Editor's Note:
During the 2021-2023 school years, 13 students from SIGS had opportunities to work with 10 UN organizations through participation in conferences, internships, or projects.
During these experiences, our students not only get the chance to gain global competence but also contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
In this installation of our SIGSers Go Global Series, student Shi Yiwen shares about her journey to joining the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) as an intern from March to September 2022.
“My interest in international organizations was sparked during a lecture introducing the UN in my freshman year of undergrad,” said Yiwen, a master’s student in Logistics Engineering and Management now in her final year at SIGS.
From that moment, Yiwen was determined to learn more about the work of international organizations involved in global governance and bring the perspectives of Chinese youth to the international stage. Yiwen went on to take part in several programs related to international talent cultivation. “I discovered the significant role of implementing Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in promoting a global community with a shared future for humanity.”
Over time, a dream to intern at an international organization was born. “My primary goal was to make a positive impact on humanity at an international level, helping people around the world who are disadvantaged and in difficult situations,” said Yiwen. She was committed to finding ways to secure an opportunity to do just that.
Yiwen applied every year to work at a UN organization from her senior year in college to her second year as a master’s student. Unfortunately, she was faced with rejections. She did not let that discourage her. Instead, Yiwen spent time improving her skills to qualify, joining a language exchange program with the Technical University of Munich, completing the United Nations International Development Programme through the United Nations Training and Research Institute (UNITAR), and participating in the Asian Universities Alliance’s 5th Anniversary Youth Ambassador program.
Yiwen at the IFAD headquarters in Rome
Yiwen’s efforts paid off. In early 2022, she was accepted as an Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Data Analysis Intern at the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). Headquartered in Rome, the organization strives to transform rural economies and food systems by making them more inclusive, productive, resilient, and sustainable. Their work contributes to 16 of the 17 SDGs.
As an intern at IFAD in Rome, Yiwen contributed to these goals by taking part in the analysis, assessment, and implementation of IFAD’s projects. Applying data science skills she learned at SIGS, she engaged in several data visualization projects and used AI to aid in information retrieval for UN country reports. At IFAD, she was involved in creating an AI-powered intelligent chatbot for internal use and produced case documents for machine learning and AI-related projects.
Yiwen at the 2023 IFAD Innovation Day during which she presented IFAD’s Information and Communication Technology projects to participants
“During my time at IFAD, I met people from around the globe. Through interacting and working with them, I truly saw a larger world, observed the differences among people from various cultural backgrounds, and continuously enhanced my respect for and openness to diversity,” said Yiwen.
Yiwen’s six-month internship also allowed her to better understand the daily operations of international organizations and the applications of AI and machine learning to agricultural development. “My office actively employs cutting-edge technologies like machine learning and generative AI to develop use cases and prototypes, aiding IFAD in more effectively helping beneficiaries and achieving its mission and goals,” said Yiwen. While many of the projects are currently in the prototype stage, Yiwen enjoyed the opportunity to experiment with these new technologies that can potentially make a difference.
This internship is just the start of Yiwen’s journey of making a positive impact on the global community. “This experience has deepened my passion for philanthropy. I am now more eager to contribute to helping more people and our planet.”
Compiled by Zhu Lijing, Zhao Mengyuan, Ye Sijia & Alena Shish
Photos provided by Shi Yiwen
Edited by Alena Shish & Yuan Yang
