My A(dventures) T(hrough) L(ife)

October 2007

Atlanta. Land where Jimmy Carter reigns, Coca-Cola flows like wine, the 1996 Olympics are equally important as the city’s Civil War history, and little girls drawl like Scarlett O’Hara. Capital of Hip-Hop. Home of the Brave(s), sweet tea, and MLK. I love this city.

On the corner of E Lake and Spring, in the Oakhurst district of Decatur, I am settling into front-porch culture. The wet heat of summer is finally fading into a subtle fall chill, but although the red leaves and cool nights have introduced themselves with a sigh of relief, I have to admit that it was fun to experience the dense humidity previously unfamiliar to my Southern California-bred pores. Within walking distance of an internet café, neighborhood pub, laundromat, oyster bar, and pizza joint, I am within driving-required range of the rest of Atlanta. My neighborhood is relatively safe and boasts of humble houses with stubborn weeds growing high in front yards, although the father of the family who lives across the street does make me cringe when he pulls out onto the street in his F150 with tags reading “GUNLVR.”

I have become uncomfortably attuned to ‘gentrification’ and watch the demographics play out around me like an anecdote directly from a text book. Luckily my fellow housemates, also Carter Center interns, are adept at recognizing social injustices and refuse to let the situation stand as is without sparking a frequent discussion of the subject. When they aren’t traveling to Ghana or the Sudan with their conflict resolution programs, my roomies and I spend many an evening running down to the local park to toss a Frisbee around and then coming back to create (and enjoy) together spicy curry stews or gourmet pasta dishes well-seasoned with stimulating conversation.

The excitement of living on my own for the first time and having the opportunity to cook my own meals now finds me, even after two months, failing at properly stocking my fridge during the systematic bi-monthly grocery shopping trips. Perhaps the limp spinach and extra-strong cheese can be testaments to the amazing farmer’s market I have found nearby which inspires in me the need to sample an abundance of the cheap local produce and international sauces, juices, and spices that overrun my small kitchen. (Yes, they even stock my gluten-free goodies for those of you who were wondering.)

But beyond the persimmons and rocking chairs that have been a bonus to my relocation across the country, I did not come to Atlanta to frolic and feed. After an awed, scholarship-induced visit to The Carter Center’s Executive Briefing at the end of last April, I have returned for a semester to contribute my part in their mission to “Wage Peace, Fight Disease, and Build Hope.” Interning for Health Programs Development, I spend my days writing reports to donors such as Pfizer or The Kuwait Fund, weaving together four pages of story and statistics on the past year’s progress in ending forgotten diseases. I now know how many bed nets have been distributed in Ethiopia to protect families from malaria, why Ghana and South Sudan have reported a higher number of cases of Guinea worm than last year, and what foci in Latin America are still afflicted by River Blindness.

Although sometimes I feel impressed by my contribution to eradicate Guinea worm forever, I am humbled daily by the intricacies of complex mail merges and the boredom that results from sitting in front of a computer for six hours every day. Not to mention the wealth of international current events, political histories, and future economic projections that pervade even the quickest hallway conversation. The community of people carrying out The Carter Center’s work is truly amazing. Out of all the other interns I think I am most fortunate to be working with my specific team because not only are my four colleagues willing to entertain any question I have about the work I am assigned, but also take it upon themselves to introduce me to famous journalists at the Rosalynn Carter Mental Health Journalism Fellowship Symposium or the doctor who devised the plan to eradicate small pox at the International Summit on Tropical Diseases--intent on aiding me as much as possible in furthering my budding career. Although not interested in pursuing development as my sole vocation, I am gaining important skills that will be necessary when running my own health programs on an international level someday in the future. Atlanta is one of the largest hubs for domestic and international public health (the CDC is right down the street), and I am learning more about the field and education required to succeed in my ambitions than I ever could have in college.

The internship program has not only taught me how to be comfortable wearing high heels and business suits almost every day, but also provided some amazing opportunities offered at The Carter Center and with the Carters themselves. During my first two weeks of work I attended the Human Rights Defenders conference, where top human rights activists from around the world gathered to discuss the role of faith as a major component in the cause of human rights violations as well as a basis for successful interventions. During the formal introductions on the very first morning, I was shocked to listen to the UN’s High Commissioner of Human rights answer a personal phone call from Kofi Annan. Talk about rock stars of the international humanitarian community!

While Jimmy Carter was staying at the Center for this event, he walked through the building one morning to talk for several minutes with each employee. After entering the Development office, he started tugging playfully on my hair to get my attention. I was so absorbed in the briefing I was writing that I didn’t even notice him standing behind me. Despite the immense clout surrounding the past president, he was as easy to talk to as a warm and wise grandfather, completely unimposing and genuine in his questions of me. Although Carter has garnered some criticism in his support of Palestine and recent meetings with Hezbollah, one can’t help but be impressed with his energy and intelligence that has only increased with age. I only hope that by the time I am 83 I can resolutely answer questions with barely a moment’s pause for consideration on any subject from any time period like Jimmy.

Every week the Center sponsors what are called ‘Brown Bags’, or informal lectures given during the lunchtime hour by people connected with the Center. One lunch I heard from the man they call the ‘communications warrior’ of the world who was charged with supplying the presidential administration with the information on Iraq that prompted our invasion of the country. I have learned all about US policy on global warming from the head of the Carter Presidential Library (who also happened to be head of the EPA for twenty years). I recently heard from an Anthropologist from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) on decentralization of government leadership in his country, where The Carter Center is actively involved. These talks are like being in college again but in a much more intimate setting than most big-name lectures and with speakers who are much higher-profile than the Claremont Colleges were able to attract.

In many ways this experience has provided a perfect, if not cushioned, transition between the idealism of college and the reality of the real world. Although in the distant future I hope to work for an organization whose consistent actions and sound mission I whole-heartedly support, this internship has inspired me to return to my educational path to pursue a Masters in Public Health and a PhD in Medical Anthropology. President Carter started the internship program because he thinks that immersing bright young people in the sort of diplomatic international work in which The Carter Center is involved is the best investment that the US can make in the future of the world. It is my generation’s duty to dedicate ourselves to the type of work that will help alleviate much of the world’s unnecessary suffering to bring to fruition a future that leaders such as Carter have been promoting for years.