GlobeMed 2020 Annual Report by GlobeMed

2020 Annual Report

Mission GlobeMed aims to mobilize a community of students and grassroots leaders to work together to improve the health of people around the world.

Vision We envision a world in which health– the ability to not only survive but thrive–is possible for all people.

A Note of Gratitude Before his passing in 2019, Badi Foster, a dear friend and mentor to GlobeMed staff, shared with us, "One of GlobeMed's greatest strengths is our ability to remain reflective, ask new questions, and adapt as needs change in our relentless pursuit of global health equity." That strength comes from working with youth and grassroots leaders. We've come to understand what Badi was talking about as a collective resilience—a safety net that we weave by recognizing our global interconnectedness and lifting each other up. That resilience is strengthened by the diversity of passions and lived experiences and our shared commitment to showing up for each other through the GlobeMed Leadership Practices. Each individual's choices and actions contributed to our ability to transform our community's ways of working, while remaining rooted in our mission, over the past year.

Badi didn't live through all of the chaos and devastation of 2020, but we often wonder what he would think of how we fared. We believe he would remain hopeful.

“You have to go through incoherence in order to transform.” - Badi Foster To all of the students, grassroots partner communities, alumni, supporters, and friends in the movement for global health equity: thank you for your courage and dedication to reaching across man-made borders and taking action for health, healing, and a better world. Our work is challenging, particularly through crisis, but our future is brighter when all of our light shines together. In solidarity, Priya, Elizabeth & the GlobeMed Team

Health is a human right This fundamental belief is at the heart of everything we do. It has enabled us to understand our lives are inextricably linked and our health and humanity is tied to those in communities both near and far. At GlobeMed, we are building toward a vision of a world in which health—the ability to not only survive, but to thrive—is possible for all people. Poor health outcomes stem from colonization, racism, individualism, and other forms of oppression which divide and disempower. Because the barriers to health are complex, our solutions must be multifaceted. That's why our understanding of global health equity extends beyond traditional definitions of health to include racial justice, income equality, housing access, youth empowerment, and anything in between. In order to build a more just and equitable world, we need strong leaders and community-driven solutions. Because we recognize the potential young people have to transform systems, GlobeMed is a student-driven organization with chapters at 36 universities. Together, we mobilize a community of students and grassroots leaders to improve the health of people around the world. We do this by centering partnership, learning, and community. 2

Anti-Oppressive Partnership GlobeMed pairs university chapters with grassroots organizations around the world that are already creating change in their local communities. Our one-to-one partnerships are grounded in trust, relationships, and mutuallearning. Partners serve as community experts and teachers and students seek to shift resources and transform oppressive power structures within global health.

Peer Learning & Leading GlobeMed student leaders are trained to foster transformative learning experiences and become advocates for global health equity. During weekly meetings and events, students facilitate discussions that uplift the diverse skills, perspectives, and lived experiences of the participants. Our chapters create room to dig deep and challenge perspectives while also serving as spaces of inclusion and belonging on campus.

Community & Movement GlobeMed chapters do not function alone. Rather, we are a part of a larger movement for global health equity. The GlobeMed network of students, partners, and alumni work collaboratively with each other and other groups on our campuses and in our communities. Fueled by their interconnectedness, members bring energy, heart, and a fierce commitment to justice to each space they enter. 3

The 2019-2020 academic year marked an intentional effort throughout the organization to deepen our impact by focusing our programs on student and partner voices. Amidst a 50 percent budget reduction the year prior and the COVID-19 pandemic, we saw an opportunity this year to increase inclusion and innovation. We did this by transitioning many of our programs into an interactive virtual format. We also launched a number of new initiatives in direct response to network feedback and needs, like our Best Practice Series and the COVID-19 Response Fund.

July 2019 Chapter Coaches Begin GlobeMed chapters were assigned a Chapter Coach who provided chapter leaders with individualized support.

September 2019 E-Board Think Tanks In the past we’ve typically only provided in-depth training to Co-presidents. This year we piloted short “Think Tank” workshops for all e-board leaders to share ideas and learn strategies.

August 2019 Leadership Institute Eighty-nine students attended Leadership Institute, our annual gathering of chapter leaders to provide them with the knowledge, tools, and connections they need to start the year off strong.

