A Voice For the Voiceless
The Advocacy Project helps marginalized communities to tell their story, claim their rights and produce social change. We recruit graduate students to volunteer as Peace Fellows with partners.
The Impact of Service
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Fellow Feedback 2011
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Chelsea Ament (Survivors of uterine prolapse in Nepal. Pictured left with Sunita Maharjan from the Women's Reproductive Rights Program): “[I learned] to be very flexible, and that just because a plan or project goes nothing like you expected it would does not mean it was a failure.”
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Corey Black (Dalit in Nepal. Pictured left with Prakash Mohara from the Jagaran Media Center): “If I do decide to pursue [a PhD], this experience will surely influence my research and critique of schools of thought.”
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Charlotte Bourdillon (Maasai girls education and health in Kenya) "I can look at so many deliverables that I am proud of; things I am especially happy to have been able to achieve in the low-resource area I was working in."
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Amy Bracken (Indigenous rights in Belize) “I learned a lot from being in a place so culturally different from anywhere I’ve ever been. I saw little racial tension, little class distinction, little materialism, but also major problems like lack of education and economic opportunities.”
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Dina Buck (Batwa Development in Uganda. Pictured left with staff from the United Organization for Batwa Development in Uganda): “This fellowship has helped me learn more about my capabilities and my handicaps. I also feel I understand better how to sustainably empower people, and work with them in a way that honors their dignity, intelligence, and capabilities.”
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Scarlett Chidgey (Straw recyclers in Uganda. Pictured with Bendicta Nanyonga, founder of the Kinawataka Women's Initiatives): "The [fellowship]… enriched my perspective by giving me solid experience and examples to further support my human rights and development philosophy. It also enhanced my understanding of how grassroots organizations can operate and the struggles they face." |
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Susan Craig-Greene (Travellers in the UK. Pictured left with Traveller friends from the Dale Farm Community, Essex)
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Julia Dowling (Survivors of the 1995 Srebrenica massacre in Bosnia): “This fellowship …has broadened my understanding on a personal and professional level of what reconciliation and justice mean… It pushed me to step out of my comfort zone and challenged me intellectually like never before. I would say that these past six months have been the hardest, yet most rewarding period of growth I have ever experienced in my adult life.” |
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Samantha Hammer (Roma women in Kosovo. Pictured left with officers from PROGRAEK, her host organization): "The fellowship was very useful in understanding my own working style. I’ve learned I have good instincts about what will work and what won’t. It was a good opportunity to challenge myself to think from others’ points of view.” |
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Nikki Hodgson (Israelis and Palestinians working together): “Working with the AIC pushed me off the fence I was straddling, and forced me to take a more radical stance against human rights violations occurring in the region. I was given a lot of flexibility and encouragement to pursue article ideas and this encouragement naturally resulted in more confidence and initiative.”
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Walter James (Survivors of Sexual Violence in the DRC. Pictured left at the inauguration of a new water pump in the village of Mboko, South Kivu)
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Jamyel Jenifer (Child Sacrifice in Uganda) "[I] learned about how grassroots organizations function and about the effectiveness of using radio." |
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Clara Kollm (Wastepickers in India) "Being in India and learning about an international NGO is invaluable to me and my education. This experience ...has given me a greater appreciation for the human condition. This was my first experience with that level of poverty, and I predict that this experience will continue to influence my life choices.” |
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Amanda Lasik (Blind and disabled in Bangladesh) “[This] was a great learning experience for my professional development. I gained an invaluable perspective on a new part of the world. I have a much greater understanding of Islam and a culture I was unfamiliar with prior to my fellowship. I also have a new understanding of the challenges of fundraising for small NGOs in developing countries.”
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Kristen Maryn (Slum dwellers in Kenya) “This fellowship reiterated my goal of getting to a place where I do not need to sit back and wait for someone to help me in order to get things done. I really enjoyed being part of a network that was small enough that it felt like a family, but had a global reach.”
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Ryan McGovern (Landmine survivors in Vietnam) “[This experience] reminded me that all cultures are different… Certainly I gained a new perspective in a region I was very unfamiliar with.”
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Cleia Noia (Girls in Kenya, at risk from illiteracy and FGM. Pictured left with friends from the Ntaiya family). “I enjoyed tremendously the personal satisfaction I got from connecting on a deeper level with the people from Enoosaen, particularly Kakenya’s family and the girls at the school.” |
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Maelanny Purwaningrum (Child Labor in Nepal) “It has broadened my mind on the complex problems that Nepal faces but not covered by the news. I appreciate social entrepreneurship more than before.” |
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Rebecca Scherpelz (People with disability in Uganda) “I think I found what I want to do long-term. I’d like to go into a long-term career of recipient-donor relations, empowering recipients to speak up for what they need the most... It really made me think about what we give, from dollars to second-hand things, and how recipient organizations deserve the very best…not just leftovers.” |
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Maria Skouras (eHomemakers in Malaysia) "Speaking with locals and living in a country is the best way to learn about the real lives of citizens, not just the stories in the mainstream media. I will be more critical of what I read as a result of this experience.”
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Chantal Uwizera (Child Labor in Nepal. Pictured left with Sima, 9, freed from slavery) “The experience reminded me to take time and just enjoy the people around you… [and] to see the human aspect of child labor.” |
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Quinn Van Valer-Campbell (Survivors of the Srebrenica massacre in Bosnia) “I am more confident in what I know I am capable of. I proved to myself that what I have learned is applicable and relevant in life and not just in class. [The fellowship] has shown me the way in which the cultivation of people to people relationships …can change lives.” |
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Charlie Walker (Survivors of sexual violence in the DRC. Pictured below with Mariamu Bashishibe):“Perhaps the most significant cultural understanding that I gleaned from the experience was a deeper knowledge of the position of women in Congolese society, and of the value of women’s rights education to empower women and encourage their husbands, fathers and brothers to support such a process of empowerment."
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Samantha Syverson & Meredith Williams (PARMA in India. Pictured with Maya Sharma, far left, and Indira Pathak, far right). “There is no question that the best part of my fellowship was the people that I worked with. Maya and Indira, and the work that they do, are inspiring, but also the people that Parma serves were 100% gracious and welcoming to us.” -Meredith |
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Beth Wofford (Roma women in the Czech Republic) “I am absolutely more confident. I know that I can work through tough issues and be able to make a product happen. I have more faith in myself and in other people to get things done that need to get done.” |