Cohort 6

Saumya has over seven years of experience in the field of marketing, communications, and social impact. After working with corporates for three years, Saumya transitioned into the development sector as a Youth for India Fellow with the Aga Khan Foundation. The 13-months fellowship provided her the opportunity to work with a tribal community in western India to establish a for-profit social enterprise to provide a sustainable source of livelihood for the tribe. Having gained substantial insight into the gravitating issues in the development sector along with project management, capacity building, and community mobilization skills after the fellowship, Saumya co-founded a social enterprise, Tales & Treasures, that works to promote and establish micro-entrepreneurs. Currently, Saumya is working with the Ministry of Health, Government of India, on the strategy and implementation of the National Digital Health Mission. Prior to this, Saumya led the communications vertical of the Indian School of Business & Finance, a teaching institution of The London School of Economics, bringing international education to Indian students at an affordable cost. She has worked with multiple startups in the domain of e-commerce and technology on crafting their communications, public relations, and social media strategies. She has also been a volunteer with youth organizations, such as AIESEC and SPIC MACAY, leading university-level campaigns and events. Professionally and personally, Saumya aspires to take up roles in the area of communication for development and social entrepreneurship to contribute to some of the most pressing issues of her country.

Prajwal Khadka has been working as the Associate Director of Development and Partnership at Teach For Nepal (TFN) for the past eight years. He was previously selected as one of the top applicants and signed up to teach as a TFN Fellow in a rural village of Nepal for two years, where he realized that the low academic outcome of his students wasn’t merely because of classroom investment, but also of systemic issues. This grassroots experience gave him a deeper understanding of the community, social issues, and how culture, history, and politics create injustices that could be reflected in the communities. It also enhanced his leadership, interpersonal skills, and the ability to work in a cross-cultural setting. Having understood that larger community involvement was critical for change in educational outcomes, he then joined TFN’s core team where he now leads Fundraising and Public/Private Partnerships. His portfolio involves working with government officials, particularly at the Ministry of Education, private corporations of Nepal, and other agencies to enhance and support funding and collaboration necessary for TFN. Besides TFN, he has experience working on issues like LGBTI rights, leprosy patient welfare, public education improvement, and youth advocacy. He is also serving as a visiting faculty for undergraduate students.

Natia Kaldani has more than 9 years of experience in the nonprofit sector and earned a Master’s degree in Diplomacy and International Politics from Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University. Natia is the Co-founder and Board Member at the Civil Development and Research Institute, as well as the International Projects Director at Europe-Georgia Institute. She has first-hand knowledge of good governance issues in government institutions and civil society organizations that stems from more than 7 years of dedication to the design, coordination, and implementation of government reforms working with civil society organizations in Georgia and Europe. She has provided hands-on support on flagship reforms in the areas of capacity development of civil servants, freedom of information, and civil service reform while she gained valuable insight into government relations with excellent knowledge of best practices in cross-governmental policy coordination. She managed USAID and SIDA (Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency) funded large-scale projects supporting the improvement of public policy and fostering good governance in Georgia. She has been working on the Russian disinformation issues in Eastern Partnership Countries and has managed the project “Visegrad and EaP Countries against Disinformation”. Apart from this, she is actively supporting the youth involvement in Politics and political education among the youth wings of political parties through various projects.

May-May Ogoigbe is an ambitious and energetic professional with a knack for creating digital and marketing strategies for businesses and brands. With over 5 years of working in the marketing background, May-May has successfully led digital marketing campaigns for start-ups, SME’s and established organizations. Her combination of creative ideas and strong communication skills, along with a hands-on mentality, deliver results and confidence in leading campaigns. Her passion for the digital sphere has enabled her to work successfully with brand ambassadors, influencers, and industry experts. May-May is experienced in setting up training, managing, and coaching individuals while carrying out online marketing campaigns. As a digital marketing enthusiast, May-May has trained more than 3,000 Nigerians, Haptics Nigeria, and She Leads Africa on hands-on digital marketing skills for business growth. Her ambition is to continue impacting lives and empowering people.

