2015 TILIP Class
Dr. Maysaa Husam Jaber
University of Baghdad, Iraq
Maysaa Husam Jaber completed a PhD in English and American Studies from the University of Manchester UK in 2011. Now she is a university lecturer at the Psychological Research Center, Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research and is head of the Translation Unit there. She also lectures at the University of Baghdad (English Department, College of Education for Women and Alkawarizmi College of Engineering) where she teaches different modules to undergraduate and postgraduate students. She was a fellow in The University of Massachusetts Boston from September to November 2013. She published with Palgrave, Cambridge Scholars and The Arab World English Journal. Her first book Criminal Femme Fatales in American Hardboiled Crime Fiction is forthcoming with Palgrave Macmillan.
Dr. Ariel Kabiri
Western Galilee College, University of Haifa, Israel
Ariel Kabiri earned his PhD in international relations from the School of Political Sciences at the University of Haifa in 2012 and his BA and MA, also in international relations, at the Hebrew University. His dissertation focused on the effects of the interrelationships between technological revolutions and political ideas on great powers’ behavior since the mid-nineteenth century. Kabiri’s current research derives from his claim that technology is the systemic selector between two competing territorial cultures: status quo and revisionism, the former constituting peace and the latter constituting war. His forthcoming works examine the links between revisionist culture and the industrial era and between status-quo culture and nuclear technology, as well as the prospects for cultural change due to the emergence of nanotechnology and especially molecular nanotechnology. His forthcoming publication, “Hobbes, Locke, and Kant: Systemic Cultures in the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict,” will appear in Regional Peacemaking and Conflict Management: A Comparative Approach, edited by Carmela Lutmar and Benjamin Miller and published by Routledge. Currently Kabiri teaches political science and international relations at the Western Galilee College and the University of Haifa.
Bernardo Mendes
Brazil
Dr. Guihai Guan
China
Dr. Zuhair Humadi
Iraq
Dr. Vasily Zharkov
Russia
Mark Simon
Russia
Ivan Sukhov
Russia
Boli Xu
Peking University,China
XU Boli (b 1992.3) is currently a first-year graduate student in National School of Development, Peking University, majoring in economics. Most of his friends might introduce him as an activist, but actually he longs to become a professor in the future. He is always excited about his major as he believes that the essence of economics can help improve the allocation of resources for human society. One of his lifetime goals is to become a popularizer of economics, spreading the ideology of economics, encouraging more people think like economists and alleviating the misallocation of social resources.
Recently Boli is diving into macroeconomics, but his research interest is not confined to the macroeconomic issues. He is particularly interested in topics about how the government can play a better role in the economic development of a country, such as public finance and mechanism design.
He feels privileged to become a delegate of EPIIC program and look forwards to meeting friends from all over the world.
Meiling Jin
Peking University, China
JIN Meiling(b 1988.11) is a PhD candidate in the Department of Russian Language and Literature, Peking University, who is currently studying in Lomovosov Moscow State University as a visiting scholar, sponsored by Ministry of Education of China. As a Korean-Chinese born in Harbin, Heilongjiang Province of China, she received a bilingual education from childhood and published her first personal literary works in Korean in 2000. Started to learn Russian in the university, she spent one year in Tula State Lev Tolstoy Pedagogical University of Russia as a government-sponsored student abroad. In August 2012, she delivered a speech in Russian on behalf of Chinese students in the Great Hall of the People when Premier Li Keqiang met with the visiting delegation of students from Moscow State University. Outside of class, she works as a translator in various fields. From 2008 to 2013, she worked as a part-time middle school English teacher in Beijing New Oriental School.Being able to speak four languages, she has a strong interest in culture communication and making friends with different people. She is good at dancing, singing and skating.
Xinyue Ma
Peking University, China
MA Xinyue (b1991.5) is currently a senior student of the School of International Studies, Peking University, and is taking a double degree in the Department of History. She enjoys working between disciplines, and plans to pursue a graduate degree in international relations after graduation, after which she is determined to develop a career in international affairs. She comes from China’s northeastern province of Heilongjiang (neighbors Russia across the Amur River/Heilongjiang in Chinese), where Russia had a historical influence on its culture. In her third year of undergraduate study, she attended the University of Kent, UK as an Erasmus exchange student. Currently she works as research assistant at the Institute of International Economics Research at China’s National Development and Reform Commission, and as part-time research intern at China Arms Control and Disarmament Association. On campus, she worked as executive director of the Tutoring Program for International Students in Peking University. She loves music and theater performance. She is alto/soprano and lead singer of Peking University’s a capella group Vocal Booth, and has worked as stage manager at Institute of World Theater and Film. She anticipates to attend this year’s EPIIC Symposium and to share her thinking on Russia in the 21st century.
