Impact Stories from Professional Growth Policy Area

Google Developer Expert

Fellow(s): Rayan Al Zahab

Country: Lebanon

Cohort: 2016

Rayan Al Zahab, 2016 fellow of Lebanon, is the first woman to become a Google Developer Expert in the MENA region, specifically for her work in product design. She has been recognized by Google Developers as “a passionate programmer, trainer, public speaker and an advocate for gender diversity in the Tech industry.”

Rayan is the founder of BambooGeeks, a startup aimed to empower youth to pursue careers in programming through coding boot camps. She is also the founder of the Lebanon chapter of WomenTechmakers, a program supporting and providing resources for women in tech, and leads the Lebanon Google Developers Group.

Report Date...: 12/11/2017

Destiny Connect Magazine

Fellow(s): Tiisetso Lephoto

Country: South Africa

Cohort: 2016

Policy Area(s): Environmental Sustainability, Professional Growth

Dr. Tiisetso Lephoto, 2016 fellow of South Africa, was highlighted in Destiny Connect magazine in a feature covering South Africa’s dynamic new female scientists.

Tiisetso earned her Ph.D. in molecular and cell biology at the age of 26 from the University of Witwatersrand in Johannesburg. She is currently a post-doctoral researcher focusing on the impact of insect biocontrol agents on agricultural industries, particularly organic farming and effectively reducing the application of synthetic chemical insecticides on South African farms.

Report Date...: 12/4/2017

3D Printer

Fellow(s): Saltanat Alieva

Country: Kyrgyzstan

Cohort: 2016

Policy Area(s): Entrepreneurship, Professional Growth

Inspired by her time with TechWomen and her mentorship at Autodesk, 2016 fellow of Kyrgyzstan Saltanat Alieva successfully constructed her own 3D printer.

Saltanat returned to Kyrgyzstan motivated to make a positive impact on her country by making prosthetic hands more accessible and affordable to amputees by using a 3D printing method. When she could not find a 3D printer anywhere in her country, with encouragement from the TechWomen community, Saltanat decided to construct her own. She spent months researching and finding necessary components, and this month shared the finished product.

Report Date...: 12/4/2017

Silicon Mountaim Conference

Fellow(s): Mpara Faith

Country: Cameroon

Cohort: 2017

Policy Area(s): Entrepreneurship, Professional Growth

Mpara Faith, 2017 fellow of Cameroon, recently led a plenary session at the Silicon Mountain Conference in Cameroon. The panel focused specifically on financial models and policies that support profitable and scalable ventures. Mpara co-founded New Generation Technologies LTD., and is one of the few women who owns a start-up in her community.

Each year the Silicon Mountain Conference is organized to consult, network, exchange ideas, showcase products, meet stakeholders and discuss solutions to common challenges.

Report Date...: 11/27/20017

Chan Zuckerberg Biohub

Fellow(s): Haja Safiyatu Sovula, Blessing Matshaka, Ola Elgaddar

Country: Egypt, Sierra Leone, Zimbabwe

Cohort: 2017

Policy Area(s): Entrepreneurship, Professional Growth

In its first year as a host company for TechWomen Emerging Leaders, the Chan Zuckerberg Biohub (Biohub) hosted three Emerging Leaders: Haja Safiyatu Sovula of Sierra Leone, Ola Elgaddar of Egypt, and Blessing Matshaka of Zimbabwe. As outlined in this interview, the fellows’ time at Biohub was not only inspiring, but also contributed substantially to the innovative work being done at the lab. Collaboration between the fellows hosted at Biohub and their mentors is continuing post-program, as Ola and her Professional Mentor, Amy Kistler, are working together on a project to combat Hepatitis C in Egypt.

