Impact Stories from Professional Growth Policy Area
Fellow hosts digital training session for university students
Fellow(s): Afnan Saqr
Country: Jordan
Cohort: 2015
Policy Area(s): Education Diplomacy/Mentoring, Professional Growth, Youth Engagement
2015 fellow of Jordan Afnan Saqr hosted a digital marketing training for more than 100 students at Applied Science University last week in Amman. The training, called “Maharat Min Google,” is Google’s first Arabic digital skills program that was launched to help youth in the MENA region access free courses and increase their job prospects.
Afnan led the training in partnerhsip with INJAZ, a non-profit organization that offers financial education, business and entreprenurship skills training for local youth. During the session, she taught students about search engine marketing, social media, e-commerce, geo-targeting and data analytics. At the end of the course, students took an assessment on the Maharat Min Google platform and received a certification of completion to demonstrate their newly acquired capabilities.
Report Date...: 12/24/18
Fellow named one of Forbes’ top 50 women in tech
Fellow(s): Charity Wanjiku
Country: Kenya
Cohort: 2017
Policy Area(s): Entrepreneurship, Environmental Sustainability, Professional Growth
2017 fellow of Kenya Charity Wanjiku was recently named to the World’s Top 50 Women in Tech list by Forbes. The inaugural feature identifies forward-thinking founders, technologists and engineers who are leaders in their respective fields. Charity is the COO and co-founder of Strauss Energy, a solar company whose solar tiles power off-grid areas in rural Kenya and beyond. Through her company, Charity hopes to solve a lack of access to sustainable electricity by providing cost-effective and renewable energy to households and businesses.
In a recent Forbes article, Charity spoke about Kenya’s limited grid capacity and the need for the solutions Strauss Energy provides: “This gives the opportunity to all Kenyans to have access to power and an improved living standard,” she said.
During TechWomen, Charity was a part of the seed-grant winning action plan Project Digniti, which addresses sanitation-related illnesses by installing toilets in rural Kenyan schools. The team recently completed their pilot project at Nengerpus Primary School outside Nairobi.
Report Date...: 12/10/18
Fellow’s company selected as top 100 African startup
Fellow(s): Ameni Mansouri
Country: Tunisia
Cohort: 2018
Policy Area(s): Entrepreneurship, Professional Growth
2018 fellow Ameni Mansouri’s company, Dabchy, was selected as a Top 100 African Startup at the Africa 2018 Forum held this week in Egypt. Selected startups, chosen for their demonstrated success and future potential, were granted the opportunity to connect with international investors, financial institutions, government officials and policymakers from the African continent.
Founded by Ameni in 2016, Dabchy is web-based fashion marketplace used by over 220,000 women across three countries in North Africa. In the coming months, Dabchy will be a part of Europe’s first fashion tech incubator, Look Forward, for their one-year program based in Paris.
Report Date...: 12/10/18
Fellows organize Women Tech Talks at local university
Fellow(s): Gina Kadri, Hanan Atallah, Zeina Sadeddin, Nuha Shawahna, Waad Jabbarin, Razan Qraini, Ruba Awayes,Yamama Shaka’a, Ayah Soufan
Country: Palestinian Territories
Cohort: 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018
Policy Area(s): Education Diplomacy/Mentoring, Professional Growth
This week, a group of TechWomen fellows in Ramallah came together to co-organize Women Tech Talks, an event featuring local women business leaders, founders and entrepreneurs. The day’s program was organized in partnership with Birzeit University and the Palestinian chapter of ArabWIC, an initiative that supports and encourages Arab women in computing.
2018 fellows Gina Kadri, Hanan Atallah, Zeina Sadeddin, Nuha Shawahna and Waad Jabbarin were joined by Razan Qraini and Ruba Awayes (2017) and Yamama Shaka’a (2016) and Ayah Soufan (2015). Together, they gave a presentation to students and graduates about their TechWomen experiences and also participated on a panel to answer questions about the program and speak about how it has impacted their careers in tech.
Report Date...: 12/10/18
Mentor(s): Myra Nawabi
Company: Lockheed Martin
Mentor Type: Impact
Policy Area(s): Empowering Women and Girls, Professional Growth
Longtime TechWomen mentor Myra Nawabi was named Business Leader of the Year at the inaugural Women in IT Awards Silicon Valley held last week in San Francisco. The event is part of the Women in IT Awards Series, a program that holds events in Ireland, London, New York and Singapore. The awards aim to rectify the gender imbalance in tech through showcasing women who pave the way for gender equality and serve as role models for women entering technology fields.
Myra, a senior project engineer, was recognized for her outstanding business leadership at Lockheed Martin. “This was an amazing event, and I am truly humbled by the recognition,” she said. “My grandmother never got the opportunity to read or write. While her dreams were cut short, her granddaughter gets to live her dreams of space every day. I get to build satellites and empower other women to pursue their own dreams.”
