ECA Alumni Small Grants Program

Program Results - February 2004

IREX (the International Research & Exchanges Board) is an International nonprofit organization specializing in education, independent media, Internet development, and civil society programs. Through training, partnerships, education, research, and grant programs, IREX helps develop the capacity of individuals and institutions to contribute to their societies.

The ECA Alumni Small Grants Program was piloted by IREX in February 1999. The program is funded by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA) and is designed to enable alumni of ECA programs to increase the impact on their home communities by providing funding for individual projects that further the goals of their original programs in the United States. Grants have been awarded to alumni to organize community service projects, publish self-authored books and materials, invite US colleagues to Eurasia for collaborative projects, make research trips within Eurasia, and organize and/or attend regional seminars and conferences. IREX has administered six rounds of the program to date.

Alumni of the following ECA-sponsored programs are eligible to apply:

Eurasian Undergraduate Fellowship
Regional Scholar Exchange Program (RSEP)
Freedom Support Act Fellowships in Contemporary Issues (CI)
Russian-US Young Leadership Fellows for Public Service Program (YLF)

February 2004 Finalists and Project Descriptions

INCREASING AWARENESS OF BLOOD TRANSFUSION SAFETY
Alisher Alimukhamedov (CI) will conduct a conference on "Solving Problems of Blood Transfusion Safety" and publish the corresponding textbook Blood Transfusion Therapy. Alimukhamedov will also publish a series of informational brochures on the importance of being a blood donor. These activities will bring attention to and increase public awareness of issues related to blood transfusions in Uzbekistan.

STRENGHTENING PUBLIC UNDERSTANDING OF HEART DISEASE
Iryna Berezovska (CI) will develop and implement an educational program dedicated to the prevention of heart disease in Lviv, Ukraine. The program will be delivered through presentations and workshops to a target audience of 100 medical practitioners and 170 patients and their families. In addition, Berezovska will publish and distribute pamphlets on heart disease to patients and health care professionals throughout Ukraine.

TRAINING SOCIAL WORKERS TO ASSIST THE DEVELOPMENTALLY CHALLENGED
Galyna Chupryna (CI) will hold three-day training in Donetsk, Ukraine for social workers, physicians, and volunteers. The seminar will introduce participants to various American social services and programs that benefit physically, mentally, and behaviorally troubled children and youth. This training will be organized in the hope that such programs and services can be implemented in the Donetsk region.

REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH AWARENESS AMONG KYRGYZ YOUTH
Margarita Emelyanova (CI) will open a Youth Center in the Issyk-Kul region of Kyrgyzstan, the main goal of which will be to educate young people about sexual and reproductive health and rights, and provide them with information and guidance on violence prevention and conflict management. The Center will be opened in collaboration with the Issyk-Kul branch of the Reproductive Health Alliance of Kyrgyzstan. In addition, Emelyanova will conduct a series of seminars for teachers and students throughout Issyk-Kul on sexual rights and health. These seminars will open up an important dialog and disseminate information that is not always readily available.

RESEARCHING OBSTACLES TO WOMEN'S MOVEMENT IN UZBEKISTAN
Mahbuba Ergasheva (CI) will publish 800 copies of her book Obstacles to Women's Movement and Opportunities for Active Participation in Social and Economic Aspects of Life in Uzbekistan. The book, which will be published in both Uzbek and Russian as well as online, will highlight the main obstacles preventing women from taking an active part in social, political, and economic reforms in Uzbekistan, including patriarchal mentality, women's economic dependency, lack of technological knowledge and education, and gender policies in Uzbekistan. The book will be disseminated to libraries, NGO's, universities and resource centers throughout Central Asia.

PROMOTING MEDIA LITERACY AND UNDERSTANDING IN RUSSIA
Alexander Fedorov (RSEP) will develop and publish 1,000 copies of the book Media Education and Literacy for university students and teachers. The book will be disseminated to local universities and libraries, and will be used as a textbook in Fedorov's journalism classes at Taganrog State Pedagogical Institute. This textbook is the first publication of its type in Russia and is intended to help university students understand the role of media in the contemporary world, study theoretical and practical aspects of media education, and acquire information and skills for teaching media education.

