Alumni Directory Display

Alumni Update:

After staying on at at her fellowship organization, CCBRT in Tanzania, for an additional eight months, she moved to Washington, D.C. to work on the East and Southern Africa team at Chemonics in April 2019. She is still exploring how she can apply all she learned at CCBRT to continue serving women and girls, especially the most vulnerable, at home and abroad!

Fellow Bio:

Joelle graduated Summa Cum Laude from the Dual B.A. Program between Columbia University and Sciences Po (Institut d’études politiques de Paris) in May 2016, receiving bachelor’s degrees from both institutions. She studied Sustainable Development at Columbia University, where she was elected to the Phi Beta Kappa Society and received Departmental Honors. In her senior year, she was granted the Global Fellowship in Sustainable Development to conduct research for her thesis regarding safe water accessibility in arsenic-impacted areas of Bangladesh. During her time in France, she studied Political Science and specialized in the Middle Eastern region. Since graduation, Joelle has worked at Global Health Strategies, an international consulting firm specializing in global health communications and advocacy. Joelle is excited to explore Dar es Salaam next year and practice her Swahili. She is grateful for the opportunity to contribute to the amazing work of CCBRT in promoting maternal health.

Gabriella graduated from California Polytechnic State University with a major in Agricultural Business, with a minor in Global Politics. Following her undergraduate coursework, she pursued a master’s in international agriculture at Oklahoma State University (OSU). While at OSU, Gabriella conducted comprehensive qualitative interviews with participants in the OSU African Entrepreneurs Fellowship program from Kenya, South Africa, and Uganda, representing various agricultural initiatives, women and youth empowerment organizations, and extension and education efforts. Gabriella’s research resulted in the completion of her master’s degree and thesis: ‘Post-Fellowship Experiences of African Entrepreneurs: Interpreting Impact a Year Later’.  In addition to her graduate coursework and research, Gabriella served as a Noble-Watoto Fellow in Uganda. Gabriella is passionate about agriculture and its impacts on communities around the world. She is thrilled to be a member of the PiAf community!

Jennifer Bryan, originally from Honolulu, HI, graduated from The George Washington University in 2018 with a B.A. in International Affairs and a concentration in International Development. She speaks fluent French and conversational Arabic, and is passionate about financial markets, regulations, and the role they play in the development of Sub-Saharan Africa. During her time at George Washington, Jennifer studied abroad in Dakar, Senegal and worked at the Global Research and Advocacy Group (GRAG), where she participated in research and field studies in rural Senegal on female genital mutilation. Jennifer also studied abroad in Kigali, Rwanda where she analyzed economic development in post-conflict society. Her passions for business and development lead her to join the World Bank as a Consultant for the Enabling the Business of Agriculture (EBA) project, where she conducted research and assisted in Livestock data collection from 82 countries. After graduation, Jennifer joined Deutsche Bank as a Regulation, Compliance, and Anti-Financial Crime Analyst where she studies regulatory trends, and advises business lines on best practices and risk management. She believes in giving back to communities through public service, and is a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated. At George Washington, Jennifer volunteered with the Smithsonian National Museum for Natural History, and the African Union. Jennifer aspires to increase her experience in Sub-Saharan African development, in order to use business, finance, and social inclusion to promote sustainable and equitable opportunities in Africa.

Matilde is an International Affairs MA graduate from George Washington University, with a concentration in International Development and regional focus on Sub-Saharan Africa. Before starting her MA, Matilde volunteered in Livingstone, Zambia, assisting in the care and education of vulnerable children. Matilde has worked with a grassroot non-profit organization in the region of Mbeya, Tanzania, supporting the mobile and outreach health program. In DC, Matilde has worked with the Africa divisions at the International Foundation for Electoral System and at Counterpart International providing crucial administrative and technical support on a different of U.S. government programs on democracy and governance assistance. For her MA coursework, she traveled to Durban, South Africa, to conduct field research on language in primary education policy and practice. Matilde worked with the Center for Global Impact at the International Republican Institute on citizen-centered governance programming. Matilde is committed to explore the nexus between international development and humanitarian assistance as she perceives that the current humanitarian crises will require the work of hybrid professionals that can plan for longer-term development strategies while also knowing how to work in fragile environments. She is looking forward to growing professionally with the International Rescue Committee in Dar es Salaam and to continue learning Kiswahili!

