Alumni Directory Display

Born and raised in Philadelphia, PA, Olivia Charendoff holds a Bachelor of Arts in Francophone Studies from Muhlenberg College, with minors in Political Science and Cultural Anthropology. Since graduating in 2020, Olivia has used her background in translation and project coordination to work with leading peacebuilding INGOs, including Search for Common Ground and the Center for Civilians in Conflict. As an Institutional Learning intern with Search for Common Ground, Olivia assisted in the development of youth-oriented programming across the Sahel region of Africa and translated reports on conflict-sensitive aid between French and English. As an intern with the Center for Civilians in Conflict, Olivia conducted research on the active UN Peacekeeping missions in Mali, CAR, South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Her project on Community Alert Networks in Eastern DRC contributed to the Center’s 2021 report to the UN Security Council, advocating for stronger early warning and rapid response systems in the Ituri and North/South Kivu provinces. In addition to peacebuilding work, Olivia has also volunteered in the food pantry at the Nationalities Service Center in Philadelphia, providing everyday essentials to refugee families in the region. Prior to her fellowship, Olivia worked as a temporary program associate for Borealis Philanthropy’s Spark Justice Fund, supporting grassroots organizations in their mission to abolish the cash bail system and establish community safety mechanisms outside of traditional policing. Olivia is most passionate about conflict transformation, civic renewal and sustainable economic development.

Daniel graduated from Whitman College in 2018 with a degree in Biochemistry, Biophysics, and Molecular Biology and a minor in Politics. Daniel became passionate about the intersection of science, public health policy, and international development while conducting molecular HIV/AIDS research at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in the Bronx, New York. The summer after graduation, Daniel was a Davis Projects for Peace Fellow in Arusha, Tanzania, where he organized a series of outreach soccer camps that promoted HIV education and female empowerment. Daniel also studied international relations in Freiburg, Germany with the IES European Union program. While overseas, Daniel served on the student council and had the opportunity to work with populations ranging from immigration centre inhabitants in Athens to persecuted Roma minorities in Bucharest. At Whitman, Daniel was the business manager and sports editor of the Whitman Wire newspaper, played on the varsity men’s soccer team, and sat on the board of trustees of the Whitman Investment Company. In his spare time, he volunteered at the SOS Health Clinic, which provides free health services to uninsured individuals. Daniel is a Paul Garrett Scholar and received the President’s Environmental Youth Award after travelling by train from Washington state to Washington D.C. to lobby for revisions in climate change policy. Originally from Port Townsend, Washington, he loves skiing, mountain climbing, basketball, and playing the guitar. Daniel is excited to spend a year working with BIPAI Swaziland and hopes to increase health care access for individuals living in Mbabane.

Coming from Arcadia, California, Ryan Chavez graduated from Princeton University in 2019 majoring in History with a minor in African Studies. During undergrad, Ryan focused on East African history, spending a summer in Tanzania, learning Kiswahili, and writing his thesis on international relations within the East African Community in the early 1970’s. Outside of academics, Ryan was heavily involved on campus with Princeton International Relations Council, the Princeton Historical Review, and Princeton’s chapter of Sigma Chi. He is an avid music lover and played bass in the band, City in the Clouds. Ryan is excited to return to the continent to work with Rockies in Uganda and happily mix his professional and artistic interests.

Chiedza is a proactive change agent from Zimbabwe with an acute appreciation and understanding of social justice issues. Chiedza’s goal is to educate and empower communities so that they can advocate for their social well-being and consequently breaking the cycle of poverty. A graduate student of Case Western Reserve University, with experience working with marginalized populations in Africa and the United States, Chiedza commands strong competencies in communication, research, grant writing, and project management. As a social development specialist, Chiedza has worked with humanitarian aid organizations such as World Vision as a gender equality and social inclusion (GESI) consultant, where she was responsible for mainstreaming GESI across programs. Her role as a donor engagement and advancement intern for Catholic Relief Services enabled her to better understand how Non-Governmental Organizations secure funding from both the United States Government and Non-United States Government entities. In addition, Chiedza has extensive research experience which she gained as a research assistant working with data analysis software such as SAS, STATA, and Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) at the Center on Urban Poverty and Community Development. Chiedza’s passion for the advancement of marginalized communities always shapes what she does. She is extremely excited to continue working in community development as a Princeton in Africa Fellow with Lwala Community Alliance. Chiedza enjoys reading, cooking, and volunteering, during her free time.