Artem Baryshev
Moscow State Institute of International Relations, Russia
2009 – 2013 was a student at MGIMO Bachelor program “Regional studies". Bachelor thesis was dedicated to “India in the US foreign policy strategy at the beginning of the 21st century”. In 2012 was an intern at the central office of the Russian Foreign Ministry in 2 Department of Asia. In 2013 was accepted into MGIMO MA program “Russian foreign policy and diplomacy”. Master's thesis topic is “China in the US foreign policy strategy under President Obama”. Areas of interest – Russian foreign and domestic policy, US foreign policy, the role of the office of the Vice President in different administrations from George. H. W. Bush to Joseph Biden.
Roy Gafni
Practice Academy Program, University of Haifa, Israel
Born in 1995, second year student at the Department of General History. resident of Tsurit, Israel. An excellent student. Recommended for the program by the Head of Department.
About myself: My name is Roy Gafni I am a 19 years old student from Haifa University. I am living in Haifa during the semester and in Tsuriz, a small community village in the north of Israel in between the semesters. In the future, I would like to study more about the Middle East or to take a part in Israel’s peace process.
Orion Calderon
Practice Academy Program, University of Haifa, Israel
Born in 1982, 3rd year student at the Department of Geography & Archeology studies, resident of Kibbutz Bahan. An excellent student. Recommended for the program by the Head of Department.
About myself: I have dedicated my life to the pursuit and spreading of knowledge in the world. I am a freelance tour-guide in and educator of the land of Israel, travel much in my free time, a very good listener and a passionate fan of the human world & spirit, from nature & philosophy to economics & foreign affairs. I believe curiosity and adventures are the engine of our life, and very grateful for any opportunity to learn and advance.
Sahara Fadel
Social Leadership Program, University of Haifa, Israel
Born in 1993, second year student at the Department of Nursing , resident of Maghar village .
About myself: I have always been an achiever; be it academics or professional life or any other field in my life. I believe in success through hard work and dedication. My motto in life is ‘If you want something, work hard and you will achieve it; there are no short cuts’. I enjoy life to the fullest and love humor. I am a progressive thinker and respect each person’s space and values.
Hazem Marie
Social Leadership Program, University of Haifa, Israel
Born in 1981, second year student at the Faculty of Humanities in the Department of Multi-Disciplinary Studies, resident of Israel .
About myself: I am a father of two great children. I start my studies two years ago believing that academic studies is the first step in fulfilling my dream and my parents one. Six years ago I finished my diploma studies specialized in alternative medicine and since then I began lecturing and working as a therapist . My discipline is supposed to apply nutrition advice for a good life, in addition to that I am a massage therapist.
Alon Eiseman
Social Leadership Program, University of Haifa, Israel
Born in 1988 in the city of Haifa, where I still live today. A second year student at the School of Political Science and in the Department of General History.
About myself: I have four sisters and happily married parents. Nowadays, alongside my studies, I am participating in the Social Leadership Program of Rave- Ravid fund . This scholarship is about leadership and social involvement. My part in the program is to mentor children's soccer team. I hope that by doing so I'll be able to improve their life and make them better people by exposing and teaching them values.
Daria Gomelsky
Social Leadership Program, University of Haifa, Israel
Born in 1992 in the city of Tashkent in Uzbekistan, A second year student at the School of Political Science and in the Department of Sociology & Anthropology.
About myself: In 1994 my family immigrated to Israel and settled down in Haifa where I was raised and still live today. Nowadays in the University of Haifa. These days I am participating in the Social Leadership Program of Rave- Ravid fund. In the program we learn how to influence and improve our society and I think that it is important and enriching. In my opinion our contribution can make a good change in our society.
Natalia Velichkina
Moscow State University of Foreign Relations, Russia
I was born in Moscow (Russia) October 19th, 1991. I spent my first 5 years with my parents-diplomats in Bangladesh, and then several years in Turkey. In 2005 I returned to Moscow. In 2008 I entered the Moscow State University of Foreign Relations (MGIMO), and in 2013 got my bachelor degree at the Foreign Relations faculty, specialization – Spanish History and Economy. Now I am doing my master degree at the same Foreign Relations faculty, specialization – International Politics and Transnational Business.
