UChicago Obama Scholars 2018-2019

Fatima Zaman

Empowering a global network of activists to counter violent extremism worldwide with counter narratives, positive alternatives and stories of peace.

Pearl Ranna

Training women in rural and urban area on sustainable farming practices and connecting agricultural youth leaders for training, mentoring, and cooperation.

Nazish Tariq Rahmani

Creating a difference through research, better policies and effective implementation.

Edem Ossai

Empowering young Nigerians to become civic leaders through a mobile library, community dialogues on girls education, and active citizenship training.

Lan Nguyen

Strengthening local economic governance in Vietnam.

Stanley Ndambakuwa

Promoting girls education by funding educational and leadership development programs for the disadvantaged in marginalized communities and launching an international campaign on the importance of girls education.

Juan Carlos Monterrey Gómez

Working to keep 1.5° C alive

Mario Mazic

Promoting reconciliation, justice, democracy and human rights in countries of former Yugoslavia.

John Hiu Fai Mak

Promoting inclusive development by reinventing the planning process with crowdfunding technology, participatory budgeting and reduced-interest government bonds.

Sebastian Hernandez

Combating economic inequality in Nicaragua through academic research and collaboration with poor communities on infrastructure, education, and household finance projects.

Sri Andini Handayani

Enabling data-driven policy formulation through research and policy advocacy in Indonesia.

Rahmatullah Hamraz

Combating hostility and armed insurgency in Afghanistan by working with local communities to conduct intergroup dialogues and empowerment projects.

Bonaventure Dzekem

Improving access to healthcare through community-centric health insurance schemes and online healthcare delivery in Cameroon.

Collins Dadzie

Transforming Ghana’s power market by developing an Integrated Power Sector Master Plan and training emerging power sector leaders to lead ethically.

Patricia Alyanna Esquivias (Trixie) Conlu

Enabling public-private partnerships in infrastructure projects to close the infrastructure gap and spur economic activity in the Philippines and other developing countries.

Kimberly Brown

Spearheading legal and policy reforms related to gender equality, children’s rights, and access to justice to support implementation of regional mechanisms and national constitutional frameworks, predominantly in East Africa.

Juliana Betancourt

Promoting peacebuilding and ex-combatant reintegration for vulnerable groups in Meta, Colombia.

Miriam Benitez Isidoro

Increasing educational opportunities for young people from marginalized communities and forming a highly-trained teaching workforce.

Ana Cristina Becerra Salas

Empowering vulnerable populations to be changemakers and achieve inclusive sustainable development.

Nelly Wakim Awad

Identifying community needs in Syria through extensive research for a USAID funded project on infrastructure rehabilitation, women’s economic empowerment, and governance building.

Mateus Donato Amorim De Araujo

Enabling poor families in remote areas of Brazil to safely and effectively receive benefits from a conditional cash transfer program.

Marianne Akumu

Fostering peaceful, just, and inclusive societies through transitional justice and conflict resolution programs for conflict affected communities, internally displaced people, and refugees in Uganda.

Sassan Alexander Akhlaghi

Investing in increased equality and green jobs in Sweden through policy making.

Mahmoud Abouelnaga

Promoting sustainable energy development in the MENA region to decrease energy-related geopolitical conflicts.