That’s a wrap on RAP!

Posted on by nayavill

Hey everyone!

My time in Bangkok with the Water Program team at the Food and Agriculture Organization Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific (FAORAP) is finally coming to an end. While my practicum officially wraps up on August 11, I am confident that I’ll take the skills, lessons, and knowledge that I’ve gained here with me for the rest of my career.

This summer was certainly a busy one. I wrote 1 Letter of Intent to collaborate between UNICEF and FAORAP on strengthening cooperation between agricultural and water for sanitation and hygiene (WASH) sectors across the Asia and Pacific region, 3 Concept Notes on land-based sources of ocean pollution causing eutrophication in large marine ecosystems (LMEs) in China, Indonesia, and Sri Lanka, 1 policy brief on gender equality, disability and social inclusion (GEDSI) in water resources management, 1 mission brief on non-profits working in the agricultural and WASH sectors in Timor-Leste, 1 speech for World Food Day’s guest speaker, Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn of Thailand, and 3 partner contracts for the Water Scarcity Program (WSP). I also had the opportunity to attend 2 workshops hosted by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and its partners, including FAORAP. Both workshops focused on water, but the one co-hosted between ADB and FAORAP was specifically on water scarcity and how to manage it from a policy level. Participating delegations came from various ministries (Water, Natural Resources, Meteorology, etc.) in Lao People’s Democratic Republic (Lao PDR), Vietnam, Cambodia, and Thailand. During the workshop, I took notes on the presentations from FAO technical experts and other guest speakers, and I had the opportunity to participate in and take notes for the breakout discussions of the Lao PDR delegation. I learned a lot about water-related issues in Lao PDR and how many of them stem not only from prolonged drought, but from poor collaboration between water-using ministries, which leads to overuse and competition. This has dangerous consequences for crop yield and by result, people’s nutrition, as many people living in Lao PDR depend on agriculture for their personal use and for their livelihoods: about 61% of people in the country live in rural areas and depend on agriculture for survival (IFAD, n.d.).

ADB’s workshop with Ramboll and the Stockholm Environment Institute on the Greater Mekong Subregion.
A member of Vietnam’s delegation presents at the FAORAP-ADB joint workshop on water scarcity.

Lao PDR’s main issue with water and agriculture is very similar to that of other Southeast Asian countries – rapid urbanization and population growth is putting pressure on dwindling water sources all while agricultural sectors must produce more food with less water to feed more people. This challenge will shape how countries develop agricultural and nutrition policy, and I recently learned that FAO also has a team that focuses on advising member countries on producing nutrition-sensitive crops. One root cause of many nutrition-related diseases, if you go back far enough, is decreased agricultural yield from water scarcity. While at first glance, the Water Program at FAORAP seems disconnected from public health, but its goal and mandate under FAO is to support better production, better nutrition, a better environment, and a better life for all.

Participating in this year’s United Nations Responsible Business and Human Rights Forum hosted by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)

Saying goodbye to Bangkok will be difficult, to say the least. I learned so much about the UN system here and got to meet so many like-minded interns from around the world. I ate the most delicious food every day, worked with incredibly passionate and determined people, learned a lot about Thai culture, and even had the opportunity to visit Tonle Sap Lake in Cambodia, which I researched for my assignments in SPHG 721! My perspectives on international, systems-level work were immensely shaped by my practicum experience, and getting to actually experience the funding mechanisms, agenda setting, and program development we read about in Gillings was invaluable to say the least. Living in Bangkok, a city where my own grandmother was born and lived in until she was 13, really had me feeling สบาย สบาย/sabai sabai this summer, and I feel extremely lucky to have had the opportunity of a lifetime to work in these spaces.

ขอบคุณค่ะ/kop khun ka, Thailand. It’s been a time and hopefully I’ll see you again soon.

