Manel Abdelwahed
Manel has a degree in Information Technology from Campus El Manar University.
She began her professional experience at SagemCom for 6 months and at start-up IRIS for 2 months as a trainee. This allowed her to gain experience and to develop communication and team-working skills. It helped her improve her technical skills, as well.
IT developers are often considered geeks who think in a binary manner, but Manel loves social contact and is still addicted to reading books. Life was not that kind to her; she has faced difficulties and dealt with sickness, loss and struggle. That makes her the better person she is today. She would not do anything without her mother’s help. Manel’s mother is her inspiration.
During the Lazord Fellowship Program, she was a program assistant at NGO Kawakibi for Democracy Center. She felt honored to be a part of their team.
Faouzi Zribi
Faouzi Zribi is a young Tunisian activist who is originally from Sfax.
After his Bachelor’s degree in Experimental Science, he continued his studies in the Faculty of Medicine of Sfax to become a doctor. In 2009 he joined the ATL MST SIDA where he began to discover civil society. He also joined other NGOs involved in supporting all aspects of civil society, including the promotion of democracy and citizenship, human development, support for human rights, and poverty reduction.
The more he develops his leadership skills, the more he feels the responsibility to use his skills to benefit society. His main motivations as a global citizen are assisting and advising people in need. Faouzi believes in the importance of the notions of solidarity, listening, and sharing in making the world a better and more humane place.
During the Lazord Fellowship Program, he was a program manager at the ATL MST SIDA.
Amira Guebsi
Amira is a 27-year-old energy engineer passionate about civil society and its role in national development, open to new ideas and flexible about working through challenging issues.
Since her graduation from the National Engineering School of Monastir she has been doing various activities such as volunteering, organizing events, and coaching students in social entrepreneurship.
In September 2016, she joined Jamaity’s communications team for a three-month internship where she learned diverse social media strategies such as live coverage of civil society events, reporting, and writing articles.
As a Lazord Fellow, she joined the Arab Institute for Human Rights organization as a Communications Assistant, promoting human rights and citizenship values in marginalized areas.
Abdelmajid Djebali
Abdelmajid is 24 years old and he specializes in political communication, a branch that combines political sciences and communication sciences .
In April 2017, he was selected by the European Union to attend a training on religious tolerance and the acceptance of differences in Lecce, Italy, with the Erasmus+ program. After that, he received the Youthpass certificate from the European Union.
In June 2017, he was selected by the US Department of State to participate in the Middle East Partnership Initiative Student Leaders Program in the USA. He learned about project management and politics in the USA at Benedictine University in Lisle, Illinois.
He is able to manage his time, and to devote it to fully focusing on his mission; therefore he is available for any given position. In general, he is innovative, creative, and supportive. He has a great capacity to work, especially on a team. In addition, he has different skills relating to negotiation, communications, and solving issues.
He has had different positions at well-known organizations in Tunisia such as Jamaity (Jamaity.org), where he was given the opportunity to work with various stakeholders and actors, and was able to gain different skills in the fields of human rights and community development.
Hamdi Kammoun
Hamdi Kammoun is an accountant who graduated from the Institute of High Commercial Studies in Sfax, Tunisia, in 2015.
Throughout his life, he has participated in different activities, but he believes that the real journey started in 2010 when he became a member of ATL MST SIDA, the Tunisian Association for the Fight against Sexually Transmitted Diseases and AIDS. Being a part of this association allowed him to test his abilities of teamwork, team building, leadership, and planning. This experience highlighted the butterfly effect concept as a way of change – simple little steps can lead to major change in the long run.
In 2017, he was accepted to the Lazord Fellowship program and was placed at ATUPRET. This started another journey of self-exploration that is full of new experiences, benefits, and partnerships.
Yosra T. Karoui
Yosra is a young and motivated Tunisian who studied English literature, civilization, and linguistics, and then went on to pursue her master’s degree in translation. She is passionate about learning new languages, acquiring new skills, and being more engaged in civil society.
She started to discover civil society in Tunisia when she joined Junior Chamber International (JCI). Since then, she has been involved in several initiatives on peace building, humanitarian ties, and youth.
As a Lazord Fellow, she was placed at Search for Common Ground Tunisia where she worked simultaneously on two projects under the big theme of peace building. The fellowship year allowed her to acquire more skills and be more engaged and ambitious.
Yosra has fully benefited from the Lazord Fellowship experience, which is a step forward in civil society in her country – a step that keeps broadening the sphere of her ambitions.
Azza Gamal
Azza obtained her BS in English from the University of Arts. She has been involved in civil society for more than five years and has received several certificates for various training courses in human rights.
Azza has held the following positions:
- Secretary receptionist & HR at Yemen Milestone for oilfield services Co. Yemen –Sana’a-Yemen
- Secretary, receptionist & HR at Yemen Air Fright Agency Sana’a-Yemen
- Assistant Programmer Officer at “TDF” association –Sana’a-Yemen
Azza has also volunteered at the organizations found below:
- Women’s leadership program NDI “Yemen”
- Arab Institute for Human Rights in the resource center
- Assistant Project Coordinator in Citizenship at the Education club and protection for refugees and asylum-seekers in Tunisia
Azza has been an asylum seeker in Tunisia since 2015.
Houssem Jebali
Houssem is a 25-year-old Tunisian with a master’s degree who has been active in Tunisian civil society since 2015. Houssem is an enthusiastic activist who has participated in several workshops and trainings in Tunisia and abroad to broaden his knowledge on, and to promote youth-related issues. After finishing his one-year fellowship program with the Lazord Foundation, he was recruited by a company based in Qatar. Today, Houssem lives in Qatar and started his professional life as a translator, the career of which he has always dreamt. He is still committed to promoting youth-related issues, especially after gaining useful skills and tools during the Lazord Fellowship that will help him to continue to achieve his goals.
Farah Kanzari
Farah is 25 years old, and she specializes in fundamental English. She started her career in civil society 6 years ago. In 2016 she was selected to be a delegate of the North Africa International Model United Nations (NAIMUN) that took place at the American University in Tunisia. Two months later, she was selected to be the president of New Partnership for Africa’s Development in the African Union Model (AUM) that took place at the South Mediterranean School of Business (MSB) in Tunisia. She has held different positions in her career: she was a reporter with the International Institute of Debate, through which she received a TOT training and participated in the café-talk competition as a moderator, before becoming a project coordinator at NAMAA Association for Development and Democracy.
She has had the opportunity to work with different organizations in Tunisia where she has worked with different stakeholders and actors, thus, being able to gain different skills in the fields of communications and community development.
She is ambitious, hard-working, able to work under pressure, and is innovative and creative. Farah believes that she has learned a lot through the ups and downs that she has experienced in her life.
Sirine Boukhchim
Sirine is an interior designer who graduated from the Higher Institute of Arts and Crafts of Sfax in 2017.
Over the years, she has participated in different activities, but the real journey started when she became a leader of the Tunisian Scouts, allowing her to test her skills in team work, team building, leadership, and planning. This experience highlighted the butterfly effect concept as a way of change – simple little steps that lead to major change in the long run.
In 2017, she received the Lazord Fellowship and was placed at ATL MST SIDA, starting another journey of self-exploration through her work on projects on communication and logistics.
Through the Erasmus + program, Sirine traveled to Latvia and Spain. This intercultural exchange gave her a golden opportunity to gain new experiences and to enrich her personality.
Sirine is currently pursuing a master’s degree in interior design while working as a freelance interior architect.
Her life’s journey is full of new experiences, benefits, and partnerships.