Fellows: Innovator Profiles

Innovator Profiles

“Jaalaka” means “network” in Sanskrit. In Hubli-Dharwad, FrontlineSMS technology is being used to connect members of the HIV/AIDS population in a widespread rural to improve service delivery and social support. Hubli-Dharwad, a peri-urban district in Karnataka, India, has experienced a significant HIV/AIDS endemic. Most of the infections occur amongst the rural female sex-worker population. There is a significant lack of knowledge about STI prevention and treatment amongst these sex workers, which has contributed to the growth in the rate of infections. The Karnataka Health Promotion Trust (KHPT), a government organization that funds and administers public health programs in Hubli-Dharwad, spearheads several programs to combat the spread of HIV/AIDS and other STIs. In order to target the high risk population of female sex workers, KHPT formed a partnership with the Bhoruka Charitable Trust (BCT), a local NGO aimed at promoting health and livelihoods among female sex workers. Since the Hubli-Dharwad region includes over 372 rural villages, BCT employs both professional Outreach Workers as well as volunteer Peer Educators (whom are also female sex workers) to travel to distant villages to educate female sex workers about the risk of HIV/AIDS and to promote safer sex practices.

Candice Hung is a first-year Master of Planning student focusing on Social and Community Planning with an International specialization. Committed to community and economic development, Candice currently works for the Community Redevelopment Agency of the City of Los Angeles. Candice holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in International Development with minors in Political Science and Urban Studies. As an undergraduate student, Candice was the Director of the International Social Justice Network, and helped secure California’s divestment from Sudan in protest of the Darfur crisis. Candice has also interned for Relief International, a non-profit NGO that provides emergency relief and administers long-term development projects in Africa, the Middle East, and South Asia. Candice has volunteered on grass-root development projects in Costa Rica and Romania. Candice’s passions include: traveling, social justice, Taiwanese and Asian American empowerment, sustainability, and fantasy football/basketball. One innovation Candice cannot live without is the Blackberry.

Jyoti Gaur attended the University of California, San Diego where she received an Environmental Policy and Biology degree. Upon graduating from UCSD, she began working for Heal the Bay, an environmental non-profit, where she worked on education and policy programs related to water quality. She is now obtaining her MBA from USC’s Marshall School of Business. She is a Society and Business Lab fellow and wants to use business to create environmental and social change. Jyoti is an avid traveler and enjoys observing cultures from all over the world.

Tisa Thomas is a sophomore majoring in Health Promotion and Disease Prevention. She is currently serving as co-chair of Community Service for Associated Trustee Presidential Scholars. She is also the director of Community Building for the USC GlobeMed chapter, a non-profit organization which partners with grassroots health organizations around the world to promote health equity. She has previously volunteered at a village clinic in southern India. Tisa is also a Siemens Westinghouse Scholar and a regional finalist in the Siemens Westinghouse Competition in Math, Science and Technology. She is excited to be part of the Global Impact Program and is looking forward to working with the team in India. One innovation she cannot live without is the internet because it allows her to keep in touch with her family.

Kailash Gajara came from India in July 2008 and started working towards personality development, leadership skills, multitasking quality and work in multicultural environment along with his masters degree from the USC Viterbi School of Engineering. As Software Engineer he always thinks of creative ideas about Science and Technology but never executed. During his undergraduate education he had the opportunity to work with various organizations like IEEE, CSI, ISTE and now at USC he is a member of the executive board of Association of Indian Students(AIS). Has organized and handled various events in past 1.5 years with a varying number of students. Career goals include: Software Industry where he can use his computer programming skills to develop new software that reach and help mankind. HIs areas of interests are Healthcare, education and infrastruture development. In India, Kailash would like to expand the activities of his father’s NGO (research center) in rural areas of Kutch, guarat, India.

SendHealth

SendHealth is an innovative pilot to deliver health to rural villages with limited or no access to substantial health facilities.  Utilizing FrontlineSMS, a text messaging application for mobile phones, physicians can be linked to a large group of villagers.  SendHealth saves time, money, and enables a greater network of individuals to have access to basic health care.

