Student Ambassadors

Lulu August is a senior at Harvard College, concentrating in Environmental Policy with a secondary in Women’s Studies. Having grown up in both Maryland and Iringa, Tanzania, Lulu is interested in how social justice issues change in different international contexts, as well as how these can be addressed through public policy and law. She has pursued these interests through past internships at her local County Council, the Environmental Defense Fund, and most recently, the Morocco Innovation and Evaluation Lab in Rabat, Morocco, through the CID Global Internship Program. Lulu is excited to share CID opportunities with her fellow students at the College. In her spare time, she enjoys baking, practicing her French skills, and dancing with the undergraduate West African dance troupe, Omo Naija x Wahala Boys.

Aram Bagdasarian is an undergraduate at Harvard College concentrating in Statistics and Government. Originally from Armenia, Aram is deeply committed to using data science to address social and economic challenges in emerging economies. He is co-founder of Teevial, Armenia’s first and only data science for social good organization, where he designs and leads research projects on issues such as water quality, regional cost of living disparities, and educational access for rural youth. Aram’s recent work includes social network analysis of financial and political networks in Eastern Europe and large-scale text mining of Russian-language media to study disinformation and influence operations. He has conducted policy research at the Central Bank of Armenia and ZOiS Berlin, focusing on governance frameworks and data-driven decision-making. As a CID Student Ambassador, Aram looks forward to supporting initiatives that bridge quantitative research, policy, and development practice, and to fostering collaboration on evidence-based solutions to global challenges.

Sabri Benzaid is a humanitarian and international development professional currently in his second year of the Master in Public Administration in International Development (MPA/ID) program at Harvard Kennedy School. Prior to HKS, he worked with the United Nations World Food Program on emergency response and logistics coordination in crisis settings such as South Sudan and Madagascar, delivering lifesaving assistance to vulnerable populations. In Haiti, Sabri contributed to the 2021 earthquake emergency response and later supported the implementation of the country’s first rural safety net program in partnership with the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor, specializing in the delivery of cash-based transfers in hard-to-reach areas. This past summer, he interned with IMAGO Global Grassroots, contributing to a systems change initiative with grassroots organizations in Africa, and with the World Bank’s Mind, Behavior, and Development Unit (eMBeD), where he supported research on social norms and women’s labor force participation in Morocco. His long-term goal is to establish an international organization that reimagines humanitarian aid by equipping local communities with the tools, agency, and voice to lead their own responses, shifting the sector toward sustainable, locally driven solutions.

Yingying Chen is a master’s student at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, focusing on education policy and analysis. She is interested in how education systems are shaped by governance and public policy, and how they influence questions of access and equity. She is also passionate about U.S.–China relations and international development, with a particular focus on East and Southeast Asia. Before coming to Harvard, she worked as a policy research intern at Tsinghua University’s Center for International Security and Strategy, contributing to research on governance and public affairs. She also completed internships in global talent acquisition at TikTok and in risk advisory at Deloitte. At CID, Yingying looks forward to supporting programming related to education policy and fostering connections across schools through events and outreach. 

Erik Dalaker is a junior at Harvard College pursuing a BA in Government and a concurrent MA in Modern Middle East Studies. He grew up on the small, remote Norwegian island of Rennesøy, but has always been drawn to global issues, particularly how to achieve peace and find common ground through diplomacy and international development. In his gap year before college, Erik worked full-time as a project coordinator for Doctors Without Borders (MSF), leading the highest-performing fundraising team in Norway. Last summer, Erik continued his Arabic studies in Amman, Jordan, while doing political research for a local think tank, whereas this summer, he worked as a trainee for the European Commission in Brussels, focusing on the EU's development and reconstruction work in the MENA region. Outside his studies, Erik enjoys learning new languages, attending indie concerts around Cambridge, and pursuing outdoor adventures in the Norwegian mountains.

Jasmin Higo is a PhD student concentrating in health economics and health systems at the Harvard Graduate School of Arts and Sciences and the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health within the Population Health Sciences PhD Program. Prior to beginning her doctoral studies, Jasmin worked at the World Bank and several international organizations, where she advised governments on the design and implementation of social protection and health policies. She holds an MPA in Economic Policy from Cornell University and was a Fulbright recipient. 

ByeongKyu (Colin) Jun is a Korean student who is currently pursuing a Master in Public Policy at Harvard Kennedy School. This past summer, Colin interned at the Government Innovation Lab of the Government of Meghalaya, India, supporting their adolescent education and communication initiatives as part of the Growth Lab Summer Internship programme. Before joining HKS, Colin worked at the UN World Food Programme headquarters in Rome and with numerous educational NGOs, including the LIMUN Foundation, PeaceX, and the World Federation of United Nations Associations. Especially at the LIMUN Foundation, Colin developed an online Model UN training programme called the Connected Delegates Programme, which educated over 200 students in 18 countries during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Colin studied for a BA (Honours) in International Relations at King’s College London and briefly studied Economics at the Korea National Open University. Colin also completed his mandatory social service in Korea, where he worked at a local daycare centre for people with disabilities. After graduating from HKS, Colin hopes to work at international (or local) organisations where he can continuously create more opportunities for people to change their lives and communities, primarily through enhanced social welfare and education programmes.

