Meet Our Participants
SHARANYA DILIP
Through her volunteering experience to support and motivate children prone to dropout in rural areas of Southern India, she observed the impact a little extra help can do. As a team, she and fellow volunteers had interactive sessions once in 3 months and developed ways to have video calls and use technology to keep track of the student's progress throughout their academic year. This gave rise to another project for elementary/primary school children to learn and practice their lessons using globally recognized apps and learning tools. This pilot study helped her understand the scope of technology in scenarios where there is a dearth of qualified teachers with the necessary subject knowledge and at times when the child needed extra practice to catch up with the rest of the class. After APLP, she wishes to design technologically innovative education models to increase access to education and reduce socioeconomic inequalities in India and other Asian nations. GIST will therefore be the bridge that provides a perspective of the larger picture in her journey towards being able to facilitate the possibility of every child having access to personalized education. |
STANLEY NG
Stanley's passion for energy and technology is what fuels his current GIST research. He was a member of the Beijing Energy Network and is currently traveling throughout SE Asia researching projects for rural electrification. His primary focus will be to understand the regulatory environment in ASEAN nations and identify an ideal site for implementation of renewable energy in an off-grid area. The technology used can be a range of solar, hydro, wind, biomass depending on the local resources and needs. After completing the East West Center fellowship, he hopes to start a company implementing renewable energy micro-grids across the Asia Pacific region in many off grid areas. Stanley is a native of New York City and spent the last 6 years working in big data and digital media technologies in China and Asia Pacific regionally. He is a world traveler with 40+ countries visited and loves SCUBA dive, music festivals and environmental and energy innovations. |
GENIE NGUYEN
Genie – Huong Nguyen is from Vietnam and is a 2014 – 2015 fellow of Asia Pacific Leadership Program (APLP). Upon joining APLP, she is the National Human Resource Manager at Viet Thai International, one of Vietnam’s largest multi-unit retail operators. Prior to that, she worked in the Human Resource Department in Singapore General Hospital. Coming from a developing country, seeing the life difficulties of poor people and the huge social gap, Genie is passionate about improving quality of life and creating better opportunities for people in her country. Genie founded a self–funded volunteering group ‘Achieving Your Highest Potential’ to help young migrant women pursue their dreams through life skills building, English teaching and career counseling. During GIST, Genie is exploring ways to create social innovations and help people/organizations identify problems and create solutions through creative and design thinking. |
DAN STROBEL
Dan was a Program Officer at Cultural Vistas, a Washington, DC-based non-profit organization focused on international exchange and professional development for 5 years before coming to participate in the G'14 APLP program. Mr. Strobel has experience managing cross- cultural study programs in Japan, Singapore, and Malaysia, and supported new business development within the organization. He earned a Bachelor of Arts in International Studies with a focus on East Asia from the University of Richmond and a Master of Arts in Pacific International Affairs from the University of California, San Diego. Mr. Strobel is interested in the dynamics of Asian international affairs and is committed to developing leadership skills that can successfully address the region’s policy challenges. |
MARTIN YANG
Gang “Martin” YANG (China) is a current 2014-2015 Asia Pacific Leadership Program fellow at the East-West Center. He has five years of experience in foundation management and operations, and has served as a program assistant for the Southern China Program of Rockefeller Brothers Fund and a researcher with the Institute for Civil Society at Sun Yat-Sen University. Mr. Yang earned a Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology from Sun Yat-Sen University, where he also founded the Martin Hall Society to promote youth engagement through fieldwork. He is interested in China’s emerging indigenous philanthropy, and its role in addressing regional development challenges. Mr. Yang plans to pursue advanced studies that will further his goal of developing his leadership in the non-profit sector. |
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