Ismaili Centres Archive
In Pakistan, young Ismailis are receiving knowledge and inspiration from elite-level athletes in a sports fellowship programme organised by the Aga Khan Youth and Sports Board. In addition to training and mentoring, the youth are coming away with a new sense of what they can possibly achieve in sport.
London, 14 January 2015 — Dr Amr Abdalla, Senior Advisor on Policy Analysis and Research at the University of Addis Ababa spoke on Retrieving Islam’s Humanistic Heritage: A role of Muslim Mediatory Practice at the Milad-un-Nabi lecture.
What do a policy advisor at the US State Department, a lecturer at Oxford University and the Head of Graduate Studies at The Institute of Ismaili Studies (IIS) have in common? All of them have pursued postgraduate studies the IIS.
Lisbon, 8 January 2015 — Her Excellency, Kirsty Isobel Hayes, the British ambassador to Portugal, visited the Ismaili Centre, Lisbon and met with the AKDN Resident Representative, Vazir Nazim Ahmad, and the President of the Ismaili Council, Aitmadi Amirali Bhanji.
Former Canadian Prime Minister Kim Campbell — Canada’s first female prime minister — delivered an Ismaili Centre lecture in Vancouver in November. She spoke passionately of the need for more women in positions of leadership at all levels of society and the importance of ensuring their voices are heard.
One year after completing the 2013 FOCUS Challenge4Life, Faridoun Hemani recalls the adventure, the pain and the sense of accomplishment that he and 57 other participants shared during their Summit to Sea adventure.
My TKN assignment with AKF Egypt was to strengthen educational offerings at the Centre for Continuing Education in Aswan. The Centre was one of the organizations established under the aegis of Um Habibeh Foundation established by Mata Salamat to assist the population of Aswan and surrounding areas.
Shahin Hirji's TKN placement was as the building coordinator at the Ismaili Centre, tasked with developing a maintenance plan for the facility, setting it up, and training the local team on how to execute the plan. Hirji had extensive engineering consulting experience, though none of it was specifically in building management.
Focus Humanitarian Assistance (FOCUS) is an international crisis response and disaster management agency which emphasizes a community-based approach, particularly in its Disaster Risk Reduction efforts. FOCUS depends heavily on its international network of volunteers, who are integral to the success of the organization. We have had TKN volunteers from around the world join in our efforts to limit the magnitude of disaster, taking the work of our organization to the next level.
TKN volunteers reflect on their TKN experiences with the Rahe Kamyabi Initiative (RKI): Road to Success. RKI is a mentorship program for members of the Central Asian Jamat, RKI aims to bring individuals together in a mentor-mentee relationship in order to develop competence in areas such as goal setting, financial and career planning, time management and communication skills all the while being mindful of the Canadian context within which these skills need to be used.
The Special Kin Inspiration Program, otherwise known as SKIP seeks to provide support to members of the Jamat who have mental, physical and/or developmental disabilities. “After joining SKIP, I have a new perspective” Rajan says, “I want these individuals to feel included and integrated with systems in place that enable them to get help as soon as they need it”.
Fayaz Mawani is a high school science teacher in Vancouver, Canada and a TKN volunteer who is seeing the impact of his committed and energetic efforts. Mawani started his TKN assignment, which involves providing career counseling to high school students in the Jamat, in September 2011 with the Education Board of the Ismaili Council for British Columbia.
In an effort to respond to student needs, the Education Board established the Tutorial Learning Centre, knowing that it would require professional teachers who understand curriculum and effective teaching methods. If it wasn’t for TKN, Dadani makes apparent, the TLC would have to hire teachers, as the number of volunteer teachers isn’t sufficient.
Jamatkhanas are central to the identity of the Shia Ismaili Muslims. Zahra Dharani of Brisbane, Australia fulfilled her TKN niyat by playing a critical role in the development of Brisbane Jamatkhana, a place for the community to gather, worship and engage with one another.
My name is Bina Kassam and I live in Sydney, Australia. My TKN assignment was to find an aged care facility suitable for senior members of the Sydney Jamat. My aim is to try and help our senior Jamati members go into onecommon centre so they have company, can pray together, and it is easier for volunteers to visit them and help with their transportation to Jamatkhana.
Hamida Karim Vadsaria is a New Zealand citizen who had the opportunity to fulfil her TKN niyat with the Aga Khan Early Learning Centre (AKELC) in Dubai. Her assignment involved serving as a professional Early Childhood Education (ECE) teacher educator for 11 months.
At the mouth of a valley, framed against a backdrop of three mountains, the lush nursery paints a breathtaking view. Filled with indigenous plants, trees and stunning gardens, it is here that Roshan Hemani, the Plant Nursery Manager at the Aga Khan University’s Principal Campus in East Africa at Arusha, serves as a dedicated Time and Knowledge Nazarana (TKN) volunteer.
A Chartered Civil Engineer from the United Kingdom, Salim Mohamed was in Kenya to serve with Planning and Construction Management (PCM), the Dubai-based construction project management arm of the Aga Khan Development Network. PCM assists other AKDN institutions build projects like the Ismaili Centres in Dushanbe and Dubai, the Aga Khan Academy in Mombasa, the Diamond Jubilee High School in India, and the Islamabad Serena Hotel in Pakistan.
The importance of service was instilled in Moledina as a young boy growing up in Mumbai, where he has lived his whole life. Following his uncle’s example, he joined the Mumbai Darkhana Jamatkhana Scout Group, a group branch of the worldwide scouting movement that teaches youth to become active members of their communities through physical, mental, and spiritual development.
Azim Mitha is the TKN Team Coordinator in the Australia and New Zealand region, sifting through volunteer profiles, to hone in on those whose skills and expertise would best satisfy the needs. In matching the skill sets and professional experience of volunteers with the particular requirements of an institution, TKN enables qualified and capable professionals in the Jamat to offer meaningful voluntary service in their own field, while strengthening institutional capacity.