Aleksandra Kojić is a Master’s in Education candidate at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, where she studies Education Leadership, Organizations, and Entrepreneurship (ELOE). Through the ELOE program, she is exploring how innovative leadership and organizational strategies can be used to improve education systems and expand access to opportunity. Originally from Serbia, Aleksandra holds a BA and MA in Political Science from the University of Belgrade. Before coming to Harvard, she worked on international projects focused on strengthening democratic institutions and advancing the rule of law in Serbia’s parliament. She currently works in MBA Admissions at Harvard Business School, where she helps shape and support a diverse, global community of future leaders. As a Student Ambassador at the Center for International Development, Aleksandra looks forward to connecting education, policy, and global development, and to contributing to CID’s mission of improving lives through inclusive and evidence-based development.

Dang “Kevin” Nguyen is an aspiring physician-innovator and public health technologist with over five years of experience leading data-driven health initiatives across Southeast Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa, the Caribbean, and the United States. Originally from Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, he is currently pursuing his MSc in Epidemiology at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health as a Vingroup Scholar and Presidential Public Service Fellow. His professional journey has included research and leadership roles at Massachusetts General Hospital, American Heart Association and MIT Institute for Medical Engineering & Science, where he has advanced efforts to improve systems of care, particularly in underserved communities. Kevin’s scientific work has resulted in over 85 peer-reviewed publications in leading medical journals, including The Lancet, Nature Reviews Cardiology, BMJ, and PNAS, and has been cited by major media outlets such as TIME and ABC News. His insights have also contributed to the World Health Organization’s agenda on non-communicable diseases, and he serves on the Working Group on Education & Capacity Building of the World Federation of Public Health Associations. Kevin is the Founder of the CardiacLife Foundation, a non-profit that has raised over $250,000 to fund more than 100 pediatric heart surgeries in rural Vietnam, a philanthropic initiative recognized with the 2024 Diana Award for social impact. As a CID Student Ambassador, Kevin aims to foster global dialogue on health equity, strengthen connections across disciplines within the Harvard community, and contribute to CID initiatives that advance sustainable development and resilient health systems worldwide.

Cinta Nurindah Sari is a Master of Medical Sciences in Global Health Delivery candidate at Harvard Medical School. Her research, supported by the HMS Department of Global Health and Social Medicine and Harvard Asia Center, focuses on evaluation of a public-private, community-based stunting intervention in Indonesia using a biosocial mixed-methods approach. From this work, she aims to inform scalable, system-level, and culturally grounded solutions to undernutrition.

Cinta serves as a Global Primary Care Scholar with the Lancet Global Health Commission on People-Centered Care and is actively involved in the Harvard Indonesian Students Association. She is also a recipient of the Social Impact Fellowship from the Harvard Innovation Labs. Her work centers on strengthening health systems, addressing social and structural drivers of inequality, and amplifying Southeast Asian perspectives within global health and development.

Hanul Park is a master’s candidate in the dual degree program between the Geneva Graduate Institute and Harvard Kennedy School’s Mid-Career Master in Public Administration (MC/MPA) program.

She is deeply committed to promoting equal opportunities and advancing sustainable development worldwide. Before beginning her academic journey, Hanul worked at the headquarters of the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA), where she focused on humanitarian assistance, multilateral cooperation, and capacity-building initiatives under the Korean government’s development cooperation program.

From 2018 to 2021, Hanul gained significant field experience in Timor-Leste. It was during this time that she first recognized the transformative potential of migration as a tool for development, benefiting both the Global North and South. This realization led her to specialize in migration, borders, and boundaries at the Geneva Graduate Institute. Now at Harvard, she is focused on translating these ideas into effective policies and actionable strategies.

In addition to her academic and professional pursuits, Hanul is passionate about building meaningful relationships and creating spaces for people to connect. She is also a dedicated sports enthusiast, with a particular love for baseball and tennis.

Alessandra Rodriguez is a master’s student in Urban Planning at the Harvard Graduate School of Design (GSD), a Peruvian architect, and a Fulbright scholar. With over six years of experience across public, private, and nonprofit sectors, she is committed to transforming cities into more humane and sustainable environments through urban projects that integrate community engagement, urban data analysis, and design.

At Harvard, she is an active member of the Harvard Association of Peruvian Students (HAPS) and Peru GSD. Before graduate school, she co-founded Impostergable, an urban planning office, and I'mappin, an urban technology start-up. She also leads La Fábrica de Chimbote, an urban-cultural initiative based in Chimbote, Peru.

As a CID Student Ambassador, Alessandra aims to explore the intersection of international development with urban planning, public policy, and local action. She hopes to build bridges between schools at Harvard and enrich conversations around development in Latin America.

Dana Yoo is a Master in Public Policy (MPP) candidate at Harvard Kennedy School. Prior to HKS, Dana served as a diplomat at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Korea, where she supported gender-based violence (GBV) survivors, and led UNICEF-partnered initiatives in girls’ education and maternal health, in partnership with UNICEF. Last summer, Dana interned at the State Government of Meghalaya, where she supported nature conservation initiatives and helped implement natural farming projects led by women farmers. She is committed to advancing women’s socioeconomic empowerment and helping vulnerable communities adapt to changing climate.