Although I had attended many professional meetings and conferences virtually, the Planetary Health Annual Meeting (PHAM) 2022 which was held at Harvard Medical School, Boston MA was the first international professional meeting I attended in person. So, my hopes were really high. I expected to learn from experts in the field, meet young persons who are contributing to building the field in their diverse corners, hear them share their challenges and be inspired by their success stories. Gracefully, my hopes were not unmet.
As I expected, I saw many young people advancing Planetary Health and engaged with a few of them. I was fascinated by Maisarah Faiesall from Malaysia as she presented on behalf of the regional hub she belongs to. Going through her hub’s abstracts on Planetary Health Education revealed some other things I can do to advance Planetary Health education in Nigeria. Their goal of reaching out to all undergraduate students at Sunway University also encouraged me.
The Regional Hub meeting, Next Generation Network meeting and other events of PHAM also taught me lessons on team building that I can apply now that I am an undergraduate student and a PHA Ambassador for the second time. This experience has left me with questions such as: What can I do to contribute to the success of the hub? Where do I fit in? What persons or agencies can be collaborated with to move the hub forward? Can we have a hub in Nigeria?
Listening to Costa Rica’s former president as he gave his opinion on how the field can be built was wonderful. I hope I will be able to invite government leaders or policy makers in my country to give their opinions on how we can safeguard the various natural systems in Nigeria.
One last takeaway or perhaps a reinforcement of knowledge is that Planetary Health is not a one-man business: the effects of global environmental change are felt by everyone, so every single person must be an actor in the field. Hence, it became glaring to me again that Planetary Health requires a transdisciplinary approach.
If asked how attending the meeting in person helped my academic or professional development, I surely have some comments to give. As I had rightly said earlier, listening to the diverse speakers during PHAM was really great. Of particular interest to me was the session that featured Professor Raina Plowright. The work shared by the professor showed the indispensable nexus among microbiology, ecology, infectious disease epidemiology, and a few other disciplines. Since I have a keen interest in safeguarding the health of the populace and advancing the frontiers of education through a sound understanding of infectious disease epidemiology and public health practice, I believe it gives me an idea of how I can contribute to building the field in the nearest future as a prospective public health expert.
One other way PHAM 2022 benefitted my academic goal is by allowing me to connect with persons who are at the forefront of the field I intend to specialize in. Hopefully, these connections will help me secure an opportunity to pursue my postgraduate studies in the United States or other countries where resources cannot be a limitation.
Attending PHAM gave me the opportunity to join my voice with those of other persons, and showed me that I am a member of a community with members from different corners of the world. Interestingly, a subtle lesson I learned is that, regardless of differences in our color, culture and profession, together we can stand for a just matter.
I will continue my project here on Planetary Health Education and make an effort to see if I can convince many Nigerian universities to become members of the Planetary Health Alliance (PHA). I believe this will hasten the development and implementation of Planetary Health curriculum at various higher institutions of learning in Nigeria.
Needless to add, however, I will add it. The US weather condition is markedly different from that of Nigeria. The meals are also diverse. This difference does not suggest that they are bad of course, but rather, that God the creator of the ends of the earth loves diversity: He created us all differently with wonderful abilities, and puts us all in different locations with the ability to cope with the environment. Not at any point does God want to alter this diversity. In the same spirit, we (PHA community) should ensure that the community is kept diverse, being filled with persons from all over the world as we keep ensuring our biological diversities (and every other component of natural systems of course) are being saved from extinction through our concerted effort. That is also a just course to pursue.
Thank you PHA for the opportunity!