Alumni
The alumni below all pursued regional affairs or Fares Center-affiliated work in their studies, research, or professional paths. If you are a Fletcher alum who has engaged with regional analysis in your education or work, please click here to fill out this survey.
2022-2023
Mustafa is a 2023 Januarian MALD from Turkey with fields of study in international negotiation and conflict resolution. He has served as the Turkish Language Table Leader. He is a graduate of Bogazici University in Istanbul, where he studied Political Science and International Relations. His field While completing his undergraduate degree, Mustafa also participated in an exchange program at the American University of Beirut. Prior to beginning his studies at Fletcher, Mustafa worked as a tax analyst for Ernst & Young.
Alexander Kochenburger is the operations and finance manager at the Global Coalition to Protect Education from Attack, where he supports the Coalition’s production of research such as the Education under Attack series, as well as the advancement of the Safe Schools Declaration. Previously, Alex worked at the New Lines Institute for Strategy and Policy as an analysis supervisor and at AMIDEAST as a senior program assistant. He also completed a Fulbright grant in Agadir, Morocco from 2017-2018. Alex obtained a Master of Arts in Law and Diplomacy from The Fletcher School at Tufts University and a Bachelor of Arts in International Studies and Arabic from the College of the Holy Cross.
Nezihe is a 2023 Januarian MALD from Turkey focusing on law and institutions, international development, and development economics. She received her B.A. in Economics from Bilkent University in Ankara. Prior to Fletcher, she worked as a senior legislative expert concentrating on gender equality and European Union harmonization at the Turkish Parliament in Ankara and as a foreign law consultant at the Library of Congress in Washington, DC. She joined the Fares Center in Fall 2021 and leads the Turkish Language Table.
Mohsen Alateeqi
Mohsen is a 2023 MALD from Kuwait. He is a graduate of Bentley University, where he received a B.S. in Corporate Finance and Accounting. His primary interests are Middle Eastern studies, international and alternative finance, democratization and colonial studies.
Waleed Al Mutawa
Waleed is a Junior Analyst at Wafra Inc, an alternative investment firm based in New York. Prior to joining , he completed his Masters of Arts in Law and Diplomacy at Fletcher focusing on International Organizations and Investing for Impact. He works adjacent to the public equities and alternative investment teams at Wafra.
Dana is a 2023 MALD focusing on migration and refugee’s resettlement. Dana studied Peace and Conflict Studies and Political Science as an undergraduate, and is originally from the Middle East (half Iraqi and half Palestinian). Dana supports the Rian Migration Center and for the International Institute of New England and loves to help non-native speakers to learn more about the Middle East and the Arabic language. Dana hopes to eventually work with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.
Simran is a 2023 MALD concentrating upon security studies and international negotiations. Her academic interests include the rise of China and the strategic competition in South Asia with focus on maritime issues in the Asia-Pacific. Prior to her degree at Fletcher, she worked in the international development space in India as a Gandhi Fellow with the Piramal Foundation. She leads the Women in International Security club (WIIS) at The Fletcher School and is a weekly contributor at Foreign Brief.
Jingjing is a 2023 MGA and a world traveler. She spent the past four years working in Dubai; this provided her with a better understanding of the Middle East and was formative in her embracing of Arab culture. In her free time, she enjoys jazz and stand-up comedy.
Will is a MALD at The Fletcher School, focusing on the Middle East with fields of study in Southwest Asia and Islamic Civilization. He is originally from the Boston area and received his BA in 2019 from Dickinson College in International Studies and Arabic. Prior to his time at Fletcher, Will worked in Egypt at The American University in Cairo. He is interested in political movements and 20th-century history in the Levant and Iraq.
Yvonne is a 2023 MALD focusing on International Security Studies, International Business, and International Organization & Global Governance. She holds a bachelor’s degree in international studies with a concentration in international relations and diplomacy with a geographical focus in the Middle East and North Africa region from the University of Oregon. She studied Arabic at Princess Sumaya University for Technology in Amman, Jordan and studied Spanish Universidad de Oviedo in Oviedo, Spain. Prior to joining Fletcher, she worked for several years in civil litigation firms in the Pacific Northwest and worked for the Spanish Ministry of Education, Culture and Sport in Madrid, Spain. She volunteers her time in helping immigrant families in their visa application process, interpreting services, and providing resources. She speaks Spanish, English, and intermediate Arabic.
