By Rona Karimi, 2023-25 Rotary Peace Fellow at International Christian University, Tokyo, Japan
My experiences as a refugee motivated me to seek a Rotary Peace Fellowship. I’ve been labeled in many ways: internally displaced person, refugee in Pakistan, immigrant in Canada, and now a student in Japan. But my identity has always been simple: I am Rona, a woman from Kabul, Afghanistan.
I was born and raised in the capital city of Kabul, a country with a rich culture and history. More than 12 ethnic groups, including Pashtuns, Tajiks, and Hazara, live together, and my family belongs to the Hazara minority, which makes up about 8% of the population.
The Hazara people have been persecuted under various regimes up to the present day. Because their religious beliefs differ from those of the majority, they are often considered “not true Muslims,” and their distinctive appearance, which is of Mongol origin, has made them targets of discrimination and violence. Our community has suffered persecution for generations.
In the early 1990s, when the Taliban seized power in Afghanistan, my father was arrested and tortured to the point of near death. Following this traumatic event, my family and I fled to neighboring Pakistan and spent several years as refugees. Refugee life was fraught with uncertainty and social isolation, and I had limited educational opportunities. From these experiences, I learned about displacement, resilience, and the importance of education and community support.
Through the Canadian government’s refugee program, we immigrated to Canada, a major turning point in my life. I had opportunities for education, housing, and financial support and earned a master’s degree in applied politics. Both in Pakistan and Canada, I had been in refugee support positions including an Afghan academy and a local community center, emergency shelter, and resettlement agency. I learned to be an educator, mentor, and leader.
Encountering Rotary
During this learning journey, I encountered Rotary and discovered the Rotary Peace Fellowship. I was accepted as a Peace Fellow and graduated in 2025 with a master’s degree in peace studies from International Christian University (ICU). During my fellowship, I also had the opportunity to work with the University of Central Asia in Tajikistan, and the Afghan Refugee Solidarity Association in Türkiye to further my experience and research.
I am now in the first year of my doctoral program at ICU in the same field with the goal of obtaining my doctorate while in Japan. I am developing my research plan in consultation with my advisor and plan to use postcolonial theory and narrative identity as my theoretical framework and conduct interviews with Afghan female refugees living in Canada.
In the future, I hope to support not only women in Afghanistan, but also women around the world affected by conflict, displacement, and natural disasters — including those in Syria, Ukraine, and Africa — in achieving their dreams and goals.
A perspective on peace
My experience as a refugee in Canada profoundly changed my perspective on peace. Peace is not simply the absence of conflict. It is the existence of institutions that protect human dignity and expand opportunities.
Living across borders, I have come face to face with the harsh realities women confront, particularly in present-day Afghanistan. Schools are closed, access to education and healthcare is denied, and many women are confined to their homes. Witnessing and experiencing these realities has given me an awareness of injustice and a desire to build sustainable peace.
Rotary’s ideals resonate with my own. Rotary’s efforts in areas such as peacebuilding, education support, health, water and sanitation, local economic development, and environmental protection comprehensively address human security. In particular, I have experienced how education can rebuild lives and pave the way for a better future.
Growing the peace community
If you have an interest in applying to the program, I would encourage you to consider how your work as a Rotary Peace Fellow would connect with Rotary’s values and mission. My hope is that more peace fellows would engage with Rotary members, learn from this diverse community, and be mindful of “how to give.” I believe the Rotary peace community grows not only by receiving, but also by giving through their time, knowledge, and collaboration.
Rona Karimi is a Rotary Peace Fellowship master’s program graduate of International Christian University (ICU), Tokyo, Japan (2023-25) and is currently pursuing a doctoral degree at ICU.
https://blog.rotary.org/2026/05/14/crossing-borders-toward-peace-my-journey-as-a-rotary-peace-fellow/