Originally from Wayzata, Minnesota, Johnna is a graduate of UW-Madison where she majored in Economics and Political Science. During her time at Madison, she held leadership positions with Madison’s chapter of Amnesty International and interned with several organizations, including the United Nations Foundation and the Wisconsin Alumni Association. Additionally, she completed several service-learning projects working with vulnerable populations in Philadelphia, Nicaragua and Cambodia. Her junior year, she studied Swahili and development in Zanzibar, Tanzania and Nairobi, Kenya as a Boren Scholar. While in Kenya, she also had the opportunity to intern with Ruben Microfinance in the Mukuru slum and research challenges women entrepreneurs face within the community. Next year, Johnna is excited to explore more of East Africa, improve her French, and learn about community-led development initiatives through her work with Spark.

Joan graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 2012, where she majored in International Relations, and Economics, and minored in African Studies and French. After graduation, she served as a Teach For America corps member, and taught for over two years at a public elementary school in a low-income community in Miami, Florida. Originally from Ghana, Joan has lived in both Nigeria and Syria for extended periods of time and acquired a passion for global development. In the summer before her senior year at Penn, she completed two internships in Ghana. Joan was an international development intern for ILC Africa, where she coordinated the final data collection for the firm’s monitoring and evaluation consultancy. She also worked with The Abusua Foundation, where she was part of a team that trained young entrepreneurs for a Civil Society Incubator. Joan enjoys travelling, watching TV dramas, and learning about creative solutions to local issues in developing nations. She is excited about her fellowship with the African Leadership Academy in Johannesburg and is eager to explore a new region of the continent, while working to build up a generation of leaders that will transform Africa in the future.

Jessica majored in International Affairs at The George Washington University. She most recently worked in Washington, DC at the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES), an international NGO that supports electoral processes in developing democracies. Prior to joining IFES, Jessica worked as a Project Assistant for the Southern and East Africa team at the National Democratic Institute. Throughout her undergraduate career, Jessica held several internships at various organizations in DC, including Human Rights Watch and Peace Corps World Headquarters. Jessica spent her junior year studying abroad, first in Florence, Italy and then in Uganda. While in Uganda, Jessica worked with the Refugee Law Project in Northern Uganda, conducting field research on the region’s socioeconomic development and transitional justice process. Jessica continued her research upon her return to GW, completing her senior thesis on the challenges of implementing transitional justice mechanisms in post-conflict societies in Africa. Jessica is looking forward to improving her Swahili, playing/watching lots of soccer, exploring more of East Africa and meeting new friends and colleagues at the IRC in Kasulu.

Although a Trenton, New Jersey native (GO EAGLES!), Jasmin has lived in a number of states across the U.S. including Georgia, Maryland, Oklahoma, and West Virginia. While studying Economics at Spelman College in Atlanta, she was involved in a plethora of campus organizations such as the Young Democrats of America, Morehouse Business Association, East Coast Step Team and even the Miss Junior Pageant. After graduation, Jasmin was a member of PNC Bank’s Public Finance Group specializing in lending to government and nonprofit entities in the District of Columbia, Maryland and Virginia area. From visits to the Hiroshima Peace Memorial in Japan to the Burj Khalifa in Dubai, Jasmin has discovered her love for travel. Jasmin’s passion for service has led her to become heavily involved with Girls Going Global, Inc.  – a nonprofit organization that empowers teenage girls through travel and cultural exchange. Jasmin also enjoys dancing, music, food, and making her friends laugh. As the first Spelmanite to serve as a Princeton in Africa Fellow, Jasmin is excited to join the eleQtra (InfraCo) team in Uganda. She is most excited to experience the music, people and food while in Kampala!

Jasmin recently graduated in May 2015 from Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) with a Master’s degree in International Development and International Economics, and a specialization in Management for Development. She received her Bachelor’s degree from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) in Sociology and Art History. Upon graduating from UCLA, Jasmin worked for a relief and development NGO as a Program Development Officer, designing, implementing and evaluating global multi-sectoral development programs. Most recently, Jasmin spent a summer interning with the UN in Myanmar, completed a Practicum consulting for the World Resources Institute’s Sustainable Finance Department, and interned with a USAID contractor to conduct impact evaluations of various USAID E3 projects. Jasmin speaks French, Italian and Japanese and is looking forward to learning Chichewa and spending time in the “Warm Heart of Africa.”

