During the month of January, Peace Boat US is welcoming a new team of interns to gear up for all the UN related events and projects in 2023. Peace Boat US will continue its signature academic internship program with Hollins University that gives students the opportunity to work first hand on upcoming projects related to the UN Sustainable Development Goals, attend ECOSOC Partnership events at the end of January, as well as the UN Water Conference in March. Interns also gain access to the United Nations Headquarters in New York City, giving them the unique experience of working alongside influential leaders within the international institution. Help us give a warm welcome to Ti-Shawn Wellington, Autumn Baxter, Ellie Laferty, Julia Leng, and our returning intern team of Molly Rosaaen, Cecilia Fan, and Nuria Stojkovski! We are thrilled to have you, and look forward to building this cohort.


Nuria Stojkovski recently graduated from Sankt-Anna-Gymnasium, a German high school in Munich. She is attending the Philosophische Hochschule of Munich for a one year philosophical orientation program. Nuria enjoys art and socializing, straddling five languages (German, English, Italian, French and Croatian) helps her connect with people around the world. Nuria is a volunteer for Peace of Paper e.V., a creative project in Munich that supports aid organizations that specialize in organizing and facilitating refugees escape routes. She was elected as class representative, where she had the chance to improve her skills in everyday communication and conflict resolution. 

Nuria is most passionate about SDG #16 for Peace, Justice and strong Institutions, because she believes that empowered institutions and communities are crucial for any kind of problem solving, especially when it comes to worldwide peace. She is also very interested in SDG #13 for Climate Action. She attended a two year seminar about climate change and wrote her final term paper on “The Global Nature of Water Shortage.” She is also a member of the first Fridays 4 Future message group in Munich since late 2018. Nuria is excited to be part of Peace Boat’s huge community and she hopes to further develop her research skills along with her knowledge about coalition building and SDGs in general.


Xingyu (Cecilia) Fan is a recent graduate from the University of California, San Diego. She majors in International Relations with a minor in Climate Change Studies, hoping to tackle climate change at a global level. Cecilia enjoys public speaking and cross-cultural communication and loves to go hiking in her free time. During her time at UCSD, Cecilia composed an Honors Thesis focusing on facilitating transnational cooperation between China and the U.S to promote renewable energies. She is also currently working with the University’s administrative committee in setting up a climate change course requirement for all future UCSD students. 

Cecilia is most passionate about Sustainable Development Goal #13: Climate Action. Believing that public participation is key to resolving climate change, she hopes to mobilize global efforts from both social and political aspects. At Peace Boat, she is looking forward to gaining valuable NGO working experiences and honing her research, networking, and communication skills to make greater impacts in the near future. 


Molly Rosaaen is a recent graduate of Pace University and majored in Political Science and Women’s & Gender Studies. She is passionate about nuclear disarmament and advocates for providing spaces for those who understand the environmental and humanitarian impacts of nuclear weapons. She works with a youth-led organization called Youth4TPNW, which promotes these values (TPNW stands for the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons) Involving young people in conversations that will affect their lives and future is vital to make effective change. 

Molly is most interested in Sustainable Development Goal #13, Climate Action, and SDG #16, Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions. She believes that climate justice can be achieved by providing spaces for everyone to participate in the movement and have their voices heard. She is excited to be working with Peace Boat US and gaining experience in peacebuilding.


Ti-Shawn Wellington is originally from Jamaica and resides in New York. She is a sophomore at Hollins University, double majoring in Public Health and Biology. In her free time, she enjoys watching documentaries and doing research. She serves on her class SGA as a senator, does work study, and acts as the secretary of her universities’ Public Health Outreach Club.

Two topics dear to her heart are women’s health and culture as a social determinant of health. Being a female affects you before you are even born and dictates the type of life you will have. Also, culture is how a majority of people navigate their life and how people find answers. Establishing a relationship, respect, and understanding is essential when working with people from different cultural backgrounds. Her favourite SDGs are Gender Equality and Peace, Justice & Strong Institutions. She firmly believes that all the SDGs are interwoven and can be achieved by advocating for peace and justice for everyone. She is excited to join Peace Boat U.S. in person this January and learn all she can to implement it into her own life.


Julia(Zhuofan) Leng is a master student from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem majors in international development. Having been exposed to the social and political issues in the Middle East, Julia has great passions for conflict mitigation and peace building, as well as fostering economic development in disadvantaged communities. Previously, she worked as an intern with CIMI (The Center for International Migration and Integration) in Jerusalem in facilitating community resilience and social integration of Thai migrant workers in Israel. She also worked with Leaders International in Palestine and Jordan on projects of startup incubation, women microfinance and Syrian refugee empowerment.

Julia is most passionate about Sustainable Development Goal #16 for Peace, Justice and strong Institutions, because she believes that a just, peaceful and inclusive world is an essential foundation of human development. In the Middle East, she volunteers with local peacebuilding organizations to bring Israelis and Palestinians together in order to improve mutual understanding and facilitate peace building. She also pays close attention to Sustainable Development Goal #13 for Climate Action since she has realized deeply that the climate change has profound implications throughout sectors and that it is urgent to take action to cope with climate change.


Autumn Baxter is a current sophomore attending Hollins University in Roanoke, Virginia. She is working towards her undergraduate degree in International Studies, hoping to focus in Refugee Studies. She is a member of the Hollins Outdoor Program and the Rock Climbing team, an avid ceramicist and potter, and is a people-person through and through.

Recent classes have led her to focus on how the climate crisis is affecting different populations unequally, and the role that certain countries should be taking in solving them, which has shifted her interest towards SDG #13, Climate Action. She also had the opportunity to research sustainable architecture and city design in earlier semesters, and thus SDG #11 is also of great interest to her.


Ellie Laferty is a current sophomore at Hollins University in her hometown of Roanoke, Virginia. She is double majoring in public health and communications. She rides for the Hollins University equestrian team as well as competing with her own horse across Virginia and the east coast. 

Ellie is most passionate about SDG #11 for sustainable cities and communities along with SDG #1 for no poverty. She is drawn to these because she is interested in how she can improve her own city and the wellbeing & safety of those who also live there. Her main interest with her own city is the safety and health of students in the Roanoke area. She has also become interested in the international side of Public Health and how we can help improve lives around the world. She is very excited to join PeaceBoat U.S. this January and learn more about the issues she is interested in.

Click here to learn more about our internship program or apply