Social Entrepreneur, Founder, STEAM Educator

Yen Siow completed her Master of Teaching degree and Economics degree at Monash University Australia. From 2007 to 2015 Yen worked at Swinburne University of Technology as the Business Development and Special Projects Coordinator for Digital Frontiers. She has worked in various positions as a Social Entrepreneur, STEM Teacher with the United Nations women in STEM (Singapore), as a Humanitarian Ambassador and Foundations Scholarship Manager for Caulfield Grammar School and as the Digital Literacy Manager for the Father Bob Maguire Foundation (supporting low socio economic communities who face barriers to accessing education and technology).

In the past 8 years Yen has focused her attention on building opportunities for communities that are displaced by conflict to further their education with outreach projects in STEAM education through SMART Osvita (a Ukriane and Canadian partnered NGO with Monash University), with Cahaya Surya Bakti School (Education for Rohingya refugees) and with crisis shelters in South East Asia. She is passionate about providing equal access and opportunity for students to learn STEAM subjects in a hands on fun way and works with special needs children, communities from displaced backgrounds, women and children affected by domestic violence and for Indigenous communities.

One of the most innovative projects Yen has worked on was the RoboBus project where she retro fitted an old bus to transform it into a mobile STEM classroom. The bus was driven to various schools and community centres as an outreach education project, impacting over 2000 people in Melbourne for STEM education. As the founder of the Social Enterprise “Discovering without Borders” www.d-w-b.org Yen has been providing online and in person workshops for a range of communities in South East Asia, the Ukraine, Afghanistan and Australia. Her work has been recognised at the 50 years anniversary celebrations by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong of Singapore and at Facebook now Meta headquartered in Singapore.

In 2024 she was the recipient of the Distinguished Alumni award for the Faculty of Education at Monash University and has been in various panel guest speaking roles for International Women’s Day, the Global Educational Leadership Conference Singapore and for the Future Women’s leaders forum.

gul.inanc@initiativeour.org

Gül İnanç (Founder)  is a diplomatic historian of modern West Asia and has published books and articles on modern Turkish diplomacy, cultural heritage education for peace, religious architecture of Singapore, forced migration in Southeast Asia. Her recent publications include Access to Higher Education: Refugee Stories from Malaysia (co-authored), Routledge, 2018, and Forced Displacement and NGOs in Asia Pacific (co-ed), Routledge, 2022. She is  the co-founder of Centre for Asia Pacific Refugee Studies (CAPRS) at University of Auckland, New Zealand and served as the founding co-director between 2020-2023.

She has received the Koh Boon Kwee Scholars Award in August 2016 for inspirational teaching at Nanyang Technological University, NTU, Singapore, where she was affiliated between 2012-2022. She has worked as an expert curriculum developer on UNESCO’s Understanding Shared Histories: A Teaching Package which has been translated into Khmer, Indonesian, Thai and Vietnamese.

She has co-developed educational materials including text books for K12 students on the history and cultural heritage of Cyprus and a Singapore religious heritage game project at the NTU.  She is currently based in Singapore.

amnashah.initiativeour@gmail.com

Amna, currently residing in Canada, is diligently pursuing a Master of Health Sciences in Medical Genomics at the prestigious University of Toronto. Her active engagement with the Global Tertiary Refugee Student Network underscores her commitment to facilitating higher education access for refugees, while her distinguished role as Director at OUR (Opening Universities for Refugees) exemplifies her dedication to this noble cause.

From 2020 to 2023, Amna served as the Program Coordinator for CERTE Malaysia, contributing significantly to CERTE’s recognition as a Best Practice in the Global Compact on Refugees. During the past five years, she displayed unwavering leadership as a youth advocate at the Dignity for Children Foundation, empowering marginalized youths. Her profound commitment to gender rights is evidenced by her role as the focal point for Women & Girls at Risk, where she effectively raised awareness about sexual and gender-based violence within the refugee community. 

Amna’s journey commenced when she sought refuge in Malaysia in 2014, hailing from Pakistan. Despite facing formidable challenges, her remarkable resilience and tenacity propelled her to secure a scholarship to the University of Nottingham, where she attained a B.Sc. (Hons) in Biomedical Science, distinguished by awards such as Best Research Project and Best Research Proposal Pitch. Her academic achievements culminated in her being honoured as the Valedictorian of the class of 2020 at the School of Pharmacy, University of Nottingham, Malaysia.

• Partner with universities and academic institutions to establish scholarship programs specifically designed for refugee students.
• Develop and implement support services, such as bridging courses, mentorship, and counselling, to ensure the academic success and well-being of refugee students.
• Raise awareness about the importance of higher education for refugees via creative artistic projects.
• Establish regional and international networks to share best practices and collaborate on innovative solutions for higher education access.
• Secure funding and resources to sustain and expand OUR’s initiatives and reach more refugee students around the world.
• Foster strong partnerships with governments, NGOs, and corporations to advocate for policies that support refugees’ right to education and the recognition of their qualifications.
• Partner with institutions, which conduct research and collect data to better understand the challenges faced by refugee students and use this knowledge to inform policy recommendations.

OUR envisions a world where every refugee has equal access to higher education, empowering them to rebuild their lives, unlock their full potential and contribute to the betterment of their communities and the global society.

OUR’s mission is to facilitate and advocate for accessible higher education opportunities for refugee worldwide. Through strategic partnerships, innovative programs, and community engagement, we aim to break down barriers, provide comprehensive support, and foster a welcoming environment that nurtures academic excellence, personal growth, and intercultural understanding among refugee students.

We are committed to enhancing refugee self- reliance by equipping them with the skills and knowledge needed to rebuild their lives and contribute positively to society. We seek to empower refugees to become self-sufficient and independent individuals.

We strive to expand access to third- country solutions, creating pathways for refugee students to pursue higher education beyond their host countries. By working with universities and academic institutions in various countries, we aim to offer diverse opportunities for refugees to continues their education and access new possibilities for their future.