Alumni Directory Display

I care about helping businesses operate more efficiently and effectively. I’ve worked on issues relating to electricity access in Africa for the last nine years and have been consistently at the crossroads of the public and private sectors. My skillset includes building partnerships, business development, strategy, operations, and team & project management.

Violette is a French native who just graduated from Johns Hopkins University, with a dual degree in International Studies and Public Health Studies. Her interest in international development was sparked after an internship at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs in Paris, where she worked in the Health and Human Development sector, mostly focusing on health issues regarding women in developing countries. The following year, she was chosen to represent France at the G(irls)20 Summit, which picks one young woman from each G20 country to meet and discuss changes in women’s status around the world. Her passion for African culture and public health related issues regarding women in Africa broadened after a semester abroad in Cape Town, South Africa, which led her to return to Africa the following year, in Ethiopia, as an intern for the AMREF. She is looking forward to discovering a new part of Africa and a new area of development work, as a fellow at the UN World Food Program in Dakar, Senegal.

Hailing from a small, Midwest town, Udita graduated from Northwestern University with a degree in Anthropology and Global Health Studies. Her passion in for “glocal” health has led her to have meaningful experiences both domestically and globally. She spent two summers in both Tanzania and Uganda where she had the opportunity to conduct community-based research and learn more about the health infrastructures in both countries. While at Northwestern, she co-founded and ran a community engagement organization called NU Community Health Corps, that aims to empower individuals to take ownership of their own health and wellbeing. Through NUCHC, she launched the HIRCULES Health Hub, which are health information desks focused on connecting community members to qualified health information and resources. She also served as a Partnerships Fellow at the GlobeMed Global Headquarters where she works closely to manage the 56 global partnerships between undergraduate chapters and grass-root organizations in Asia, Latin America, and Africa. Udita is extremely excited to be returning to Tanzania and working Baylor International Pediatric AIDS Initiative this upcoming year!

Alumni Update:

Niklas is currently living in Brooklyn, NY and working at Acumen, a nonprofit that makes long-term debt or equity investments in early-stage companies providing critical goods and services to low-income customers. Niklas has also been working on Acumen’s Business Development and Portfolio Teams since his fellowship ended in 2012.

Fellow Bio:

Niklas (Princeton ‘11) is a Woodrow Wilson School major from Spearfish, South Dakota. At Princeton, he was the President of the Undergraduate Film Organization, a DJ for WPRB, and the Advocacy Chair for the Student Global AIDS Campaign. Niklas is an avid photographer and also enjoys creating electronic music from field recordings. At Princeton, he had the opportunity to study abroad in Havana, Cuba and work for the Solidarity Center in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. Niklas is looking forward to an exciting year in Ghana learning about the cocoa industry and getting to know local farmers.

Michal graduated from American University’s School of International Service, focusing on governance and identity in Africa. At American, Michal was a founding member and Inaugural Gala Director for No Lost Generation, a student-led refugee advocacy initiative partnered with the State Department, where she raised $4,000 benefitting children’s education in Kenyan refugee camps. Throughout her undergraduate career, Michal developed her finance and research related skill sets with various organizations including the State Department, Peace Corps, International Rescue Committee and Search for Common Ground. Michal expanded her academic background in African affairs by studying abroad at the United States International University – Africa (Nairobi) and the School of Oriental and African Studies (London). She interned with the Center of Domestic Training and Development in Nairobi, an organization serving vulnerable women and girls, and was a volunteer for SOAS’ Annual African Development Forum. After graduating early in December 2018, Michal was a full-time Finance Fellow at a political consulting firm in Washington D.C., where she supported research and fundraising alongside business development initiatives. As an Eritrean-American, Michal is excited to return to the continent and work with BIPAI Swaziland and Eswatini’s Ministry of Health to increase access to health care for marginalized peoples.

