CIPE and Atlas Corps are welcoming our second class of the Think Tank LINKS Fellows! Five young researchers from around the world have come together in Washington, DC to participate in a six month leadership development program. The fellows will shadow researchers and experts at leading Washington, DC-based think tanks to learn best practices of successful U.S. think tanks while conducting research on issues of democratic or economic reform.
We’re excited to introduce our newest class of Think Tank LINKS Fellows to everyone!
Fayyaz is a development practitioner with four years of research experience. He earned his Master’s degree in Economics. In 2012, the IDRC-SDPI awarded Fayyaz a fellowship in governance, security and justice for his M.Phil. in International Development Studies. Throughout his career, he has gained diverse experience by working in remote areas of Pakistan in different fields such as education, health, voice and accountability, women’s participation in political process, violence against women, child labor, and conflict resolution. In September 2012, in Islamabad, Pakistan he was one of the coordinators of the South Asia Economic Summit organized by the Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI). Fayyaz continued his work on the promotion of good governance in Pakistan with the help of civil society initiatives by establishing nationwide networks of CSOs known as Pakistan Social Accountability Networks (PSAN) to over 125 organizations.
Iryna has six years of experience in the think tank sector, and earned a Master’s of Art in Sociology from the National University of Kyiv Mohyla Academy in Ukraine. As a Research Associate at her home think tank, the Institute for Economic Research and Policy Consulting, she applies her expertise in sociology, economics, and project management. She coordinates research projects focused on the analysis of business climate in Ukraine. Previously, Iryna worked for Ukrainian Democratic Alliance for Reforms (UDAR), a liberal democratic Ukrainian political party that pursues economic and institutional reforms in Ukraine. There, she gave recommendations for the party’s policy based on electoral research and monitored current events. She also prepared statements and talking points for the party representatives.
Mahmoud is a lawyer and legal reform activist in Libya. Mahmoud is currently completing his Master’s degree in International Law from Cairo University. He finished his Bachelor of Law from Tripoli University in Libya, focusing on International Law. Mahmoud’s main emphasis is on rule of law, human rights, and access to justice issues. He is working in Libya with local and international organizations to build a more tolerant society, incorporating the ideas and political participation of the country’s youth while building concrete foundations of rule of law in Libya. Mahmoud is the co-founder of the Libyan civil society organization established in 2011, H2O, which supports the transition to democracy and empowers youth participation. The organization was named “H2O” as an indication of their commitment to the values of transparency. At H2O, Mahmoud manages a large project called Eye on the General National Congress (GNC), in which he monitors parliamentary performance and provides the public with practical information about their elected body. He did this in order to help Libyan citizens regain trust in civil society and to close the gap between voters and GNC representatives.
Naledi earned a Bachelor’s and Master’s in Economics from the University of Botswana. She has two years of work experience in a think tank, the Botswana Institute for Development Policy Analysis (BIDPA), where she works in the Macroeconomics, Forecasting and Planning Unit. At BIDPA she has gained experience working with development partners like the African Development Bank on the Botswana Country Assistance Evaluation project and the African Capacity Building Foundation on the Africa Capacity Indicators project. She has been published in different journals, notably Rand/Pula Exchange Rate Volatility in Botswana, on the impact of exchange rate volatility on Botswana’s imports and what drives private savings in Botswana.
Narayan has eight years of experience in the nonprofit sector, and holds a Master’s degree in Sociology from Tribhuwan University. At the Nepal Economic Forum, Narayan is currently working on the Accountability Lab Nepal project, where he leads the development of several innovative tools for accountability, including: a Right To Information Tool Kit for investigative journalists; ‘Bolaun, an online network for Nepalese to resolve accountability issues; and Nalibeli, a wiki-tools website to crowd-source information on higher education and public services in Nepal. He is a founding member of the South Asia Representative for Global Youth Anti-Corruption Network (GYAC). Narayan also founded the social activism group Citizen Action, and served as Executive Director for Youth Initiative, in Nepal.
Find out more about the Think Tank LINKS Fellowship.
Maiko Nakagaki is a Program Officer for Global Programs at CIPE.