January 2020 Partnership Listening Calls We held calls with 49 of our partner organizations during the Spring semester.

October 2019 Student Advisory Board We launched our first Student Advisory Board (SAB) of seven members from across our network.

June 2020 Best Practice Sharing Series We piloted a bi-weekly peerto-peer Best Practice Sharing Series building on student feedback from our Virtual Workshops. These spaces allow students to brainstorm virtual solutions.

March 2020 COVID-19 Rapid Response Fund We launched a Rapid Response Fundraiser to provide direct relief to partners hit hard by COVID-19. Eleven partners received unrestricted $500 grants.

February 2020 GROW Institute The Grassroots Onsite Work (GROW) Institute prepared students from each chapter to travel to their partner country for GROW internship.

April 2020 Virtual Workshops We hosted three workshops to address the challenges students were facing due to the cancellation of GROW and the move to remote learning brought on by COVID-19.

July 2020 Virtual GROW Chapters supported their grassroots partners by either hosting GROW virtually or maintaining steady contact throughout the summer.

Photo: GlobeMed at Rutgers on their GROW Internship with Reach a Hand Uganda

Anti-Oppressive Partnership

We truly value the opportunity to work with a flexible partner dedicated not just to a specific project but to the goal of creating healthier, more equitable communities.

Rhiana & Scarlet Primeros Pasos staff members, partnered with GlobeMed at Georgetown

Matthew Raj, University of Cincinnati ‘21, lights up when talking about the partnership between GlobeMed at the University of Cincinnati (UCin) and the grassroots organization Social Action for Children and Women Foundation (SAW). Located in Mae Sot, Thailand, SAW works to assist women and children from Burma displaced along the Thai-Burma border by providing them with housing, education, health services, and vocational training. SAW has been partnered with GlobeMed at UCin for the past nine years “SAW has been an organization for 20 years, formed by Burmese migrants for Burmese migrants,” Matthew explains. “They have a rich history of working and building trust with migrant communities. That trust is one that we could never hope to replicate alone.”

Anti-Oppressive Partnership ty Event muni m o C

W SA to: o Engaging Ph

in long-term, sustained relationships

83%

of current partnerships are more than 3 years old.

During the summer of 2019, Matthew went on the annual Grassroots Onsite Work (GROW) internship to SAW with four other students. Each GROW intern shared a clear understanding that they were not coming in as experts. While interns assist SAW every summer with tasks such as writing their annual report, designing their website, and interviewing community members, SAW is the one implementing the projects throughout the year. GlobeMed at UCin acts as their partner—supporting, funding, and responding to their needs.

Advancing community health projects collaboratively Partner organizations work in a variety of areas, such as women’s and maternal health, water sanitation and hygiene, food and nutrition, youth empowerment, environmental health, community health, and income generation.

Anti-Oppressive Partnership When the GROW team arrives each summer, they are immediately welcomed into SAW’s home. “All the staff treat us as if we’re one of the children living at SAW,” Matthew shares. The UCin students have grown particularly close to their partner contact Aung Htun Lin, known affectionately as ATL. ATL used to be a student at SAW, and now works there while attending Chiang Mai University. Thanks to the proximity in age and shared experiences, the students all see him as not just a partner, but a friend. They keep in contact on a regular basis throughout the year via monthly Skype calls and social media.

In talking about the human aspect—the friendships—I realize that those are the strongest parts of our partnership.

Matthew Raj GlobeMed at University of Cincinnati

They’ve likewise been able to form strong relationships with the youth at SAW. One of the main responsibilities of GROW interns is to facilitate English sessions. These sessions are informal and intended as a light-hearted space 9

Anti-Oppressive Partnership to practice conversational English as the students at SAW prepare for the GED and university matriculation. Because the GlobeMed at UCin members are only slightly older than the students, they are seen as peers, and they soon begin to form strong bonds with one another. When COVID-19 prevented the GlobeMed at UCin interns from traveling to Mae Sot, ATL asked if they could continue the conversational English sessions virtually. The 2020 GROW team planned fun, interactive activities for their weekly sessions with the SAW students. At first they anticipated it might be difficult to replicate the personal environment they have on GROW during the virtual gatherings, but were pleasantly surprised as the students opened up as they gained familiarity with the new setting. Photo: SAW playground

Growing together through mutual learning

Shifting power through unrestricted resources

“If [the students] pick up, imbibe, soak up knowledge that will serve them as leaders in their work spaces wherever they are. It will translate into something beautiful and be helpful to the communities, organizations & work they serve.” - Anil, Himalayan HealthCare

of resources mobilized for grassroots partners are unrestricted and can be used as the community leaders see fit.

