S2:7 Out of the Lab and Off to D.C.

Out of the Lab and Off to D.C.
This past week was particularly hectic, but I would redo it in a heartbeat. I missed the first part of the internship week, because I had to fly to Washington, D.C. for a few days. I'm part of this political advocacy fellowship program where we are taught to advocate to our legislative members for the continuance of antipoverty programs like SNAP, MEDICAID, USAID, and the Global Fund. During the fellowship year, we fly out twice to Washington, D.C. and speak with Senate and Congressional Representatives. My favorite part of the policy summit was speaking with representatives on the importance of continuing to increase the funding for the Global Fund and USAID Fund, because Tuberculosis is the leading infectious disease killer among people around the world. Supporting programs like the Global Fund and USAID  can help other countries gain access to newer equipment and educational support to help with programs that reduce childbirth-related death rates, lower rates of TB infections, and many other programs. I also really enjoyed seeing how science can intersect with policy. After lobbying some AZ representatives, I flew back to Phoenix and picked up on the Microplastics project. Project highlights from this week included receiving the all glass jars and disseminating them out to fellow interns. I also spent some time brainstorming faster ways to collect water samples from around the Valley of Phoenix. I decided that I am going to ask my biology classmates to bring in samples. I think I will be able to collect water samples from all 13 villages in Phoenix. My goal is about 30 samples. We shall see what happens!