Report Date...: 11/20/2017

Queen Rania Meeting

Fellow(s): Aseel AlMusa, Hiba Shabrouq, Ala’a Agha Karss, Noor Altobasi and Dhelal Shorman

Country: Jordan

Cohort: 2017

Policy Area(s): Professional Growth

Her Majesty Queen Rania Al Abdullah of Jordan met with the five 2017 fellows of Jordan to congratulate them on being awarded a seed grant to fund their action plan, Ozwah, which will increase the number of female orphans enrolled in higher education. During the meeting, fellows described their experience in the TechWomen program as one that “had a tremendous personal impact on their confidence and entrepreneurial skills, encouraging them to develop new business ideas and partnerships after returning to Jordan.” Queen Rania shared her positive impressions of the women on her Twitter account, calling them “an inspiration to [the] nation’s youth.”

The Jordanian fellows have received a warm reception from the media since returning home, including being greeted by the media at the airport upon arriving back from the United States, being interviewed on local television networks and having their story published in local newspapers.

Report Date...: 11/13/2017

John Smith Trust Fellowship

Fellow(s): Nazira Sheraly and Bahara Nurmetova

Country: Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan

Cohort: 2015, 2016

Policy Area(s): Professional Growth

Nazira Sheraly, 2016 fellow of Kyrgyzstan, and Bahara Nurmetova, 2015 fellow of Turkmenistan, were both selected for the John Smith Trust Fellowship Program. As John Smith fellows, they will spend one month in the United Kingdom learning about social justice and rule of law as two of only 26 individuals from five Central Asian countries to be selected for the fellowship. Fellows were selected based on their leadership potential and ability to articulate their specific areas of interest in the themes of good governance, social justice and the rule of law.

Report Date...: 11/6/2017

Atlas Corps fellowship

Fellow(s): Nadiah Saba’neh

Country: Palestinian Territories

Cohort: 2015

Policy Area(s): Professional Growth

Nadiah Saba’neh, 2015 fellow of the Palestinian Territories, has returned to the United States as a fellow with Atlas Corps, an organization that facilitates overseas fellowships at host companies for the best of the world’s rising leaders. Nadiah, who started her Atlas Corps fellowship at IBM’s Armonk, NY office in September, recently authored a guest blog post on the Atlas Corps website that highlighted her experience as part of the TechWomen program. She referred to TechWomen as “the first time [she] actually believe[d] that someone would help [her] grow without getting anything in return [other than creating a] positive impact in the world.” She also spoke about how TechWomen inspired her to give back by supporting and encouraging female entrepreneurs in her country. At IBM, Nadiah will be working closely with the Corporate Service Corps (CSC) Program Manager on a number of projects to support the ongoing operations and deployment of CSC teams and to develop new models for community engagement.

Report Date...: 10/30/2017

Cameroon CEO

Fellow(s): Danielle Akini

Country: Cameroon

Cohort: 2017

Policy Area(s): Professional Growth

Danielle Akini, 2017 fellow of Cameroon, was recently featured in an article published on Cameroon CEO, a website that honors Cameroonian CEOs who are working to build the country’s future (article is in French). In particular, the article highlights Danielle’s work founding the Genius Centers, an organization that introduces young children to the technology field and prepares them to one day lead the technological revolution in Cameroon and throughout Africa. Cameroon CEO also recognized her role as the founder and president of Africa IT Women, a networking platform that unites African women in the information and technology fields. The author refers to Danielle as an example of the type of young African women he hopes to see more and more.

Report Date...: 10/30/2017

Global Citizen Awards

Fellow(s): Salima Kaissi

Country: Morocco

Cohort: 2013

Policy Area(s): Empowering Women and Girls, Professional Growth

Salima Kaissi, 2013 fellow of Morocco, has received a Global Citizen Award from the United Nations Association – United States East Bay Chapter for her work with eSTEM Morocco, a nonprofit she co-founded in Morocco with two other 2013 fellows of Morocco, Nezha Larhrissi and Zineb Rharrasse. Salima was honored at the UN Day Celebration and Awards Dinner on October 22.

The Global Citizen Awards recognizes organizations that work to ensure the attainment of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. Since its establishment in 2014, eSTEM Morocco has engaged mentors to train and coach more than 500 girls to code. Their work has resulted in the development of 40 mobiles applications.

Report Date...: 10/16/2017

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