SITORA SUFIJONOVA

How Community Service Led Me To Become A Social Activist And A Global Citizen

Thanks to community service, I enriched my knowledge and upgraded my skills to pass them on to the next generation While working at the American Space Dushanbe in Tajikistan at the very beginning of my volunteering journey, I learned more about other organizations in Tajikistan, such as Youth Peer Network Education, focused on healthcare and reproductive rights; the public charitable organization Upshift, which collaborates with centers for people with special needs such as autism; and the Office of Civil Freedoms, which helps youth and teenagers to know their rights It has been an eye-opening experience for me to promote the development and progress of organizations making a positive impact on our society.

Upon embarking on my community service journey, I joined a group of driven, passionate, and like-minded individuals striving to shape the future of their communities through networking and crosscultural communication. In 2021, I was nominated for the NEXT30 Program, a campaign launched by five U.S. Diplomatic Missions in Central Asia and the GoViral network. It’s a unique program for 30 young leaders from Central

Asian countries to meet with American experts working in fields of business, IT, media, technology, culture, and civil society to expand their professional network and make meaningful contributions to their home communities within the next 30 years

Thanks to community service, I enriched my knowledge and upgraded my skills to pass them on to the next generation While working at the American Space Dushanbe in Tajikistan at the very beginning of my volunteering journey, I learned more about other organizations in Tajikistan, such as Youth Peer Network Education, focused on healthcare and reproductive rights; the public charitable organization Upshift, which collaborates with centers for people with special needs such as autism; and the Office of Civil Freedoms, which helps youth and teenagers to know their rights. It has been an eye-opening experience for me to promote the development and progress of organizations making a positive impact on our society.

Before joining the Global Engagement Fellowship 20222023 Program, I had an opportunity to intern at the Social

Innovation Lab Kyrgyzstan as a survey assistant in measuring the social capital of Bishkek municipalities Apart from that, I joined the C5+1 Youth Council to help its members with project implementations in other cities of Kyrgyzstan Despite a busy academic schedule and other projects, I joined the Global Fellows team to strengthen the connection of students studying at AUCA with students from across the world As future international leaders, I am certain that we will make our campuses into better learning environments, where students will come to cherish their academic life and get prepared to join another team of like-minded individuals to find better solutions for unsolved problems being discussed daily without any action.