Impact Stories from Youth Engagement Policy Area

Fellow-led Technovation Girls Uzbekistan team makes record-setting win at World Summit 2023 in California

Fellow(s): Elena Selezneva and Saida Yusupova (Uzbekistan, 2016)

Country: Uzbekistan

Cohort: 2016

Policy Area(s): Economic Impact, Empowering Women and Girls, Entrepreneurship, Youth Engagement

Technovation Girls Uzbekistan, introduced and spearheaded in 2016 by fellows Elena Selezneva and Saida Yusupova (Uzbekistan, 2016), recently made history when Team Tecnas won the Social Impact Award (Senior Division) at the Technovation Girls 2023 World Summit in California. This victory marks the first world summit win for an Uzbek team in the seven-year history of the competition, hosted this year by Synopsys. Comprising five girls and a mentor, Team Tecnas developed a virtual reality (VR) application, Sinov, which provides an immersive science lab experience for students who lack access to conventional STEM laboratory facilities. “We are incredibly proud of Team Tecnas’ achievement and hope that their success will inspire other girls in Uzbekistan to pursue their passion for technology and become role models in the field,” Elena shared in a recent message. Elena and Saida are the co-founders of Tech4Impact, a women-focused NGO that supports innovation, IT entrepreneurship and the green technology sector. The NGO grew from a TechWomen seed-grant winning impact project and has been supported by both the local alumnae community and U.S. mentors including Erin Keeley, Rekha Pai and Eileen Brewer.

Report Date...: 11/20/2023

Mentor & fellow collaborate on STEaM Hackathon

Fellow(s): Mentor Jeannice Fairrer Samani, Fellow Amanda Calitz (South Africa, 2020-2021)

Country: South Africa

Cohort: 2020-2021

Policy Area(s): Education Diplomacy/Mentoring, Professional Development, Youth Engagement

Mentor Jeannice Fairrer Samani, Founding Managing Director of the Fifth Wave STEaM initiative, recently collaborated with fellow Amanda Calitz (South Africa, 2020-2021) to bring “Fifth Wave STEaM Hackathon: Unleashing Innovation in the Future of Education” to South Africa. The hybrid hackathon, open to youths worldwide, spanned two days and featured 145 registered teams from both the eastern and western hemispheres. The event featured a metaverse virtual platform to promote team collaboration, mentorship and the use of on-demand videos. Activities included an accredited blockchain course, panel discussions, and a pitch session to showcase participants’ viable innovations addressing climate change. “We were delighted to launch [this event]” Jeannice shared in a recent letter. “By combining technology, education, and collaboration, our goal is to empower the next generation of leaders and create a sustainable future.”

Report Date...: 10/23/2023

000 seed grant win

Fellow(s): Safa Buzgeia (Libya, 2022)

Country: Libya

Cohort: 2022

Policy Area(s): Economic Impact, Education Diplomacy/Mentoring, Professional Development, Youth Engagement

Fablab Libya’s “Libyan STEM Hub”, an educational technology project conceived and spearheaded by fellow Safa Buzgeia (Libya, 2022), recently earned 40,000 USD in grant funding from the Islamic Development Bank as a part of their 14-week Tadamon Accelerator experience. Under Safa’s leadership, the Fablab Libya team prepared a non-profit business plan, submitted a pitch deck, and took part in a pitch competition, ultimately placing in the top three among 47 civil service organizations in the accelerator. The project went on to be recognized as one of Tadamon Accelerator’s seven best development projects at this spring’s Forum on Contributing to the Reduction of Poverty in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Fab Lab Libya is an incubator and civil society organization working to spread the culture of digital manufacturing, technology and entrepreneurship, primarily through the implementation of workshops and projects. Libyan STEM Hub aims to establish a first-of-its-kind interactive electronic educational platform, offering modern and practical STEM teaching methods to help bridge the gap in technology content and capacity building around distance learning in the nation. “I think the Tadamon Accelerator experience offered a great next step, with a wonderful conclusion, to what I learned during my TechWomen impact project journey,” Safa shared in a recent letter.

