Leah Aylward USA, District 5440
Most recently, Leah Aylward has been awarded a University of Queensland Research Scholarship and a University of Queensland International Research Award and commenced her doctoral studies in July 2008. She is currently working on her research project entitled: Development and Violence: local experiences and livelihoods in Latin America in a context of transnationally extended social, economic and political change. She also works in the School of Political Science and International Studies as a research assistant and as a tutor. Leah’s educational background includes an advanced M.A. in International Studies with a focus on Peace and Conflict Resolution from the University of Queensland and a B.A. from Harvard University in Environmental Science and Public Policy with certificates in International Development, Latin American Studies, Spanish and Teaching. Leah has also spent a significant amount of time in Colombia as a U.S. Fulbright Scholar researching university involvement with community development and in Costa Rica as a Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar studying at EARTH University, which focuses on agricultural sciences and sustainable development of the humid tropics. Leah has also carried out internships at the United Nations Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean in Santiago, Chile; the Foundation New Era Galapagos in Ecuador and the Costa Rican Foundation for Sustainable Development. In the future, Leah hopes to teach and carry out research to contribute to the advancement of knowledge and understanding surrounding issues of international development, inequality and their relationship to violent conflict and peace. Her specific region of interest is Latin America.
Prior to commencing her studies at UQ, Mayumi has worked as a freelance journalist and graphic/Web designer, as well as a researcher for the Centre for Faith and the Media in Calgary, Canada, monitoring day-to-day religion news coverage in the Canadian media. During her two years at UQ, she is going to explore the key factors for successful human empowerment projects in order to develop the concept of peace journalism. As a Rotary World Peace Scholar, Mayumi sees that her work is to facilitate dialogue and foster mutual understandings. Her career goal is to become an educator and to engage in dialogue with future journalists about the potential of a single individual.
John Foster USA, District 6780
Before arriving at UQ, John Foster worked as an analyst at a business research firm in Washington , DC, and served as a Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar in Buenos Aires, Argentina. John aspires to study how justice sector development affects the peacebuilding process in post-conflict countries while at UQ. Upon graduating, John intends on going to law school with the ultimate goal of entering the field of international humanitarian law.
Mneesha Gellman USA, District 5130
Mneesha graduated from Bard College with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Studies and Latin American Political Economy in 2003. Afterwards, she worked as a radio journalist for social change at the Mainstream Media Project in California, where she conducted issue-framing on social and environmental topics. During this time she served on the Board of Directors for Humboldt Domestic Violence Services and chaired the Nuclear Weapons-Free Zone Commission for the city of Arcata. Mneesha spent her first semester as a Rotary Peace Fellow at the Universidad del Salvador in Buenos Aires, Argentina, where she also interned with the United Nations Development Programme doing conflict analysis of Bolivia. In July 2006, Mneesha served as an elections monitor with the Organization of American States in Bolivia. She is very excited to be interning at the Khmer Institute of Democracy in Phnom Penh, Cambodia this coming summer where she will work on conflict resolution curriculum design.
Mohamad Taib Hampden Malaysia, District 3300
Mohamad plans to work with organizations that have strong credentials in promoting human-rights based community development.
Before arriving to the UQ Peace Center, Sallie was in New York City completing a Masters Degree in Public Administration that focused on Environmental Science and Policy. Prior to that, she worked for three years as a Project Administrator for an agriculture and marketing project in Cochabamba, Bolivia that aimed to help farmers improve their harvests and place their goods in regional and international markets. She also served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Honduras for two years, helping rural villages gain access to potable water. She hopes to combine her interests in environmental issues and international development to pursue a career in climate change mitigation and sustainable development.
Ólöf Magnúsdóttir Iceland, District 1630
Lóa worked for the Icelandic National Committee for UNICEF before her studies at the University of Queensland. Lóa was also a group coordinator for Amnesty International and a special advisor for the World Food Program in Iceland. Lóa has been fortunate to receive two Rotary scholarships in her life, the World Peace scholarship and a scholarship to attend university in Georgia, USA in 1997. Lóa suspects that she might have been a tireless Rotarian in her previous life and is now being rewarded, however, she will not rest on those karmic laurels and will work hard to promote Rotary's ambition for peace in the future.
