Impact Stories from Professional Growth Policy Area
Fellow represents Kazakhstan at Global Game Jam
Fellow(s): Aliya Mukhametzhanova
Country: Kazakhstan
Cohort: 2017
Policy Area(s): Education Diplomacy/Mentoring, Professional Growth, Youth Engagement
Last week, 2017 fellow Aliya Mukhametzhanova led a team of developers representing Kazakhstan at Global Game Jam, the world’s largest game creation event. The event, now in its 11th year, brings together participants from around the world to create a game within a 48-hour period. This year, 147,00 people from 113 countries participated, creating 9,000 new games.
Bringing Kazakhstan to the games for the first time, Aliya created two “jam” sites – one in Almaty and one in Astana – and organized teams of developers and gamers to participate. In the two-day period, Aliya’s teams created 13 games ranging from survival simulations to games where players are tasked with stopping environmental pollution. Both Game Jam teams hope to continue working together to further develop their games.
Moving forward, Aliya hopes to recruit more young people and create academies where students can learn about software development, design, animation and more: “I want to be a bridge and help others to find new friends in other countries and to show the gaming world to people in Kazakhstan,” Aliya says.
Report Date...: 2/4/19
Fellow delivers address at Womenpreneur event
Fellow(s): Safaa Boubia
Country: Morocco
Cohort: 2018
Policy Area(s): Entrepreneurship, Professional Growth
This week, 2018 fellow of Morocco Safaa Boubia gave a TEDx-style talk at Womenpreneur, an initiative that brings together women in the MENA region to pitch their business ideas and share their stories with aspiring entrepreneurs. Safaa, a web strategy consultant and co-founder of Houna, was connected to the opportunity after the event organizers read her guest blog for TechWomen.
Addressing the room of engineers, students and entrepreneurs, Safaa shared her story as a hearing-impaired woman and the challenges she has faced along the way. She also shared three pieces of advice with the audience for their own professional journeys: to adapt their thinking to work environment, to create their own opportunity instead of waiting for it and to engage in causes that inspire and uplift their communities.
Report Date...: 2/4/19
Fellow shares perspectives on inclusion in magazine interview
Fellow(s): Zimkhita Buwa
Country: South Africa
Cohort: 2013
Policy Area(s): Empowering Women and Girls, Entrepreneurship, Professional Growth
2013 fellow Zimkhita Buwa was featured in the inaugural publication of Tribe, a business magazine that features creative thinkers who are shaping the next era of business, innovation and design. In her interview, Zimkhita shares her passion for business, her work in community development and her hopes for impacting the next generation. As the chief operating officer at Britehouse, Zimkhita spoke to the importance of inclusion in the business world: “We have to realize that innovation can come from anywhere, hence the need to make this industry a safe and thriving environment in which women can grow.”
Zimkhita, an advocate for girls seeking careers in technology, is the founder of TechPearls, a blog that shares global opportunities for women in STEM. Last year, she was named to the Inspiring 50 South Africa list for making a meaningful impact in STEM fields. “My focus has never been on winning awards, but rather to follow my purpose to use my experience, skills and talents to upskill and uplift others,” she says. “If the recognition comes with this, then it’s an added bonus—but it’s not what drives me.”
Report Date...: 2/4/19
2018 seed grant winners launch workshop outside of Harare
Fellow(s): Edith Mugehu, Natsai Mutezo, Nothando Ndlovu, Prudence Kadebu and Sandra Chipuka
Country: Zimbabwe
Cohort: 2018
Policy Area(s): Empowering Women and Girls, Environmental Sustainability, Professional Growth, Youth Engagement
This week, 2018 seed grant winners of Zimbabwe Edith Mugehu, Natsai Mutezo, Nothando Ndlovu, Prudence Kadebu and Sandra Chipuka kick-started their impact initiative, Vheneka/Khanyisa, in a farming community outside of Harare. Their project, which translates to “bringing light,” provides access to sustainable, affordable and reusable sanitary pads to women in disadvantaged communities.
After returning from TechWomen 2018, the team independently lab-tested sustainable and safe materials for their sanitary pad prototype. With outreach support from past TechWomen fellows, they held a workshop educating local women and girls on menstrual health and training them on making reusable pads. “We received amazing feedback from the girls,” says Natsai. “We asked if they felt able to make pads with materials from their home, and they all agreed that they could. They said our project was a welcome relief.”
Sixty percent of rural girls in Zimbabwe miss school each month due to their menstrual cycles. Through their workshops, Team Zimbabwe hopes to empower women and girls and remove a barrier to adolescent girls’ access to education. Vheneka/Khanyisa’s next training and workshop will be held on February 26 in Masvingo.
Report Date...: 1/28/19
Fellow begins Faculty for the Future fellowship in Belfast
Fellow(s): Ayesha Abdul Majeed
Country: Pakistan
Cohort: 2018
Policy Area(s): Professional Growth
This month, 2018 fellow of Pakistan Ayesha Abdul Majeed began a year of study at Queens University Belfast, a public research university in Ireland. Ayesha is one of 46 candidates selected for the Schlumberger Foundation Faculty for the Future Fellowship, a program that supports women in developing countries to pursue advanced graduate degrees in STEM fields. Ayesha is currently pursuing a PhD in computation offloading in edge and fog computing.