India graduated from the University of Southern California with a major in Cognitive Science and minors in International Relations and Consumer Behavior. A New York City native, India got involved in her local Los Angeles community as a mentor and Director of Involvement for Women and Youth Supporting Each Other and as a high school teacher for USC’s Teaching Ethics Program. At USC, she worked as a Research Assistant in the School of International Relations as well as the USC Shoah Foundation. India’s interest in post-conflict reconstruction led her to spend a semester at the University of Cape Town where she studied Politics and Psychology. While she wasn’t in class or exploring Cape Town’s natural wonders, India interned with Enablis, an entrepreneurship NGO. Following her time in South Africa, India worked in Eastern Rwanda, where she facilitated the creation of a grain-storage business with a team of local entrepreneurs. She has further pursued her interests in social enterprise, gender equality, and sustainable development as a Brittingham Social Enterprise Lab scholar and as a StartingBloc Fellow. This year India is looking forward to spending time with BOMA’s entrepreneurs, living on the equator, and learning Swahili!

Erin grew up in Buffalo, NY and received her BA in English from Georgetown University with minors in French and Psychology. While at Georgetown, she studied abroad in Strasbourg, France for one semester, and she also spent semesters interning at the Peace Corps Office of Inspector General, the U.S. House of Representatives and a juvenile justice nonprofit, Campaign for Youth Justice. Passionate about work in policy and advocacy, Erin stayed in Washington, D.C. after graduating and gained experience in the U.S. Senate. Most recently, she worked at an advocacy firm, The Sheridan Group, which gives policy advice and strategy to nonprofits looking to advance their missions through federal policy. There she worked as an associate on health policy for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. Erin has also been fortunate to spend two separate stints working with the nonprofit organization, One Heart Source, in Hout Bay, South Africa where she volunteered and helped run education programs for elementary students living in the Imizamo Yethu township. While in Malawi, Erin looks forward to getting to know Malawian people and their culture, traveling to Lake Malawi, and hopefully playing some soccer!

Emma is originally from Princeton, NJ, but she has called Washington, DC home for the last few years. In 2013, Emma graduated from the George Washington University with a BA in international affairs and concentrations in Africa and international development studies. During her time at GW, Emma spent a semester abroad in Kampala, Uganda, where she studied international development and interned for Uganda National Action on Physical Disability (UNAPD), an NGO focused on improving the lives of people with physical disabilities. Upon graduation, Emma began working for the ONE Campaign, a global advocacy organization dedicated to ending extreme poverty and preventable disease. Emma loves to travel, and has been lucky enough to spend time in Rwanda, China, Laos, and Myanmar. She also loves her alma mater (Raise High!), movie trivia, and snacks. Emma is incredibly excited to move to Dar es Salaam, where she hopes to meet new people and learn many new things, including Swahili.

Alumni Update:

Elizabeth has been a Research Associate with the UNDP Independent Evaluation Office since September 2018. Recently she had the pleasure of returning to her PiAf host country (Uganda) to assist with the country program evaluation of UNDP Uganda.

Fellow Bio:

Prior to her Princeton in Africa fellowship, Elizabeth worked as a Program Officer for HIAS, an international refugee protection NGO, where she assisted with refugee assistance programs in East Africa, Chad and Latin America and deepened her interest in issues of global migration, displacement, and integration. Previously, she worked in communications for POV, an independent documentary series on PBS which puts a human face on contemporary social issues. Elizabeth is a graduate of Wesleyan University, where she graduated with a bachelor’s degree in history and French Studies, focusing on issues of gender, race and identity during the colonial and post-colonial era. As an undergraduate she spent two semesters in Paris. A native of New York, she loves to travel, read and try new foods. For the next year in Kampala, she is looking forward to enjoying the legendary Ugandan hospitality, exploring the continent, and contributing to IRC’s work helping refugees go from “harm to home.”

David is from Cooperstown, North Dakota. He graduated from the University of Denver with bachelor’s degrees in International Studies and French. While at DU, David served as a Resident Assistant and was a member of Model United Nations and Model Arab League. In fall 2013, David studied at the University of Strasbourg and interned at the International Institute of Human Rights where he assisted in its Research Center and translated official documents. The following spring, David attended the University of Tunis-Carthage where he studied Arabic. During his senior year, David served as a Public Achievement Coach, leading a high school class in the creation, planning, and implementation of a community-organizing project. He wrote his honors thesis comparing the cases of constitution-making in Tunisia and Egypt. David spent two summers at the National Student Leadership Conference working for its Politics and International Diplomacy programs. At NSLC, David led groups of high school students through 11-day sessions, facilitating small group discussion and directing interactive career simulations. As Head Team Advisor, he trained and managed staff in the implementation of the youth leadership development program. David is looking forward to building relationships with the KF students and exploring Zambia’s beautiful natural wonders.