Dear ADEL Alumni and AD Community,

We are excited to share with you the first Atlantic Dialogues Emerging Leaders Newsletter of the year 2023 in which you will find the latest news and updates from the ADEL alumni community! As you may know, the last ADEL program by the Policy Center for the New South (PCNS) took place in December 2022 and gathered a new cohort of 30 young professionals who are now part of the greater ADEL community.

The ADEL alumni have been busy over the past few months in their respective fields, but also sharing their opinions and insights on a range of topics through their blogs, speaking roles, and contributions with the PCNS. From climate change and youth development to regional security and social media, our alumni have demonstrated a deep commitment to addressing the challenges facing our world today.

We invite you to explore our newsletter to learn more about the work being done by the ADEL community.

ADEL Alumni Contributions, Publications and Collaborations

Two op-eds were written by ADEL alumni and published by the PCNS during the first quarter of 2023. One of them was written by Selassie Tay (ADEL 2017) in January 2023 titled “AfCFTA and the Creeping Power Play: Africa, the European Union, and China”. This opinion discusses how the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) can lead to accelerated intra-African trade and enhance Africa’s trading position in global value chains. The agreement will provide markets at scale and increase Foreign Direct Investment (FDI). This piece also explains how the EU and China seek to gain influence in Africa through development aid and major infrastructure investments.

Seleman Yusuph Kitenge (ADEL 2018) published another op-ed during February 2023 “Linking Food and National Security in Africa: Lessons from Russia-Ukraine Conflict”. According to the author, the Russia-Ukraine conflict serves as a reminder of how disruptions in food supplies can impact national security. He argues that Africa, with its growing population, and limited resources, must take steps to ensure food security.

For more on op-eds written by the ADEL community, click here.

Speaking roles

Chaimae Bourjij (ADEL 2019) participated in a conversation on the Impact of Youth Activism on Policy Making in the MENA region with KAS Regional Program Political Dialogue South MED, for their training session of the MENA Leadership Academy (MENALA). The conversation took place in March 2023 at the Policy Center for the New South in Rabat.

ADELs in Action

Jevanic Henry (ADEL 2022) was selected to to join the United Nations Youth Advisory Group for a 2-year term. This group serves as a mechanism for the Secretary-General to hear directly from young people.

Theodora Skeadas (ADEL 2022) wrote a piece on “How the World Changed Twitter, in 25 Tweets” for Tech Policy Press. She was selected as a candidate for Elected Director of Harvard Alumni.

Chiara Cocchiara (ADEL 2019) won the European Space Leaders Award 2023 for her contributions to the space field! She will receive the award & attend the 7th European Space Gen Workshop in Bari on April 28-29, 2023.

Eric Asmar (ADEL 2019) took part in the radio show “Avec ou Sans Parure” on the Moroccan Radio Luxe Radio with 4 other experts on How to explain the "derisory" amount of fundraising for startups in Morocco?

Blair Glencorse (ADEL 2013), founder of Accountability Lab met with correspondent for West Africa & journalist Bram Posthummus during the PCNS’s Atlantic Dialogues conference in December 2022. This connection was strengthened when he visited Blair's team in Mali where they discussed the work of Accountability Lab.

Lavar Thomas (ADEL 2022) was one of the 5 winners of the Franklin H. Williams Award from the Peace Corps. The winners demonstrated what is possible when bold leadership is combined with optimism, vision & heart.

Nusrat Farooq (ADEL 2022) co-authored a book chapter with her professor and mentor, Pr. Rumela Sen.

Using machine learning, they analyzed bias in COVID19 reporting in India and how it acted as a catalyst in accelerating islamophobia in India.

Silindile Nanzile Mlilo (ADEL 2018) interviewed her peers from the 2022 Young African Leaders Program (YALP) by the European University Institute (EUI) in a series where they share their views on Africa’s challenges & opportunities. The series launched in February 2023 with an episode on sustainable finance, the series’ dozen episodes is published weekly on EUI's School of Transnational governance YouTube channel.

Fatma Ahmed (ADEL 2022) began hosting "Taking Apart Terror: the West Africa Edition", a 9 episodes podcast series with West African experts to analyze & deconstruct the reality of terrorist group Islamic State West Africa Province. Click here to listen & subscribe.

Nchimunya Hamukoma (ADEL 2018) spoke in February on a panel with some of the senior global leadership of Bolt App & one of the co-founders of GirlCode ZA talking about how ride-hailing & gig work can contribute to building better cities.

Naimah Jabali-Nash (ADEL 2019) served as Co-Director and Producer on the "Race" episode, & Produced the "Capitalism" episode of the 1619 Project, Hulu's 6-part docuseries.

Michael David Terungwa (ADEL 2017) makes an appearance on NTA News (Nigeria) urging Nigerians to collect their PVC & vote in the upcoming general elections in Nigeria, and raising awareness on the under-representation of climate change in the campaigns. He also talked on the need to protect the Guinean Forests of West Africa on the TV news channel Joy News (Ghana).

Clarissa Rios Rojas (ADEL 2016) will participate in the Science Festival in Rome on April 23rd, 2023, representing women in STEM.

"How can Morocco benefit from hightech to improve & reform its educational system?" This is the question asked during AD by Adam Bouhadma (ADEL 2016) to Mohammed El Meski, Expert in the development of educational systems.

Roger Hilton (ADEL 2019) spoke on El Jazeera Arabic in late January 2023 about the possibility of NATO Allies sending tanks to Ukraine, Russia’s red lines and the prospect of future escalation of the conflict.

How has Canada lived up to the ideals set out in 1848? What does the future of Canadian democracy look like? In a conversation organized by Massey College on March 22nd, 2023, Omayra Issa (ADEL 2019) and two speakers answered these questions about Canada.

Scarlett Varga (ADEL 2018) from Bruegel led a discussion in February 2023 about funding and engagement models with On Think Tanks School for Thinktankers 2023.

Stay Connected

Follow ADEL on Twitter to stay updated about the program and its community.

If you belong to the 2015-2022 cohorts, make sure that you join your cohort's Whatsapp group by reaching out to us.

The ADEL Community has a private Facebook group exclusively for ADEL alumni! If you are an alum and wish to join, please let us know.

Stay up to date about the Policy Center for the New South's most recent research and activities by following us on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.

Throwback of the Quarter

The Policy Center for the New South, in collaboration with Economia HEM Research Center have conducted a 3-year study on emergent leadership through the ADEL community. The report, published in March 2022, examines the characteristics and qualities that define successful emerging leaders in various fields, including politics, business, and civil society. By analyzing more than a hundred Atlantic Dialogues Emerging Leaders, the study aims to provide insights on how emerging leaders can be identified, nurtured, and supported to drive positive change and progress in their respective spheres of influence.

Get the Word Out

Are you working on an interesting project that you would like to share more about with the ADEL community? Have you received a recent award or recognition? Have you recently been interviewed, invited as a speaker for a conference or by media outlets to share your thoughts on an ongoing strategic issue? If the answer is yes to any of the questions above, and if you would like to be featured in a way that more ADELs can get to know you, please share with us more details about your projects, accomplishments, and features so we can share your work with the rest of the ADEL community.

Join the Conversation

If you wish to make a contribution to the analytical content produced by the Policy Center for the New South, which includes Policy Briefs, Policy Papers, Research Papers, and contributions to our annual reports, or if you would like to share your thoughts on a topic of mutual interest through on op-ed, please get in touch!

Ce traitement a été notifié et autorisé par la CNDP au titre du récépissé N° D-NL-718/2020

This processing has been notified and authorized by the CNDP under receipt N ° D-NL-718/2020