Stories of IREX

Currently in its tenth year of administering the Global UGRAD program, IREX conducted a qualitative study to increase its understanding of the long- and short-term effects of the Global UGRAD program on individuals, institutions, and communities. Using the Most Significant Change technique, IREX gathered nearly 100 stories of significant change from program alumni in Kyrgyzstan, Georgia, Ukraine, and Armenia. IREX then analyzed the data according to the types of changes that alumni shared.

Stacey Padilla, a student at Maryville College in Tennessee, and 2011 Global UGRAD alumna Aidai Kozhalieva from Kyrgyzstan partnered to enrich the lives of Kyrgyz children in the rural village of Ananievo. After two weeks of learning English and participating in theater workshops in the Ananievo Children’s Theatre (ACT) summer camp, children traveled to the American University of Central Asia in Bishkek. There they performed Pushing up the Sky, a Native American play about working together despite cultural differences to overcome a shared problem.

The cities of Atlanta and Baghdad may seem worlds away from each other, but a partnership between the University of Baghdad (UB) and Georgia State University (GSU) has begun to quietly flourish. Recently, Randy Malamud, Chair of the English Department at GSU, paid a visit to his colleagues at the University of Baghdad, and IREX sat down with the group to hear more about what the GSU-UB partnership means to them.

Five U.S. institutions of higher education are welcoming 74 international educators from 13 countries who will help globalize their campuses. While in the US for five months on the International Leaders in Education program (ILEP), the teachers will further develop their expertise in their subject area, enhance their teaching skills, increase their knowledge of the U.S., and share aspects of their cultures.

Youth leaders from Pakistan received inspiration and encouragement this week from U.S. and Pakistani diplomats as they begin semesters in the U.S. as cultural ambassadors through the Global UGRAD-Pakistan program.

Community and Regional libraries in Transylvania, Romania are redefining modernization by promoting “concept libraries” to create comfortable spaces for patrons. The ASTRA library in Marpod is one example. The library is using unique designs to reinvent modern libraries and showcase local history. 

In 2012, Tajikistan ranked 141st in the world in the Ease of Doing Business Index, a fact that Firdavs Mirzoev aims to change. Building on the knowledge and skills he gained through the LEAD program, Mirzoev returned to Tajikistan in 2011 and created an international law firm designed to assist companies looking to invest in Tajikistan.

Dr. Albert Simkus, a Sociology and Political Science professor at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, received an IREX grant to do research in Hungary from 1979-1980 as part of the Eastern European Exchange Program. Dr. Simkus recently spoke with IREX about his research experience and career trajectory.

Prossy Kawala, a radio DJ from Uganda, went from sharing shout-outs to promoting social change. “We thought we can do more, the radio can do more.”

On December 10th, youth involved in the Youth Civic Engagement and Dialogue Program (YCED) in Romania commemorated International Human Rights Day by creating posters depicting what human rights symbolize for them. The YCED program builds upon the International Declaration of Human Rights by supporting youth to become active citizens who mobilize their peers to build tolerance across ethnic divisions.