20th Anniversary Alumni Reflections: Ted Meinhover

In celebration of the Human Rights Program's 20th Anniversary, Ted Meinhover (B.A. Global Studies '07) recently shared with us his reflections on his time wtih the HRP and the impact it had on his future career path.

Human Rights Program (HRP): What did you do with the Human Rights Program (HRP) while you were a student at the University of Minnesota and how did your work with the HRP affect your career path?

Ted Meinhover (TM): I landed in Banda Aceh, Indonesia a few months after the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami destroyed the provincial capital and much of the coast, killing hundreds of thousands and upturning the society and economy. The tsunami also interrupted the long-running conflict between the government and armed separatists. A naïve student intern at an NGO in Thailand in the summer of 2005, I was traveling with an expert on grassroots peacebuilding who was meeting with local activists working to make that peace permanent.

A UMN Human Rights Program scholarship made it possible for me to spend the summer working at the Bangkok-based human rights NGO FORUM Asia. This experience, aside from inspiring a life-long passion for spicy food, provided opportunities that changed the way I saw the world, its challenges and possibilities, and influenced the direction of my life. HRP helped connect me with the NGO and funded me to spend the summer months learning about and playing a small part in regional issues and the global network of advocates and activists. I caught glimpses of the struggle for democracy in Myanmar, the plight of refugees from that same country, religious strife in southern Thailand, and environmental activists under threat across the region. The mentorship and opportunities I had through HRP were fundamental to my path to my current job as a Foreign Service Office at the U.S. State Department. 

Back at the University, HRP helped me build on my internship by keeping me connected to human rights issues even as I went on to study politics, journalism, and language. For example, a student-led project advocating for Hmong refugees gave me valuable insights into local migrant communities when I began writing for the St. Paul-based Asian American Press after graduation. Also, that 2005 trip to Banda Aceh led me to embark on a second undergraduate study abroad experience, this time to Indonesia to study language, an experience that was key to getting my first job in Washington, DC at an international aid organization.

HRP: What are you doing now? 

TM: As scores of HRP alums will agree, the mentorship of Professor Frey and her team, mentorship that has continued long past graduation, shaped me as both a person and a professional. I am celebrating 11 years in the U.S. diplomatic corps this month, where I’ve served at U.S. embassies in Kingston, Jamaica, Beijing, China, the consulate in Lahore, Pakistan, and currently in the State Department’s East Asia Bureau. Next year I will ship out to Jakarta, Indonesia to serve as a Political Officer (amazing how it all comes full circle!) In 2018 I won an award for my work surrounding the situation of ethnic and religious minorities in China’s Xinjiang region.