During her year in Belfast, Ayesha will focus on developing a rapid system that processes data geographically closer to mobile devices rather than via the cloud. “I am deeply grateful for the soft skills I have gained from the experience of TechWomen,” she says. “TechWomen has helped me to have balance for my PhD journey.” Throughout the year of her fellowship, Ayesha hopes to hone her skills as a researcher and educator in the academic field.
Report Date...: 1/28/19
Fellow named to international STEM alliance board
Fellow(s): Sylvia Mukasa
Country: Kenya
Cohort: 2014
Policy Area(s): Education Diplomacy/Mentoring, Professional Growth, Youth Engagement
2014 fellow of Kenya Sylvia Mukasa was recently named a global advisory board member of the India STEM Alliance, a think tank that conducts STEM research and supports design, development and promotion of learning frameworks and solutions. Sylvia, the founder and CEO of GlobalX Investments, was selected as a subject matter expert on STEM education. Her latest venture, GlobalX Innovation Labs, provides creative spaces for children to ignite their curiosity in STEM fields.
Sylvia will advise the group on STEM education from the African perspective, ensuring best practices alongside board members from other parts of the world. “Working with the advisory team will ensure that learners are getting the right skills and that the STEM ecosystem evolves concurrently with the fast-paced world of technology,” Sylvia says.
Report Date...: 1/28/19
2018 seed grant winners kick off impact initiative in Rwanda
Fellow(s): Christa Uwamahoro Munezero, Lucie Uwizeye, Noella Nibakuze, Pascale Mugwaneza, Solange Uwera and Vanny Nicole Kayirangwa
Country: Rwanda
Cohort: 2018
Policy Area(s): Empowering Women and Girls, Professional Growth
Team Rwanda, one of five winning groups of a 2018 TechWomen seed grant, has launched implementation of their initiative, Healing Together. Fellows Christa Uwamahoro Munezero, Lucie Uwizeye, Noella Nibakuze, Pascale Mugwaneza, Solange Uwera and Vanny Nicole Kayirangwa conceived of Healing Together as a response to the emotional wounds left by the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi. Their initiative sets up safe and trusted environments where women genocide survivors can access counseling services, talk openly and strengthen each other through their shared experiences.
Since the conclusion of TechWomen, the fellows established a partnership with AVEGA, an association that supports those who lost family members to the genocide, as well as CNLG, Rwanda’s national commission for the fight against the genocide. This month, the fellows and AVEGA organized a training of 40 new counselors from 28 districts in Rwanda, followed by a Q&A session where they gathered feedback on how to maximize the impact of Healing Together. Currently, they are designing a web portal that will connect counselors across districts in order to encourage communication and collaboration.
Report Date...: 1/21/19
Fellow launches virtual community for women in MENA
Fellow(s): Haneen Abu Farha
Country: Palestinian Territories
Cohort: 2015
Policy Area(s): Education Diplomacy/Mentoring, Empowering Women and Girls, Entrepreneurship, Professional Growth
2015 fellow Haneen Abu Farha of the Palestinian Territories recently co-launched Elevated, a virtual community for women in the MENA region. The group, currently on Facebook, connects women to global and regional opportunities, including jobs, fellowships, exchange programs and professional development opportunities. Additionally, Elevated offers resume, cover letter and consulting services to job-seekers as well as candidate matching for job providers.
“The idea came from us three co-founders who have been working together on helping connect women to opportunities in the U.S.,” says Haneen. “We thought we needed to create a community that connects women to opportunities all over the world in an engaging way.” The group recently published a live video featuring the program She Entrepreneurs and soon will launch their “Star of the Month” series, where female professionals share their personal and professional journeys with the community. In the coming year, Elevated hopes to share and amplify TechWomen fellows’ experiences and recruit women throughout the MENA region to apply for TechWomen 2020.
Report Date...: 1/21/19
Fellow featured in local television interview
Fellow(s): Ouafa Benterki
Country: Algeria
Cohort: 2012
Policy Area(s): Entrepreneurship, Professional Growth
This month, 2012 fellow of Algeria Ouafa Benterki was interviewed on Ennahar TV, an Arabic language station broadcast from Algeria. In the interview, Ouafa spoke about her experience as the CEO and founder of MTY Intelligent Software, a technology startup that provides data analytics and localization services. Founded in 2015, the women-run company is the first Algerian startup to focus on artificial intelligence.
Ouafa also spoke about how her international experiences have impacted her career and influenced her as a woman in business, expanding on her participation in TechWomen and her time at her host company, Adobe. Ouafa is a frequent contributor and speaker in Algeria’s AI space and was a featured speaker at the 2018 Microsoft Ignite conference.
Report Date...: 1/21/19
Fellow delivers talk on entrepreneurship at local event
Fellow(s): Fatima Zohra Benhamida
Country: Algeria
Cohort: 2017
Policy Area(s): Entrepreneurship, Professional Growth, Youth Engagement
2017 fellow of Algeria Fatima Zohra Benhamida was a featured speaker at WikiStage El Oued, an event launched by local youth that aimed to make a positive impact on the Sufi community through idea exploration, debate and community gathering.
The conference featured a diverse list of speakers who presented on the event’s theme, “Rethinking Entrepreneurship.” Fatima’s presentation focused on her lessons in entrepreneurship from TechWomen as well as her experience as a computer science professor, speaker and Technovation mentor. The day’s programming was of special significance to Fatima, who was raised in the town next to El Oued. “This was more than just an additional talk on my list,” she said. “We could feel the energy and motivation to make a change.”
Report Date...: 1/14/19
