Global UGRAD Alumni Connect in Malaysia
This past July, the Global UGRAD team at World Learning planned and implemented the first international Global UGRAD alumni seminar in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. This three-day workshop provided alumni with networking opportunities, professional development workshops, and sessions on civic engagement and community project management. Fifty participants from all ten ASEAN member countries represented a wide array of professional backgrounds including English language teaching, diplomacy, chemical engineering, and LGBTQ+ advocacy. These alumni participated in Global UGRAD as recently as 2023 and as far back as the program’s inception in 2008, allowing each participant to connect with and learn from fellow alumni at different career levels.
Sessions, such as the civic engagement panel and community project showcase, allowed participants to hear from fellow alumni about their work in their local communities and best practices for promoting positive change. Participants appreciated the opportunity to engage directly with fellow alumni over multiple days. “This seminar has connected me with a lot of motivational, inspiring, and hungry changemakers who know exactly what they want to do,” said Reaksa Pin (Fall 2022), a recent global affairs graduate from Cambodia. “They have pushed and inspired me and rekindled my own passion and drive.”
Alumni also participated in professional development workshops to strengthen communication and leadership styles, build a personal brand, become more effective trainers, and more. Through these interactive sessions, participants worked together to solve problems and gained new tools to further their careers or projects in more meaningful ways.
To expand their professional networks in the region, alumni met with local Malaysian organizations and experts focused on youth empowerment, civic engagement, and sustainable development. Sessions led by MySkills Foundation, Impact Malaysia, and Biji-biji Initiative inspired discussions on the practical tools and resources available to small businesses and non-governmental organizations and how to maximize local impact.
Outside of sessions, the attendees explored Kuala Lumpur. They enjoyed local cuisine, ascended to the top of Kuala Lumpur Tower and the Petronas Twin Towers, and visited ancient temples. These excursions served as extended networking opportunities, as well as time for the group to reflect on the impact of the Global UGRAD Program and the seminar.
“I used to be very self-conscious about my capabilities,” said Mandaking Missi (Spring 2023), a political science student from Malaysia. “But Global UGRAD has solidified my confidence. And I speak for many of us here when I say that we believe we found our crowd, and this [seminar] feels like home. I hope we can connect again soon.”
Many also reflected on what it means to be a Global UGRAD. “The Global UGRAD identity is all about the people-to-people connection,” Pin said. “It means that you’re open-minded to learning about the differences between you and others with different lifestyles or cultures, exploring your similarities, and finding the common ground that builds friendship and understanding.”
For Donemeuangkham “Coffee” Sibounthanh (Spring 2022), an interpreter and communications professional from Laos, one word comes to mind when she thinks of Global UGRAD: leadership. “Being a Global UGRAD means that you have those leadership skills that allow you to teach, manage, and take on initiatives that impact your community. As individuals, we are whole, but together, we are more. As UGRADs, we create something huge.”
