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News


Organizations we've collaborated with:


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Photo credit: Kate Felsen Di Pietro (Feed the Frontlines NYC)

Onward with Money and Love: Help for our Frontline Medical Workers

Several weeks into the COVID-19 crisis in the United States, we are all very worried about frontline medical workers. Whether you are a small donor or a big giver, an ordinary citizen or an established philanthropist , there are several important things you can do to help. Here is a round-up of ideas, sourced from family and friends and especially the doctors, nurses, and other medical workers we know and love.
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November 2019

Published guest blog Advancing the Four Freedoms: The Power of Small Things on personal philanthropy's power to help advance freedom of religion, freedom of speech, freedom from want, and freedom from fear.

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September 2019
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Participated in a fascinating panel at the EastWest Institute on Science and Diplomacy with Ambassador Susan Elliott of the National Committee on American Foreign Policy and Mary Collins of the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University (OIST). In these tumultuous times, both scientific inquiry and diplomatic negotiations are more important than ever. We need to respectfully engage with one another across divides to build trust, promote understanding, and work together on transnational issues - like conflict and climate change - that threaten us all.

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September 2019
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Attended the Segal Family Foundation annual conference! As a Princeton in Africa Board Member, one highlight was meeting Twesigye Jackson Kaguri of the Nyaka AIDS Orphans Project and hearing how a PiAf Fellow created a Monitoring & Evaluation plan for the organization that was featured as an example at the conference! Wonderful example of PiAf impact.


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​June 2019
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Received the IIE Centennial Medal from Dr. Allan E. Goodman, President of the Institute of International Education (IIE).  In honor of IIE’s 100th anniversary, the medal recognizes individuals and organizations who have contributed to the field of international education through government service, leadership in academic exchange and global mobility, philanthropic excellence, and corporate support for advancement of international education and relations.

​Institute of International Education

​www.iie.org



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June 2019
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Helped organize the Third BVI Funders Group Collaborative Meeting on Mosquito Island, British Virgin Islands.  Since May of 2017 and especially since the hurricanes of Fall 2017, the BVI Funders Group has co-funded more than eight community projects bringing over $1 million in funding for education, health, youth, and environmental programs in the BVI.  This meeting followed the second such meeting on Norman Island in December, 2018 and the inaugural meeting on Guana Island in May 2017.
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May 2019
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Alumni weekend at Johns Hopkins University SAIS Europe started with a panel on "Constructive Confrontation." Joined fellow panelists Sarah Kaplan and Astrid R.N. Haas for a wide-ranging discussion on how to redefine subjects of controversy as opportunities for positive change. ​
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April 2019
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Published in The Diplomat “Girls’ Education in India and the Maharaja Bhagwat Singh of Gondal: How a progressive Indian Maharaja revolutionized girls’ education in the early 20th century.” Read the article here.
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April 2019

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Participated with Sarah O'Hagan and Azish Filabi on a SAIS panel in NYC to discuss the importance of volunteer work to both career and personal development.   Organized by the SAIS Women's Alumni Network New York hub (SWAN NYC).
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November 2018
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Helped Deutsches Haus at NYU present the Sander Prize to Dr. Henry Jarecki for his work in Scholar Rescue and to advance US-German relations. What a privilege to continue work in this field with leaders such as Mariet Westermann and George Rupp. Dr. Jarecki’s acceptance speech reminded us of 3 important lessons from his own refugee experience: act against injustice, engage with those you disagree with, and be open and welcoming to refugees.
Graphic/Link: Photo attached
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June 2018
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Spoke on several panels at the R Ventures Forum in Berlin, making an action plan to support refugee entrepreneurs in Europe through private sector investment, friendly public policy, and a media narrative focused on positive stories. ​
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March 2018
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It is critical that SAIS students are well-positioned for leadership in the non-profit world. I’ve long recommended fundraising as a part of that leadership skills set, and, in March 2018, got the chance to put my suggestions into action as a guest panelist for a SAIS non-profit skills workshop! Students were awesome: insightful questions about wealth inequality, appetite for risk in philanthropy, motivations for giving. The Johns Hopkins University - Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS)
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February 2018
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Proud to be helping with efforts to support education in the BVI following the hurricanes. Thank you, Unite BVI, Virgin Unite, and MCLAIN ASSOCIATION FOR CHILDREN INC for the excellent collaboration!
Learn more here.
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December 2017
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Organized the Donor Roundtable to Advance Collaboration at the annual “Ignite” conference of Spark. Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Learn more about Spark here.
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October 2017
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Presented “Notes from the Field” during the Funder Education course at the University of Pennsylvania’s Center for High Impact Philanthropy (CHIP).  



SELECTED PRESENTATIONS
  • Moderator, "Developing a Voice," Skills Session of the SAIS Women's Alumni Network.  New York, New York.  June, 2016.
  • Presenter, "Reflections on the 40th Anniversary of the JHU Kreiger School of Arts and Sciences Junior Year Abroad Exchange Program with SAIS Europe," SAIS Europe Alumni Weekend.  Bologna, Italy.  April, 2016.
  • Panelist, “Building Bridges in Times of Crisis,” G7 International Higher Education Summit.  Berlin, Germany.  June, 2015.
  • Presenter and Moderator, “International Conference on Higher Education in Emergencies.”  Brussels, Belgium, December, 2014.
  • Presenter, “Studying, Volunteering, and Working Abroad as a Civic and Economic Imperative,” White House Travel Summit.  Washington, DC, November 2014.
  • Presenter, “Roundtable on Opportunities for International College Students.” Office of Congresswoman Betty McCollum. Washington, DC, April, 2014. 
  • Co-Presenter, “Syria 2025: Development Roadmap.” US Institute for Peace. Washington, DC.  December 2013.
  • Co-Leader with Rockefeller Archive Center, “Rescuing Scholars: Historical Perspectives, Contemporary Challenges.”  Bellagio Conference Center, Italy, November, 2013.
  • Leader, “CGI Whisper Session: The Crisis in Syria and Higher Education Response.” 2013 and 2012 Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) Annual Meetings. New York, September 2013 and 2012.

PUBLICATIONS
Just Do It, But Without Ego: Innovative Responses to Student Emergencies, published by IIE, 2013
Scholar Rescue in the Modern World
: Co-authored with Scholar Rescue Fund Chairman Dr. Henry Jarecki and published by IIE, 2009.
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PRESS QUOTES
Aug 23, 2017: BBC News, Dragon's Den for Migrant Entrepreneurs
Sep 01, 2015: Al Fanar Media, A Statistical Portrait of Syrian Frustration
Jun 6, 2015: Global News, Syrians find a home at universities, eye rebuilding war-torn country
Jan 12, 2015: Al Fanar Media, In Brussels, an Emergency Call for Higher Education
Apr 18, 2014: Global Post, Generation TBD: War Drives More than Half of Syria's Students from School into 'Black Hole'
Nov 1, 2013: University World News, The Devastation of Conflict for Students and Scholars
Sep 28, 2012: University World News, Higher Education Mounts Rescue Effort for Syrian Students, Scholars
Sep 26, 2012: Inside Higher Ed, Safe Haven for Syrian Scholars
Sep 25, 2012: Chronicle of Higher Education, International Support Mobilizes for Syrian Academics Caught in Civil War
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