Alumna
Alumna Giorgia Franchi ’01 embodies the HKIS Mission of “Dedicating our minds to inquiry, our hearts to compassion, and our lives to service and global understanding,” and the Student Learning Result of “Contributing to Society.”
Since April 2014 she has worked for the International Rescue Committee (IRC), a humanitarian agency that aids refugees and others whose lives are shattered by conflict and disaster. Giorgia’s role has focused on researching ways to prevent and respond to violence against women and girls in humanitarian crises, with the aim of influencing policy and advocating against gender-based violence. Her work has brought her to a variety of places including Ethiopia, Kenya, and South Sudan. You can hear more about Giorgia’s work on the IRC’s Women’s Protection & Empowerment podcast.
Before that, from February 2008 to December 2013, Giorgia worked as an immigration lawyer in London, specializing in asylum and complex human-rights based cases.
Acknowledging the influence of her education at HKIS, Giorgia said, “I attended HKIS from 6th to 11th Grade and I truly believe this is the place where I learned about service to society, the place that instilled a sense of responsibility for others within me. My teachers at HKIS – especially Mr. Coombs and Mr. Schmidt – helped me develop a social conscience as a young student and I applied this to my career choices once in the working world.”
Giorgia has a BA (Honours) in Chinese and Law from the School of Oriental and African Studies at the University of London. She also studied Mandarin and classical Chinese during one year of study at the Beijing Normal University.