~Leeann

The Research Continues

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After three months of working at Ipas, my internship has come to an end, although my involvement with Ipas certainly has not. While my team and I faced unforeseen obstacles in our analysis timeline, I was nevertheless able to produce four deliverables and have been invited to continue assisting in research dissemination. The deliverables I have produced include a community validation presentation; Samburu County, Kenya climate policy desk review; climate resilience and sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) codebook; and research impact plan. As our study of intersecting climate resilience and SRHR in Samburu County is still ongoing, I will further contribute to data analysis during my enrollment in Advanced Qualitative Research Methods (HBEH 754), as well as to dissemination through involvement in Ipas webinars and manuscript-writing.

Skill Development: I consistently focused on strengthening and developing my skills throughout this internship. In particular, my qualitative research skills have significantly improved, such that I am more familiar with codebook creation and using Dedoose. Moreover, I had never conducted a desk review nor crafted a research impact plan prior to this internship, both of which I am now able to do. Finally, I strengthened my communication and organization skills, as I mainly worked independently and needed to keep my team informed and myself on schedule.

Mentorship: Sally Dijkerman, MPH was an invaluable mentor throughout my internship. While she guided me on how I could contribute to the project, she permitted me to work independently to complete those tasks. Furthermore, I appreciated that Sally always ensured I had a voice. Whether it was welcoming me into group meetings or asking for my input on her methods and reasoning, her mentorship allowed me to feel seen and heard, despite the subordination typically associated with intern status. I could not have asked for a better mentor to formally introduce me to the field of global SRHR research.

Overall Experience: I cannot speak highly enough of this practicum experience. I find it has not only solidified my interest in global SRHR research but also given me a greater understanding of the role climate change plays in all aspects of life. I am proud of the impact my team and I have already made through our research and look forward to expanding our reach in aims to influence the next climate change policy in Samburu County, Kenya and beyond.

– Caroline

TB Continuing Education for Civil Surgeons in NC

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Hello again!

This week, I finished my practicum with the TB Control Program, a subset of the NC Department of Health and Human Services. My practicum was the last phase of a project called “Civil Surgeon Educational Survey and Evaluation on Latent TB Infection (LTBI) Diagnosis and Treatment.” The project focused on strengthening the partnership with the community to combat active tuberculosis by increasing treatment initiation and completion of latent tuberculosis infection for those at higher risk of LTBI.

A previous student completed the beginning phases of this project: she confirmed which civil surgeons in NC are active/practicing, created a database of civil surgeon contact information, and assessed current civil surgeon knowledge of TB, and gauged interest in a presentation focusing on the most updated information on TB and LTBI care. My part of the project was the creation of educational materials and the delivery of information to the civil surgeons.

There are about 65 practicing civil surgeons in North Carolina. To try to reach as many civil surgeons as possible, we held 3 webinar sessions over the course of the summer. We hoped that, even with summer schedules, this flexible format would appeal to most providers. Information about the webinars and how to sign-up was sent to each civil surgeon utilizing the previously created NC civil surgeon database.

Each webinar lasted about an hour and focused on the medical screening for tuberculosis among people applying for adjustment of status for US permanent residence. This process must be completed by a civil surgeon, and involves a medical exam, physical examination, and other diagnostic tests for TB/LTBI. I ran the presentation and was accompanied by nurse consultants for the TB Control program. The nurse consultants were able to answer any questions that the civil surgeons had in real time.

Feedback from the webinars was positive! Two civil surgeons noted that the presentation was a great overview of pertinent TB information. Although more than 12 civil surgeons expressed interest in attending one of the webinars, only 10 were able to attend (10 spread out between the 3 presentations). However, these 10 civil surgeons represented 6 different counties across the state. Additionally, when given a pre-webinar “knowledge-check” survey which tested baseline TB knowledge, the average score was 75%. After the webinar, when the same knowledge-check was administered, the average score increased to 96%.

Although it would have been wonderful to reach more civil surgeons, these providers are busy people providing direct care to patients! We were happy to reach as many as we did and strengthen the relationship between providers and the health department.

Thanks for reading!

– Audrey