Lauren White, a rising third-year biomedical engineering major, is taking part in the University of Virginia’s Engineering School’s Science and Technology Policy Internship Program, which places student interns in policymaking organizations at home and abroad. White is working at the Pan American Health Organization and the Institute of Epidemiological Studies in Buenos Aires, Argentina. She has agreed to share her weekly reports with us.
Week 9: My final week in Buenos Aires was surreal – a mixture of excitement, anticipation and sadness. Even though at times I had disparaged the city for the difficulties it presented and even though I was ready to return to D.C., I still felt melancholy on my last day as I rode in the taxi to Ezeiza International Airport.
At the beginning of the week, I met with Silvina Ramos, a member of el Centro de Estudios de Estado y Sociedad (CEDES), a very prestigious think tank in Argentina. She and other members of CEDES have been working with the Centro Rosarino de Estudios Perinatales to found el Observatorio de Salud Sexual y Reproductiva (Observatory of Sexual and Reproductive Health). The purpose of the organization is to reduce maternal mortality rates in Argentina by providing a platform for educated social debate in reproductive health and by providing research-based evidence to policy- and decision-makers.
In Argentina, maternal mortality rates remain very high in comparison to other countries of similar economic and social status (the current rate is twice that of Chile and almost three times that of Uruguay). We also discussed the views of Ramos as they pertain to “advocacy for research” and how to encourage policy decisions based on research.
I spent the rest of my week finalizing the details of my paper, incorporating suggestions from my various mentors and focusing especially on the problem definition and the appendixes. The days sped by until it was already Friday and I was suddenly packing, cleaning the apartment and saying goodbye to my mentor and the staff at the Instituto.
I dedicated Saturday afternoon to bidding farewell to the Recoleta area, wandering around the artisan fair in the nearby plaza, looking sporadically for souvenirs. On Sunday evening with my nose pressed against the glass of the airplane, I thought of a quote by Borges: “Sólo aquello que se ha ido es lo que nos pertenece,” which translates to something like “only that which has gone belongs to us.” So I counted my memories of Buenos Aires, as I watched the twinkling lights beneath the wingtip fade into darkness and mist.
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Céline Heckel-Jones, a rising third-year civil engineering major from Atlanta, is taking part in the University of Virginia Engineering School’s 