Volunteers In Action
TKN volunteer Dr. Hafeez Jamal makes significant contribution on AKF East Africa’s ecological restoration project
2 October 2023
Dr. Hafeez Jamal, a Canadian whose family hails from Tanzania, was engaged this year by the Aga Khan Foundation (AKF) East Africa as a Strategic Advisor, Mangroves. With training and experience in Hyperbaric and Dive Medicine, Marine Ecology, Ecological Planning and Participatory Development, his mandate was to provide strategic advice and to design a community and ecosystem-based approach to coastal regeneration. Over the course of two weeks, Dr. Jamal visited twelve mangrove forests in Tanzania and Kenya and met with local communities, government officials, and key partners.
Dedicated TKN volunteer serves on seven high-impact international assignments
31 August 2023
The University of Central Asia (UCA) is an internationally chartered, secular, private, not-for-profit university with a mission to improve the quality of life of mountain societies. It was founded in 2000 through an International Treaty signed by the Ismaili Imamat together with the Governments of Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Kazakhstan, ratified by their respective parliaments and registered with the United Nations. UCA’s three campuses, nestled in rural mountainous towns along the historic Silk Road, are at the heart of the economic, social, and intellectual transformation taking place in the region.
UCA TKN volunteers invited to attend 2023 Convocation
10 July 2023
The below eight University of Central Asia (UCA) TKN volunteers were invited to attend the UCA Convocation held in June 2023, in recognition of their exemplary voluntary service to UCA. Among the distinguished guests were UCA trustees, including Princess Zahra Aga Khan. These TKN volunteers had the unique opportunity to be introduced to Princess Zahra at a special event - see above photograph of the TKN volunteers pictured with Princess Zahra. Photos and brief summaries of the volunteers’ exceptional TKN contributions to UCA are provided below.
TKN volunteers are connecting the international Jamat through Global Encounters’ exciting programmes
TKN volunteers are connecting the international Jamat through Global Encounters’ exciting programmes
9 June 2023
Imagine the thunderous claps and cheers of the audience as dancers, singers, athletes and artists own the stage with the beats of their feet, and the graceful arcs of their shots into the basketball hoop. This is what many TKN volunteers from around the world are thinking about and looking forward to experiencing at the Global Encounters Festival in 2024.
TKN mentors empower Central and South Asia's promising tech-enabled startup scene
17 May 2023
In the vibrant city of Dubai last month, Central and South Asia's top 12 most promising tech-enabled startups took the stage at SlingShot's Demo Day to pitch for global recognition and investment. The top four startups were selected from each of the participating countries: Pakistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan. After two months of acceleration programming, they competed in Dubai for the chance to win seed funding and support from external investors.
TKN leadership consultant helps strengthen performance management at UCA
21 January 2023
The University of Central Asia (UCA) has made significant progress in its performance management systems in recent years. A TKN assignment was intended to build upon this by providing additional training in several key areas.
Major TKN contribution to Parwaaz ECD Programme in Chitral
23 December 2022
The early years of a child are crucial in developing an adaptable and agile mind. A child’s experiences in the preschool years have lasting effects on the foundation of the child’s behaviour, emotions and education in the future. Despite research on the critical importance of Early Childhood Development (ECD), there continues to be a lack of awareness. In particular, ECD implementation in Pakistan’s most remote and rural areas is imperative.
From Seattle to Gilgit: Married couple on a mission to improve pharmacy services
14 November 2022
The most recent TKN volunteers to visit The Aga Khan Medical Centre in Gilgit are Shabir and Salma Somani. The Somanis live in Seattle, USA, and are passionate about giving back to the Jamat. They travelled to the remote mountains and valleys of Northern Pakistan to improve pharmacy services in the region.
Reflections on a Decade of Service as a TKN Volunteer
4 October 2022
It is a rare person who sets aside a dynamic business career to become a volunteer – not just for a week or a month, but for years. Yet that is what Azmina Jivan did more than a decade ago. And she has not looked back.
Exemplary service of TKN volunteers on IIS Academic Support Program
23 September 2022
The Academic Skills Support Team in the Department of Graduate Studies at the Institute of Ismaili Studies (IIS) is tasked with raising the number of high-quality applicants for the Institute’s graduate programmes from priority countries such as Afghanistan, Iran, Pakistan, Syria and Tajikistan. In particular, we focus on finding excellent candidates to apply for the Secondary Teacher Education Programme (STEP). This in itself has not been difficult; year after year, we find people with fantastic teaching potential, motivation and commitment to the Jamat. However, getting their academic skills up to a level where they could undertake the rigours of a dual programme including a Master’s and PGDip is more of a challenge. We work with local providers who teach academic skills in each country, but another important ingredient to achieving our goal has been the use of TKN teachers to shore up local and UK programmes with remotely-based, small-group, targeted online teaching.
TKN Management Consultant Shireen Hirani engaged in Capacity Building at the University of Central Asia (UCA)
10 August 2022
“When moving to Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan in November 2020 from the United States, I was clueless what I would be doing in a city I had not known before – geographically, culturally, linguistically or any other way…” reminisces Shireen about her move to not only a new city but a new continent, 20 months ago. “However, I had one observation over the past 13 years: although many of my family members (including myself and my husband) and friends had pledged TKN during Golden Jubilee and then again in Diamond Jubilee, several were still anticipating being matched to an assignment. That is what created a spark to create projects and implement ideas through which I could engage international TKN volunteers across to match various needs and assignments at UCA” Shireen remarks.
Pivotal international partnership to enhance cancer care and mental well-being
18 July 2022
In July 2021, Roxana Sultan, an experienced health sector executive, had the opportunity to serve on a remote TKN assignment to support AKU’s Cancer Center and Brain and Mind Institute. The six-month assignment culminated in the establishment of a new partnership to enhance cancer care and mental well-being.