Report Date...: 8/21/2023

Fellow founds nonprofit Data for Africa Impact (D4AI)

Fellow(s): Rosaline Macharia (Kenya, 2022)

Country: Kenya

Cohort: 2022

Policy Area(s): Economic Impact, Education Diplomacy/Mentoring, Professional Development, Youth Engagement

Fellow Rosaline Macharia (Kenya, 2022) recently founded Data for African Impact (D4AI), a non-profit organization that aims to equip and inspire African youth with data science tools. To mark the founding, D4AI hosted its first webinar, “Decoding Data Science: Unleashing Its Potential,” on August 23. The webinar, featuring prominent Australian data scientist Dr. Xin Li and D4AI Head of Training Charles Ndung’u, offered insights into the present and future applications of data science and elucidated the importance of data science literacy in Africa. In September, the program will also launch STEMEd for girls, a free online training program for high school girls. “The establishment of Data for African Impact stands as a remarkable milestone—a testament to the career goals I set following my TechWomen experience,” Rosaline wrote in a recent post. “My heartfelt appreciation goes out to… my impact coaches, Beth Steinberg and Arezoo Riahi,” she continued. “Your insights and guidance have been a guiding lig

Report Date...: 08/28/2023

Fellow discusses AI for impact on ECA exchange Alumni Podcast

Fellow(s): Dr. Reema Diab (Jordan, 2019)

Country: Jordan

Cohort: 2019

Policy Area(s): Economic Impact, Education Diplomacy/Mentoring, Professional Development, Youth Engagement

Fellow Dr. Reema Diab (Jordan, 2019) recently appeared on the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs’ ExchangeAlumni series, Mentor Talks. In the episode, “Using AI as a Force for Global Good,” Reema discusses her role as an AI global ambassador, demystifies popular misconceptions about artificial intelligence and illustrates how it can be deployed for positive impact. Through her non-governmental organization, Galaxy for Technology, for example, Reema uses AI as a tool for education and skill-building for local refugees. “I founded Galaxy because there was a huge need in my community,” she explained. “We give them intensive training from web development to python to machine learning — the main skills and tools needed to work with global markets.” Reema also discussed her journey in TechWomen. “I have this kind of love in my eyes when I speak of TechWomen,” Reema shared, highlighting the mentorships, partnerships, entrepreneurial knowledge and professional networking opportunities she gained. “It was truly a transformative experience that has significantly shaped my career.” Reema is the first female Jordanian AI Global Ambassador for SwissCognitive, an international keynote speaker, and Founder and CEO of Galaxy for Technology. She is a youth influencer and also serves as a senior AI consultant for Tesla Motors and the World Bank.

Report Date...: 08/28/2023

9 Fellows provide leadership support as Techgirls LECs

Fellow(s): Anzurat Kosimova (Tajikistan, 2016), Arielle Kitio Tsamo (Cameroon, 2016), Carolyn Seaman (Nigeria, 2018), Ghada Amin (Egypt, 2018), Helen Mburu (Kenya, 2018), Nadiah Saba’neh, (Palestinian Territories, 2015) Nisreen Deeb (Lebanon, 2013), Ramia Bakain (Jordan, 2022) and Refilwe Ledwaba (South Africa, 2019)

Country: Cameroon, Egypt, Jordan, Kenya, Lebanon, Nigeria, Palestinian Territories, South Africa, Tajikistan

Cohort: 2013, 2016, 2018, 2019, 2022

Policy Area(s): Education Diplomacy/Mentoring, Professional Development, Youth Engagement

Fellows Anzurat Kosimova (Tajikistan, 2016), Arielle Kitio Tsamo (Cameroon, 2016), Carolyn Seaman (Nigeria, 2018), Ghada Amin (Egypt, 2018), Helen Mburu (Kenya, 2018), Nadiah Saba’neh, (Palestinian Territories, 2015) Nisreen Deeb (Lebanon, 2013), Ramia Bakain (Jordan, 2022) and Refilwe Ledwaba (South Africa, 2019) recently served as Local Engagement Coordinators (LECs) for the 2023 TechGirls program. LECs provide ongoing mentorship and support for 100+ girls from 35 countries who travel to Virginia Tech for one month per year to further their futures in STEM. “An absolute highlight for me was when Lee Satterfield, Assistant Secretary of State for the ECA (Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs), addressed the TechGirls community,” Nadiah shares. “[And] the special message from Secretary of State Antony Blinken left us all with a renewed sense of hope for a brighter tomorrow.”

