Maysaa Sati
maysaa@mit.edu| Linkedin| MaysaaSati.com
Philanthropy and social impact professional with 5+ years’ experience designing and managing grantmaking programs, data-driven impact strategies, and cross-sector partnerships across humanitarian, academic, and nonprofit sectors. Proven ability to align funding with community needs, evaluate program effectiveness, and deliver measurable results through stakeholder engagement and strategic communications.
Education
2023 – 2025
Master of City Planning (MCP) – City/Regional Planning
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Cambridge, USA
Sep 2023 – May 2025 | 5.00 cGPA
2015 – 2021
Bachelor of Science (B.S.) – Architecture
University of Khartoum, Sudan
Oct 2015 – Dec 2021 | Honors 2:1
Experience
Jul 2025 – Present
Intern
United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) | Remote
Led the development of an AI-powered assessment tool to streamline the Gender Equality Seal certification process for public institutions.
Designed and implemented AI-driven prompts to assess institutional compliance with 50+ gender equality benchmarks, enabling faster, standardized reviews.
Developed logic flows that linked qualitative evidence to quantitative scoring, improving assessment consistency across regions.
Collaborated with global program teams to ensure multilingual and context-sensitive deployment, supporting institutions in over 40 countries.
Nov 2024 – Present
Founder & Director
AcasiaPulse | Cambridge, USA
Founded a data-driven platform using social media analytics and AI to monitor displacement and humanitarian trends in conflict-affected regions.
Built partnerships with 3+ humanitarian organizations, enabling data-sharing agreements.
Collected and processed 40,000+ tweets from verified sources to train and power the platform’s predictive model for displacement tracking.
Conducted revenue and performance analysis that improved forecasting accuracy by 20%, informing program scaling strategies.
Program and Grant Management
Feb 2021 - April 2024
Human Rights Investigator & Policy Analyst
Gisa Group | Khartoum, Sudan
Managed a microgrants program supporting grassroots human rights initiatives while leading open-source investigations to inform donor strategy and advocacy campaigns.
Administered 15+ microgrants totaling over $150,000 to local partners, from proposal review through monitoring and final reporting.
Published 10+ OSINT investigation reports that were cited in international advocacy campaigns and used by donors to shape funding priorities.
Delivered 15+ capacity-building workshops for 100+ partner staff on investigation techniques, data management, and reporting standards.
Managed multi-platform advocacy strategy, increasing engagement by 200% and expanding donor visibility into partner impact.
Research Assistant – Racially Just Research Initiative
Supported a national microgrants program advancing racial justice in planning research, managing grants administration, program evaluation, and stakeholder communications.
Managed 20+ funded projects, from proposal review to grantee support and compliance.
Facilitated workshops and authored reports adopted by faculty and funders to inform strategic direction.
Synthesized interdisciplinary findings into recommendations for improving program impact.
Jun 2019 - Feb 2022
Co-Founder & Human Rights Advocate
Midanik Movement |Khartoum, Sudan
Established a survivor-led initiative addressing gender-based violence through grassroots and donor-funded programming.
Secured and managed funding from philanthropic sources.
Designed outreach campaigns and coordinated strategic partnerships with local organizations.
Led donor reporting and stakeholder communications to maintain funding and trust.
Research & Policy Analysis
Jun 2024 - Nov 2024
MIT DUSP & Sudan Human Rights Hub | Remote
Led a grant-funded independent study examining how conflict reshaped the spatial and institutional logic of displacement camps. Designed research and engagement strategies to produce actionable insights for donors and humanitarian actors.
Secured PKG Summer Fellowship funding and managed the full project lifecycle, from research design to final deliverables.
Built a satellite imagery and interview-based data framework tracking infrastructure damage and camp expansion trends.
Published results in an interactive Story Map and co-authored a peer-reviewed article, both used in humanitarian planning forums.
Jun 2024 - Aug 2024
University of Tshwane | Pretoria, South Africa
Conducted fellowship-funded fieldwork in informal settlements, generating research and recommendations to guide community-based governance and donor interventions.
Applied participatory methods (mapping, oral histories) to identify service delivery gaps and propose targeted solutions.
Delivered a guest lecture to academic and NGO audiences comparing policy implications across South Africa and Sudan.
Jun 2023 - Aug 2023
Centre for Conflict and Humanitarian Studies | Doha, Qatar
Supported policy research on humanitarian access, donor coordination, and crisis response to inform program adaptation and strategic planning.
Synthesized literature on donor coordination and regional crisis response, identifying technical standards and system-level gaps.
Contributed to the framing of policy recommendations, combining statistical analysis with field-level insights to enhance relevance and impact.
Contributed to a research initiative on gender-sensitive urban transformation, with findings informing sustainable planning and donor strategies for equitable infrastructure development.
Managed complex urban planning datasets and archival materials to identify equity gaps in service delivery.
Developed recommendations for community-driven planning frameworks aligned with sustainable development goals and inclusive governance models.
Teaching
Supported curriculum delivery and student engagement for a graduate course on global health, governance, and program evaluation, with a focus on applying evidence-based tools to policy design.
Coached students on developing impact evaluation frameworks and policy logic models.
Assisted in refining assignments to include donor-oriented reporting and impact measurement approaches.
University of Khartoum| Khartoum, Sudan
Delivered lectures and hands-on guidance for architecture students, supporting technical, design, and presentation skills development.
Taught Construction Systems and Construction Systems V to classes of 30+ students.
Curated and delivered practical exercises to enhance structural and design understanding.
Skills & Expertise
Grants & Program Management: Grant Administration, Proposal Review, Donor Reporting, Microgrants Management, Program Evaluation, Compliance Oversight, Stakeholder Engagement
Philanthropy & Strategy: Funding Alignment, Impact Measurement, Partnership Development, Program Design, Policy & Advocacy Support, Capacity Building
AI & Digital Tools: AI-Prompt Engineering, Knowledge Base Development, Logic Flow Design, CRM Systems (Salesforce, HubSpot, Monday.com), Digital Engagement Platforms
Communications & Outreach: Strategic Communications, Donor & Partner Relations, Digital Storytelling, Public Speaking, Event Facilitation, Cross-Cultural Communication
Data & Analytics: Data Collection & Cleaning, Impact Metrics, Forecasting, GIS Mapping (ArcGIS, QGIS), Data Visualization, Performance Tracking, Revenue Analysis
Research & Writing: Policy Briefs, Op-Eds, Academic Publications, Literature Reviews, Open-Source Intelligence (OSINT), Socio-Spatial Analysis
Honors & Fellowships
Publications & Media
Organizer & Speaker – Sudan Solidarity Teach-In
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Cambridge, MA | March 17, 2025
Coordinated and facilitated a campus-wide event to educate students on the complexities of the Sudanese conflict and explore actionable avenues for student engagement and solidarity.
Panelist – Sudan’s Story
Center for Computing & Data Sciences, Boston University, MA | February 21, 2025
Discussed data-driven insights into Sudan’s political and humanitarian crises, emphasizing the importance of narrative and visualization in advocacy efforts.
Guest Lecturer – From Temporary Settlements to Urban Entities: The Transformation of IDP Camps
University of Tshwane, Pretoria, South Africa | August 14, 2024
Delivered a lecture comparing informal settlements in South Africa and displacement camps in Darfur, highlighting methodological parallels and intervention strategies transferable between both contexts.