Maria Melnikova has over ten years of experience in marketing project management, where she developed skills in BTL, CRM and events, that she is eager to apply for social good. Maria’s childhood years in Libya, Syria, and Iraq provided her with an understanding of cultural diversity and the challenges faced by different communities, which subsequently led to her further interest in working in a global environment. Maria has extensive volunteering experience for AIESEC Brazil, UNV online, todogood, and ProCharity platforms in Russia. Maria graduated from the Allrussia Academy of Foreign Trade with a Bachelor’s degree in Foreign Trade Management and from Moscow Higher School of Business MIRBIS with a Master’s degree in Marketing Management. Additionally, Maria joined the European Center for Peace and Development as a candidate for the MBA program in 2018. She is an enthusiastic lifelong learner in cross-cultural communication. Maria believes in a world without borders and in 2020 joined the Civic Assistance Committee to work with refugees and migrants in Russia. Maria enjoys traveling, water sports, and caring for her foster labrador Martha.

Lucia Chavez has five years of experience in the nonprofit sector. She earned a Bachelor’s degree in Applied Ecology from the University of San Francisco, Quito. Currently, she is the coordinator of “Sarawarmi Creative Laboratory,” a startup focused on designing experiences through art, science, or games for children and adults. In this process, Lucia has a special interest in motivating kids and young people to explore books and reading. Lucía also served as Head of Education of the Metropolitan Centre of Art in Quito for two and half years. During her time there, she designed programs and ran workshops relating to the art exhibitions, and coordinated and trained the facilitator’s team. These experiences helped develop Lucia`s leadership abilities and program management skills. Living and working in the tropical rain forest periodically for the past several years, Lucia developed strong bonds with the indigenous communities in the area and a renewed passion for their conservation and sustainability. Her past experiences taught her that education is the most effective strategy to positively impact these rural and indigenous communities. Currently, her areas of focus include education, opportunity access, and using art to promote social change.

Kindong Eric Kinchi has over four years of experience in the non-profit sector and earned a Master’s of Law degree from the University of Yaoundé II and a Postgraduate’s Diploma in Sustainable Development and Human Rights from the University of Antwerp. He currently serves as Project Officer for Operations for the Global Schools Program at UN SDSN, where he is in charge of Global Schools’ operations. This includes helping with interviews, people management, creating a team culture, and assisting the Program Manager in conducting internal reviews and solidifying the onboarding and offboarding processes. Previously, Kindong served with the WorldWide Fund for Nature (WWF) Cameroon as a Law Enforcement Intern, where he assisted the implementation of WWF strategy in support of Cameroon’s government effort to address the escalating poaching crisis and illegal wildlife trade. While working as a Project Assistant at Girls Corner International, he led projects that built young girls’ capabilities of hand skills, craftwork, and income-generating activities. He participated in sensitization campaigns on reproductive health, healthy habits, menstrual hygiene, and facilitated the distribution of materials to school-going vulnerable children in 2017. His desire for social change motivated him to engage in local outreach for the integration of the SDGs in schools’ curriculum, empowering students with competencies needed to build resilient communities and perform better in school. He enjoys cooking, singing, shopping, music, tourism, and traveling.

Huyen Nguyen is currently a Founder of Education for the Vietnam Organic Lifestyle social enterprise (EVOL). Her social enterprise particularly focuses on youth empowerment and environmental issues. Five years of running a social enterprise give her a good insight into the social enterprise environment in Vietnam and other countries while helping her to strengthen her multi-managing ability and skills in managing different stakeholders. Playing different roles during her seven years of working and taking part in the national, regional, and international projects as a team leader, assistant, coordinator, founder, manager, consultant, and mentor gave Huyen a better understanding of different roles in team cohesion. Huyen has earned her Master’s of Art in International Development Studies, focusing on sustainable environment development. Her major allows her to have a wider understanding of development sectors and dig deeper into the environmentally sustainable development field, especially in waste management. Huyen enjoys focusing on the topics of sustainable development and environmental development, as well as youth empowerment.