100%

Having GROW virtually this summer allowed them to open up their English sessions to the entire chapter—not just the GROW interns. With nearly 60 members, GlobeMed at UCin leaders are often thinking of new ways to connect their members to their partner.

partnership. Matthew and ATL are currently discussing the possibility of continuing the virtual English sessions beyond the summer, which will allow the bonds between GlobeMed at UCin and the SAW students to deepen even further. Regardless of what’s in store for them this year, one thing remains constant: for both GlobeMed at UCin members and SAW, GlobeMed is so much more than just a student organization on campus.

“I have a lot of faith in our partnership and the resiliency of the connection we’ve made so far,” Matthew says when asked about the future of their 11

Peer Learning & Leading Yasmeen Shahout and Monika Gindy (Emory University ‘20) served as chapter co-presidents for the 2019-2020 academic year. Though they faced their fair share of leadership obstacles and challenges, their strong friendship enabled them to model collective learning and action for the rest of the chapter.

GlobeMed has allowed me to re-examine my privileges and biases in a new light. This has also allowed me to think more critically about my role in society and how I can use my own privileges to amplify the voices of others.

The year prior, GlobeMed at Emory fell stagnant and meetings began to feel like an obligation. Yasmeen and Monika knew something had to change. Just before their year of co-leadership began, they went on GROW together. During their downtime, Sage Templeton, GlobeMed at the two frequently met to reflect Berkeley on the strengths and challenges of the past year and created a plan to bring new life and energy into the chapter. The friendship that began between the two on GROW blossomed 12

Peer Learning & Leading into a leadership dynamic that set the tone for their chapter. They were clear about their expectations and held members accountable to deadlines, while also creating a personable, closeknit community that students wanted to take part in. An important part of this was making everyone feel like a leader. “We reminded members that it’s not just one person that makes GlobeMed what it is; it’s all of us,” Yasmeen explained. “We’re all connected. No matter what our roles are, we are all important.” Instead of leading from the topdown, Yasmeen and Monika delegated often and emphasized that every member had a role to play. When members felt valued and like their contributions mattered, their chapter experienced an uptick in membership, energy, and initiative. At the same time, they

Photo: at a G lobeM ed e ven t

Facilitating weekly discussions on global health & social justice

86%

of students have had an "a-ha" moment, a significant learning, understanding, or realization, about the world through their GlobeMed experience

Peer Learning & Leading cultivated an environment where no one was working alone—each person had a team of other leaders and members on whom they could rely. Leadership was further cultivated

through the chapter’s Global Health University (ghU) discussions. Members had the opportunity to share ideas for discussion topics, as well as lead ghUs on issues they were passionate about.

Taking on leadership roles to mobilize action in their chapters & partnerships Anti-Oppressive Partnership Director of Partnership, Grassroots On-site Work (GROW) Coordinator, Director of Fundraising Co-Presidents Director of Finance & Operations Director of Communications

Peer Learning & Leading Director of Learning & globalhealthU

Community & Movement Director of Community Building Director of Local Engagement

Cultivating inclusive spaces for learning “At the core, everyone in this world wants to be cared about; everyone wants to be listened to and have someone listen to them. When we’re reciprocating that back and forth [in our chapter discussions] every week, it’s truly something special.” - Daniela, GlobeMed at Loyola

“Nothing was ever presented in a one-directional way. All our ghUs catered towards a spectrum of opinions,” Monika said. Facilitators also took into account perspectives not in the room during ghUs, particularly that of their partners at Migrant Assistance Program Foundation in Chiang Mai, Thailand. Tying topics back to their partner not only helped members see things from multiple perspectives, but also reminded them of the importance of being leaders in GlobeMed and learning both from the experts and each other.

One of the main reasons I stayed in GlobeMed all four years was because of the community.

