Throughout his life, Alex has transformed a passion for learning about the world into a globe-spanning academic career. Growing up a geography whiz, Alex lived in four countries prior to moving to Benin and has visited nearly 30. He completed a B.A. at Tufts University, graduating in 2015, and he completed high school in Uppsala, Sweden. He also studied for a year at the Sorbonne in Paris. He speaks French fluently, knows conversational Swedish, and is learning Mandarin. As a student at Tufts, Alex worked for Tufts Telefund, conducted research in Rwanda on civil-military relations with the Alliance Linking Leaders in Education and the Services (ALLIES), and danced with the infamous Tufts Dance Collective. He has previous completed internships at the Center for International Policy and for the U.S. Department of State, and he most recently worked in Shanghai as a private college prep teacher. In his spare time, Alex enjoys watching Liverpool FC matches and trivia games.

Hailing from Buenos Aires, Argentina, Sol majored in International Relations and French studies at the University of Pennsylvania. While at Penn, Sol devoted her time to learning about South America’s geopolitical dynamics and the relationship between France and its former African colonies. Throughout her four years, Sol was also a member and co-captain her senior year of Penn’s Varsity Tennis Team. In the summer of 2013, Sol was a research assistant at an Argentine think tank where she conducted evaluative research on a yearlong project that sought to influence the policy agendas of the 2011 presidential candidates. The following year, as an intern at a political consulting firm in D.C., Sol worked on a number of projects focusing on social justice and progressive issues. Before coming to college, she traveled to more than 25 countries in Latin America, North America, Europe and Asia due to her tennis career. Sol looks forward to travelling around the continent, experiencing the Beninese culture, and gaining a deeper understanding of education policy and research in Africa.

Alumni Update:

Adrienne is completing her final year of Medical School at Weill Cornell Medical College in NYC. She plans to apply for residency in Emergency Medicine and continues to incorporate global health into her career.

Fellow Bio:

Adrienne is from Ithaca, NY and majored in the Woodrow Wilson School with a certificate in Near Eastern Studies. At Princeton, she participated in Raks Odalisque (Princeton’s belly dancing group) and several international relations and political groups. She also volunteered regularly in Trenton helping ex-convicts to prepare for the GED. She plans to pursue a career in international development and is looking forward to getting her start in Benin!