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Breanna Morrison is both an undergraduate senior and a first year grad student in the school of Policy, Planning and Development at USC.  Both her studies and independent research are based in the field of international economic development.  She is currently working for the Department of Public Works for the City of Los Angeles as an urban planning intern.

Rolf Hoefer grew up in Paris, France, amidst a Colombian mother and a German father.  He earned both his B.S. in Business Entrepreneurship from the USC Marshall School of Business and his B.A. in Theatre from the USC School of Theatre in May 2010.

Kenneth Kim just completed his first year at USC Marshall’s full-time MBA program.  A graduate of the University of Pennsylvania, he is originally from Southern California and worked as a consultant with IBM and a Division Director Counselor at DHS – FEMA prior to starting at Marshall.

rowdsourcing Team

The Crowdsourcing Team seeks to leverage the collective expertise of the global community by creating a wiki-inspired, collaborative website for innovation.  By creating a series of documentaries, we will accurately portray the most pressing challenges faced by stakeholders in Education, Agriculture, Health, and Livelihoods.  These challenges will be presented to the public on our website, where users can create, edit, and collaborate on proposals to create sustainable and scalable models for development.

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Crystal Cheng recently graduated from University of Southern California in Business Administration with emphasis in Management and Finance.  She was a part of a variety of student organizations on campus such as Los Angeles Community Impact, Marshall Microfinance Association, and Alpha Phi Omega, the largest co-ed service fraternity. She has consulted a number of non-profit organizations and small businesses and consistently volunteered throughout the Greater Los Angeles.  She will starting work as a Business Technology Consultant at Hitachi Consulting at the end of September.

Jesse Goldberg holds a BA in Political Science from Tufts University and recently completed his first year in the MBA program at the University of Southern California’s Marshall School of Business.  Jesse has extensive professional experience working in the nonprofit sector, with a particular focus on issues of workforce development.  As a full-time MBA student, Jesse consults with a number of nonprofit organizations and currently serves as the Vice President for Social Enterprise in the school’s Net Impact chapter.

Sarayu Ramanan is a first year Masters of Public Administration candidate at the University of Southern California focusing in Nonprofit Management and International Development.  Saru holds a BA in English Literature from The Ohio State University and has  worked in the public and nonprofit sectors domestically and abroad.  Upon completion of her degree, Sarayu plans to work with an international organization whose mission serves disadvantaged youth.

Zlatan Sehovic is currently a fourth-year undergraduate Architecture student at the University of Southern California where he is also minoring in Policy, Planning, and Development.  As co-founder of USC Global Architecture Brigades and USGBC_USC, Zlatan is primarily interested in ecological architecture and the effects nature has on the built environment.  In his free time, Zlatan enjoys drawing, traveling and participating in extreme sports such as skydiving, bungee jumping, and white water rafting.

UNC

Jotegoodu: Redefining Masculinity

Jotegoodu: Redefining Masculinity in Karnataka is an adaptation of the Population Council and Instituto Promundo’s program Yaari Dosti designed specifically for Northwestern Karnataka. The program engages young men in the age group of 18-25 years on topics of gender equality, sexual and reproductive health, risk-taking, violence, and HIV/AIDS through interactive games, role plays, and other activities. Jotegoodu‘s conceptual framework, based on the Theory of Planned Behavior, posits that improved gender equality attitudes, increased sexual and reproductive health knowledge, and changes in gender norms will lead to decreased violence against women and reduced HIV and STI incidence.
The Jotegoodu Campaign goes one step further to raise awareness of gender-related issues in rural villages around the Dharwad District. The campaign, currently in the planning stages, will employ community-organizing strategies such as jathas (rallies), posters, wall paintings, t-shirts, street plays, and community forums to encourage critical thinking about traditional gender roles and gender progress at a village level.

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Jessica recently graduated from the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health with an MPH in health behavior and health education.

Yulia recently graduated from the UNC Gillings School of Global Public health with a BS in nutrition.