August 23, 2011
On, July 23, 2011, the IFP Thailand Alumni Network (IFP THAN) held its 14th meeting at the Child Help Foundation in Khon Kaen province, Thailand, where one of the Thai Fellows, Ms. Utis Somjai, is working.
The meeting, which brought together approximately twenty Thai alumni and fellows from Cohorts 2003 to 2010, provided attendees with an opportunity to get to know each other, share post-fellowship experiences, and plan for the future alumni network structure and ways the group can move forward as change agents.
Jaruwat Kiatiwongse, IFP Thailand Program Officer from ASF, joined the meeting, along with Dr. Mary S. Zurbuchen, Director IFP Asia/Russia,
who expressed her deep admiration for alumni commitment and leadership. The IFP Alumni Certificate was presented to newly-graduated Fellows to congratulate them for their academic success.
IFP THAN formed its network in 2007. To date, it has welcome almost 60 returning alumni to Thailand, the Northeast in particular. IFP THAN’s first collaborative project was a participatory research initiative called the “Northeastern Identity Study for Sustainable Development”, a two-year collaborative activity. Members of IFP THAN worked together in different geographical areas to experiment and introduce innovative community-based development approaches.
The results of their research were presented at the public seminar “Northeastern Identity and Global Change” at Khon Kaen University in Thailand in February 2011. The public seminar was hosted in partnership with the Research Group on
Wellbeing and Sustainable Development (WeSD).
While working with their alumni friends from different geographical areas and professional backgrounds, the current network is thinking about how to expand their partnerships, create more impact at the community and national level, and effectively transfer their knowledge and skills to the next generation.