Sana Johnson
CAS ’17 | International Relations
Communications Intern, Mina’s List: Empowering Women’s Political Leadership Globally, Summer 2015 Yawkey Intern
Inspired by women leaders in global politics, Sana Johnson interned at Mina’s List during the summer of 2015. Sana was able to pursue this unpaid internship due to the living allowance stipend provided by the Yawkey Nonprofit Internship Program.
CCD: Tell us about your experience. What were your responsibilities?
Sana: Mina’s List is a small nonprofit organization based out of Cambridge, Massachusetts, whose mission is to realize women’s equal and substantive representation in national governments around the world. As the Communications Intern, my main responsibility was to help create Mina’s List’s voice and project their message. The organization officially launched its website on International Women’s Day—March 8, 2015—so a large part of my internship was dedicated to building Mina’s List’s online presence from the ground up.
CCD: What was your favorite project during this internship experience?
Sana: I had the opportunity to travel with the Mina’s List team to Dubai for the Listening Session of their Afghan Pilot Project. Mina’s List invited eight Afghan women parliamentarians and six Afghan women’s rights activists (collectively representing each of the major ethnic/religious groups and eleven different regions) to participate in the session. My role at the Listening Session was to make sure everything ran smoothly. I am so happy that I was able to help with the event, and also appreciative for chance to engage with women parliamentarians and prominent women’s rights activists from Afghanistan.
CCD: What was your biggest takeaway from this experience?
Sana: I think what I appreciate most about my time at Mina’s List is the knowledge I gained about women’s political participation. I am grateful to the Mina’s List staff for not only taking the time to teach me about the world of women in politics, but also for never discouraging me from asking questions. During my time there I also learned about women’s rights, feminism, and women’s empowerment from a global perspective. As a result of being more exposed to the work of women’s nonprofits, my impression of the field has been completely altered.
CCD: What’s next for you?
Sana: Through the Yawkey Nonprofit Internship Program, I was able to work at this amazing organization and discover my interest in policymaking, social justice, and nonprofit management. Although I do not have my exact career path figured out yet, I can say that through this experience I learned that the world needs change and I intend to be a part of making it happen. I’m excited to continue with that spring 2016 semester when I will be participating in the National League of Cities Menino Fellowship in Washington, D.C.
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