Jane Fisher is a creative professional with a diverse background in media, marketing, and international NGOs. For over six years of her career, she accumulated the best practices of journalism, commercial content writing, and editorial management. She is currently working in a medical startup that contributes to fighting cancer. While still completing her degree in Journalism, she already worked at her first Olympics. Shortly after that, she made her first appearance as a news reporter on TV. After almost two years on screen, she paused her career to earn a Master’s degree at Goldsmiths University, London. In 2018 she started working as a Project Coordinator at the Japanese Broadcasting Company, NHK. Within the next two years, she helped produce numerous programs addressing social and political issues. She eventually left to step into the role of Creative Editor at Movavi, an international IT company. Next, she took up a volunteer position as the Copywriting Team Lead at an international charity organization, Health & Help, which delivers medical help to some of the world’s poorest regions. Having gained some experience in medical content, Jane joined MedTech, so she could expand her impact on the world.

Daniel Worku Demissie serves as an Assistant Professor, Social Worker, and Career Center Coordinator at the University of Gondar. He has experience taking part in community service projects, training, and research activities. Daniel ran the office of the career center since 2018 and he has been working to create jobs for youth. While working in this office, he prepared various training manuals for students and faculty members. Additionally, Daniel provided soft skill training for youths and recent graduates, so as to let them find jobs or create their own. As the Project Coordinator, he has been running the Debate and Public Speaking/dialogue for Sustainable Peace Club at the University of Gondar since 2019. Besides this, he provided counseling services and training for members of the community based organization Orphan and Elderly Support. Lastly, he also provides psychological and mental health support for isolated individuals due to COVID-19 since August 2020.

Chaima Chaouachi started her own social enterprise, Tela.tn, during the pandemic with one objective: Economic relief for the vulnerable professionals affected by the global pandemic COVID-19. Chaima graduated from the prestigious Tunis Business School, Tunisia with a Professional Master’s degree in Management of Non-Governmental Organizations and a Bachelor’s degree in Business Analytics and Marketing. Chaima held several positions as Project Manager and Communication Manager in both the non-profit and the private sector on a multinational level, where she succeeded to form new partnerships and long-lasting relationships with various local and international stakeholders. Chaima believes in the power of social and economic gender equality, that is why one of her life’s missions, is to create empowerment opportunities for Tunisian women and young people. Chaima aspires to be one of the Tunisian leaders who create change in the world.

Ali Zafar is a program management professional with six years of experience in the nonprofit sector and he earned two Master’s degrees in Applied and Development Economics from Pakistan and Germany, respectively. He has worked with federal and provincial Governments in Pakistan, UN agencies and international development organizations. The focus of his work is establishing partnerships with stakeholders in government and non-government sectors, formulation of policies and programs, and developing knowledge and learning pathways for existing and future projects for portfolio development, specifically on areas of gender, innovation management, and sustainable development. Ali is currently working as a Planning and Coordination Analyst at UN Women Myanmar, where he supports the formulation of program strategies and implementation of action plans through the integration of systems and design thinking program management approaches. Prior to this assignment, Ali was working as a Social Policy Analyst with UNDP on design, localization, and implementation of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in Pakistan. During this time, he led and prepared SDGs’ Implementation Framework for Punjab, conceptualized and steered District Localization Plan for SDGs, wrote reports on data gaps and interlinkages, and built institutional structures with a diverse level of stakeholders. In recognition of his research work, Ali was selected to represent Pakistan as a Young Economist at the fifth Lindau Nobel Laureates Meeting on Economic Sciences in 2014. For his achievements as a professional, he was selected by the U.S. Department of State to represent Pakistan as a Governance and Society Professional Fellow in 2018.