Report Date...: 08/07/2023

Fellow leads Dell design thinking workshops

Fellow(s): Zeinab El Sayed (Egypt, 2020-2021)

Country: Egypt

Cohort: 2020-2021

Policy Area(s): Education Diplomacy/Mentoring, Professional Development, Youth Engagement

Fellow leads Dell design thinking workshops

Fellow Zeinab El Sayed (Egypt, 2020-2021) recently led the delivery of two design thinking (DT) workshops at Dell Technologies Egypt for high school and undergraduate university students. At the Dell star and summer academy workshops, Zeinab, along with a team of coaches, taught design thinking methodology to over 100 students engaging in interactive technical, soft skills, and career workshops with experts from Dell Technologies. The students would go on to utilize their learnings to develop and pitch practical solutions for real world issues as part of their mentorship programs. Zeinab currently serves as lead on all design thinking programs at Dell Technologies in Cairo. She is also a certified lean six sigma—yellow belt instructor.

Report Date...: 10/02/2023

Fellow founds STEM Sensitization Talks for Nigerian girls

Fellow(s): Adeola Aremu (Nigeria, 2022)

Country: Nigeria

Cohort: 2022

Policy Area(s): Economic Impact, Education Diplomacy/Mentoring, Empowering Women and Girls, Professional Development, Youth Engagement

Fellow Adeola Aremu (Nigeria, 2022) recently launched her first event for nonprofit initiative, STEM Sensitization Talks, which was held for secondary school girls in Kwara State, Nigeria. The purpose of the event was to educate girls on the gender gap in STEM and encourage them to enroll in science and technology classes for the upcoming academic year. “It was an eye opening session for the girls as they affirmed that STEM seeds have been sown in their hearts,” Adeola shared in a recent post. She has launched this initiative to steer girls toward STEM courses on their promotion to Senior Secondary classes, which is a major determinant for continuing on into higher education and careers in STEM. “It’s a ‘catch them young’ approach,” Adeola wrote in recent communications with the team. “It’s a way of giving back to TechWomen.”

Report Date...: 9/18/2023

Fellow organizes AI-centered hackathon for Arab youths

Fellow(s): Ruba Awais and Rasha (Hammo) Abu Dayyeh (Palestinian Territories, 2017)

Country: Palestinian Territories

Cohort: 2017

Policy Area(s): Economic Impact, Education Diplomacy/Mentoring, Professional Development, Youth Engagement

Ruba and Rasha organized the fourth hackathon of their platform, Vtech Road, which empowers Arabic youth to develop UN SDG-focused innovations.

Cofounders of Vtech Road, fellows Ruba Awais and Rasha (Hammo) Abu Dayyeh (Palestinian Territories, 2017), recently organized their fourth VTech Road hackathon, AI4us. Composed of six teams charged with utilizing artificial intelligence to develop entrepreneurial ideas targeted at United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Vtech Road is an innovation platform that empowers Arabic youth to develop SDG-focused tech projects. Each team was provided access to educational content from the platform, AI4us.tech, which included mentor-led live training sessions centered on the ethics and applications of AI. “Seeing the passion and enthusiasm of young Palestinian entrepreneurs, their creativity and commitment to making a difference through technology, has always been incredibly inspiring,” Ruba shared in a recent post.

Report Date...: 9/11/2023

Fellow advocates for youth sexual health on panel

Fellow(s): Ngwashi Christabel, MD (Cameroon, 2020-2021)

Country: Cameroon

Cohort: 2020-2021

Policy Area(s): Economic Impact, Education Diplomacy/Mentoring, Professional Development, Youth Engagement

Ngwashi spoke on a panel focused on helping youth break the stigma around sexual health education and discussion this August.

Fellow Ngwashi Christabel, MD (Cameroon, 2020-2021) recently spoke on a panel, “Normalizing Age Appropriate Sex Education and Conversations,” at a summit produced by Sexual Health Companion in Buea, Cameroon. The aim of the event was to empower youths in understanding their sexual and reproductive health and rights by breaking the stigma around the topic. During the panel, Ngwashi focused on “the 3 ‘I’s of sexual education: being intentional, incidental and inclusive.” Ngwashi is a medical doctor and global health specialist focused on maternal, adolescent, reproductive and child health (MARCH) care services and counselling, particularly in conflict-affected areas in Cameroon. She is also the founder of More Than Just An MD (MT-JAM Health), a platform that utilizes storytelling as a tool to increase health literacy and patient-centered care. She also serves as a Health Specialist African Fellow for the World Bank.

Report Date...: 09/04/2023

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