International Public Service Internships

Sarah Beason interned for the USAID-funded East-West Management Institute–Program on Rights and Justice (EWMI-PRAJ) in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. A significant portion of her work with the Grassroots Networking & Advocacy/Human Rights division centered on weekly and quarterly reports from partner organizations that quantitatively and qualitatively assessed Cambodia's human rights and rule of law. In addition, Sarah researched legal and technical issues on water-related rights for an open access website, Open Development Cambodia.

Her largest project focused on the international, regional, and domestic legal and policy frameworks surrounding water rights in Cambodia. The briefing included a case study on the Suy indigenous people that focused on economic land concessions' impact on the the Suy's access to water, as well as any effect on the quantity and quality of water. Sarah had the opportunity to observe significant human rights cases go before the Supreme Court of Cambodia and the Phnom Penh Municipal Court - in particular the Boeung Kak case. She also heard David Chandler present expert testimony before the Cambodia-UN hybrid court, the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia, to try those accused of the worst crimes during the Khmer Rouge regime.

 Keith Buzby interned for Howard Varney, a legal consultant for the International Center for Transitional Justice (ICTJ) in Johannesburg, South Africa.  Keith worked with on a variety of South African issues.  He advocated for increased educational and medical benefits for Apartheid victims and researched gun buy-back programs to use in South Africa.  One major project involved opposing a presidential pardon for members of the pre-Apartheid security apparatus that were involved in human rights violations in the 1980s and early 90s.  Keith also conducted research on high court judicial administration and helped draft a memo to the South African Supreme Court. 

In addition to his South African duties, Keith also worked on a variety of legal development issues for ICTJ’s Nairobi office.  Projects varied, from research into improved police vetting in Kenya to crafting an analysis of the Kenyan Constitutional Court’s rules of procedure. 

Ena Dion spent the summer working as a legal researcher in the Rule of Law Unit at the United States Institute of Peace (USIP) in Washington, DC.  USIP is an independent, non-partisan organization created by Congress to prevent and peacefully resolve conflict through research, training, and assistance.  Ena conducted a summer-long research project on the role of civil society in immediate post-conflict efforts to rebuild the rule of law.  Her research focused on what first steps civil society organizations should take and challenges common to civil society emerging from conflict and authoritarian rule.

 Matt Fine interned with the American Bar Association Rule of Law Initiative in Baku, Azerbaijan. Since 1999, the American Bar Association Rule of Law Initiative in Baku, Azerbaijan has worked to promote legal reform by supporting and strengthening quality legal education, providing training and resources for members of the judiciary, and increasing public awareness about legal rights in order to increase transparency and accountability. While in Baku, Matt worked alongside local staff attorneys to draft and edit quarterly reports to USAID and the U.S. Department of State. Matt also assisted with regional educational trainings for disability rights and developed an office manual on Azerbaijani labor laws and NGO registration laws. Some of Matt’s favorite 'non-work' memories include afternoon Azeri language classes with his coworkers in exchange for teaching American sayings and morning runs with his boss along the Caspian.

Candace Headen interned for the Center for Human Rights and Environment in Cordoba, Argentina.  Candace worked on the Mining, Environment, and Human Rights project, helping to reconcile government policies on foreign mining intervention and its impact on the community and natural environment in which it occurs.  This included studying Argentina's National Glacier Protection Act and providing assistance with lobbying and legal suits to ensure corporations complied with the law.  Candace was also able to attend the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development in Rio de Janiero, helping the Center for Human Rights and Environment to present workshops, such as “The Right to Water and Sanitation: The Challenges of Implementation” and "“Trends and Conflict in the Extractive Sector: Designing Public Policy for a More Sustainable Future.”

Katherine Paige spent summer 2012 interning with the National Center for State Courts (NCSC), International Programs Division in Arlington, Virginia.  There she assisted the preparation of proposals for international rule-of-law development programs by conducting research and aiding in the drafting and editing processes.  Among various other projects, Katherine was tasked with researching the judiciaries of Peru and El Salvador, determining disparities between women and men in various legal systems, and with tracking the history of backlogged utility cases in Kosovo’s court system.  Throughout the summer Katherine attend various events in Washington, D.C. on behalf of NCSC, including a panel discussion on international election issues at the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES), a press conference by Iraqi Chief Justice Medhat Al-Mahmoud.  She also attended an intern roundtable on human trafficking at the invitation of Ambassador CdeBaca, Director of the Department of State’s Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons.  Katherine enjoyed her experience at NCSC, finding it an interesting opportunity to network with professionals in international development and to learn about various aspects of such a vast and varying field.

Alexzandria Poole interned at the Beijing Children's Legal Aid and Research Center at Zhicheng Public Interest Law (ZPIL) in the summer of 2012.  ZPIL was a hub for rule of law initiatives, training conferences, and promotion of public interest lawyering throughout China.  During this time, she conducted a comparative research project on juvenile justice issues with a focus on pre-trial procedures and analysis of system indicators.  This research was presented in both Chinese and English to ZPIL lawyers.  She was also given several short research projects relating to workers' legal rights-,with emphasis on how certain legal issues might be handled in the US.  Additionally, Alexz also did some translation work for the ZPIL website, headed the 2012 intern newsletter project, and taught English classes to Center lawyers and Chinese interns.

Alison Rabe worked at the United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime Cambodia office.  She acted as the point person for the Anti-Corruption Project with the government’s Anti-Corruption Unit (ACU).  UNODC provided technical assistance to the ACU during their implementation of the UN Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC). After the Cambodian government signed the UNCAC five years ago, and work was needed to complete a checklist to demonstrate their implementation of the provisions, both de facto and de jure.  Alison helped develop the concept note and detailed budgeted work plan for the two-year project, trained the National Project Officer, attended meetings with the government, prepared briefs and documents for the government and donors, and organized a legal anti-corruption library.  She also helped the office hold a Judicial Integrity workshop with Khmer judges and prosecutors and wrote a follow-up report to submit to the Cambodian Ministry of Justice.  The experience Alison gained during his internships in Cambodia led to her becoming a distinguished Boren Fellow and continuing her work with human rights in Cambodia during the next school year.

Scott Van Der Hyde interned with the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (IDEA) in Kathmandu, Nepal.  International IDEA is an intergovernmental organization that supports democratic institutions and processes through providing comparative knowledge and facilitating dialogue between local actors.  Scott’s work primarily focused on providing research and writing policy reports to support IDEA’s ongoing project of helping Nepal write a new constitution.  The two main issues that he worked on were ensuring social inclusion for historically marginalized groups and restarting the stalled constitution writing process.  Scott also developed a study to examine the power sharing structure between the President and Prime Minister and to define the role that they would play in transitioning to new elections and a new constitution.  Outside of work, Scott spent most of his weekends visiting historic and religious sites around Nepal.  His two favorite trips included white water rafting and a three-day trek that he took with a group of locals.