their capacity building processes. During that time, she successfully participated with different public and private organizations and victims of the Colombian armed conflict in the evaluation of the National Public Policy to protect the rights of the victims. Before finishing college, Marcela was an intern at the Organization of American States in the Dominican Republic where she was selected as an electoral observer to guarantee the transparency in the presidential elections of 2008. Marcela has a special interest in education processes as a path to prevent and reduce violence. She is a dedicated lecturer at the Externado University, where she analyzes with her students the main urban security issues in Latin America.

Host: Internews

Fellow Role at Internews:
Marcela will work closely with a team of approximately 20 development professionals, who develop and implement projects in Latin America related to access to safe, affordable, and uncensored information. The projects range from providing financial grants, technical training, and advisory support to local civil society and media organizations, to policy and advocacy projects. Marcela will also be involved in developing technologies that enhance and make access to an affordable internet safer. She will be paying particular attention to aspects of digital security and evolving developments in cyber security, as they affect the public, media and civil society.

Laura has worked in both the public and private sectors for over three years and has extensive experience working in educational programs for childhood and youth. In 2006, she co-founded Sueño Mi País, and implemented the Educando Soñadores program that promotes civic education for children in rural areas. She also worked for the Universidad del Rosario, in the Escuela de Control Social, where she facilitated the validation of games to promote civic participation for preschool and high school aged children in 60 schools from different areas of Bogotá. In 2004, Laura assisted the human resources department of the National Ministry of Treasury in building an interactive network of the Treasury Sector and redesigned staff evaluation and permission formats to make them more efficient and easy to understand. During her internship at the OAS General Secretariat in the summer of 2006, Laura wrote an investigative research paper on the land tenancy situation in Latin America and the Caribbean for the Department of Sustainable Development of the OAS. Laura’s latest work was with HL Consultoria Organizacional, where she contributed to the salary structure definition project of the Centro de Investigación y Educación Popular and the development of its human resources strategic policies. Laura has a B.A. in political science and government from the Universidad del Rosario in Bogotá.

Host Organization: CentroNia