Yasser El Zahhar, 2016 Gabr Fellow
“Regardless of how high your expectations are, this Fellowship will always exceed
them - prepare yourself for a high dose of eye-opening insights. The experience of
meeting decision makers is an exceptional once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. I am certain that my relationship with the foundation will continue to grow, as Mr. Gabr always says, “once a Fellow,
forever a Fellow.”
Leisel Bogan, 2016 Gabr Fellow
“The Gabr Fellowship is a unique and transformative experience which far surpassed my expectations. It provided me with a new lens through which to view the MENA region; a more nuanced context for the U.S.-Egypt relationship dynamic, and twenty-two incredible, diverse friends who share a common passion for making the world a better place.”
Ahmed Aboul Naga, 2016 Gabr Fellow
“The broader vision the Fellowship helped me to develop was incredible. I had the opportunity to meet with a group of the best Fellows from Egypt, U.S. and Lebanon, who really made me proud and optimistic for the future. No entity can offer the opportunity to learn from the very distinguished speakers, high level officials and to have lifelong true friends, but this fellowship. Simply, it was the best experience I have ever had.”
Sherif Soliman, 2017 Gabr Fellow
“The most eye-opening experience I have ever had!”
Menna Farouk, 2017 Gabr Fellow
“The Gabr Fellowship was a turning point in my professional and personal life as it expanded my network of connections both in Egypt and the US, enabled me to better understand the US perspective and helped me get many Egyptian and US friends.”
Ibrahim Hammouda, 2017 Gabr Fellow
“The Fellowship and its meetings have changed my whole view of the world and have always been a motivation to succeed.”
Bryan Griffin, 2017 Gabr Fellow
“Thanks to the Gabr Fellowship, I can speak with first-hand knowledge about policy and society in the Middle East. As a specialist in American foreign policy, this has been incredibly important to building both personal knowledge and a capacity for mutual understanding that is necessary to good policymaking. It has also allowed me to maintain a network of real relationships from the fellowship in Egypt who have turned out to be meaningful and lasting friends who regularly provide an important perspective on world affairs.”
Soaad Hossam, 2018 Gabr Fellow
“After the Gabr Fellowship, I believe I am limitless.”
Fabrice Guerrier, 2018 Gabr Fellow
“The Gabr Fellowship has changed the trajectory of my entire life in so many positive ways - I am more confident, I have greater clarity into what I want to achieve in my professional life, and I feel more equipped to push harder towards my greatest dreams! I left the program alongside 19 emerging leaders who I now can call my friends. Together we are stronger in making our dent in the universe within each of our respective fields.”
Katie Applebaum, 2018 Gabr Fellow
“The Gabr Fellowship allowed me an opportunity to experience new people and new places. It allowed me to connect with those I would not normally have the chance to meet, and for that I am grateful. I have faith that the relationship between Egypt and the United States will remain strong and resilient due to programs such as this.”
Wes Rogerson, 2018 Gabr Fellow
“Through the Gabr Fellowship, I had the unique opportunity to work alongside the foreign policy experts of today and tomorrow. Working together, I’m confident that the Gabr Fellows will continue to bridge cultural and political divides between the East and West both as friends and as colleagues. It is my sincere hope that our work will become the foundation for a stronger US-Egyptian partnership for years to come.”
Allison Feikes, 2018 Gabr Fellow
“It was exciting to show my Egyptian colleagues American culture, politics, economics, and landmarks. The Gabr Fellowship allowed us to expose the Egyptians to the best America has to offer and created a deep level of cross-cultural understanding between the East and West.”
Amr Hesham, 2022 Gabr Fellow
An eye-opening experience I will always be ever grateful for being part of it.
Layla Galal, 2022 Gabr Fellow
An experience that brought me tons of self-reflections.
Assem Bolbol, 2022 Gabr Fellow
Intellectual and transformative experience, with eye opening effects and networking to the highest level
Menna El Touny, 2022 Gabr Fellow
A massive life changer! An eye opener! A once in a lifetime opportunity that must be seized!
Wessam Baher, 2022 Gabr Fellow
It was a unique life changing experience that has built a coherent base of knowledge, understanding and network in different domains.
Mohamed Hassan, 2022 Gabr Fellow
This fellowship has provided the resources, support and professional networks to pursue goals that I might not otherwise be able to achieve in a typical job or internship.
Jeremy Pesner, 2022 Gabr Fellow
There are several different programs and opportunities through which young professionals can go abroad, but few can match both the intensity and caliber of speakers and experiences that the Gabr fellowship provides. In a whirlwind ten days, we sat face-to-face with high-level professionals like the Chairman of Egypt's Foreign Relations Committee, the President of the American University of Cairo, the country's most well-known venture capitalist, and even Egypt's current foreign minister. We also got to see many parts of Egypt itself: we rode camels and ate lunch next to the pyramids, toured churches and mosques, stood in the new Egyptian parliament room and rode a yacht down the Suez canal. These sunup to sundown experiences were often draining, but they truly presented an unparalleled opportunity to quickly get up to speed on the country that plays perhaps the most pivotal economic, cultural and geographic role in many middle eastern policies and debates. Finally, the American and Egyptian fellows were all highly intelligent, inquisitive and motivated to not only engage in the wide variety of issues and topics we discussed, but to engage with one another and quickly become a loving, highly cohesive community. I'd highly recommend the fellowship for anyone who is excited by the potential of international travel and cross-cultural relations.