INNOVATIVE TOOLS TO INCREASE ENGLISH LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY
In collaboration with Project Hope Petropavlovsk (PHP), Victor Frolov (FSAU) will develop teaching materials in order to improve English listening and speaking skills in both students and teachers in Petropavlovsk, Kazakhstan. The teaching materials will include texts, magazines, and films that will serve as the basis for discussions in English on social and cultural issues. All materials will be housed in the PHP library, so that they can be used as a resource by all visiting students and scholars.

CREATING INDEPENDENT VOICES -- EXPANDING INDEPENDENT MEDIA IN RUSSIA
Irina Golyenkova (FSAU) will further develop and expand the publication of the newspaper FeeDom, an independent student newspaper for students and teachers in Omsk, Russia. The content of the newspaper, which is published in Russian, English, and German, focuses on cultural and cross-cultural issues, education, international cooperation, literature and languages, and regional and global initiatives. Students from around the world are asked to submit articles on a variety of topics. Golyenkova hopes that the newspaper will encourage readers to question stereotypes and become more aware of what is going on in the world around them.

PROMOTING ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY FOR THE BLIND
After losing his sight in 1995, Alexander Gritsay (CI) has devoted himself to providing disabled individuals with opportunities in the Russian Far East. Through this grant, Gritsay will organize a three-day workshop devoted to developing and promulgating "Assistive Technology for the Development of Tolerance in the Russian Far East Local Community." The event will bring together 42 representatives from various organizations working with the blind in Far East, including libraries, schools, and public organizations. By providing the blind with opportunities to use new technology, the disabled will become more integrated into Russian society.

BUILDING YOUTH TOLERANCE IN SOUTHERN RUSSIA
Matthew Hoover (YLF) and Dana Koskovich (YLF) will initiate the second year of KaMeLoT, the Kuban Youth Tolerance Camp, established in 2003 in Krasnodar, Russia. The goal of the Kuban Youth Tolerance Camp is to counteract the destructive tendencies of ethnic intolerance in Krasnodar Krai by stressing interaction and understanding among the youth of different nationalities in the region. Youth, representing a wide variety of ethnic and religious backgrounds, will be selected to participate in the conference, which will feature interactive games, and group projects where the students will have to work together to solve problems.

INCREASING INFORMATION EXCHANGE AMONG YOUTH ADVOCATES
In order to bridge the gap between the youth of Azerbaijan and the government, Fariz Ismailadze (FSAU) will establish a Youth Advocacy Center, in Baku, Azerbaijan. The goal of the center is to establish a regular information exchange between local Youth NGOs and the government, to organize monthly roundtable discussions on social issues concerning youth, to publish a monthly newsletter regarding various social issues, and to contribute to the creation of legislative initiatives and bills. Ismailzade hopes that the center will interest students in how the Azeri government works, and will urge the government to establish youth friendly legislature.

INTRODUCING DISTANCE LEARNING AT AN ARMENIAN UNIVERSITY
Armen Jughuryan (RSEP) and Babken Juharyan (FSAU) will develop a Distance Learning Program at the Yerevan State Institute of Economy. They will develop a multi-faceted distance learning software package that can help other teachers create distance learning course work. In addition, they create an online course in accounting, to be implemented at Yerevan State.

USING NEW MEDIA TO INITIATE PUBLIC DIALOGUE ON SECURITY
In order to open a dialog on issues of policy in Tbilsi, Georgia, Sergi Kapanadze (FSAU) will develop an online journal titled, Georgian Foreign and Security Policy (GFSP). The journal will collect resources on the topic of security and foreign policy in Georgia and will display academic works written on this topic by ECA alumni, Georgian scholars, and university students. Despite the importance of this topic, there is currently no single print or electronic journal dedicated to Georgian foreign policy and security.

HARNESSING COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY FOR LEGAL AND CITIZENS RIGHTS EDUCATION
In order to better serve the population of Yerevan, Armenia, Aleksandr Kostanyan (CI) will create a telephone hotline and web portal intended to provide citizens with information regarding their legal and social rights. These services will provide citizens, especially those who are ill and unable to travel due to limited economic resources, to pose questions to both the Armenian government, particularly to the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs. This initiative, which is co-sponsored by the SONAK Center for Social Initiatives, will encourage greater freedom of information and transparency within the Armenian government.

