Projects

The Solutions Fund

In 2015 I founded The Solutions Fund for IDEAS For Us by implementing the first Pilot Phase for this new micro-granting program. I issued a call for applications for $1,000 USD action projects to address the Sustainable Development Goals in Africa. I reviewed these applications for their overall impact and sustainability, and selected 5 projects to be funded. Once we had developed a full review committee, we funded a further 17 projects, covering a wide range of topics including malnutrition, climate change, gender equality, employment opportunities, and access to clean water and sanitation, among others. Read more about each project by clicking on the images below.

  • ~12,169 people impacted

  • 35,000 trees and seedlings planted

  • 44 school engaged

Reusable Sanitary Pads for School Girls in Malawi

Constructing a High School In Boude, Togo

Improve Sickle Cell Disease Awareness in Uganda

Humane Chicken Rearing + Soil Amendment Training in Uganda

Reforesting Kasese: Establishing a Tree Nursery in Uganda

Rehabilitation of a Shallow Well in Caws Qurun, Somalia

Reduce Wood Consumption and Respiratory Illness in Ghana

Solar Lanterns for School Children in the Democratic Republic of Congo

Computer Training for Women and Girls in Kirkuk, Iraq

School Farm to Sustainably Feed School Children in Uganda

Ceramic Water Filter Installation for Schools in Uganda

Vertical Micro-gardening Pilot Program in Uganda

Constructing Latrines for Internally Displaced Persons in Somalia

Orphanage Fruit Orchard to Address Nutrition in Ghana

Planting 10,000 Trees Across Togo

Womens Integrated Piggery Project in Uganda

Overcoming Food Insecurity through Urban Agriculture in Uganda

Celebrated Vertical Micro-gardening Program Expands in Uganda

Addressing Female Genital Mutilation in Nigeria

1st Rural Makerspace in Nigeria: Programming + Digital Literacy

Fostering Sustainable Food Production in Liberia

Mase Medical Clinic and Foundation

After working with the founder, Masereka Adidas, since 2012, I became the first International Board Member and Advisor to the Mase Medical Clinic and Foundation, based in Kamuli, Eastern Uganda. In May of 2018, in partnership with Katadyn, I delivered water filtration systems to the clinic, as they had been seeing up to 500 patients a month with no access to clean water.

  • Provided UV water sterilizers and a large ceramic drip water filter, the first water filtration available for the medical clinic and several hundred patients are utilizing per month

  • Provided enough solar panels to supply the clinic with regular and uninterrupted electricity

  • Purchased an Ambulance, their first, to also be used as a mobile medical clinic, greatly improving access to medical care for people living in remote areas of Kamuli District

  • Hosted a free Hepatitis B testing clinic in May 2018 and assessed 200+ hundred community members

You can read more about our work here

 
 

Solving the Nepalese Waste Crisis: A Community Approach to Waste Management Solutions

Increasing Non-State Actor Participation in Sustainable Development Processes in Rwanda

Building a Sustainable Liberia

Events and Public Speaking

Keynote Speech and Lecture at the Berlin International Economics Congress

Colleagues and I were give the opportunity to travel to Berlin in 2013 to provide both a keynote speech and a lecture to the Berlin International Economic Congress hosted by the Institute for Cultural Diplomacy. Participants at this event included governmental & diplomatic officials, academics, artists, journalists, civil society practitioners, private sector representatives and young professionals from across the world. In addition to our keynote speech, we also delivered a 30 minute presentation about our work at Citizen Energy and IDEAS For Us. We also participated in several interviews and panel discussions regarding youth and environmental sustainability.

Global Youth Discussion on Climate Change

Food Day Film Screen and Panel Discussion

INS 511 Energy Security and Environmental Policy Course Guest Lecturer

United Nations Rio+20 Earth Summit Conference on Sustainable Development

United Nations Conference on Happiness and Wellbeing

United Nations Stockholm +40 Conference

High Level Round Table on Food and Nutrition Security and Sustainable Agriculture

Education

University of Miami (2010-2014)

Bachelors degree with a major in International Relations and Minor in Geography with an emphasis on Geographic Information Systems (GIS)

Awards

NGO helps young leaders solve international, local problems

The Miami Hurricane Newspaper published a profile of my work in December of 2013. Read at link above.

2013 Green Means Green Award Finalist

The Coral Gables Chamber of Commerce recognized me as a 2013 Green Means Green Award Finalist.

2013 Udall Scholarship University of Miami Nominee

The University of Miami nominated me for a Udall Scholarship in 2013.

University of Miami's 2012 Presidents Report

The contemporaneous president of University of Miami, Donna Shalala,