Wood is graduating with a master’s degree in environmental management, with a concentration in ecotoxicology, from the Nicholas School of the Environment. As part of her degree, she completed a global health certificate, an option for Duke graduate students to incorporate global health courses and fieldwork into their studies. A native of Mason, Ohio, she earned a bachelor’s degree in environmental science from Xavier University.
My dissertation topic is… the “Impacts of Artisanal and Small-Scale Alluvial Gold Mining for Environmental Welfare in Napo, Ecuador.” I am on the Bass Connections team [on this topic], and I was able to travel to Ecuador for fieldwork, collecting water and sediment samples in the Amazon. My project specifically focuses on the region of Napo with alluvial gold mining.
I enrolled in the graduate certificate program because… my undergraduate degree focused on biology while my graduate degree did the same for the field of chemistry. I wanted a chance to see my science courses through the lens of the global health perspective.
What’s next for me after Duke is… My hopes are to expand further into the field of research in a non-profit company or government such as the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency). I spent most of my college academic journey during the complexities of COVID-19, and I am ready to enter the workforce.
A global health perspective is important to my studies because ... For undergrad, I was uncertain of which specific field I wanted to study, but I knew my strengths and interests aligned with math and science. I didn’t want to take the medical route and ultimately fell in love with environmental science. I was unable to take global health courses prior to my time at Duke. As I was completing my degree in a pandemic and was presented with options of the certificate at the start of my graduate degree, global health was something I decided I wanted to explore.
The environment is a large part of global health. Whether it’s the way the environment is contributing or responding to global health issues, we are connected to the environment.
My advice to students seeking a global health experience is… Even if global health is not your primary field of study, it’s important to consider how your experiences and majors can be related to global health. Find guest speakers and learn from research projects going on around campus. You never know when one topic will stand out to you and can sprout a new experience.
