Project Mentor: Khanjan Mehta, Creative Inquiry

 

Continuing Fellows:
Kaelyn Bulich ‘26
Mila Jovanovic '27

 

2025 Impact Fellows: 

Alexandra Bauman '27
Lizzy Hay ‘27
Shirin Ozodzoda '27

 

Project Description:

How can we leverage the power of artificial intelligence and a professional network like LinkedIn to transform, and ultimately triple, the research capacity of a fast-growing world region?

The Central Asian Researchers Network (CARN) is an intellectual and academic community uniting PhD students, early-career researchers, and established scholars from around the world who share a commitment to advancing research in Central Asia. The overarching goal of CARN is to build research capacity, foster collaboration, and ultimately triple research output across the region over the next three years.

Hosted primarily on LinkedIn, CARN serves as an accessible digital platform for connection, visibility, and knowledge exchange. The initiative employs a three-pronged approach:

  1. Curating high-quality educational resources to strengthen research design, writing, and publication skills.
  2. Catalyzing collaborations and mentorship through in-person and virtual events that bridge disciplines, geographies, and generations of scholars.
  3. Creating multimedia learning resources to inspire and equip young researchers to contribute meaningfully to the global research ecosystem.
  4.  

In its next phase, CARN will explicitly integrate artificial intelligence (AI) as a driver of research transformation. This initiative will explore how Central Asian researchers perceive and engage with AI tools, identifying opportunities and barriers to adoption. These insights will inform a suite of AI capacity-building programs and toolkits that help researchers responsibly and creatively apply AI for literature reviews, data analysis, visualization, and scholarly communication.

By coupling the connective power of LinkedIn with the transformative potential of AI, CARN seeks to reimagine how research communities are built, supported, and empowered. In partnership with Almaty Management University, regional institutions, and the American Councils for International Education, CARN aims to cultivate a new generation of confident, connected, and AI-enabled scholars who can shape the future of knowledge creation in Central Asia.

All majors are welcome to apply. We especially seek students with experience in social science research, strong writing and communication skills, familiarity with AI tools, and a passion for global collaboration and sustainable development.