INTRODUCING NEW TECHNIQUES FOR WATER EFFICIENCY IN RURAL UZBEKISTAN
Hoshimjon Mamatkulov (RSEP) will implement a new system that will improve the efficiency of several irrigation systems in the Jizzak region of Uzbekistan. These systems will serve wheat and cotton fields and are used heavily. This project promises to make these systems more efficient (by 35-40%) and will also increase the availability of water in this region. Mamatkulov will organize several seminars, the goal of which will be to teach other practitioners in the field how to use and properly maintain these new systems. In addition, Mamatkulov plans to publish the book Water Productivity in SyrDarya Basin.

DEVELOPING MANAGEMENT SKILLS IN A TRANSITIONAL SOCIETY
Giorgi Meladze (FSAU) and Irakli Matkava (FSAU) will organize training seminars on various career development topics for 45 students and young public administrators from different organizations from the capital and the regions in Georgia. The topics of the trainings will include project management, leadership and teamwork, human resource management and ethics, presentation and paper writing, and effective communications. Meladze and Matkava hope that these trainings will influence the participants to become a driving force for change in Tbilisi.

UTILIZING TRADITIONAL ART FORMS TO CREATE JOB OPPORTUNITIES
Adelya Mishenko (CI) will organize trainings in terry weaving and patchwork for 96 unemployed young women and girls in Turkmenistan. The products will be sold at local markets and at a conference announcing the program in Ashgabat. The skills obtained will give these women the opportunity to earn their living without leaving their hometowns. By reducing unemployment among young women, this project will contribute to the prevention of many social problems facing the women of Turkmenistan.

EDUCATING THE PUBLIC ON BASIC INTERNET TECHNOLOGIES
Vitaliy Ostropytskyy (RSEP) will publish a textbook on the Basics of Internet Technologies. The book is intended for students, professionals, ECA alumni, teachers and those interested in learning the principles of Internet and aims to increase the general understanding of Internet technologies in Ukraine. The book will also be disseminated to Internet public access sites throughout Ukraine, where it will be used as a reference manual.

TEACHING REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH TO YOUTH IN A POST-CONFLICT SOCIETY
In order to increase awareness regarding reproductive health, Sitoramo Safolova (CI) will conduct a series of training sessions on healthy lifestyles for 400 adolescents in several secondary schools in the Rudaki region of Tajikistan. The training curriculum aims to educate the young people in these schools on basic anatomy, reproductive health, HIV/AIDS/STDs, safe sex, and healthy lifestyles. These seminars are vitally important to the youth of Tajikistan, as this topic is not widely discussed in Tajik society.

PROMOTING SMALL AND MEDIUM BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT
Vugar Salmanov (CI) will organize four educational seminars for business owners, aspiring entrepreneurs, and representatives of governmental structures and NGOs in the Sheki, Gah, Zakatala, and Balaken regions of Azerbaijan. The seminars will involve trainings on small and medium business entrepreneurship and will cover topics such as marketing, business planning, and business management. In addition, Salmanov will publish 300 copies of the book Essential of Entrepreneurship and 500 copies of brochures related to entrepreneurship. The goal of the seminars and brochures is to increase the development of the private sector and capitalism, particularly outside of the capital city.

STRENGHTENING CIVIL SOCIETY BY EMPOWERING YOUTH
In September, Iryna Temchenko (FSAU) will organize a 10-day summit for 82 high school and university students from Western Ukraine, entitled "Melting Snow - Developing Civil Society." The goal of the summit is to bring young minds together to share and develop ideas for strengthening the development of civil society in Ukraine. Temchenko's former advisor from Slippery Rock University, Dr. Alice Drobney-Kaiser, will travel to Ternopil in order to oversee the conference and provide key lectures. The goals of the conference include increased cooperation between the government, third sector and private businesses in Ukraine, the creation of improved social services for all Ukrainians, and the further development of volunteerism among Ukrainian youth.

DEVELOPING NEW CURRICULUM IN HEALTH ECONOMICS
Tamara Tonoyan (RSEP) will develop curriculum and publish a textbook and collection of tests, tasks, and problems on health economics. The materials, which will be published in both Armenian and Russian, will be used by both students of economics and healthcare professionals in Armenia and other Eurasian countries.

INTRODUCING LAW STUDENTS IN A TRANSITIONAL SOCIETY TO LEGAL ETHICS
Victoria Volkova (FSAU) will hold a series of trainings for university students from Ukraine on legal ethics. In addition, 500 copies of a handbook on legal ethics will be published for law students of Kyiv-Mohyla and other universities in Ukraine. This project promises to contribute to the improvement of legal system and practices in Ukraine as well as the state of legal education in Ukrainian universities.