My #YALI2017 Experience — The Final Stretch

Vincent Kumwenda
Jul 24, 2017 · 3 min read
Some of the MWF2017 fellows at University of Nebraska — Lincoln pose for a picture in the early days of the fellowship. Photo Credit: UNL Mandela Washington Fellows

It is not every day that you get to interact with 25 brilliant and intelligent minds from different countries of the African continent. It is a very rare thing to share rooms, meals or ideas with a Mechanical Engineer from Nigeria, a Lawyer from South Sudan or a Female Tech Enthusiast from DRC. This is the story of our 5 weeks at the University of Nebraska in Lincoln participating in the Mandela Washington Fellowship.

No one would have imagined what lay in store for us 37 days ago when we sat at O’Hare Airport terminal 1 patiently waiting for a delayed United Airlines Flight number UA 1930 from Chicago to Omaha. Even after a four hour wait and an hour of turbulence, we still could not figure out what life in Lincoln would look like.

It has taken countless hours of academic lectures, site visits and networking engagements to bring out a true picture of what a civic engagement course for emerging leaders entails. Through a strong relationship between the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (fondly called UNL) and the Lincoln community, the 2017 Mandela Washington fellows have acquired skills and connected with leaders who will help in shaping the projects they are working on.

On July 4th we prepared African food and shared with the faculty members and their families. Photo Credit: UNL Mandela Washington Fellows

The program is befitting the Civic Leadership track as it has covered all the important academic areas of leadership, practical applications of civic engagement and interaction with the major players in the development of Lincoln City.

The Mandela Tree. On July 18th, we planted a London Planetree at the University of Nebraska- Lincoln East Campus in commemorating the Mandela Day. Photo Credit: UNL Mandela Washington Fellows

The state of Nebraska and Lincoln City particularly is well known for its contribution to the refugee settlement program. For instance, the City has the largest population of Yazidis outside Iraq. Omaha, the biggest city in Nebraska has the largest population of South Sudanese outside of Africa (video). We had a chance to interact with different stakeholders both from non-profit and government to learn firsthand the efforts being made in resettling the immigrants, educating them and how they are working on their own to preserve their different cultures. We even had opportunities to volunteer in the institutions that are distributing food, working with homeless people and equipping the migrants with various skills.

Serious business! Dr Amanda Morales and Prof Ted Hamann in one of the academic sessions. Photo Credit: UNL Mandela Washington Fellows

As we start the final stretch of the 2017 Mandela Washington Fellowship at UNL, one will clearly see the richness of the program that the university put together. They had in mind the Agricultural Researcher from Nigeria, they put in place the necessary tools for a branding expert from Guinea and included the needs of emerging leaders fighting the Boko Haram insurgency in Nigeria and parts of Cameroon. The program coupled with the expertise and experience of the professors from the university famed for its research and innovation will go a long way in equipping the fellows with the much-needed skills to use back home in impacting millions of lives in over 20 African countries represented this year.

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