Fourteen young professionals from Latin America and the Caribbean who are part of the U.S. Department of State’s Young Leaders of the Americas Initiative (YLAI) Professional Fellows Program have arrived in South Bend to spend four weeks expanding their leadership and entrepreneurial experience at businesses and nongovernmental organizations in the area.
In a program led by the University of Notre Dame Initiative for Global Development, YLAI Fellows will learn from their U.S. counterparts by job-shadowing and participating in day-to-day operations at host organizations. They will develop business or social venture plans to be implemented in their home countries and will build networks, links and partnerships to attract investments and support for their entrepreneurial ventures.
South Bend area businesses and organizations hosting 2016 YLAI Fellows include The Avenue Bicycle Station, enFocus, F Cubed, La Casa de Amistad, Inovateus Solar, New Group Media, Pathfinders, Pinter Consulting, Piser Designs, South Bend Code School, South Bend Heritage, Union Station Technology Center, Visit South Bend/Mishawaka and VSS Security.
The YLAI Professional Fellows Program is sponsored by the U.S. Department of State and implemented by Meridian International Center. The program provides entrepreneurs and civil society leaders with training, tools, networks and resources to transform their societies and contribute to economic development and prosperity, security, human rights and good governance in the hemisphere.
At Notre Dame, the program also is supported by the Kellogg Institute for International Studies and Notre Dame’s Master’s Program in Entrepreneurship, Technology, and Innovation (ESTEEM).
The 2016 YLAI fellows in South Bend come from Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Cuba, Dominica, El Salvador, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua and Venezuela.
The Notre Dame Initiative for Global Development — an integral part of the University’s new Keough School of Global Affairs — promotes human development and dignity among people worldwide through applied innovations, impact evaluation, education and training to help build just and equitable societies.
Contact: Jennifer Krauser, NDIGD, 574-631-5469, jkrauser@nd.edu