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2018 Gallatin Global Fellows in Human Rights

NYU Gallatin announces this year's crop of fellows

Feb 7, 2018

Gallatin Global Fellowship in Human Rights 2018

2018 GGFHR Fellows, pictured with Gallatin faculty member Vasuki Nesiah (right) and Mehmet Darakcıoglu, Assistant Dean for Global Programs (far right); Photo by Gallatin MA student Careina Yard

Each year, select undergraduate and graduate students from across New York University are granted Gallatin Global Human Rights Fellowships in the amount of $5,000 each to support summer research work with domestic and international human rights organizations. Since 2011, Gallatin has sponsored 84 Global Fellows, all of whom were selected by a group of distinguished leaders in the field of international human rights. This year’s applicant pool was particularly strong, with 11 Human Rights Fellows selected to travel to sites around the globe, including Egypt, England, Haiti, India, Israel, Japan, Mexico, Palestinian Territory, South Africa, and the United States.

The 2018 Human Rights Fellows and their partner organizations are as follows:

Bayan Abubakr, Center for Migration and Refugee Studies, American University of Cairo, Egypt (College of Arts and Science, BA)

Ellie Alter, El Instituto para las Mujeres en la Migración, Mexico (Graduate School of Arts and Science, Center for Experimental Humanities, MA)

Rose Asaf, Zochrot, Israel (College of Arts and Science, BA)

Abie Green, Center on Race, Inequality, and the Law, NYU School of Law, United States and Haiti (Gallatin, BA)

Rashi Mirsha, The Freedom Theatre, Palestinian Territory (Tisch School of the Arts, MA)

Maria Polzin, Community Systems Strengthening Project, University of Cape Town, South Africa (Gallatin, BA)

Jensine Raihan, Paschim Banga Khet Majoor Samity, India (Tandon School of Engineering, BA)

Kiara Soobrayan, Jesuit Refugee Service, South Africa (Gallatin, BA)

Ben Wagner, Bellevue/NYU Program for Survivors of Torture, United States (Gallatin, College of Global Public Health, BA-MPH)

Mark Yokoyama, Human Rights Now, Japan (Liberal Studies, College of Arts and Science, BA-BS)

Michael Zalta, Forensic Architecture, England (Gallatin, BA)

During the spring semester before they travel, fellows participate in a two-credit human rights seminar and complete independent study courses. Over the summer, fellows travel domestically and internationally to conduct independent research or pursue internships in order to gain experience in the human rights field in ways that complement their academic trajectories at NYU. In the fall, the fellows present their work at the annual Gallatin Global Fellowship in Human Rights Symposium, offering an overview on their fellowship work and what they learned during their time in the field.