Class XIX (2020-2022)

Maria Francisca is a Colombian Fellow interested in specializing in conflict analysis and transformation, restorative justice mechanisms and peacebuilding.

Maria Francisca worked in Mexico in the coordination, design and implementation of participatory processes for the construction of public policies and political incidence. Previously, she worked in Colombia developing communication strategies for social change and citizen participation with victims of the armed conflict.

She holds a Bachelor's degree in Communication and Journalism from Pontificia Universidad Javeriana and a specialization in negotiation and management of social conflicts from the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México. She is supported by Rotary District 4170.

Marijana is a Bosnian-Herzegovinian Fellow whose work has been focused primarily on peace and development in the international development sector in the Western Balkans. Her most recent academic engagement focused her work on disaster resilience and disaster risk reduction.

Marijana has multiple years of experience working at the United Nations Development Programme and has worked as a lecturer and trainer for several local and regional non-governmental organizations. Her other professional interests are education and training – she is a great believer in knowledge management and knowledge sharing, and has been engaged as a lecturer for multiple regional programmes for the past decade.

Marijana holds a Bachelor's degree in International Relations and a Master's degree in Disaster resilience and disaster risk reduction in the Western Balkans. Her academic efforts and development, her career at the UNDP and her community work have been focused on peacebuilding and peace and conflict studies and practices. She is sponsored by Rotary District 1910.

Joanna is a Ugandan Fellow interested in exploring the economic foundations of resilience against Violent Extremism. She plans to influence regional Conflict Early Warning and Response Mechanisms in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Most recently, Joanna worked as a Programme Specialist for Peace and National Reconciliation at the Inter-Religious Council of Uganda, where she coordinated the Uganda National Dialogue Process and supported the design and delivery of projects on governance and nation-building. Furthermore, she has worked as a Research Consultant in violent extremism with Wasafiri Consulting, and as a Programme Manager for Capacity Building at Allied Muslim Youth Uganda (AMYU). With a particular focus on violent extremism, her role at AMYU involved building the capacities of young faith leaders in interfaith dialogue, collective security, and religious peacebuilding. Joanna is passionate about violence prevention, manifested through the sharing of up-to-date practices through her podcast, as well as a presentation about the Campaign against Lethal Autonomous Weapon Systems to the Parliament of Uganda and Africa Legal Tech Conference. She is also the founder of Building Safe Spaces, a non-profit aimed at scaling-up violence prevention outcomes in Uganda.

Joanna has a Bachelor of Arts in Social Sciences (International Affairs) and is a post-graduate finalist in Peace Studies at Makerere University. She is sponsored by Rotary District 9211.

Katherine is an American Fellow interested in researching how lessons from successful post-conflict initiatives can inform policy to address social conflict and economic inequality in the United States. Her primary areas of focus are combating domestic terrorist groups and developing effective anti-racist policy and political strategy.

Katherine’s academic and professional experience includes leading a student trip to study peacebuilding in Palestine and Israel, assisting with research at George Mason University on a project analysing post-conflict issues in Bosnia and Herzegovina, teaching a high school peace studies class in Washington D.C., and working for an INGO and an international development consulting firm in Laos. Katherine has also participated in intensive peace and conflict study programs and conducted ethnographic research in Bosnia, Jordan, Palestine, Israel, Greece, Turkey, and Cyprus.

Katherine holds a Bachelor’s degree in International Studies from American University in Washington, D.C. She is sponsored by Rotary District 5100.

Alejandra is a Colombian-Australian Fellow interested in providing a gender analysis, and reliable data, on the impacts of violent conflict and gender-based violence, as well as the design of post-conflict development.

Alejandra is an experienced development practitioner with a breadth of experience in the non-profit and government sectors working within the fields of gender, governance and justice. Her work has mostly been focused on supporting ethnic women’s grassroots organizations across the Asia-Pacific, especially in Burma and Thailand, working to increase women’s rights and political participation, including participation in conflict resolution and negotiation processes.