Interests: modern history of Europe and Latin America; Spanish history and economy; Catholic Church; world trade and economy. I have some written works on Spanish Catholic Church in Russian and a written work on Pope Francis in Spanish. My master’s thesis is dedicated to the WTO and its functioning after the global economic crisis of 2008.
Languages: Russian, English, Spanish, French.
Viktor Katona
Moscow State University of Foreign Relations, Russia
Born in 1989, to a Russian mother and a Hungarian father in Bratislava, Slovakia, I enrolled at MGIMO in 2009 after having spent almost 20 years in my native city (there I studied at a Hungarian elementary and high school). At MGIMO, I stayed loyal to the International Relations faculty, both for my Bc and Masters, with a major in French history and politics. In a few months I'll finish my Masters.
Spheres of interest: Politics & history of Europe (Western, Eastern and Central alike), North and South America, Africa
Languages: Russian, Hungarian, Slovakian, Czech, French, English, a bit of German
Guojun Dai
Peking University, China
Guojun Dai is a first-year graduate student in the School of International Relations, Peking University. Having her undergraduate major as international politics, she finds not only the curiosity to understand how international actors interact with each other, but also the academic interest in what is the mechanism behind these interactions, which keeps her passion in what she studies. Guojun grew up in Guangdong Province, and came to Beijing for college education in 2010. She is keen on learning languages, and so far she can speak Mandarin, English, Spanish, Cantonese and also Hakka dialect. In her sophomore year, she had an exchange stay at the Autonomous University of Barcelona, Spain. Specializing in contemporary international relations especially energy-related studies, she has done several subject researches to improve her academic quality. She conducted case-studies on issues of mining industry in South America and their root causes, which won the third prize in the 22nd “Challenge Cup” May-4th Youth Science Competition of Peking University. With her bachelor’s degree thesis studying on the Energy Integration in South America, she is also interested in the energy game regarding Russia in the 21st century. Outside of class, she is the chairwoman of the Graduate Union in the School of International Relations and also having an internship at Shell (China) Limited. Being a genuine and curious learner, she would be more than pleased to be part of the EPIIC program and have exchanges with all the excellent attendees.
Ziyao Tian
Peking University, China
TIAN Ziyao (b1993.5) is currently a senior student in the Department of Sociology, Peking University. With strong curiosity about society, she hopes to understand people and how the society works and make solid contributions to the well being of humankind with her knowledge. Born and grew up in
Beijing, Ziyao studied at the University of Toronto as an exchange student in her sophomore year. In the second half of her college years, she has been an active participant of sociological field trips with topics ranging from anti-poverty to landless peasants across China. She was also a summer research intern at UCLA, studying the city participation of 2012 Chinese anti-Japanese protests. She plans to pursue a graduate degree in sociology after graduation. Outside of class, she is involved with several volunteer
programs, the RDFZ-PKU alumni association and her department¹s student council. She is also a big fan of card games, swimming and traveling. She attended the 2014 EPIIC Symposium about Middle East and North Africa and is more than excited to return to Tufts University to learn about Russia in the 21st century.
Alisa Selezeneva
MGIMO-University in Moscow, Russia
My name is Alisa Selezeneva, and I am a second-year master’s student at MGIMO-University in Moscow, Russia. I am currently studying transnational business, and I would like to build my future career in this sphere. I got my bachelor’s degree in political science, but after four years of studying comparative politics I realized I wanted to try something new. So, I opted for economics, which was a real challenge for me at first. Nonetheless, I never regretted the choice I had made. I am very much interested in what I am doing now and even picked a quite complicated topic for my thesis related to the legal framework for sovereign debt restructuring.
Hanati Hailati
Health Science Center, Peking University, China
Hailati Hanati (b 1991.6) is a Kazakhstan Chinese, and currently a senior student in Peking University Health Science Center. He is a Fulbright Scholarship winner, and will pursue master’s study in the major of Global Health from 2015, fall. His research interests are focused on Health Development, Health Development Aid, and Minority Health Equity. Hanati has worked as research assistant in Department of International Cooperation, Ministry of Health, and Institute of International Development Cooperation, Ministry of Commerce. Hanati also volunteered in Kenya as HIV-tester and in Kazakhstan as physician assistant. Hanati finished his resident intern in Peking University Shougang Hospital and studied in Duke Kunshan Campus as exchange student. During his early college years, he co-founded Hippocrates Medical Union and campaigned “Doctor’s Day” for the first time in China. He was member of EPIIC Peking Univ. Delegation in 2014, and hopes to exchange views with and learn from each others in 2015 EPIIC Symposium: Russia in the 21st Century.