After attending the United World College of Southern Africa in Swaziland to complete his final two years of high school, Willem recently graduated from New York University Abu Dhabi with a major in History and three concentrations in Arabic, African Studies and Political Science. Willem strongly advocates for global education as a tool to increase tolerance and cross-cultural understanding in the world. As a former TEDxNYUAD speaker, Willem gave a talk on the “Importance of Being a(G)local Citizen” in which he advocated for a three-step approach to viewing the world that emphasizes one’s awareness of one’s local surroundings, encourages an active effort to engage with the world and promotes an understanding that we are part of something larger than ourselves. As an intern for the Youth Crime Watch of Liberia, Willem spent a summer interning in Liberia where he worked on women’s empowerment and youth literacy projects. In his sophomore year he acted as the Dialogue and Communications intern at Hedayah, the International Center of Excellence for Countering Violent Extremism, in Abu Dhabi. He also interned at the International Law Institute in Washington D.C. during the spring and summer of his junior semester abroad and as a participant in NYU’s honors Global Leadership Scholars program. After his PiAf fellowship, Willem hopes to continue working on issues related to the Middle East, North Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa.

Alumni Update:

Deborah is currently the Head of Data & Analytics at FirstWave Group in Lusaka, Zambia, where she is responsible for building a highly analytical team working to create visibility into the operational data of three group companies, most notably Yalelo Zambia. 

Fellow Bio:

Deborah, a native of Florida, graduated from American University with an MA in International Economic Relations. In high school, she spent a summer in Zambia, which led her to pursue a BA in International Studies and minor in Economics at AU. Following her freshman year, Deborah interned with ZAYEDESA in Zanzibar, Tanzania. In this role, she broadened the organization’s online presence and deepened her interest in East Africa and Swahili studies. She was granted a Boren Scholarship to learn Swahili from 2015-2016, for which she spent the fall immersed in language courses in Arusha, Tanzania and spring interning with Yawezekana SACCO in Nairobi, Kenya. In this role, she interviewed SACCO members in Swahili, recorded their stories, and identified common challenges. While in graduate school, she was a consultant with Creative Associates International and a Program Assistant in the Africa Program at the Wilson Center. Deborah is a proud AmeriCorps alumna and served as AU’s Undergraduate Commencement Speaker in 2017. As a Strategic Analyst with Spark MicroGrants in Musanze, Rwanda, Deborah is excited to learn from communities driving their own economic development and work on data projects that support Spark’s community-driven work.

Elliot is from Vashon Island, Washington and recently graduated from Whitman College with a degree in economics. At Whitman, Elliot developed an interest in the intersection between economics and the environment, which guided him toward a diverse range of professional experiences. After his sophomore year, Elliot worked as a portfolio manager with Business Impact NW in Seattle, Washington, where he helped to increase the availability of financial services within economically marginalized communities across the Pacific Northwest. Following this experience, Elliot worked as a research assistant with Earth Economics in Tacoma, Washington. In this role, he co-authored a paper analyzing the complex relationship between disaster recovery, displacement, and economic insecurity in Puerto Rico and researched hurricane mitigation techniques, such as agroforestry and coastal ecosystem regeneration. These will not only improve Puerto Rico’s environmental resilience to future natural disasters but also the economic resilience of Puerto Rican communities. This project solidified Elliot’s understanding of the intricate connections between environmental sustainability and economic prosperity, and it fueled his desire to unlock sustainable avenues toward economic development. Inspired by the unique opportunities for sustainable development across Africa, Elliot is excited to continue working at the intersection of economics and the environment as a Fellow with the International Livestock Research Institute, a research center that works to improve food security and reduce poverty in developing countries through research for efficient, safe, and sustainable use of livestock.

