Person Type: World Fellow
Kamal Amakrane
Kamal currently leads the Global Centre for Climate Mobility, advancing various regional initiatives, including the Africa Climate Mobility Initiative, a joint undertaking by the AU, UN and the World Bank to address climate-forced migration & displacement in the continent. He also spearheads the Rising Nations Initiative, a UN Member States-led initiative focused on protecting the statehood & sovereignty of Pacific atoll island countries facing existential threat from rising sea level. Kamal has been a faculty member of Columbia University since 2018, where he co-chairs the University’s Climate Mobility Network and works on advancing efforts to address climate forced migration. In 2018, he directed the Migration Consensus Initiative at the Columbia University Global Policy Initiative. During the intergovernmental negotiations for the Global Compact for Migration (GCM),…
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Negusu Aklilu
Negusu Aklilu is an environmental advocate and Coordinator for Destiny Ethiopia Initiative at the Forum of Federations. As one of Ethiopia’s most influential environmental advocates, he provided strategic leadership for environmental advocacy and awareness-raising campaigns as Director of the Forum for Environment. Negusu previously served as Climate Change Advisor to the Department for Democratic Development. He also serves as Editor-in-Chief of Akirma: A Magazine on Environment and Development, and as Co-Editor of the Ethiopian Environment Review, which he launched in 2010. Negusu has successfully spearheaded and played key roles in national and international initiatives for conservation and sustainable use of environmental resources. He co-founded and currently co-chairs the Ethiopian Civil…
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Rahimah “Ima” Abdulrahim
Rahimah "Ima" Abdulrahim is the Director of Public Policy for Southeast Asia (Established Countries) for Facebook Asia Pacific. Prior to this, she served at The Habibie Center, one of Indonesia’s leading think tanks focusing on democracy and human rights, for 19 years, serving as their executive director for 9 years (2010-2019). She has 20 years advocating for peace and democracy in Indonesia and travels extensively to speak about good governance, democratization, and the role of civil society in Southeast Asia. In 2017, Ima co-created, with World Fellows Stephen Shashoua (2015) and Abdul-Rehman Malik (2017), CERITA (Community Empowerment for Raising Inclusivity and Trust through Technology Application), a project using the art…
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Fakhar Durrani
Fakhar Durrani is a journalist with The News International, Pakistan’s leading English language newspaper. He is part of the news organization’s Investigation Cell, which reports in-depth and investigative stories, often in high-risk situations. He focuses on corruption and embezzlement in government departments, misuse of authority by government officials, tax evasion issues, health and education related topics, abuse of human rights, and other social issues. Recently he was part of 600 leading investigative journalists who collaborated with International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) in the Pandora Papers investigations. During this collaboration, Durrani, along with one of his colleagues, unearthed millions of dollars offshore holdings of more than 700 Pakistanis which they…
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Solangel Fernández
Solangel Fernández is an architect, urban designer, and urban economist with 15 years of experience. Throughout her career, she has been in charge of directing urban development and sustainable mobility initiatives as well as large infrastructure projects, especially during trying political times. In Peru, Solangel directed the urban planning offices at the municipalities of San Isidro and San Borja where she and her team developed innovative strategies to transform public spaces for the wellness of communities. Additionally, she has participated and coordinated metropolitan urban plans, key for the development of the country, and directed urban regeneration projects in vulnerable human settlements over the hills of Lima. Previously, she worked on…
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Vera D. Kwakofi
Vera D. Kwakofi is a Senior News Editor, Commissioning with the BBC World Service and is responsible for the BBC’s International TV Operations in Africa. She leads teams of journalists based across Africa and in the UK who produce the multi-award-winning Africa Eye Investigations, Business, Health, Sport, Women, News Analysis and Factual and Youth content for Africa in English, French, and Swahili. Vera has more than 20 years of experience in international journalism and commissioning content across multiple platforms with a particular focus on telling African Stories to global audiences. She created the BBC Women of Africa Series, funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. She actively participates in…
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Evan Mawarire is a Zimbabwean clergyman who founded #ThisFlag Citizen’s Movement to challenge corruption, injustice, and poverty in Zimbabwe. The movement empowers citizens to hold government to account. Through viral videos, the movement has organized multiple successful non-violent protests in response to unjust government policy. Evan was imprisoned in 2016, 2017, and 2019 for charges of treason, facing 80 years in prison. His message of inspiring positive social change and national pride has resonated with diverse groups of citizens and attracted international attention. Evan has addressed audiences around the world, and Foreign Policy magazine named him one of the 100 global thinkers of 2016. The Daily Maverick Newspaper of South…
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Ruchi Yadav
Ruchi Yadav leads and manages The Hunger Project's overall program portfolio in India, which includes strengthening and building the leadership of elected women representatives and empowerment of adolescent girls. She oversees strategic management, program design, policy, and operations. This includes engagement and dialogue with multiple stakeholders, including over 50 community-based organizations across India. Ruchi has close to two decades of experience in the development sector and the communication business. She has worked on women's rights and human rights issues in South Asia and South East Asia. Ruchi is vitally interested in the intersections of gender with politics, religion, caste, and class. She has also worked on women’s rights and gender…
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WANG Xingzui
WANG Xingzui has over two decades of experience in rural development and serves as Vice President of the China Foundation for Poverty Alleviation, one of the oldest and largest NGOs in China and one of the few working outside the country. Under his leadership, the Foundation grew from a small, largely unknown organization to one that is well recognized and respected for its pioneering work and professionalism by governments, corporations, beneficiaries, and peer NGOs both at home and abroad. Xingzui oversees the Foundation's strategies and microfinance and is working to expand the Foundation's operations to other countries and to transform the Foundation into an international NGO. Xingzui is committed to…
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Njoya Tikum
Njoya Tikum is Manager of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Regional Office for West and Central Africa-Dakar-Senegal. Prior to this, he served as Regional Manager for East and Southern Africa at United Nations Volunteers (UNV). Njoya led the UNV's East and Southern Africa organizational transformation and established an entirely new and effective regional team and operation in 23 countries. Before this, he served with UNDP in different capacities, including as Regional Policy and Programme Advisor on Anti-Corruption and Economic Governance and as Regional Youth Programme Coordinator at UNDP Regional Service Centre for Africa. Njoya served ad-interim in UNDP Liberia, in South Sudan as Country Programme Specialist in the UNDP…
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