Myra has been a part of the TechWomen mentor community since 2013, serving as a Cultural Mentor, Impact Coach and member of Emerging Leader selection committees.
Report Date...: 12/3/18
Fellow launches coding school for local youth
Fellow(s): Natalya Tyudina
Country: Tajikistan
Cohort: 2018
Policy Area(s): Education Diplomacy/Mentoring, Empowering Women and Girls, Professional Growth, Youth Engagement
2018 fellow of Tajikistan Natalya Tyudina recently launched ilmhona, a non-profit initiative with a mission to increase digital literacy among youth in Tajikistan. The pilot project, which will begin in January, recently began accepting applications and will select 20 girls and 20 boys to begin a three-month coding curriculum. The program will include HTML and CSS training and a course on Android application development.
After successfully completing the course, students will have the opportunity to participate in a one-month internship during which they will develop projects to tackle social challenges in Tajikistan. The ilmhona team is first launching the initiative in the capital city of Dushanbe, and Natalya hopes to expand into other cities in the near future.
Report Date...: 12/3/18
Fellow recognized as a leading Kenyan scientist
Fellow(s): Chao Mbogo
Country: Kenya
Cohort: 2017
Policy Area(s): Entrepreneurship, Professional Growth
2017 fellow of Kenya Dr. Chao Mbogo was recognized as one of the Faces of Kenyan Science during Africa Science Week, a week-long initiative of the Next Einstein Forum that takes place in 35 countries across the continent. The Faces of Kenyan Science campaign features exceptional Kenyan researchers, practitioners, innovators, makers and educators making a difference in Kenya.
Chao, selected as one of 20 leaders out of 200 nominees, was recognized for being an award-winning mentor and founder of the initiative KamiLimu, a mentorship program for computer science students. During the week’s events, Chao gave a presentation for the segment “Stories Behind the Science,” where she spoke about her journey in science and her hopes for impacting future generations of computer scientists.
Report Date...: 12/3/18
Fellows nominated for digital entrepreneur award
Fellow(s): Mpara Faith, Horore Bebga
Country: Cameroon
Cohort: 2017, 2018
Policy Area(s): Entrepreneurship, Professional Growth
Two TechWomen fellows are nominated for “Best Digital Entrepreneur” at the upcoming Bonteh Digital Media Awards, held next month in Douala. The award ceremony is part of Bonteh Media Network, a leading digital media and communications agency in Cameroon.
Mpara Faith (2017) is nominated for her work as the co-founder of New Generation Technologies, a software development and IT consulting company. 2018 fellow Horore Bebga is being recognized as the founder and CEO of Likalo 2.0, a digital agency and education center.
The event, the first of its kind in Cameroon, aims to showcase leading founders and entrepreneurs in the technology and communication fields throughout the country.
Report Date...: 11/26/18
Fellows organize Mozilla tech event at university in Nablus
Fellow(s): Ayah Soufan, Yamama Shaka’a, Ruba Awayes
Country: Palestinian Territories
Cohort: 2015, 2016, 2017
Policy Area(s): Education Diplomacy/Mentoring, Professional Growth
This month, fellows of the Palestinian Territories Ayah Soufan (2015), Yamama Shaka’a (2016) and Ruba Awayes (2017) organized a tech event highlighting projects, contributions and the latest technologies from Mozilla. The fellows, all hosted by Mozilla during their TechWomen mentorships, spent the day presenting to university students and tech professionals at An-Najah National University in partnership with IEEE, the world’s largest association of technical professionals.
The day’s agenda included product demos using the Firefox Reality browser with virtual reality (VR) technology, as well as a machine learning presentation that encouraged Arabic speakers to contribute to Mozilla’s Common Voice project. Since their TechWomen experience, Ayah, Yamama and Ruba have continued to educate students and professionals on Mozilla’s technologies. Ruba, a webmaster and computer lab instructor, currently works on Mozilla’s Arabic localization team.
Report Date...: 11/26/18
Fellow(s): Cynthia Leung
Country: Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, United States, Uzbekistan
Policy Area(s): Education Diplomacy/Mentoring, Empowering Women and Girls, Professional Growth, Youth Engagement
During her travels through Central Asia, longtime TechWomen mentor Cynthia Leung, formerly of SunPower, coordinated with fellows in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan to deliver more than 10 talks and workshops discussing mentorship, gender equality in STEM fields, sustainability and her TechWomen experiences.
In Uzbekistan, Cynthia presented on the power of mentorship, sharing best practices on how to be an effective mentor and mentee. She also visited universities and maker spaces like Curiosity Maker Space, where she hosted an interactive solar energy workshop for children. In Kazakhstan, Cynthia visited the American Corner and Maker Space and IQcoworking, teaching techniques on self-development and cultivating a culture of innovation.
“This trip was about having impact and spending time meaningfully and intentionally,” she said. In all three countries, Cynthia was hosted by TechWomen fellows, reconnecting with former mentees and meeting potential applicants for TechWomen 2019.
Report Date...: 11/26/18
