Fellows

Ali has about five years of experience in the nonprofit sector and earned two Master’s degrees in Business with a focus on management and marketing research from Lebanese University. Ali started his career in human resources, was transferred to the supply chain department and then shifted to the programmatic side of the humanitarian sector. In that project he focused on economic recovery and development, working for two years managing the logistics of the program, all with the International Rescue Committee in Lebanon. Through his rotation, Ali gained genuine problem-solving and interpersonal skills, efficient and effective communication, organization, flexibility, multitasking, time and stress management, as well as negotiation skills by liaising with different departments on one side and the field and the head office on other side. Coming from a business educational background, Ali found his fit in the humanitarian sector due to the absence of profit maximization and competition. For fun, Ali likes yoga, reading, watching documentaries, cooking, traveling, and photography.

Host Organization: Heartland Alliance International

Role at Host Organization: Ali will be responsible for supporting human resources needs throughout the organization. Due to having to coordinate policies and resources across multiple countries, languages, cultures, labor laws, and salary scales, Ali is needed to navigate the many intricacies of this work. Ali will work primarily on compliance with labor laws, employment standards, administration of employee benefits, performance management, orientation, and some aspects of recruitment.

A development professional with more than ten years of experience of working with public and private sector stakeholders particularly in the domain of public-private partnerships, skills development, counseling & placements, technological sophistication, labour market survey, institutional capacity building, and knowledge management for socio-economic development. Currently, working with Louis Berger on USAID Punjab Youth Workforce Development Project as a Lead for Placements, Partnerships, and Institutional Capacity Building. Ansa is providing strategic, technical & policy support, and advice on formulation and execution of capacity development initiatives for empowering vulnerable and marginalized youth; strengthening partnerships with public and private sector stakeholders at all administrative government tiers with an aim of improving accessibility, equity, and relevance of youth development services for sustainable socio-economic development. Previously, worked with GiZ as PPP Advisor and facilitated the Government and public-sector institutions in bridging the disconnect with private sector for demand-driven workforce development. Prior to that, served at Technology Upgradation and Skill Development Company (TUSDEC), a subsidiary of the Ministry of Industries and Production, Government of Pakistan (GoP), for about eight years in multiple capacities, starting from a trainee metamorphosed into a Manager leading a team of four professionals. The sphere of responsibilities included orchestrating proposals and papers for the Government, multi-funding agencies, creating partnerships with bilateral/multilateral groups, corporate sector, and government bodies along with executing image building initiatives. Her educational pursuits involved an MPA from University of Punjab, Pakistan and a BBIT from Lahore College for Women University. The blend of classroom and on-job learning significantly inculcated leadership, cross-functional team work, effective communication skills, problem resolution, and resilience into her personality. She always has a balanced approach towards life, relishes her work as a development professional, and eager to mark herself as social entrepreneur contributing productively towards socio-economic melioration of local communities.

Host Organization: United Way Bay Area

Role of Host Organization: Ansa will enhance UWBA’s business partnerships work through research, data analysis and the creation of a strategic plan. She will work with the Equity Team to assess current activities of the business partnerships team as well as conduct research on best practices across the nation, including feasibility of expansion in the Bay Area and analyze our data.

Avais has six years of experience with development projects implemented by international nonprofit organizations. Avais has a Master’s degree in Business Administration, and Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing from Iqra University Islamabad, Pakistan. In Avais’s most recent assignment with The Asia Foundation, he developed the organization capacity of civil society organizations partnering with USAID Citizens’ Voice Project. In his previous position with Winrock, Avais promoted renewable and alternate energy technologies including biogas and biomass. He worked with dairy farming communities, and advocated for the installation of biogas plants for energy generation. He successfully piloted eight medium size biogas plants for electricity generation. Avais also worked with medium size industries to identify biomass energy potential, and enabled two industries to obtain donor support for implementation of their renewable energy projects. While implementing renewable energy projects, Avais contributed towards highlighting environmental issues and promoting environment protection by identifying carbon financing opportunities available through the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM).

Host Organization: Center for Environmental Health

Role at Host Organization: Avais will serve as the lead coordinator for CEH 2015 annual Fracking and Health Symposium which will bring together scientists, academia, and community members to share information on the effects of hydraulic fracturing on community health.

Duha is a global changemaker with four years of experience in the nonprofit sector. She earned a bachelor’s degree in NGO Management from The National Ribat University in Khartoum. Duha seeks to create a positive impact both locally and globally and she is especially passionate in the field of education, youth development and empowerment because she believes that education is the most important tool of positive change, and that youth hold immense potentials which need to be tapped into to achieve prosperity within nations. Duha has volunteered in various community-based organizations working with different target groups inside Khartoum and in the rural areas of Sudan. She was also the communication assistant for RedR UK, and her latest accomplishment was serving for a year as a community development officer for Science Of Life Studies 24/7 (SOLS 24/7), an organization based in southeast Asia, proving high quality education and life skills for underprivileged communities.

