Summer fellows share stories of struggle and triumph

In July, the Center on Democracy, Development, and the Rule of Law (CDDRL) welcomed a group of 23 democracy leaders from around the developing world for a three-week training program on democracy, good governance and rule of law reform as part of the 11th annual Draper Hills Summer Fellows Program.

Selected from over 500 applicants, the fellows have diverse backgrounds across sectors and geographies, working in civil society, public service, social enterprise and technology to improve democracy and governance in their home countries.

Fellows were instructed by an all-star roster of Stanford scholars and policy experts with backgrounds in international relations, law, medicine and political science. Lecturers included Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of California Tino Cuéllar; former U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice; FSI Director and former U.S. Ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul; and CDDRL Director Francis Fukuyama.

Fellows also visited several major Bay Area technology firms and philanthropic organizations, such as Twitter and the Omidyar Network, to explore new opportunities to support their work.  

New to the program this year was the incorporation of TED-style talks, which served as a platform for fellows to practice the technique of storytelling by sharing their personal stories and motivations for pursuing the work they do. Throughout the three-week program, these 9-minute talks provided fellows with a better understanding of their peers’ backgrounds and an opportunity to realize shared experiences.

From finding long-term solutions to refugee crises to the invention of new technologies that curb government corruption, fellows shared impactful stories that cut across sectors and regions, sharing common challenges and pathways to their success. You can find some of their talks below:

Karina Sarmiento (Ecuador)

"Building up a Movement: Refugees in Latin America"

Teddy Warria is a Kenyan entrepreneur and the CEO of Africa 2.0 Kenya, an action-oriented network of young and emerging leaders from Africa who share a collective vision for the future. Warria is also the director of Africa’s Talking LED, a mobile telecommunications company working to close the information poverty gap in Kenya. 

Silvina Rivarola is a criminal prosecutor with the Attorney General’s office for the City of Buenos Aires where she is in charge of the cybercrime unit. Rivarola has devoted her 25-year career to advancing the rule of law in Argentina’s judicial branch where she previously served as a criminal judge.  

Sergei Golubok is a human rights lawyer in Russia who specializes in international human rights law and the protection of constitutional freedoms. Golubok has defended several high profile civil society groups and activists before the United Nations treaty bodies and the European Court of Human Rights.  

Oludotun Babayemi is the co-founder of Connected Development [CODE], an organization that uses online and offline tools to put pressure on governments and organizations in Nigeria to be more accountable and transparent. Their “Follow the Money” campaign has helped to monitor and track public resource allocation so marginalized communities receive government provisions and services.

Catherine Phiri is a public prosecutor for the government of Zambia where she prosecutes cases of corrupt practices, abuse of authority and money laundering that undermine the rule of law. Through her work she has helped implement systems that enhance the efficient and effective flow of cases. 

Myat Ko is the co-founder of the Yangon School of Political Science where he directs the school’s political education department working to train and empower citizens with knowledge to support Burma’s political development. In 2012, he participated in an election observation process held under the Yangon School.

Kasenally is a senior advisor with the African Media Initiative, an organization supporting independent media on the African continent. Kasenally has served as a researcher for a number of pan-African democratic and governance institutions and co-founded an advocacy organization to engage the Mauritian public in democratic development. Kasenally also teaches at the University of Mauritius.

Bruno Defelippe is a social entrepreneur who has launched several social initiatives to engage young people to solve social and environmental challenges in Paraguay. He is the co-founder and CEO of Koga Social Business Lab, which incubates social businesses and provides a strong ecosystem for social entrepreneurs to thrive.