Beyond the Horizon

In Liberia in January, I had the honor of meeting with Liberian president Ellen Johnson Sirleaf (at right) and her countrywoman Leymah Roberta Gbowee (left). They both won the Nobel Peace Prize last year (with Tawakkol Karman of Yemen, center) for their efforts toward peace in Liberia. Now in her second term, President Sirleaf is the first woman elected as head of a country in Africa and is world-renowned for her leadership. The founder and executive di­rector of Women Peace and Security Network Africa, Ms. Gbowee is articulate, passionate, and even more engaging than her dynamic memoir Mighty Be Our Powers. During the brutal Liberi­an civil war, she mobilized groups of women from different religions to make their presence known at peace talks, to historic success.

In light of International Women’s Day, I have been reflecting on my meetings with these courageous, pioneering women. They are exemplars of devotion to women’s health and well-being. Here at Penn Nursing, with our focus on global women’s health, we aim to inspire our students with such leadership. To that end, our new global health ambassadors program offers students their own leadership opportunities in this important area of healthcare and international efforts toward peace. Under the leadership of Assistant Dean Marjorie Muecke, PhD, RN, FAAN, and Associate Director Geralyn Grosso of the Office of Global Health Affairs, our global health ambassadors work on outreach to international students and alumni, provide curriculum support, and participate in guiding such activities as the School of Nursing Task Force on Haiti and Global Health Reflections Week.

Volunteering at an orphanage in Cordoba, Argentina, inspired Natalie Ball, Nu'14, our junior global health ambassador, to choose a nursing career. She has studied abroad in Australia, New Zealand, and Peru, focusing on environmental sustainability and outdoor leadership.

Doctoral student Lisa Hilmi, Nu'97, Gr'16, is the senior global health ambassador. She has managed responses to major humanitarian crises over the past two decades for such international organizations as AmeriCares, CARE, International Medical Corps, the Peace Corps, and the World Health Organization. Earlier in her career, she managed a refugee health and HIV/AIDS project in Rwanda for CARE in Tanzania. She has authored numerous publications on disaster preparedness.

What incredible ambassadors for nursing! They represent the scope of global engagement for our students as they aspire to make the world a healthier and safer place to live.