Impact Stories from Professional Growth Policy Area
Fellow wins entrepreneurship grant at United Nations conference
Fellow(s): Patu Ndango Fen
Country: Cameroon
Cohort: 2017
Policy Area(s): Entrepreneurship, Environmental Sustainability, Professional Growth, Youth Engagement
2017 fellow of Cameroon Patu Ndango Fen was awarded a $10,000 grant at this year’s Africa Youth Conference. The conference, sponsored by UN Women and supported by partners such as UNICEF and UNESCO, aims to create an avenue for young people to contribute to development of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Prior to the conference, Patu, a social entrepreneur and innovator, was selected as a finalist for the YAS Open Innovation Challenge, a combined initiative of the United Nations Development Programme and Accenture. At the conference, Patu and nine other entrepreneurs were announced as grant winners for their projects that directly support the fulfillment of the SDGs. Patu’s social enterprise, Closed-Loop System Ventures, specializes in waste management, transforming plant and animal waste into organic fertilizer that can be used in farming and aquaculture. With the grant, Patu plans to construct a warehouse and rent a large-capacity waste collection truck.
In addition to receiving her award, Patu participated on a panel at the conference centered around pitching, presenting and storytelling from a marketing and branding perspective.
Report Date...: 10/29/2018
Fellow publishes article about moonshot thinking in Africa
Fellow(s): Sylvia Mukasa
Country: Kenya
Cohort: 2014
Policy Area(s): Professional Growth
2014 fellow of Kenya Sylvia Mukasa authored an article published on Engineering for Change, an online platform for engineers whose mission is to improve the life of underserved communities. Sylvia, inspired by the Singularity University Incubator model, reflects on Africa’s position in the adoption of “moonshot” thinking. “A moonshot is a project or proposal that addresses a huge problem, proposes a radical solution and uses breakthrough technology,” Sylvia writes.
Sylvia argues that attempting to solve large challenges necessitates creative brainstorming and innovative thinking, creating unprecedented ideas for change. This moonshot thinking, she says, might hold solutions to challenges that arise from overpopulation and underemployment for Africa, which will have the largest workforce in the world by 2035. Through improving education, increasing investment in African youth and encouraging tech innovators, Sylvia believes that Africa can move forward and solve its most pressing challenges.
Report Date...: 10/15/2018
Fellow awarded grant for STEM-based education initiative
Fellow(s): Mutriba Akhmedova
Country: Tajikistan
Cohort: 2015
Policy Area(s): Education Diplomacy/Mentoring, Empowering Women and Girls, Professional Growth, Youth Engagement
Mutriba Akhmedova, 2015 fellow of Tajikistan, was awarded a U.S. Embassy Alumni Grant for her new initiative, Girls in STEM. Through digital literacy workshops, information sessions and tech bootcamps, Girls in STEM will encourage high school girls in Tajikistan to choose careers in STEM fields, hoping to reduce societal stereotypes of women in STEM along the way. “STEM is new for the people of Tajikistan, especially in schools,” Mutriba said. “The project will hopefully have a huge impact on girls.”
The Public Affairs section of the U.S. Embassy in Tajikistan administers an annual Alumni Grant Program to support alumni-initiated projects aimed at promoting community service and the dissemination of professional knowledge. Next month, Mutriba will officially launch Girls in STEM, targeting 40 girls throughout four regions of Tajikistan, providing immersive education experiences and instilling in them a passion for STEM fields.
Report Date...: 10/15/2018
Fellow convenes summit in Abuja to advocate for girls’ rights
Fellow(s): Carolyn Seaman
Country: Nigeria
Cohort: 2017
Policy Area(s): Education Diplomacy/Mentoring, Empowering Women and Girls, Professional Growth, Youth Engagement
2017 fellow of Nigeria Carolyn Seaman, founder of Girls Voices, organized the 2018 Girls Summit in Abuja last week to commemorate International Day of the Girl. The event, implemented in partnership with the Global Fund for Women, brought together government agencies, advocates, representatives of diplomatic missions and the media to advance girls’ voices and advocate for their rights and protection. Throughout the day, 126 secondary school girls addressed the summit’s attendees, speaking about child marriage, gender-based violence and girls’ lack of equal educational opportunities.
Carolyn, referencing Nigeria’s rank of 122 out of 144 in the 2017 Global Gender Gap Report, aimed to secure commitments from stakeholders in order to protect girls’ rights and security. By the end of the day, stakeholders drafted a statement committing themselves to increase outreach, support engaging initiatives and mobilize to protect girls’ rights. As one young participant said in her remarks to the audience, “We want the chance to be leaders of today… tomorrow is too far.”
Report Date...: 10/15/2018
Fellow wins Stevie Award for women in business
Fellow(s): Hiba Shabrouq
Country: Jordan
Cohort: 2017
Policy Area(s): Entrepreneurship, Professional Growth
Hiba Shabrouq, 2017 fellow of Jordan, has won a Stevie Award for Women in Business. Selected by a specialized jury, Hiba was named as Employee of the Year in Telecommunications. The Stevie Awards were created in 2002 to honor and generate public recognition of the achievements and positive contributions of organizations and working professionals worldwide. Hiba will join other Stevie Award finalists in New York City to receive either a gold, silver or bronze award at the Stevie Awards’ 15th annual gathering in November.
Hiba, the only Jordanian woman named in the telecommunications field, was recognized for her work as a product marketing expert at Orange, one of the largest operators of mobile and internet services in Europe and Africa and a global leader in corporate telecommunication services. While in the TechWomen program, Hiba was hosted by LinkedIn. Recently, Hiba was one of four fellows who participated in The Global Summit in Jordan.