Prior to commencing her studies at the University of Queensland, Akiko worked as a Manager at Japan Association for UNHCR (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees) in Tokyo. She holds a Master’s degree in International Communication, and has also worked under the Cabinet Office of Japan as a coordinator for international exchange programmes that bring together youths from South East Asian and East Asian regions. While Akiko was born in Myanmar/Burma, she is a Japanese citizen. Through her engagement with refugee issues over the past years, Akiko has developed concerns on causes and consequences that create the issues. In the future she wishes to work on projects and policy planning in the area of peace and conflict resolution, making the most of the knowledge and experience gained through Rotary World Peace Fellowship Programme.
In 2002 soon after obtaining his Bachelor Degree in Social Work, Robert got a voluntary job with Agency for Cooperation and Research in Development (ACORD)and worked for seven months before joining World Vision International as a Psychosocial Counsellor with Rehabilitation Centre for Former Child Soldiers in Northern Uganda. Robert worked as a trauma counsellor and later Project Manager till prior to coming to University of Queensland. Robert got interested in peace studies because of the number of challenges he faced while implementing peace project without any formal training in peace but says he did his work well only as a trained manager. Robert was motivated by these challenges to apply for Rotary World Peace Fellowship and now feels he has benefited a lot from the programme and hope to perform better when he goes back to Uganda. Robert wants to continue working with international humanitarian agencies especially in the fields of peacebuilding, conflict resolutions, and human rights in Africa.
Vadim L. Ostrovsky Ukraine, District 7570
Prior to commencing his studies at UQ Vadim was a Global Development Manager for Electronic Development Labs Corporation. In this position he was responsible for bringing new products to overseas markets. His second volunteer position was one of Director for ClickUkraine Program, an initiative that brought technology and computer education to foster children in Ukraine. After finishing his two years at UQ, Vadim aims to get a position that will allow him practical application of knowledge gained during his Masters in Peace and Conflict Resolution.
Amanda Rader USA, District 7390
After graduating with a Bachelor's degree in Sociology and Spanish, Amanda spent three years serving with the Peace Corps in the Dominican Republic. She worked extensively with youth peer education in sexual health issues. Initially accepted to the Rotary Center in Universidad del Salvador in Buenos Aires, Argentina, after one semester Amanda transferred to the University of Queensland in July 2006. For her Applied Field Experience, she has chosen to partner with the Center for Peace Building International in their project for an International Retreat Center for Youth based in Sri Lanka. After completing her master's degree, Amanda hopes to continue her work with young people, especially focusing on developing forums for the interaction of youth from different cultures, races, and economic backgrounds.
Perth Rosen USA, District 5340
Perth Rosen graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in International Affairs from the University of Colorado at Boulder in 1998. Directly following she spent three years designing and executing community level health projects in Central and South America. She pursued a career in training for the subsequent two years as a Health Project trainer for the United States Peace Corps. Upon return to the USA she worked in a non-profit organization targeting the US/Mexico border population living with HIV/AIDS. She is now happily growing her capacity for future work in social justice. Current research interests include pro-active models for social integration of increasingly multi-cultural populations.
While Etsuko was doing her BA in intercultural studies in Osaka, Japan, she volunteered with orphans in India and Indonesia. Prior to study at UQ, she had worked with NGOs as a program officer in Laos and Cambodia for four years. She had engaged in various projects such as rural development, weapons collection for development, and literacy education. She had learned the local languages (Lao and Khmer) and directly communicated with villagers. After completing the program at UQ, she wants to use the knowledge and skills that gained at UQ and work for peacebuilding in intercultural environment.
Prior to commencing her studies at UQ, MJ had worked as a photojournalist, disaster relief assistant, and finance analyst. Her work experience took her to several overseas locations including Costa Rica, Argentina, and the Caribbean. Additionally, MJ had previously studied in Zurich, Switzerland, Buenos Aires, Argentina, and Accra, Ghana. For her upcoming Applied Field Experience, MJ plans to work with the International Organization of Migration in Cairo, Egypt. After finishing the program at UQ, MJ aims to either attend law school or continue with a PhD in an effort to become properly accredited for future work in irregular migration or education in international relations and international conflict resolution.