Yasmeen Shahout GlobeMed at Emory

Community & Movement The GlobeMed at Howard chapter is an example of what it looks like to bring GlobeMed beyond chapter walls and into the larger community. Co-presidents Zion McCoy (Howard University ‘21) and Adaeze Okoroajuzie (Howard University ‘22), put community at the heart of everything they do. Just as they work in sustainable partnership abroad, GlobeMed at Howard members also engage with their campus and local communities.

We have events and conversations that other organizations shy away from and we’re able to do this by creating unity through community work.

More than half of the events Adaeze Okoroajuzie GlobeMed at Howard hosts each GlobeMed at Howard year are co-sponsored by other student organizations on campus. They partner with health-focused clubs, social justice organizations, and sororities to build community throughout the student body. Their most popular event, the Audacity Series, has been held on annually since 2016. Titled “The Audacity of Black Men and 16

Community & Movement Engaging and serving with local values-aligned organizations

Women in Health and Medicine,” the November 2019 event featured an interactive discussion on the importance of Black representation in healthrelated fields as well as the barriers (currently, only 5 percent of all physicians in the United States are Black).

Since 2018, GlobeMed at Duke has been serving with Community Health Coalition (CHC), which works to achieve health equity and eliminate racial and economic health disparities. This summer, GlobeMed at Duke supported CHC through the creation of infographics on women’s postpartum health amidst COVID-19.

obeMed at Howard to: Gl Pho

GlobeMed at Howard’s community engagement doesn’t stop at the campus level. They actively seek out opportunities to get involved in the local D.C. community too, particularly within the Shaw neighborhood.

Community & Movement ent Recognizing and uplifting other voices in the global health equity movement

“This model has shown me that the work we do is bigger than Howard,” said Zion. Together with Food for All DC, they’ve worked to package and distribute food to underserved members of the community. They’ve also been working on an initiative to provide public health education to local high school students and introduce them to health-related fields.

The GlobeMed Summit, catalyzes collective learning and collaboration among students, grassroots partners, and peer organizations from around the world. This conference provides students with an understanding of the intersections between global health and social justice and encourages networking and building relationships grounded in shared values. At our last in-person Summit in 2019: attendees made a new 94% ofconnection

88%

In the same way GlobeMed at Howard engages the broader Howard community during their events on campus, the chapter also opens up their community

of attendees made a new connection that they plan to stay in touch with

attendees connected with a 83% ofspeaker or facilitator attendees connected with a

or facilitator that they 58% speaker plan to stay in touch with

Building coalitions and advocating with other student and community organizations In June of 2020, GlobeMed at UPenn phone banked with the Penn Democrats against the proposed Philadelphia 2021 budget.

service events to all students. Not just students in health-related fields participate; the GlobeMed at Howard chapter has members from a diverse array of fields, from finance students to fashion majors to future engineers. “No matter what your interest is, everyone can be a public health activist,” Adaeze affirms.Over the years, the GlobeMed at Howard chapter has come to be a unique space on campus. “We have events and conversations that other organizations shy away from,” Adaeze said, “and we’re able to do this by creating unity through community work.”

“The phone bank emphasized allocating resources to underrepresented members of the Philadelphia community, reflecting the wider goals of an incredibly pressing Black Lives Matter movement. While we typically practice these values with our international partner, it was inspiring to apply our GlobeMed mentality to a local emergent issue.” - GlobeMed at UPenn

Organizing campus events to share their values and passions “One of my favorite parts of being CoPresident was harnessing the talents and passion of my members to empower them to create change on our campus. Whether by hosting thought-provoking ghUs for the campus, or by tabling and spreading awareness about social justice and public health issues in our communities, we created conversations and showed students how to get involved and advocate for the Rochester community.” - Payal Morari, GlobeMed at Rochester

Photo: GlobeMed at Howard

Our Alumni as Leaders

A GlobeMed Leader is a part of a global community that lives by their values and takes a social justice approach to change. They do this using the 7 Leadership Practices.

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Our Alumni as Leaders

Cameron Clarke, GlobeMed at Howard

Build Sustainably

To truly thrive in the long term, we act both to meet the needs of the present and to build towards a future vision beyond ourselves.

