Mościcki ‘17 Wins Coveted Humanitarian Fellowship

On the heels of recent success at the Clinton Global Initiative University Meeting, Mateusz Mościcki ‘17  has now won a highly coveted Humanity In Action Fellowship, putting him a few steps closer to his ambition. He is driven to set up local radio stations in refugee camps of Lebanon, Jordan and Turkey, as well as establishing a pioneering Internet media platform to bring testimonies and camp life reality to the world.

Drawn by the refugee crisis in the Middle East and Europe, the 21-year-old dreams of launching refugee-run radio stations to spread news, provide pastimes, and most importantly, create a platform to foster dialogue between the Muslim and Christian communities in an effort to dissolve religious boundaries.

“I have always been interested in diplomacy, international relations and human rights. Me and my teammates believe that this the time to apply our knowledge; it is the time to turn our ideas into action,” Mościcki said.

Before being awarded the fellowship, the well-conceived project had landed Mościcki, together with his NYU Shanghai teammate Tomasz Jakub Merta ’17 and Beata Petkowa from Stanford University, a semi-final spot of the Resolution Project at the 2016 CGI University Meeting, held at Berkeley, California earlier in April. Mościcki’s plan stood out from some 900 Commitment to Actions raised by 1,200 student innovators. During the conference, their team had the opportunity to meet former US President Bill Clinton. Three other NYU Shanghai students, Amata Lee '17, Sarah Jinrong Zhang ‘17 and Vivian Yuwei Wu ‘17 also participated in the conference.

“Waves of Peace, broadcasting from the heart of refugee camps in Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan, will reach ~ 230 000 people. It will not only be a platform for dialogue, but  can service to alleviate war trauma, enable education, and integrate the local community.” Mościcki said.

According to Mościcki's plan, the radio will broadcast in Arabic, English and French. He will reach out to governments, business groups and international organizations for further support. In addition, as part of his fundraising efforts, Mościcki established and became president of an NGO--UNIPEACE Foundation.

Much to his delight, Mościcki has also recently earned the 2016 Humanity in Action Fellowship, a highly selective summer fellowship on human rights in Europe. He will fly to Berlin at the end of May to join other fellows in studying minority rights and producing original research on a variety of topics. During June 23-26, all the HIA fellows will gather in Athens, Greece for a concluding Humanity in Action International conference.

“It will be a great opportunity to develop relations with rising global leaders and advance on the path to build a platform that will bring refugee testimonies to the world,” he said.