Grace Galfano

As a freshman biology major, I joined GlobeMed with the intent of exploring global health topics and deepening my understanding of healthcare inequities. When I became a GROW intern at the end of my freshman year, my knowledge of GlobeMed@ND’s partnership with PEDA was sparse, but this experience, albeit virtual, taught me so much about accompaniment and increased my passion for advancing global health equity initiatives. 

Before beginning the internship, I underwent several training sessions with my fellow GROW interns regarding the decolonization of international partnerships, the eradication of poverty porn, and strategies for a successful virtual experience. These sessions were attended by interns around the country, and it was an amazing opportunity to connect and exchange ideas with enthusiastic, driven people. In addition, these sessions challenged me to think more critically about what the GROW experience would entail. More specifically, my role as an intern was not to help our partner PEDA; rather, I would work with our partner, respecting the culture and wisdom they chose to share with us. 

Being a virtual intern had its difficulties. For example, it was often challenging to communicate and set up meetings with Thip, our main contact at PEDA, given the language barrier and differences in time zone. Moreover, being apart from the other GROW interns was hard, as I was in Illinois, Kylie was in Pennsylvania, and Phoebe was in Rhode Island. Nevertheless, through consistent communication via text, we accomplished tasks in a timely manner and maintained our connections. For me, I most enjoyed learning about Thip; she once shared a powerpoint of information about her history with PEDA and favorite pastimes, foods, etc. Even though we were not able to exchange such information in person, I enjoyed this glimpse into her life and culture in Laos. 

Additionally, I am very excited to share some of the fruits from our GROW experience with the Notre Dame chapter. When not working on specific projects assigned by PEDA (e.g. PEDA video clip, website updates, etc.), we developed a PEDA presentation to share with our membership. With slides full of information and pictures explaining what GlobeMed is and the importance of our partnership with PEDA, we hope to paint a fuller picture of our mission for members new and old. We have also collected insights from past GROW interns and created a special page for them on the GlobeMed@ND website so that members can learn more about the GROW experience. It has been a productive summer, and I am proud of the work we have done in this unconventional virtual experience. I look forward to celebrating PEDA with our chapter in the year to come!