Zachary Morrice
Class of 2024
Zachary Morrice is currently the Senior Manager of Global Engagement at Atlas Corps where he coordinates the recruitment and vetting process to find the world's top social change leaders to participate in year-long professional service Fellowships in the United States.
Before joining Atlas Corps, Zachary served as a Fellow with Princeton in Latin America (PiLA) – a program that places highly qualified college graduates in service fellowships with nonprofit organizations in Latin American and Caribbean countries. During his two-year Fellowship in Ecuador, Zachary was the Volunteer Coordinator at the Integrated Childhood and Adolescence Center and the Communications Assistant at the United Nations World Food Program. As a PiLA Fellow, he pursued his passion for promoting sustainable solutions that empower communities and strengthen local systems.
Zachary is a graduate of American University with a bachelor's degree in international affairs and Spanish and Latin American studies. While at American, he led an Alternative Break trip to Mexico City focused on housing justice and grassroots community organizing.
Summer Internship Experience
Promoting Locally Led Development and Strengthening Capacities of Local Organizations in Mexico
This summer, I interned in Mexico City with Social Impact, where I provided support for the USAID Mexico Civil Society Resilience Program. The primary goal of this program was to strengthen the capacities of local civil society organizations in Mexico, enabling them to better address and respond to various development challenges. During my internship, I assumed several key responsibilities, including assisting the team in planning capacity-building workshops for local organizations that received funding from the US government, crafting donor reports, and contributing to a social network analysis to help local organizations better understand the networks and local systems within which they operate. I also supported Social Impact's organization-wide efforts to assess progress in achieving locally led development through its ongoing projects. This involved creating a survey and synthesizing insights gathered from various country offices. One of the most memorable experiences from my internship was the opportunity to travel to Oaxaca and assist in implementing an organizational capacity assessment tool for a local organization focused on protecting children's rights.
My internship experience provided me with valuable insights into the ways in which implementing partners collaborate with USAID to promote locally led development. This approach empowers local actors, giving them greater influence over how foreign aid funding is allocated and how development activities are implemented.
Why GHD?
I chose the GHD program to learn from talented development practitioners and apply practical skills that will aid my growth as a monitoring and evaluation professional. The small cohort size fosters a tight-knit community of like-minded professionals, all dedicated to achieving social impact.