 Host Organization: DC Scores

 Role at Host Organization: As a development fellow, Duha will add much-needed capacity to the small development team. She will be a significant contributor to our being able to both respond to the unique challenges and leverage the unique opportunities of this critical moment in DC Scores’ history.

Edwin has seven years of experience in the nonprofit sector, having earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Travel and Tour Operations Management from Moi University. Currently, Edwin works as a Elgeyo Marakwet CSO Network Coordinator focused on transformational leadership and practical applications of social accountability tools and delivering effective development and implementation of governance programs. Previously, Edwin served as County liaison Officer for the Partnership for Transformational Devolution Project (PTD). While serving as the coordinator for Elgeyo Marakwet civil society organizations network, Edwin helped in the development and implementation of the four Elgeyo Marakwet County Open Government Partnership (OGP) commitments. He has attended the Open Government Partnership Global summit in Paris, France as well as the OGP Pioneer Sub-National Global Workshop in Washington, DC. Previously, Edwin worked with Centre for Enhancing Democracy and Good Governance (CEDGG), a non-profit that empowers vulnerable and marginalized citizens to claim their rights in local development and governance processes. Edwin enjoys focusing on topics relating to global governance and has a strong passion for good governance and youth empowerment.

Host: Open Government Partnership

Fellow role at Open Government Partnership 
Edwin will serve as an OGP Fellow to produce knowledge products and analyses of OGP action plans, facilitating the exchange of information across OGP teams and integration of OGP Local into OGP resources.  

Elijah has seven years of professional experience in the nonprofit sector. He earned a Bachelor of Science in Renewable Natural Resources Management from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology in Kumasi, Ghana. Passionate about driving positive social change, Elijah is a Co-Founder and Executive Director of community-based nonprofit organization- Help Change Ghana which works to empower communities to take proactive actions to reduce litter, indiscriminate dumping of waste and undertake beautification projects such as tree planting. His most significant professional accomplishment with this organization is the design and launch of the Community Litter Prevention initiative which trained and developed skills of 300 volunteers through a train the trainer model in 2014. The initiative has since reached over 30,000 individuals in nine communities with information on litter prevention techniques. Additionally, he coordinated conservation education programs in community schools which increased formation of Eco-clubs to ninety-six as at March 2019. Elijah’s efforts have been tremendous in rekindling grassroots support in keeping clean communities and conserving nature. Previously, he worked with the National Disaster Management Organization where he coordinated a team which administered support for flood displaced victims in rural Accra. Also, he volunteered with the Accra Metropolitan Assembly in public cleanup events such as the National Sanitation Initiative. Through these experiences, he has developed skills in project planning and implementation, leadership development, training and capacity building. Elijah has strong desire for leadership development, entrepreneurship and community empowerment.

Host Organization: Keep America Beautiful

Role at Keep America Beautiful: At Keep America Beautiful, Elijah will work with the Programs Director to execute Keep America Beautiful’s signature programs focused on cigarette litter prevention and community beautification. He will execute a grant program, market the programs to their affiliates and a broader audience, help execute an educational campaign and research potential new sponsors.

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

Emmanuel Olawoye is a passionate business professional. He has about 3 years of experience working in human resources and business strategy in two financial institutions (Microfinance and Commercial Banking). He earned a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from the University of Ibadan, Nigeria in 2015. Emmanuel has previously worked in a microfinance institution where his main responsibility was to manage employees and ensure optimal productivity. In this role, he always went beyond the call of duty by working with teams that provide access to finance for micro-businesses in the North Central region of Nigeria. He helped deepen financial inclusion in the region through the introduction and sale of mobile money, micro-lending, and savings tools. In his most recent role as a business strategy analyst, he has worked on several sustainability projects, including an environmental makeover program in Lagos, Nigeria to help fight against environmental degradation and climate change. He also helped develop Public-Private Partnership proposals for six Nigerian states to launch projects aimed at fostering economic development by improving healthcare, education, transportation, agriculture, and power generation in the states. He is deeply involved in SME business expansion and he constantly helps in the creation of business solutions to help SMEs scale and grow the economy. Through these experiences, he has become passionate about entrepreneurship, leadership, and financial inclusion. He seeks to become a global social change leader making an impact on millions of lives.

Host Organization: Charter Cities Institute

Role at Charter Cities Institute: At Charter Cities Institute, Emmanuel will serve as the Operations Manager Fellow: developing processes and procedures to streamline the growth of the Charter Cities Institute, and helping the organization continue to expand and retain its operational excellence.