Cameron’s journey to becoming an advocate for health equity began with GlobeMed. As a cofounder of GlobeMed at Howard University in 2013, he built his chapter’s executive board from the ground up and established a grassroots partnership with the Nancholi Youth Organization (NAYO) in Lilongwe, Malawi. After graduating, Cameron was selected as an Oxford University Rhodes Scholar, where he studied evidence based social intervention and policy evaluation. For the past year, Cameron served as a Health Equity Fellow with the Planned Parenthood Federation of America, where he researched public policy solutions to improve healthcare access for communities of color. As a medical student at Columbia University, Cameron aims to further develop his ability to serve vulnerable populations.

Our Alumni as Leaders Reflecting on his experience working alongside grassroots organizers at both the local and global levels, Cameron cites GlobeMed’s anti-oppressive partnership model as a key part of his vision for sustainable community development. “GlobeMed solidified my understanding that combating global health issues requires equitable engagement between organizations and the communities we serve.” Cameron says. “We must ensure that initiatives are led by the people and community that are actually impacted by them and involve them in every step of the process.”

Pho to cou rte sy Ca

Cameron Clarke, GlobeMed at Howard ke lar C n ero m

90% of alumni say that GlobeMed affected their educational pursuits or career trajectory.

Our Alumni as Leaders

Cameron Clarke, GlobeMed at Howard As he enters the medical field, Cameron plans to integrate GlobeMed’s equitable partnership model to holistically treat patients and serve as an advocate for their needs. By developing genuine connections with the people he serves, by listening to and acknowledging their experiences as he did while working with NAYO in GlobeMed, Cameron hopes to cultivate relationships built on trust and mutual understanding to ultimately reduce systemic causes of healthcare inequities.

I have a stronger global perspective because of my involvement in GlobeMed. This creates wonderful thoughtful discussion in the workplace and community. I have even inspired others to get involved in sustainable public health work.

Youssef Sabha GlobeMed at George Washington University, '18 24

Photo: GlobeMed at CU Boulder on their GROW internship with Himalayan HealthCare in Nepal

Our Alumni as Leaders

Jacob Salomon, GlobeMed at Northwestern

Grow Together

We accompany each other, cultivating an inclusive global community that inspires, challenges, and sustains us.

While studying biomedical engineering and global health at Northwestern University, Jacob challenged himself to pursue opportunities that allowed him to examine health equity from a multidisciplinary lens. GlobeMed provided the perfect bridge between Jacob’s interests in project design and global partnership. Jacob seized the opportunity to take part in the Grassroots Onsite Work (GROW) internship at Adonai Child Development Center, Northwestern’s grassroots partner, in Kampala, Uganda where he experienced the power of grassroots collaboration firsthand. There, Jacob collaborated with staff to achieve Adonai Child Development Center’s mission of providing healthcare, housing, and education to youth impacted by HIV and civil unrest.

Our Alumni as Leaders

Jacob Salomon, GlobeMed at Northwestern

Drawing on this principle of global solidarity and partnership, Jacob pursued a job as an Operations Analyst with One Acre Fund, a non-governmental organization that supplies small farmers with the tools and training to strengthen their communities. By analyzing each community’s infrastructure and available resources, Jacob is able to work with local farmers to implement sustainable growing practices that best address their economic needs.

Next-Generation of Leaders in Global Health To truly achieve health equity, the current make-up of global health leadership, which is overwhelmingly white, Western, and male, must change. The diversity of GlobeMed alumni represents the shift that must be made. women, transgender, 77% cisgender or outside of the gender binary. of

alumni

49%

self-identify

of alumni self-identify as Black, Indigenous, and/or a Person of Color.

data collected since 2012

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“Working with our partner organization on GROW allowed me to understand how to begin grappling with difficult questions about power and privilege in partnerships and solidified the importance of really listening and questioning what you’re doing and tying it back to sustainable principles.”

Our Alumni as Leaders

Jacob Salomon, GlobeMed at Northwestern Looking back on his GlobeMed experience, Jacob points to his university chapter introducing him to a network of diverse and creative thinkers. “GlobeMed connected me to a community of people who were working together to develop solutions to issues of health inequity” Jacob shared. “For me, it wasn’t just about intellectual exercises in a classroom, but contextualizing local issues and seeing how we can enact change.” As Jacob continues his work in the nonprofit sector, he plans to continue collaborating with community leaders to develop innovative local initiatives.

