Several Georgia State University School of Public Health students recently returned from an innovative study abroad program that explored the role of storytelling in advancing public health.
Led by Clinical Associate Professor Kimberly Freire, “Storytelling in Public Health and Related Fields” took students on an 18-day journey that gave them hands-on opportunities to connect data with human experiences while also learning about South Africa’s history and public health system.
In Johannesburg, students met with U.S. Ambassador Reuben E. Brigety II as well as The Aurum Institute’s HIV outreach staff and community partners.
“One of the best parts of the program was learning from our guides, who had different perspectives on South Africa's history and current context,” Freire said. “Their stories provided a multidimensional view of social factors that impact public health and progress 30 years after the end of apartheid.”
In Johannesburg, they visited the Apartheid Museum, Soweto and other sites to explore different ways stories are told about South Africa's apartheid history. They met with U.S. Ambassador Reuben E. Brigety II as well as The Aurum Institute’s HIV outreach staff and community partners to better understand narratives about the country’s HIV epidemic.
In Cape Town, they explored how community assets and vulnerabilities interact with major public health issues, as well as how the natural landscape has shaped the city’s narrative. The experiential elements of the course supported course learning objectives related to framing, methods and ethics. Along the way, the students and faculty met several great storytellers and supported each other in telling their own stories.
“Storytelling in Public Health and Related Fields” is one of several study abroad programs that allow students to examine firsthand public health issues in countries such as Brazil, the Dominican Republic, Ghana, Indonesia, Uganda and the United Kingdom.