By nfiszer
Olá! My name is Natalie Fiszer and I am in my junior year at the George Washington University. I am studying International Affairs, with dual concentrations in International Development and Global Public Health. I am passionate about pursing a career in international development because I find it incredible to look at the progress that has been made in the last 50 years in decreasing poverty and improving access to health care, both on the part of developing countries themselves, as well as assisting countries and organizations. I have had the opportunity to hear from amazing professors with firsthand experience who have made these transformations, and I have had the privilege of interning at the U.S. Peace Corps, and seeing how their grassroots development projects happen. Now it's my turn. For my semester abroad, I will be studying with a field-based SIT program, and I will have the opportunity to personally experience some of the stories I have heard, and to learn even more about the conditions around the world that will allow me to place everything I learn in class into a better context.
I will be studying in Salvador, Brazil, a city I was attracted to as a location that incorporates my love of culture, development, and Latin America. Brazil has stood out as a model for development and growth in recent years, while Salvador provides a fascinating contrast; while still in the midst of a developing Brazil; the northeast maintains the highest rates of poverty, along with massive inequality. I will be able to see the duality of these worlds, how these policies are working and why sometimes they do not. Through my past travels and studies, I have fallen in love with Latin America for its people, landscape, literature, food, and most importantly for its hospitality and welcoming nature. While in Latin America, Brazil promises an entirely different mix of cultures, ideas, and people, all of which are represented in Salvador.
Through my SIT program, I will have opportunity to learn hands-on through various excursions, which include shadowing community health workers, staying in rural areas and looking at their health systems, and learning about traditional healing practices from the practitioners themselves. During the last month of my stay in Brazil, I will be conducting an independent research project in the state of Bahia. I plan to do my research on the functionality of community health workers in the state of Bahia. I will research the effectiveness and contribution of community health workers in rural areas of Salvador, measured through the people's perception of what they actually contribute. Along with the effectiveness, I want to study what community health workers can offer that clinics and hospitals do not, and vice versa, in order to find what could make both practices more beneficial. As my semester does not begin until February, I am still in the preparation phase of my trip, but I am looking forward to the exciting adventure to come.