Alumni Update:

Shaquilla is currently a fourth-year PhD student in Sociology at the University of Pennsylvania. She was recently awarded one of the inaugural Penn Presidential PhD Fellowships to support her research on nonprofit decision-making and identity in East Africa. She currently serves as a general board member for the PiAf Alumni Board and is chair of the PiAf Anti-Racism Committee.

Fellow Bio:

Shaquilla graduated from Harvard University in May 2016 with a degree in Social Studies and focused on African-American women in the media. Shaquilla is passionate about journalism and public service, and her undergraduate experiences combined both passions. At Harvard, Shaquilla was the editor-in-chief of the Harvard Independent, a weekly newspaper, and an officer for three years at the Phillips Brooks House Association, an umbrella non-profit with over 80 programs serving people in Boston and Cambridge. Shaquilla also served as a senior staffer for Harvard Model Congress, an organization that runs government simulations for high school age students around the world. This past March, Shaquilla completed her senior honors thesis entitled “‘The Pulse of Black America:’ Ebony Magazine’s Creation and Reflection of Black Female Identity from 1980 to 2015.” While working at the World Agroforestry Centre’s AWARD program that provides scholarships and leadership training for African women scientists, Shaquilla hopes to learn Kiswahili, go on a safari, and learn a few traditional Kenyan dances.

Satya, a Los Angeles native, graduated from Yale University earning  a B.A in Environmental Studies with a concentration in Energy Studies. Her academic work focused on resource use and sustainability, and during her time at Yale, she traveled extensively to explore her interests. Sachi spent one summer in Costa Rica studying sustainable development and another in Istanbul, Turkey interning with an energy investment firm where she conducted research to inform the development of their first biomass plant. She also spent a semester in Copenhagen, Denmark studying sustainable design and renewable energy systems. After graduating, she joined the Market Intelligence and Strategy team at Vestas, a global wind power company. There, motivated by her passion for climate change mitigation, she has worked to understand the drivers of renewable energy demand, analyze challenges the industry faces, and help customers and utilities identify opportunities to increase wind power deployment. In her free time, Sachi loves hiking and camping, seeing live music, and spending time near the ocean. She’s excited to spend the year in Nairobi pursuing her interests in the intersection of business and social/environmental impact, and to explore the outdoors in East Africa!

Sally is from Montclair, NJ and majored in Civil and Environmental Engineering with a certificate in Environmental Studies. During her time at Princeton, she had the opportunity to spend a summer in Cochabamba, Bolivia, working for an organization specializing in clean cooking technologies. Before her senior year, Sally spent the summer in Nanyuki, Kenya doing research on water use and governance and collecting data for her senior thesis on groundwater development. At Princeton, Sally was also a member of the women’s varsity crew team. She is looking forward to learning more about conservation while surrounded by African animals at Mpala and also hopes to climb Mount Kenya and work on her Swahili.

Ryan graduated with a BA in Economics and International Affairs, with a concentration in International Development. Prior to graduating from GW, Ryan also studied Economics at the London School of Economics and Political Science. Since graduating, he has worked at Mathematica Policy Research in Washington, DC, where he managed research and evaluation projects for the Millennium Challenge Corporation, the U.S. Department of Education, and other federal agencies. He has interned with several international organizations focused on reducing poverty worldwide, including The United Nations World Food Programme and TechnoServe. Ryan is originally from central Connecticut, but has lived in Washington, DC for six years. He is a regular hiker and skier, and is active in the DC standup comedy scene. Ryan is honored to have the opportunity to help the International Rescue Committee provide vital assistance to refugees living in Kenya.

Alumni Update:

Rebecca has begun a new position as a JPO Community-Based Associate Protection Officer with the UNHCR in the Democratic Republic of Congo. She recently graduated with a Masters in Public Health from Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health, with a certificate in Public Health and Humanitarian Action. Her focus is on protection for children, women and girls, and related psychosocial support for vulnerable populations in complex humanitarian or emergency settings. She is passionate about community-led approaches to protection, primarily on the African continent.

Fellow Bio:

Rebecca is from Orange County, CA and studied Political Science and International Studies. During her time at Northwestern, Rebecca was involved in student government and worked for the Center for Forced Migration Studies, where she contributed to numerous refugee research initiatives. Rebecca also had the opportunity to study abroad in Paris, France and conduct research for her senior thesis on refugees in Tel Aviv, Israel. Rebecca has spent time as an intern for Congresswoman Schakowsky as well as the Chicago Council on Global Affairs, where she focused on immigration in the Midwest. In her free time, Rebecca enjoys reading and following the trail of art and food to explore wherever she is. While in Kenya, Rebecca is excited to continue refugee work at the International Rescue Committee, meet new people, learn Swahili, and see where this adventure takes her.

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.

Nora Hammond is a graduate of the University of California – Berkeley where she studied political science and minored in human rights and Middle Eastern studies.  While there, she studied abroad at the American University in Cairo and took graduate-level classes from the Center for Migration and Refugee Studies. Outside of class, she observed the after effects of the Egyptian revolution and taught English to refugees. Since graduation she has lived in Washington, D.C. where she has most recently worked as a proposal manager for an international development and research institution.  She earned the President’s Volunteer Service Award at the Gold Level, the highest level available, for her extracurricular community service as an AmeriCorps volunteer. In addition, she has had program management and research internships, including with a member of the US Congress.

Nima recently graduated from Harvard University with a degree in Sociology. While in college, she explored interests in development, economic inequality, and global trends in race and racism. This year she will be working with Population Services International’s East Africa office, based in Nairobi. The fact that some of the world’s citizens live decades longer and healthier lives than others is one of her biggest concerns, so she is very excited about starting work at PSI. She’s looking forward to applying both new methods (like mobile delivery of health services and social marketing) and more familiar ones (social science research) towards that end. During her fellowship, she hopes to explore the Nairobi food scene, improve her Somali (the language of her cultural heritage) and eat way more nyama choma than is wise.

Neena graduated in May 2017 from Georgetown University with a B.S. in Global Health.  She spent a semester in Ghana conducting research for her thesis on risk factors for youth suicidal behaviors.  She has additional research experience working with a Georgetown team to conduct a systematic review of the health of transwomen sex workers in the United States.  Neena has interned at the World Bank, where she wrote blog posts discussing health issues in Africa, as well as USAID’s Evidence to Action Project, where she conducted literature reviews on youth mental health and male engagement in gender equity.  Her other internship experiences include educating patients about nutrition at a federally qualified health center and supporting participants of a domestic violence shelter.  At Georgetown, Neena was involved in GU Medical Brigades, a group that assists doctors to provide medical services to a rural community in Honduras, as well as GIVES, an organization that implements random acts of kindness.  As outreach director for both organizations, she coordinated over fifty community service events for members.  She is looking forward to exploring Kenya and pursuing her passions for service and international development during her fellowship with the BOMA Project.  

Alumni Update:

Nate is a PhD student in economics at Yale University. His research involves work on migration, urbanization and risk, mostly focused on Africa. He currently has active work fieldwork being conducted on in Ghana and Tanzania. he is mostly in the United States, but makes fairly regular trips to Ghana.

Fellow Bio:

Nate Barker is originally from Vancouver, WA, and is a graduate of Georgetown University’s Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service. While at Georgetown, he majored in International Economics and received a certificate in International Development. During his time as a Hoya, he studied in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and worked in consulting in La Paz, Bolivia. In his free time, Nate enjoys reading, and playing and watching soccer and basketball. He is thrilled about the chance to be working in Kenya next year, where he hopes to pick up Swahili, climb Mount Kenya, and contribute to micro-enterprise development with The BOMA Project.