Ghanaian cleric, Dr. Abdul Hamid Kishk Bashir Yandu has started work as a 2025/2026 cohort of the Eisner Prize Fellowship, a program aimed at promoting intergenerational work.
Imam Kishk is one of five fellows in the current cohort. His theme for the year-long fellowship is dubbed KINCONNECT.
“The idea is to have monthly conversation circles between young and old people through culturally driven emotional and psychological support, blended with digital friendly initiatives,” Dr. Bashir said.
His current engagement builds on previous socio-cultural and interreligious work he has done back home in Ghana and across Africa.
It also ties into his current engagement in the United States, where he currently serves as the Director of West African Community Center in Philadelphia. There he is in charge of Community Relations and Education.
His work with this predominantly immigrant community includes assistance and guidance in navigating resources. On the international stage, he contributes to youth empowerment as a board member of the Initiative for Youth Development in Ghana, his home country.
What is expected of him during the fellowship
During the Fellowship, Dr. Bashir will launch KinConnect Circles, a year-long pilot program designed to strengthen emotional bonds, cultural identity, and system navigation among grandfamilies and kin care families.
The program will introduce a structured model for intergenerational healing and learning blending cultural storytelling, peer mentoring, wellness support, and digital empowerment.
A track record of community and inter-faith relations and digital advocacy
He is a growing voice and constant social media presence bridging the use of social media to share Islamic insights through lectures on diverse contemporary and historical topics, as well as sharing Friday sermons that he delivers home and abroad.
He holds a Ph.D. in Islamic Studies, from Niger’s Franco-Arab International Private University and also a Diploma in Basic Education from the University Of Cape Coast (UCC).
Dr Bashir specialises in Quranic exegesis and his scholarship focuses on reclaiming authentic Islamic narratives from original and early sources to challenge theological distortions especially used by radical groups.
He serves on the African Union Interfaith Dialogue Platform, and frequently collaborates with leaders of other faiths in addressing communal challenges, promoting shared values, and responding to crises across the U.S.
Imam Kishk, as he is affectionately referred to, is also Director of the Al-Islaah Center, an Islamic think tank and Civil Society Organization, located in Accra.
About the Fellowship
The Eisner Prize Fellowship program is the next phase in the evolution of the Eisner Prize for Intergenerational excellence, which has honored people and organizations doing exceptional intergenerational work across the country since 2011.
The Fellowship seeks to uplift the next leaders in the intergenerational space by providing financial resources, networking opportunities, and the prestige of the Eisner Prize to individuals with new ideas and perspectives that will propel the field forward.
The 2025/26 cohort of Fellows were selected from a highly competitive applicant pool, and received a $10,000 stipend and an additional $40,000 to support their intergenerational project proposal.