IYIP Alumni Spotlight - Natasha Mooney

When I look back on my time in Ghana, I realize just how formative that experience was, both professionally and personally.

By the time I joined IYIP, I had studied international development throughout my undergraduate and master’s degrees and was undertaking a part-time PhD while in Ghana. My studies had given me a strong grounding in development, but working in Ghana added an entirely different perspective: seeing how development policies, programs and funding translate in practice. For me, that experience was invaluable. I worked with a local development organization on gender programming, which meant seeing firsthand how policies and donor funding translated into actual programs and, most importantly, getting to know the people those programs were meant to reach.

Some of the experiences that have stayed with me most came from our work on gender equality. I remember meeting girls through programs working to prevent child marriage and support their education and future opportunities. Issues I had previously encountered through research, statistics and policy discussions suddenly became very real. It reinforced for me how important it is that women and girls have the opportunity and agency to shape their own futures, and why gender equality is so fundamental to development.

That remains some of the most meaningful and rewarding work I have done in my career thus far.

Ghana also taught me a lot about what it means to be a development practitioner. Working alongside local colleagues and spending time in the communities where programs were being implemented challenged assumptions I didn't necessarily realize I had. It taught me to listen more and to recognize how much knowledge sits with the people and organizations closest to the issues we are trying to address. I came away humbled by the experience, and I think a much better development practitioner because of it.

It also shaped where my career went next. My experience in Ghana helped me transition to Canada's Foreign Ministry, Global Affairs Canada, where I went on to build a career in international development and foreign policy. One of the opportunities I am proudest of was leading the development of Canada's first Feminist Civil Society Partnerships Policy. I drew on my experience in Ghana throughout that work. When we talked about local ownership, gender equality, partnership, donor requirements or what meaningful engagement with civil society should actually look like, these were no longer purely abstract policy questions for me. I had worked within a local organization implementing donor-funded programs and understood, from a very different vantage point, some of the realities behind the policies we were developing. That perspective stayed with me and influenced how I approached the work.

Since Ghana, I have built a career in international development and foreign policy, first with Canada’s Foreign Ministry, Global Affairs Canada, and later in senior roles across the Government of Canada, including as a Deputy Director. Today, I work with the Asian Development Bank, a Multilateral Development Bank based in Washington, DC. My commitment to gender equality and inclusion has also remained important outside of my day-to-day work. I am proud to have served on the board of a nonprofit supporting Canadian Black women entrepreneurs and currently serve on the board of the Canadian Black Scientists Network. These roles have provided another way to contribute to greater opportunity and representation, particularly for women and underrepresented communities.

One of the things I value most from my time in Ghana is the friendships. I lived with other IYIP participants and became very close with my roommates and the wider cohort. We shared so much of the experience together, from adjusting to life in Ghana to travelling and simply being there for one another. Many years later, I am still in touch with many of them, and I feel incredibly lucky that some of those friendships have lasted long after our placements ended.

Looking back, IYIP was truly a formative experience for me, I remain incredibly grateful for my time in Ghana and for the experiences, friendships and opportunities that came from it.