Help Qaisar serve Balochistan!
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My name is Qaiser Roonjha. I come from the tribal village of Lasbela, in Balochistan, a backward and conflict-affected province of the Pakistan. I come from a family of nine siblings. My mother never attended school and my father left his education after tenth grade. I have just achieved the HIGHLY IMPROBABLE!: Admission into one of the most prestigious and top-ranked policy schools in the United States, the Heller School for Social Policy and Management at Brandeis University. I will be doing an accelerated one-year MA in Sustainable Development.
I need your help in making the improbable more possible. Though I have been awarded a 75% tuition scholarship, there are still countless expenses not yet covered, which I’ll need to pay in order to finish my Masters in Sustainable Development. Here are the major expenses I still need to cover in order to secure my spot in the program:
Tuition Fee: 25% of the full year’s $50,728 tuition = $12,682
Housing rent for the first semester of 4 months= $2,000
Total: $14,682
I still have about $8000 more to cover for my insurance, 2ndsemester housing, books, and personal expenses–however, I plan to do student-jobs and assistantships in order to fund the rest.
In Lasbela, I have been working as a social justice activist, striving to uplift women and youth, engaging the people of my deeply marginalized community in Balochistan province. My life’s work with my organization, the Welfare Association for New Generation (WANG)—engaging the young people of Balochistan to take action on gender equality, early marriage, family planning, sexual reproductive and health rights, and even girls’ education—is badly needed. It does and will continue to shine a light on and break down harmful cultural practices in one of Pakistan’s most fragile regions, contributing to local well-being and, in the long term, greater global security.
Within tribal societies like mine, it is difficult to talk about topics like gender equality, or harmful cultural practices, such as early age marriages, family planning, sexual reproductive and health rights, and even girls’ education. Yet by using innovation and creativity and improvising dialogue techniques, I’ve been able to open discussions at the local level in the community. Over the years; I’ve seen that the activities and dialogues on social issues that WANG has facilitated have brought steady and positive change to the people of Lasbela, especially those with the most to gain, like women and youth.
Achievements:
My commitment towards social change through community engagement has introduced me to many opportunities around the world. In the last four years, I have been awarded national and international honors, such as:
· First Pakistani awarded as Global Changemaker by the British Council;2010,
London.
· Young Volunteer of the Year;2010,by Government of Balochistan.
· Youth Ambassador of World Population Foundation (WPF) for Pakistan’s “Safe
Motherhood”Campaign.
· Young Champion of the Year for Pakistan by WPF, US-AID, Plan International;
2010.
· Top Winner of the Global Creative Art Contest;2012,by GYCA.
· First ever Pakistan International Theater Fellow at DO School;2013, Germany.
· Co-Author of Social Media Tool-kit for Youth Activists,by Global Changemaker.
· Ranked among 100 Global Young Leaders by Women Deliver International.
· Youngest moderator for Family Planning Conference;2016,Bali,Indonesia.
· Youth peace-building workshop facilitator at International Youth Festival;2015,
India.
· White House - Emerging Global Leadership Initiative's Fellow at Atlas Corps;
2016/17.
· Closing plenary speaker at London Family Planning Summit;2017.
· White House Emerging Global Leadership Initiative's Fellow at Atlas Corps and
served at Girl Rising;2017, New York.
To expand my abilities to carry on this critical grassroots work more effectively, I’m seeking the intellectual and professional tools that can only be found at Brandeis’ MA in International Development Program, with Brandeis University. Please join me in making this dream a reality.
Love always,
Qaisar
WANG's Facebook Page : https://goo.gl/oj7h2z
WANG's Website : https://goo.gl/huHZTt
WANG's Youtube : https://goo.gl/q9QrAU
Co-organizers (3)
Qaisar Roonjha
Organizer
Mohammad Reza Ravjani
Beneficiary
Hira Hur
Co-organizer
Sam K.
Co-organizer