Kelly earned her BA in Global Studies and Anthropology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, graduating in 2013. As an undergraduate student, Kelly pursued her interests in public health and international development both inside and outside of the classroom. As Executive Co-Chair of the student-run community development organization Nourish-UNC during her senior year, Kelly led a team of over 75 executive board and committee members. Together, they invested $22,977—generated through social entrepreneurship ventures—in three development projects carried out in partnership with community-based organizations in Bolivia, Jordan, and Nepal. During her undergraduate summers, Kelly bolstered her practical experience by volunteering as an educator with World Camp in Malawi, co-leading a development project with the JUVILUS Foundation in Ecuador, and collecting data for a public health study with Nemours in Delaware. Kelly also performed hospital-based public health research while studying in Chile in 2011. Since graduating, she has been working in domestic health policy analysis and advocacy with the National Coalition on Health Care in Washington, DC. Kelly originally hails from Kennett Square, Pennsylvania, and is humbled by the opportunity to learn from and contribute to Lwala Community Alliance’s amazing work in rural western Kenya.

Ettie Philitas is an Executive Director with J.P. Morgan Asset Management, where he serves as Head of Infrastructure Debt. He is also a member of the Infrastructure Debt Group’s Investment Committee and a Portfolio Manager. He was previously an Investment Director with Africa50’s Project Finance team where he originated and managed infrastructure investments across Africa. Prior to his role at Africa50, Ettie was an Associate with the Private Credit team at KKR, where he focused on direct lending, opportunistic credit, special situations, and equity investments. He has also worked with the Private Debt team at Muzinich & Co. and with the Leveraged Finance Origination & Restructuring group at Credit Suisse, where he advised clients on over $19bn of high-yield and leveraged loan financings and provided dedicated coverage to issuers in the Power & Utilities space. Ettie began his career as an Analyst with Deutsche Bank’s Private Wealth Management group in New York. Ettie holds a B.A from Princeton University and an MBA in Finance from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. Ettie is passionate about entrepreneurship and social impact. He is a proud Princeton in Africa Alumni Fellow, having worked with African Leadership Academy in Johannesburg, South Africa from 2009-10. He also serves on the Associates Council of Prep for Prep and on the Board of Student Diplomacy Corps.

Fellow Bio:

Sara Piaskowy is passionate about water resources. Last summer, working for the International Water Association through the study abroad office IIP program, Sara learned about sustainable water management and the pressing need to bring clean drinking water and sanitation systems to developing countries. She is a Civil and Environmental Engineering major with certificates in Environmental Studies and Spanish who hails from Crete, IL. Sara will spend her year in Africa working as a research assistant at the International Institute of Water and Environmental Engineering in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. She will be carrying out experiments on water filtration using local materials such as sand, gravel, and clay. At Princeton, Sara was a four year member of the Princeton Women’s Crew, helped lead the Society of Women Engineers and was involved with the Athletes in Action Christian fellowship group. Once she completes her associate fellowship, Sara plans to attend graduate school in Water Resources Science, Policy, and Management.

Alumni Update:

Carolyn is currently living and working in Chicago, IL. Since her fellowship, she has been working in public health policy and social policy. She did program evaluation of public health programs for the US Department of Health and Human Services. Now she is pursuing a PhD in the School of Education and Social Policy at Northwestern.

Alumni Update:

Isabel is continuing to pursue her PhD in Sociology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, planning to finish this academic year. Focusing on Africa, mainly Kenya and Malawi, her research explores questions around gender and demography with both qualitative and quantitative methods. She is currently based in Edinburgh, Scotland as she writes up her dissertation.

Fellow Bio:

Isabel (Princeton ‘11) is an Anthropology major who is from England but grew up in Kampala, Uganda. While at Princeton, Isabel danced in the Indian dance troupe Naacho, and wrote a column for the Princeton Alumni Weekly. Isabel is so excited to be in Senegal next year where she hopes to have lots of clothes tailored, de-rust her French and drink plenty of tamarind juice.