Report Date...: 10/8/2018
Fellow named to 30 under 30 list by Forbes Africa
Fellow(s): Arielle Kitio
Country: Cameroon
Cohort: 2016
Policy Area(s): Education Diplomacy/Mentoring, Empowering Women and Girls, Professional Growth, Youth Engagement
Arielle Kitio, 2016 fellow of Cameroon, was recently named 30 under 30 for Forbes Africa (website in French). Arielle was recognized for her work as the founder of CAYSTI, an initiative that supports and educates students through after-school STEM programs, a youth tech lab and a business incubator aimed at improving the gender balance in tech. “Our vison at CAYSTI is to create an egalitarian ecosystem where every youth from [least developed countries], regardless of sex, language or social level have equal access to meaningful STEM learning experiences,” she said. “Our programs and tools are designed to create the next generation of leaders with technology as an equalizer and empowerment tool.”
In addition to her work with CAYSTI, Arielle is a Technovation mentor as well as a Next Einstein Ambassador, representing Cameroon at Next Einstein Forum programs and sharing her work and publications on their platforms.
Report Date...: 10/8/2018
Mentor and fellow speak at annual Grace Hopper Celebration
Fellow(s): Rebecca Biswas, Peace Asukwo
Country: Nigeria, United States
Cohort: 2013
Policy Area(s): Professional Growth
TechWomen Professional Mentor Rebecca Biswas and 2013 fellow of Nigeria Peace Asukwo were invited to participate in this year’s Grace Hopper Celebration in Houston, Texas. Produced by AnitaB.org, the annual Grace Hopper Celebration is the world’s largest gathering of women technologists.
Rebecca, a senior manager for mechanical design engineering at Juniper Networks, shared her experiences with digital manufacturing and 3D printing on a panel about the Fourth Industrial Revolution. “Our panel included women from Barcelona and South Africa, and we all grew up in different countries: Canada, India, the U.S., Russia and Spain,” she noted. “Not all of us had an engineering background. This clearly shows that diversity is important to drive innovation, as we were all leaders in this digital world.”
Peace, currently a Software Developer at IBM, participated in a panel titled “Women in Tech at the United Nations,” where she shared her thoughts on how to improve women’s participation in technology from a human rights perspective.
Report Date...: 10/8/2018
Google awards scholarship for fellow to attend summit in U.S.
Fellow(s): Bee Makhambetova
Country: Kazakhstan
Cohort: 2017
Policy Area(s): Professional Growth
2017 fellow of Kazakhstan Bee Makhambet was awarded a Google scholarship to attend the 2018 CMX Summit in Portland, OR. CMX seeks to bring together professional community builders by providing them with world-class community programs and education. Through workshops and breakout sessions, the yearly three-day summit gives participants tools and techniques to improve and uplift their communities.
Bee was one of six people who received a scholarship, chosen from more than 200 applications for her work in empowering women in tech. She first collaborated with Google when she helped organize Kazakhstan’s first International Women’s Day event for over 200 women and girls in tech. Bee is a Regional Ambassador for the Kazakhstan chapter of Technovation and the owner of Dream Green, an online shop that sells products and provides educational tools about zero-waste living.
Report Date...: 10/1/18
Fellow presents research at Chicago expo
Fellow(s): Ola Elgaddar
Country: Egypt
Cohort: 2017
Policy Area(s): Professional Growth
2017 fellow of Egypt Ola Elgaddar was invited to present her research at the 70th annual American Association for Clinical Chemistry (AACC) Scientific Meeting in August. The expo, held this year in Chicago, drew more than 20,000 attendees and showcased the latest advancements in research through workshops and sessions. Ola, who holds a medical doctorate in chemical pathology, presented her research on the association between bone mineral disorders and intradialytic hypertension in Egyptian patients on maintenance hemodialysis. She is also a member of the scientific and organizing committee for next year’s AACC Middle East conference, which will be held in Abu Dhabi in March 2019.
Ola is currently an Associate Professor of Chemical Pathology at Alexandria University in Egypt. During the TechWomen program, she was hosted by the Chan Zuckerberg Biohub in San Francisco.
Report Date...: 10/1/2018
Fellow secures funding for STEM education initiative with support from TechWomen mentors
Fellow(s): Chioma Ezedi
Country: Nigeria, United States
Cohort: 2016
Policy Area(s): Education Diplomacy/Mentoring, Empowering Women and Girls, Professional Growth, Youth Engagement
Chioma Ezedi, 2016 fellow of Nigeria, recently received U.S. State Department funding for STEMTeers, her initiative that provides STEM-based educational programming to students in Nigeria. Chioma, while participating in TechWomen’s 2018 delegation trip to Nigeria, shared the difficulties she was facing as she searched for funding to continue STEMTeers activities.
During the delegation, she connected with Impact Coach Jessica Dickinson Goodman for support, who along with TechWomen Professional Mentor Larissa Shapiro reviewed Chioma’s grant application, providing valuable input on how to better position STEMTeers. “Jessica showed me how I can make the application more exciting, clear and focused,” said Chioma.
Building on the success of sessions they led during the delegation trip, Jessica and Larissa also recently facilitated an enrichment webinar for fellows, “Finding Funding for Social Impact Projects,” and Jessica has compiled and shared a database of more than 2,000 grants available in TechWomen program countries.
In addition to founding STEMTeers, Chioma is a software programmer at Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University in Nigeria. Jessica is currently an Impact Coach for Emerging Leaders from the Palestinian Territories, supporting them in the development of their action plan, and Larissa is a Professional Mentor at Mozilla.
Report Date...: 10/1/18