2021-2022
Julie graduated from Fletcher in 2022 through the mid-career international relations program. Her fields of study were human security and international negotiation and conflict resolution. While at Fares, she led one of the Arabic Language Tables. She grew up in Syria and moved to the U.S. in her early twenties. She gr She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Health Science/Dental Hygiene and worked as a dental hygienist for over a decade. However, given the refugee crisis in her home country of Syria, Julie became eager to get involved in humanitarian work, especially with female refugees.
Born and raised in Berlin, Eda Nur Yilar holds an MA in Global Studies from Humboldt University. She graduated from The Fletcher School with a Master of International Business and now serves as the Strategic Projects Manager for Public Affairs, Communication & Sustainability in Europe for The Coca-Cola Company. As part of her education, she lived in Ireland, Thailand, India, and South Africa. Her professional experience is based at the intersection of the public and private sectors, where she has worked for a number of institutions such as the Federal Foreign Office, Volkswagen, the Konrad-Adenauer Foundation, and Microsoft. As the Director of the Sakura Peace Institute in India, she has worked to raise awareness about the importance of education for marginalized communities. Hence, she hosted an event on the subject of “Education for Transformation” on the sidelines of the 50th Annual World Economic Forum in Davos. She is involved in supporting underprivileged youth in Berlin and contributed to the public discussion of identity and integration through different volunteering organizations. Eda is fluent in German, Turkish, and English and considers herself a Global Citizen.
Layan graduated from Fletcher with a MALD in 2022; her focus areas were tech policy and development. While at the Fares Center, she led the Arabic language table. Prior to Fletcher, she worked as a journalist covering news in politics, economy, and society. She was also a tech editor in which she traveled regularly to cover business and industry events. Layan holds a Bachelor’s degree in political science with a regional focus on the Middle East from Sciences Po Paris. Her hometown is Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
Ben graduated in December 2022 with a MALD and a Master of Theological Studies from Harvard Divinity School. His academic and professional interests include international politics, security, and religion. Before attending Fletcher, Ben worked for two years in Beirut, Lebanon, with an NGO focusing on conflict resolution and humanitarian aid. He received his B.A. in International Relations and certificate in Conflict Management from Pepperdine University.
2020-2021
Trad Alroweilly is from Saudi Arabia and holds expertise on water and food securities in arid regions of the MENA. Trad’s subjects of interest include water efficiency through sustainable agriculture resource allocation and transboundary water resource management. He was also recently a research intern at the Stockholm Environment Institute supporting the Jordanian and Moroccan governments with their water policies through water-energy-food nexus modeling. Trad supported the Fares Center in environmental and natural resource policy through editing, writing, and technical support. He holds two degrees from Tufts University: an M.S. in Sustainable Water Management with a concentration on Water Diplomacy, and a Master of Civil and Environmental Engineering from the School of Engineering.
Rachel Carrillo worked for the Fares Center from 2018 to 2021, serving as Center Coordinator from 2020 – 2021. Rachel is a Master of Arts in Law and Diplomacy (MALD) graduate of The Fletcher School, where she studied U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East and North Africa. Before beginning her studies at Fletcher, Rachel was a Fulbright grantee to Morocco, then worked as Project Manager for a CDC public health initiative implemented in the Moroccan Ministries of Health and Interior. She has also served as a graduate intern in the Political Section of the U.S. Embassy Rabat, where she focused on the human rights and religious freedom portfolios. In addition to Fulbright, Rachel was awarded the Gilman Scholarship for study in Morocco and the Boren Fellowship for study in Oman. She has a B.A. in Communication, a B.A. in French & Francophone Studies, and a Minor in Arabic Language from the University of Massachusetts Amherst. Rachel now works for Chemonics International in Washington DC, concentrating on international development in the Middle East and North Africa.
Within the M.A. in Law and Diplomacy program, Marina pursued concentrations in International Negotiation & Conflict Resolution and Southwest Asia & Islamic Civilization. She has a particular interest in diplomatic negotiation, sanctions, and arms control. Before graduate school, Marina held two roles focused on the exchange between the US and MENA Region at the American Middle East Institute and at Al Akhawayn University in Ifrane, Morocco. Marina is now a Graduate Fellow at McLarty Associates.