She has a Bachelor’s degree in International Relations and post-graduate studies in Conflict Resolution and Peacebuilding. Her sponsoring Rotary district is 4281.

Niv is an Israeli-American Fellow who hopes to explore the concept of Prosperous Economies as a means to peace-making, specifically in the intersection of technology and derived social entrepreneurship. He is also interested in researching how building capacity of peace-making methods be leveraged following disasters during the immediate and recovery stages.

Niv has six years of experience in International Development and Humanitarian Aid. As a Humanitarian Aid director and worker, he was responsible for the outreach and development of an Israeli-based non-profit. He managed and designed short-term relief programs, psychosocial support, and medical services programs targeted at refugees arriving to Greece, and led emergency response missions in the USA after three major hurricanes.

He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Sustainable Development from Columbia University, focusing on Public Health. His sponsoring Rotary district is 2490.

Malika is an American-Kyrgyz Fellow interested in elucidation of the ways to make the practice of medicine safe in regions of recent or ongoing conflict. She would like to use both qualitative and quantitative methodologies to explore past conflicts and determine factors and strategies that contributed to effective medical practice in these challenging settings.

Malika’s interest in this field can be tied to her lifelong interest in health policy, tracing back from her time in college and work with engineers without borders, to her medical and public health training and work with local refugee health initiatives.

She has a Bachelor's degree from Yale University; a dual degree in molecular biophysics and biochemistry and political science, with a special interest in the field of Civil Warfare. Her medical and masters of public health degrees were obtained from UNC-Chapel Hill School of Medicine and UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health. Her sponsoring district is 7710.

Elina is an Ecuadorian-Italian Fellow who is particularly interested in sustainable conflict and violence prevention, community-led reconciliation and the role of youth in these processes. She is also very interested in refining her research skills and be better equipped to inform policy and programming.

Prior to arriving in Uppsala, Elina worked with UN agencies and international donors on a variety of development, peacebuilding and humanitarian matters in conflict-affected areas of Colombia. She worked on gender-based violence prevention and response and on increasing access to sexual reproductive health services in emergency settings. She also worked on issues related to rule of law, human rights, migration, reconciliation, and youth violence prevention.

Elina holds a dual Bachelor’s degree in International Relations and in Economic Development and Gender Studies from Bucknell University, along with a Master’s degree in Social Responsibility and Sustainability from Externado University of Colombia. She is sponsored by Rotary District 4281.

Francisco is a Mexican Fellow interested in the intersections between peace and development; particularly the role public policies play in creating just and equitable societies for vulnerable populations. He would like to discover effective ways of engaging civil society in the decision-making processes of governments, to contribute to build plural and accountable societies.

Francisco has worked in civil-society organizations with the design and execution of violence prevention and human security projects in Mexico, collaborating with universities, communities, street gangs, and young people in custody. He has also participated in mediation processes regarding sustainability, LGBTQ+ rights and missing people, working with multiple NGOs and state institutions. He has been involved in international consultancy projects on HIV prevention and LGBTQ+ rights for institutions like the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria.

He holds a Bachelor’s degree in International Relations from Tecnológico de Monterrey Institute, and a MA in International Relations by De Montfort University, where he was awarded the LGBTQ+ Allies Scholarship. He is sponsored by Rotary District 4170.

Carl is a Colombian-American Fellow interested in citizen security, governance, transitional justice, mediation, and the use of data to prevent the recruitment of individuals into criminal networks and also support their reintegration.

He has worked with donor agencies, federal governments, ministries, communities, CSOs, and PPPs in Latin America and West Africa. Most recently, he supported a program in the Western Highlands of Guatemala helping address community social conflict and violence and a program in El Salvador building federal, municipal and community governance structures to prevent crime and violence through primary, secondary and tertiary interventions in municipalities affected by violence and organized crime. In addition, Carl supported a post-conflict transitions program in Colombia and education projects in Northeast and Northwest Nigeria.

Carl received a Bachelor of Arts in International Studies from American University in Washington, DC. He is sponsored by Rotary District 7620.