Some of Cairo’s Participants!

Mariko Powers

My name is Mariko and I am a 1st year International Environmental Policy student at MIIS. I am from  Santa Cruz, California, and am passionate about conservation, journalism, and international affairs. I graduated from Occidental College in 2013, where I studied Diplomacy and World Affairs and Urban and Environmental Policy. I have also lived in Los Angeles, New York, and Thailand, where I’ve worked for nonprofits and international organizations including the Los Angeles World Affairs Council, United Nations Development Programme, and Council on International Educational Exchange. My academic interests revolve around project design and program evaluation, social entrepreneurship, integrated conservation and development projects, and community capacity building. I am looking forward to participating in the DPMI program and gaining more skills and experience in international sustainable development.

Andy Kiemen

Andy Kiemen is from Delavan, a small town in Southeastern Wisconsin. He attended the the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater and received his BS in Environmental Science and Resource Management spring 2014. Since graduation he has traveled around from place to place seeking new opportunities. He has spent time interning for the Bureau of Land Management in Texas, as well as interning for the University of Florence in Italy. Recently before attending MIIS he moved to California to work for and environmental non-profit in San Jose. Andy is an enthusiastic, friendly, and dedicated person that looks forward to working with his cohort in Cairo to make a difference.

Aleksandra Evert

Aleksandra was born and raised in Novosibirsk Russia, moved to California at the age of 10 and has lived in the state ever since. She received her undergraduate education at the University of California, Santa Barbara in Environmental Science. Before beginning the International Environmental Policy program at MIIS, she worked in ecological restoration at multiple environmental nonprofits, interned at tech startups in Silicon Valley and completed a year of AmeriCorps with Our City Forest working on urban forestry, volunteer management, and community engagement. In her free time, she enjoys hiking, camping and taking photos of newly discovered places. She looks forward to meeting and working with everyone in a new, exciting setting!

Rianna Robertson

Rianna Robertson, originally from El Jebel, Colorado, spent over 10 years engaging in and facilitating international education. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Foreign Languages, in particular French and Japanese, from Lewis & Clark College in Portland, Oregon. After graduation, she taught English in Aomori, Japan as an Assistant Language Teacher in the Japanese Exchange and Teaching (JET) Program. After returning to the United States, she worked at a variety of locations including a French immersion charter school, a non-profit international homestay organization, and on a marketing project at Intel. At the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey, she is currently pursuing her Master’s degree in International Education Management. After graduation, she hopes to work in an International Student Services office, working to promote cultural exchange and understanding in additional to assisting students with visas and immigration.

Altaira Hatton

Altaira Hatton is a mediator, negotiator, and facilitator. To date, she has world class mediation training from the American Arbitration Association, Humboldt Mediation Services, the Clingendael Institute, Harvard Law and in international relations from the Geneva School of Diplomacy. She’s a former database specialist and international entrepreneur, and has lived on the US West coast, the Caribbean, Switzerland, and Argentina. She’s delighted to participate in DPMI, and to work toward her Masters with MIIS.

Shaheen Bharwani

I am an undergraduate student at Middlebury College.  I am committed to international development, social entrepreneurship, and cross-cultural bridge building.  I am interested in learning foreign languages and have studied Spanish, German, French, Farsi, and Arabic. In the summer of 2014, I studied Arabic in Morocco on a U.S. Department of State scholarship as part of its National Security Language Initiative for Youth.  I am currently studying intermediate Arabic at Middlebury.  I have conducted global health research and analysis at the Department of Global Health and Social Medicine at the Harvard Medical School.   I have also worked in international development in Kenya and Zanzibar with the Aga Khan Development Network in education and health with a focus on program evaluation.  Last summer, I participated in Middlebury College’s MiddCORE program on leadership and innovation, acquiring core business skills in idea creation, market research, strategic and design thinking, and ethical decision-making.  At Middlebury, I have taken courses in globalization and social change, geopolitics, and economics.  I am considering a joint BA/MA in International Policy and Development at Middlebury College and the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey.

Laura Tedford

My name is Laura Tedford. I was born in LA, grew up in Texas and Mexico City and did my undergrad at BYU Idaho. I love to travel and learn about new cultures. When I was younger my family often travelled to Latin America. I’ve traveled through: Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, and Mexico. I lived in Russia for a year and a half as part of missionary service, and after went back to Eastern Europe to work with the State Department at the Riga, Latvia embassy. I hope to learn more about the Arab world and gain perspective for my future career. I love hiking, being outdoors, and having game nights with friends. I look forward to meeting everyone!

Radwa is a first semester IPD/MBA student hailing from the East Coast, where she completed her undergraduate degree in Global Affairs and Linguistics from George Mason University. As a first generation Egyptian-American, she is excited to be taking part in DPMI Cairo, in hopes of getting the chance to work on the ground in Egypt and learn how to marry her coursework in policy, development, and business with fieldwork to benefit international development organizations in Egypt. With professional experience in government, international education, and public policy, Radwa is passionate about utilizing her experience to focus on women’s education & empowerment initiatives and social enterprise.