What GlobeMed really taught me was how to collaborate in group settings, using norms and practices to effectively communicate, and how to welcome and engage with people who might be ideologically different from me.

Anna Ahn GlobeMed at Loyola, '16

Our Alumni as Leaders

Victoria Inojosa, GlobeMed at Loyola Victoria’s involvement in GlobeMed at Loyola University Chicago laid the foundation for her interest in exploring healthcare from a holistic lens. As Co-President and Global Partnerships Coordinator, Victoria oversaw her chapter’s logistical operation and worked closely with Loyola’s grassroots partner, a medical clinic in Ecuador, to facilitate the development of community health education projects.

See Possibility

In all people and situations, we see the ability to learn, connect, and contribute to positive change.

After restrictions on international travel caused the Loyola administration to disband this partnership in 2016, Victoria’s chapter recognized the need for health equity work in their own community. By establishing a local partnership with Centro Romero, a Chicago-based nonprofit organization, they were able to successfully relaunch their 29

Our Alumni as Leaders

Victoria Inojosa, GlobeMed at Loyola

urtesy Victoria Inojosa to co Pho

98%

of alumni report using at least one of GlobeMed's Leadership Practices in their current role.

GlobeMed chapter. Since then, GlobeMed at Loyola students have maintained a strong relationship with Centro Romero and continue to provide educational support services to immigrant and refugee communities in northeast Chicago. This change in direction showed Victoria how community development isn’t always linear. “I credit GlobeMed for my ability to navigate unexpected challenges.” Victoria says. “After learning how to recognize healthy movements for social justice, I felt comfortable having genuine conversations, and making genuine mistakes, about what justice looks like." Victoria will apply this persistence and creative problem

Our Alumni as Leaders

Victoria Inojosa, GlobeMed at Loyola solving to her career as a Research and Writing Attorney at the Capital Habeas Unit for Federal Defenders of the Northern District of Texas, where she will work with clients from underserved communities. “I plan to invest a lot of time and energy into my relationships with incarcerated and traumatized clients and their families. I realize that the more willing they are to be open with me, the more I am able to help them.” Victoria shared. This unwavering commitment to forming deep interpersonal connections has allowed Victoria to recognize the potential of law as a tool for social justice, where she can leverage policy objectives to advocate for diverse communities. P h oto

: G lo b e M e d at L o y ola

Looking Ahead

Strategies to Deepen Our Impact At its heart, GlobeMed is a learning organization. We learn from students, partners, alumni, and our community. As the organization moves into its next phase, we are focused on deepening our impact. We do not want to grow for the sake of growing, but rather we want to build on the lessons we have learned and remain curious as we chart our course together. We plan to use these strategies to lean into our ongoing evolution.

Breaking Down Borders Since the beginning, our work has been based on partnerships. Most of our partnerships are between students in the U.S. and grassroots organizations in other countries in the pursuit of global health equity. In the years ahead, as we deepen our learning and impact, we ask ourselves and our community, "What do 'local' and 'global' mean in global health? How can we expand those definitions to enrich collaboration and the movement?"

For Us, By Us Our greatest asset is our fierce and committed community—students, grassroots partners, alumni, and global health advisors. Each member of the community in an expert in what they want and need, and we trust that expertise. Standing in that trust, we will follow the lead of our community members as they guide our programming and direction. 32

Embedding Anti-Oppression Focusing on equity is not enough, we must be proactive in our work to undo the systemic oppressions people face in the pursuit of health. That active work of undoing lies not only within GlobeMed as an organization, but as the task ahead for the next generation of global health leaders. The young leaders that come up through GlobeMed will not only have a deep understanding of what anti-oppression work is, they will put that knowledge into practice.

Building Collective Power Achievement of global health equity will never happen based on the work of a single organization. It will take a movement with many people and organizations working together, and that happens through collaborative learning, interdependence, and mutually-beneficial relationships. As we plan ahead, we want to recognize our place within the movement and who we want to be in intentional community with to sustain the movement.

1800 Sherman Ave., Ste. 3000 Evanston, IL 60201 globemed.org

Photo: GlobeMed at Duke on their GROW internship with Global Health Network Uganda