Dako’s Journey with PFP
Head of Office Civil Society Institute (CSI), Gori Branch
During the fellowship, Dako was placed in Little Rock, AR. She shares that throughout her fellowship, she had an opportunity to shadow CEO Mr. Rush Deacon and his team on several federal finance programs administrated by ACC, specifically on youth and collegiate entrepreneurial competition, as well as community development programs.
With Global Ties Arkansas and its executive director Ms. Toni Carr who used to be her host family, Dako had the opportunity to explore American culture and legislation, meet with national and international leaders, and establish networks. Global Ties Arkansas unites emerging and existing national and international leaders in networks of friendship and understanding through educational programs, cultural exposure, and productive collaboration, linking Arkansas and the world to help build a state that is a thriving part of the global community.
Dako shares that after completing the fellowship she was promoted at CSI as she facilitated several new initiatives in her community. With the collaboration of local development actors, she established the civil society initiative where she had a chance to the skills and experience gained through the fellowship and became the first registered woman lobbyist in Gori, Georgia. She advocated for normative acts to ensure the transparent process of citizen participation. Also, Darejan became the chairwoman of the Mayor’s Advisory Board in her hometown. She is passionate about helping the community to encourage civic participation.
Darejan was inspired by the youth competition – Arkansas Governor’s Cup, she has actively started to mentor youth groups and work on raising awareness on different topics.
Since her fellowship, she has graduated from the School of Participatory Democracy, organized by the Council of Europe, and became an expert, enabling her to share the Council of Europe’s values and standards on civil participation.