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Originally from Seoul, South Korea, Hanul (Bentley) Choi is a recent graduate of Duke University with B.A. in Global Health and International Comparative Studies (concentration in Africa) with a French Studies minor. She is passionate about resolving global reproductive health disparities through reforming social systems. At Duke, she was selected as a Nakayama Public Service Scholar, committed to changing the political landscape of reproductive health as a global public servant. As part of Duke Global Health Institute’s Student Research Training program, Hanul spent eight weeks in Kisumu, Kenya in summer of 2022, researching HPV testing stigma and factors that influence the translation of newly acquired knowledge to behavioral change. For her senior thesis, she examined the intersection between civil and social rights and governmental responsibility and proposed a post-pandemic reproductive healthcare delivery recovery agenda in Kenya. With her international and diverse academic background, she hopes to assist governments in constructing legal frameworks and establishing social institutions to protect reproductive rights. Hanul is excited to join Population Solutions for Health as a documentation and technical writer and contribute to increasing accessibility to crucial health knowledge through her writing skills. Following Princeton in Africa, Hanul plans to attend Sciences Po Paris School of International Affairs to pursue her master in International Governance and Diplomacy. Beyond academics, she is a sports photographer and a volunteer puppy raiser for future service dogs.

Rebecca, a Philadelphia native, graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a degree in Environmental Science and Biology. She began conservation work early on, in high school, through volunteering and trail maintenance for the Student Conservation Association. While at the University of Pennsylvania, she spent her summers teaching 7th grade life science, cutting trees in Nevada, and conducting field research on owl monkeys in Argentina. She has also worked for the Sustainability office and started the Penn Beekeeping Club, bringing three beehives to campus. Rebecca is interested in utilizing mapping software, such as ArcGIS, and incorporating these tools into different projects. She enjoys learning about and exploring national parks and thinking about how different countries preserve their lands.

Brandon graduated from Swarthmore College with a B.A. in Political Science and Islamic Studies. Brandon can speak modern standard Arabic at an advanced level with working knowledge of the Tunisian Dialect. This past summer Brandon interned at Ubuntu Capital’s office in Kampala, Uganda. As the senior associate of marketing/strategy he was tasked with conducting field research and assuring that the enterprise’s goals aligned with the needs of those it sought to serve. Prior to that, Brandon studied in Tunisia for a semester focusing on post-revolutionary Tunisian civil society. Brandon is a co-founder of The Fanoos Project which seeks to provide undocumented Afghan youth in Tehran with educational and vocational opportunities. This project received over $25,000 in funding through a Project Pericles grant from the Lang Center for Civic and Social engagement at Swarthmore College. Brandon has also interned with the National Security Archives where he helped to compile and analyze documents concerning the relationship between Venezuela and the United States government during the presidency of Hugo Chavez. Brandon is a lover of music who throughout his Swarthmore career was a member of the Swarthmore Wind Ensemble, Swarthmore Gamelan Ensemble, and host of his own radio show.

Lance (Asa) Cooper was born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia. He studied philosophy at the University of Georgia before moving to France to pursue a Master’s degree in International Affairs. It was his experience working with refugees in Paris that directed his interests toward humanitarian response and international development. Asa subsequently pursued a degree at the Fletcher School at Tuft’s University focused on human security and conflict resolution in East Africa. During his time at Fletcher, he worked for peacebuilding organizations in Central and East Africa, as well as UNICEF’s Tanzania Country Office.  In his spare time, he enjoys running and reading. 

Brenda Coromina was born in Cuba and raised in Miami, Florida, where she attended community college before transferring to Georgetown University. There, she majored in international history with a certificate in religion, ethics, and world affairs. During her academic career, she was a casework assistant and civics instructor for the International Rescue Committee, coached students for their citizenship exams for the Immigrant Resource Center, interned at the U.S House of Representatives, and most recently, the U.S Embassy in Tunis where she facilitated creative programming. During the summer of 2019, she worked as a gardening intern for the Narrow Ridge Earth Literacy Center where she assisted the upkeep of an organic community garden. She is excited for the opportunity to work with the International Livestock Research Institute where she will be translating scientific literature on agricultural development to broader audiences.

Alumni Update:

Nicole has been working with her host organization, CHAI, since her fellowship year. She is currently an epidemiologist based in Eswatini, supporting national malaria programmes in South Africa, Eswatini and Mozambique to manage malaria surveillance systems and measure progress towards elimination.

Fellow Bio:

Nicole Dagata graduated with honors from the University of Florida with a BA in Economics. Her journey into her career in international development began when she sought funding to implement a project aimed toward improving community health. Her vision, Food for Thought, garnered support to develop and facilitate nutrition workshops for local youth. The success of the project inspired Nicole to travel to Guatemala where she had the opportunity to conduct program impact research. Her time there brought to her attention numerous health disparities which regularly effect marginalized groups. Nicole left Guatemala with the desire to devote herself to providing aid to these communities. After graduation, Nicole began working in the malaria control program for an NGO called PATH. She coordinates field activities, report writing and utilizes data management tools to provide summaries of data captured throughout health facilities in Africa. Outside the office, Nicole serves as Prevention team lead on DC’s HIV Working Group, a coalition aiming to spread awareness about HIV prevention and treatment by organizing free HIV testing. Additionally, Nicole supports Children’s National Health System as a Patient Care Volunteer, working directly with the hospital’s globally diverse group of patients to provide companionship before medical procedures.