Welcoming the 2023 Senior International Fellows

The Center on Philanthropy and Civil Society at the CUNY Graduate Center is pleased to announce the selection of eight fellows from Brazil, Ghana, Italy, Kosovo, Mexico, Senegal and Ukraine to this year's program (October 2 to 27, 2023).

The 2023 Senior International Fellows Program will provide professional development through online seminars, meetings with community foundation leaders and other third-sector practitioners, research, and the application of a comparative framework. 

Read about the Fellows, their research topics (see below), and their professional development in the field of philanthropy.

Semíramis Biasoli
São Sebastião, Brazil
FunBEA [Fundo Brasileiro de Educaçâo Ambiental] — General Secretary
Research focus: Giving circles as mobilizers and levers of community philanthropy for educational action

Taulant Hoxha
Prishtine, Kosovo
Kosovar Civil Society Foundation — Executive Director
Balkan Civil Society Development Network (BCSDN) — Deputy Chair
Research focus: Exploring how national grant-making organizations can partner with local donors (public & private) and diaspora communities to diversify resources, co-create local solutions, and promote social justice

Rufai Haruna Kilu
Accra, Ghana
PureTrust Foundation LGB (Tamale) — Board Member
North Gonja Community Foundation (Daboya) — Board Member
Research and Consultancy Centre, University of Professional Studies, Accra — Senior Lecturer /Research Fellow
Research Focus: Promoting philanthropy and the culture of giving among Ghanaian youth to build leadership and mobilize funds for community needs

Francesca Mereta
Milan, Italy
Assifero [Associazione Italiana Fondazioni e Enti Filantropici / Italian Association of Grantmaking Foundations] — Programs and Communications Officer
Fondazione MeSSInA [Fondazione delle Comunità del Mediterraneo Sostenibili e Solidali per l’Inclusione e l’Accoglienza] — Board Member
Research Focus: How support organizations can use communications to identify the added value of community foundations: Strengthening the potential of the CF movement at a national level

Daniele Messina
Siena, Italy
Fondazione Monte dei Paschi di Siena — Head of Programs
Research focus: Exploring how community foundations or social enterprises can be the primary actors in regenerating public spaces

Corinne Pierre-Louis
San Cristóbal de Las Casas, Mexico
Amigos de San Cristóbal A.C. — Director
Comunalia (Alliance of Mexican community foundations) — Board Member
Research focus: Exploring how local asset development can be a viable avenue for increasing local fundraising and community engagement

Daria Rybalchenko
Kyiv, Ukraine
National Network for Local Philanthropy Development — Executive Director
Research focus: Exploring ways to provide better service and support for community foundations through the cultivation of donor networks

Rouguiétou Khady Sow
Dakar, Senegal
TrustAfrica — Program Officer
Focus: How religious and traditional forms of giving influence the vertical expression of modern-day philanthropy: The case of Senegal

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE SENIOR INTERNATIONAL FELLOWS PROGRAM