Frequently asked questions
Baobab is a social-learning platform designed to connect you with members across the globe to collaborate, network, learn and access opportunities. Baobab has allowed Mastercard Foundation program participants to make lifelong friends in new countries and find helpful contacts for their projects and work opportunities.
Baobab was created as the Mastercard Foundation’s digital alumni engagement strategy in order to connect current program participants and alumni with each other.
Mastercard Foundation Scholars, and alumni are currently Baobab’s primary users. Mastercard Foundation program partners and staff occasionally access the platform to share opportunities and news with the Baobab community. Baobab also invites experts, mentors and other relevant people to the platform to share their knowledge through the feed, Ask Me Anything (AMA) events and mentorship programs.
Baobab is accessible to all current program participants and alumni of the Mastercard Foundation, as well as individuals who are personally or professionally connected to the African continent and hold a commitment to being a catalyst for positive change in Africa.
You’ll be able to join if you’re a young African leader committed to positive change in Africa. Go to www.baobabplatform.org to sign up.
Connect with Baobab Ambassadors near you. Ambassadors are Baobab superusers who are there to help you navigate the platform in real life. If you’re not sure who your ambassador is, email support@baobabplatform.org to find out.
Browse the feed and see what other members are posting. If you like a post, write a comment or send the member a chat message.
Explore the opportunities board curated just for you. See if you qualify for an opportunity and apply.
Take a Baobab course and share what you learned in the feed.
Check out the Ask Me Anything (AMA) page and post a question for a mentor who is holding an AMA session.
Follow these steps:
Scroll down the page and click on “Forgot My Password.”
Enter in the email address associated with your Baobab account. A password reset email will be sent to that email address. Wait for this email to arrive. It may take 20-30 minutes to arrive in some cases. Please be patient and don’t request another one as it will invalidate the first one. Check the spam or junk folder if the email does not appear after some time.
Open the email and click the “Reset Password” link.
Follow the instructions on the screen to create a new password.
Note: The reset password email is only good for 24 hours. Therefore, it is best to request it when you have a few minutes to complete the process.
Baobab is a space reserved for current participants and alumni of Mastercard Foundation’s programs, as well as others who share similar interests, goals and experiences related to Transformative Leadership and giving back to the African continent. Baobab makes it easier than platforms such as Facebook to find those who share your passions and experience.
In addition to networking, Baobab has features you can’t find on traditional social media.
Opportunities: The Baobab community, Baobab’s partners, Mastercard Foundation and the Baobab team regularly post job, internship, scholarship, fellowship and funding opportunities on the opportunities board. It is a place for scholars to find and apply to opportunities and share them with their broader communities.
Mentorship: Baobab hosts regular Ask Me Anything (AMA) sessions where alumni , industry experts, people from the Mastercard Foundation and others answer questions that are top of mind for African youth. Young African students, professionals and future leaders can also access mentors by applying to our mentorship program with Global Give Back Circle or joining mentor-facilitated workgroups such as:
Interview and resume/CV support.
Graduate admissions mentorship.
Learning: Baobab offers courses on Transformative Leadership skills, professional skills, personal wellbeing and more. Community members also learn from each other through digital networking events hosted by Baobab Chat and by joining topic-specific groups in workgroups. Every feature on Baobab can be a learning opportunity!
Once you are a participant of one of Mastercard Foundation’s programs, you are always part of the Mastercard Foundation Community. Alumni can continue to access their Baobab account after graduation. Remember, Baobab was created as the Mastercard Foundation’s digital alumni engagement strategy. So once you sign up, your membership is lifelong.
Mastercard Foundation alumni can benefit from Baobab and support young Africans on the platform by:
Taking courses to deepen their knowledge, learning soft skills to boost their confidence in professional settings or improving other skills.
Finding and sharing jobs, conferences, funding and other opportunities on the opportunities board.
Contributing to the discussion, attending networking events and sharing their experiences and learning to benefit other program participants and alumni.
Finding collaborators and partners through the Baobab feed, workgroups and networking events.
Finding mentors through mentorship programs and workgroups.
Being an active alumnus on the Baobab platform is a great way to stay engaged in the Mastercard Foundation Community and contribute to Mastercard Foundation’s diverse programming.
The name was chosen by Mastercard Foundation scholars through a naming challenge on the Mastercard Foundation Community Facebook group. “Baobab” received the most votes.
The Baobab tree represents a place where the community gathers to listen, exchange ideas and learn from one another. Like the baobab tree, the Baobab platform is the place to connect, learn new skills and be inspired to make a difference in the lives of others.
Baobab courses are a collaborative effort between experts, professionals and academics from Africa and the Baobab team. The subject matter experts offer their expertise with culturally relevant content and the Baobab team contributes expertise in online education.
The Baobab team is currently focused on creating courses that prepare young Africans for life after graduation, building Transformative Leadership qualities and skills, and entrepreneurship. Courses are created as a response to the needs and desires of African youth. User feedback helps us prioritize what courses we will create.
Any Baobab user can and is encouraged to share opportunities that might be relevant to the community. The success of the opportunities board depends on the contribution of all Baobab users.
Opportunities can be posted from the feed and viewed in both the Baobab feed and Opportunities tab.
In most cases, those who post opportunities don’t have connections to the actual opportunity. The opportunities posted on Baobab primarily come from Mastercard Foundation program partners and staff and the Baobab community. The Baobab team also researches relevant opportunities and shares postings.
Baobab offers both group and individual mentorship opportunities to further the personal and professional development of young Africans. To participate in mentorship programming on Baobab, watch for announcements and keep in touch with the Baobab community through local alumni networks, your university and/or Baobab ambassadors.
A Baobab ambassador is someone who advocates for Baobab by proactively using his or her social influence to increase awareness and drive action. The goal of a Baobab ambassador is to increase the number of Mastercard Foundation participants and alumni who believe in the value of Baobab, ultimately increasing the number of African youths on Baobab.
Baobab looks for young Africans who can be advocates for the platform within their institutions or networks. To become a Baobab ambassador, you need to be active within the Mastercard Foundation’s alumni network both on and off Baobab.
The Baobab ambassador program is an incentive-based program. Baobab ambassadors are able to participate in contests and challenges to win prizes not available to the rest of the community. Applying to represent Baobab at the summit is one of the perks of being a Baobab ambassador.
Baobab t-shirts are awarded to Baobab ambassadors or Baobab interns.
The Baobab Digital Innovation Scholars Program will bring 25 participants to ASU for a two-year graduate program with a focus on training EdTech experts for Africa.
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