Liaison Fellowships connect graduate students with WSIP partners beyond academia by offering short-term internships. The fellowships enable UMass PhD students to build networks, hone new skills, and explore future work in non-academic social-justice arenas. At present, WSIP has a liaison fellowship with International Civil Society Action Network (ICAN). The Fellowship is linked to the WSIP Graduate Certificate in Decolonial Global Studies (DGS) though UMass PhD students from all departments, colleges, and schools are invited to apply.
Mellon and International Civil Society Action Network (ICAN) Liaison Fellowship
Organized by the UMass-Amherst World Studies Interdisciplinary Project (WSIP), and funded by the Mellon Foundation and the UMass-Amherst Provost’s Office, the liaison fellowship at ICAN offers UMass Mellon Fellows the opportunity to learn about both local women’s peacebuilding practices and the workings of a global, coalition-building, peace-building organization. Fellows meanwhile put their skills in research, writing, collaborative conceptualization, and relation-building at the service of a social-justice organization.
ICAN is incredibly proud to partner with UMASS for the Andrew Mellon Liaison Fellowship. For the pilot process, we had fifteen fantastic candidates, two of whom offered the skills set and knowledge that were a particularly brilliant fit for key aspects of our work. The first fellowship period has concluded successfully. It’s been incredibly productive and helpful for us. We are looking forward to our next UMASS Fellow and hope to continue the partnership into the future!
Sanam Naraghi Anderlini (Founder and CEO, ICAN)
Mariam Parvez Sheikh and Meenakshi Nair were awarded the 2023 and 2024 liaison fellowships respectively.
Having previously developed curricula, During her fellowship, Mariam reviewed ICAN material and conducted research to map existing curricula in Women, Peace, and Security (WPS). She organized and created an outline of resources to identify potential entry points for sharing ICAN’s materials with academic and professional institutions. In addition, she reviewed existing online platforms for remote learning to explore the possibility of ICAN developing an online curriculum which would be accessible for women peacebuilders globally. Her work helped to lay the foundation for ways in which ICAN and our partners can share our knowledge and expertise with key leaders and future peacebuilders. Mariam was also reflective of her experience as a fellow at ICAN and shared ideas for further developing the fellowship program. As a PhD student and specialist in international education, Mariam brought to ICAN strong research and writing skills, ethnographic fieldwork, knowledge of gender, student activism in Pakistan, and practical teaching experience.
Stacey Schambers (Senior Program Officer, ICAN)
New liaison fellowship opportunities will be announced as they become available.