Alumni Update:

Mikia is a Private Sector Specialist at the Inter-American Development Bank’s innovation laboratory, the IDB Lab. Her work focuses on project origination, client-relations and monitoring support for IDB Lab funded projects in The Bahamas Country Office

Fellow Bio:

Hailing from Nassau, Bahamas, Mikia graduated Magna Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from Philander Smith College in Little Rock, Arkansas. During her studies, she held various leadership positions on her college campus, pursued internships, and gained invaluable diverse experiences across the United States and the world. Most notably, she participated in a fully-funded study abroad program in Rwanda and Uganda, concentrating studies on peace, reconciliation, and sustainable development. While in Rwanda, she received the distinct opportunity to work with the Rwanda Development Board (RDB), in conjunction with the World Bank. She was a part of the Strategic Investments team, which led the negotiation of strategic investments on behalf of the Government of Rwanda. At Philander, Mikia was also selected as an inaugural fellow for the University of California’s Summer Institute of Emerging Managers and Leaders Program, which was held at the UC, Berkeley Haas School of Business, in which her team placed 2nd in a sustainable business model competition. Upon graduation, Mikia joined the Operations team of Credit Suisse in Nassau, Bahamas, where she rotated on three transaction processing desks – Treasury and Issuance, Wealth Management, and Structured Products, and settled transactions/resolved cash reconciliations across a broad spectrum of asset classes. As a Social Investment Fellow at Global Partnerships in Kenya, Mikia is excited for a fresh new path in pursuing her passion of bridging business and social impact to uplift communities in the East Africa Community.

Atlee Chait graduated from the University of Michigan with a BA in International Studies focused on International Security, Norms, and Cooperation. She most recently worked as the Monitoring and Evaluation Associate for DC’s Children’s Law Center, dedicated to strengthening the existing and supporting the development and implementation of new monitoring and evaluation processes. Prior to that, Atlee completed a contract with National Geographic supporting the National Geographic Bee, worked in Sub Saharan Africa Intelligence while living in Tel Aviv, Israel, and served as a Design, Monitoring & Evaluation Intern with Search for Common Ground, a peacebuilding and conflict resolution organization, where she learned to evaluate the effectiveness of peacebuilding programs overseas. Atlee is so excited to be working with Village Enterprise in their mission of utilizing entrepreneurship as a means to ending extreme poverty in rural Africa. She looks forward to living in Uganda, exploring the continent, making new friends, and gaining a deeper understanding of M&E, income generation, and the designing and implementing of development programs.

Alumni Update:

Lauren is beginning her second year of law school at Columbia Law School. Last summer, she interned at the Legal Resource Centre in Cape Town for her legal internship. In the upcoming school year, she hopes to take Africa-related coursework and will be participating in the Columbia Human Rights Clinic.

Fellow Bio:

Lauren grew up in Sacramento, California.  Following her high school graduation, she spent 10 months in Zhongli, Taiwan as a Rotary Youth Exchange student.  In 2017, she graduated from Wesleyan University with a B.A. in Biology and a certificate in Writing.  During her undergraduate career, Lauren focused primarily on ecological research, working for two year in the Singer Laboratory at Wesleyan, participating in a National Science Foundation Research Experience for Undergraduates, and interning at the California Academy of Sciences.  She studied abroad in South Africa, where she conducted fieldwork in Kruger National Park and gained a better understanding of conservation policies in practice.  This experience opened Lauren’s interest in the wider implications of conservation policies and inspired her most recent internship at the district office of U.S. Congresswoman Doris Matsui.  Lauren is also passionate about gender equality, and has interned at Women’s Empowerment, a Sacramento non-profit that aids homeless and near-homeless women obtain employment.  Lauren is excited to be promoting women in science as part of the AWARD team, and can’t wait to explore Nairobi and beyond.