Nour Aljowaily ‘23GS, Alexandra Ling ‘25GS, Buyanlkham Munkhbayar ‘23GS, and Khadja Balndeh were among 25 Columbia students chosen for the UN Millennium Fellowship, a semester-long leadership development program for students who are deeply committed to social impact, sustainable development, and climate change. The Fellowship unites and supports undergraduate leadership for the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Aljowaily, a senior in the Sciences Po Columbia Dual BA program, is majoring in sustainable development and discovered the fellowship from various newsletters and promotional materials around campus. "After looking up the Millenium Campus Network, I found it to be a great opportunity to have a fellowship supporting my work on campus related to the UN Sustainable Development Goals,” he said.
Aljowaily is the leader of the SDG Hub club on campus, which aims to advance literacy and action on the UN’s SDGs at Columbia. “The fellowship will hopefully help guide me in this process and connect me to other students and organizations at Columbia and around the world who are working towards this very same goal!" he said.
Ling is pursuing film and media studies and applied to the Fellowship to support her project, the Subtle Asian Book Club. The club supports the UN’s fourth SDG of quality education by amplifying stories from Asian storytellers. “Education is comprehensive of different cultures and perspectives, and the Subtle Asian Book Club offers an outlet for a variety of Asian identities. Through the Millennium Fellowship, I hope to build a stronger community of those passionate about social and sustainable change—on-campus and off,” Ling said.
Munkhbayar, an urban studies major, is also promoting the UN’s fourth SDG of quality education as part of the fellowship. “I am raising awareness of The Keeping Girls in School Act around the campus. I am hoping the experience gained during the program will allow me to better understand current global challenges and make a significant impact toward education equity,” she said. “The Millennium Fellowship Program gave me the opportunity to meet emerging social impact leaders from around the world and professionals from various fields.”
The fellowship is presented by the United Nations Academic Impact and Millennium Campus Network. To read more about the Millennium Fellowship, visit their website.