Raphael Sangwoong Kim
Peking University, China
Raphael Sangwoong Kim was born in Jeonju on March of 1991. He is of Korean ancestry but immigrated to Vancouver at the age of 7 and obtained Canadian citizenship. Raphael enrolled in the University of Toronto but left the institution in the hope of benefiting from another overseas education. Raphael then spent a year studying Chinese and preparing for entrance exams, after which he enrolled in the Peking University School of Medicine on a full scholarship program. He is now on his 4th year of studies and is due to graduate in 2017. Outside of the classroom, he takes initiative to take advantage of the opportunities offered by Beijing. Raphael is a Peking Duck Ambassador for the Jin Bai Wan restaurant franchise and a Chinese Culture Ambassador for the Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press of Beijing Foreign Studies University. He sat as a guest for television shows featured on Beijing TV with the purpose of introducing Peking duck and Korean cuisine to a greater audience. In respect to student gatherings, Raphael attended the January ’14 East Asian Medical Student Conference held in South Korea as an Observer and attended the July ’14 Asian Medical Student Conference held in Thailand as the Chief Delegate. Raphael learned to play the violin up until RCM 8 but isn’t very fond of the instrument. He trained in taekwondo up to the level of 3rd degree black belt and competed competitively as a member of British Columbia’s junior provincial team. His hobbies and interests include watching movies, eating good food, sampling unfamiliar dishes, traveling, and methodical exploring. He likes people and making friends but sometimes has difficulty being extroverted.
Rand Jassar
Iraq
My name is Rand Jassar. I was born in Baghdad, Iraq. When I was ten, I moved to Syria and lived there for a little over 2 years. Then in 2008 I came to America. My family and I lived in Chicago for about 6 years then decided to move to Maryland. We have been living in Columbia for 6 months now.
I’m a freshman at Loyola University in Maryland. During the summer before my first semester, I was debating with myself whether I should pursue something I’m passionate about or something that guarantees a good life. I spent the last two years of high school writing for two different newspapers. One of which was Chicago Tribune’s teen print called “The Mash.” Writing opened my eyes to a lot of things that I was ignorant about. It made me realize that there’s much more a person can do than become a doctor or an engineer- although those are two great careers and I salute anyone willing to take on that challenge.
After witnessing all the current events taking place in the Middle East- the Yazidis’ living conditions and the spread of ISIS- I decided, as naïve as it sounds, that I want to help make a difference in the world. That is why I am now considering pursuing Political Science as a major.
On a lighter note, I love animals. I always thought that I was dog person but after I got my first cat three years ago I can’t really choose which I like best. I have a weird new obsession with elephants. I don’t really know why, I haven’t even seen one in person.
I love music. My favorite genres are alternative rock and EDM. I also like a little bit of pop and country. I like to listen to Neon Trees, Nirvana, Imagine Dragons, Skrillex- the list goes on. I have a guitar but I’ve yet to learn how to play it.
Unless you think badminton is a sport, I can’t really play anything. I do, however enjoy watching the Blackhawks hockey team playing and some soccer because all Middle Easterners love soccer, of course. Because I hate doing a lot of physical activity, especially running, I enjoy meditating when I’m not swamped with homework.
Vladimir Poluektov
Russia
Amanda Mota
Brazil
Andre Moreira
Brazil
Ana Sofia Monteiro
Brazil
Janaina Curi
Brazil
Thiago Gonçalves
Brazil
Clara Tupinambá
Brazil
Huiruo Li
China
Yousif Hayder Ah Farjallah
Iraq
Yasmeen Humadi
Iraq
Evgeny Bezlyudnyy
Russia
Alexander Zaritskiy
Russia
Roza Khusnullina
Russia
Sergey Gladysh
Russia
Stanislav Kozheurov
Russia
Danila Menishikov
Russia
Ekaterina Kuzina
Russia
Elena Yamburenk
Russia
Lishan (Clara) Ong
Singapore
John Leo Caines
Singapore
Dayae Chung
South Korea
Hee Jai Suk
South Korea
Nataliia Iuvkhyets
Ukraine
Daryna Nekrashchuk
Ukraine
Mykhailo Kiktenko
Ukraine
Vladyslav Kopytkov
Ukraine
Yaroslav Brychka
Ukraine
Nadiia Chubatenk
Ukraine