Olivia Policicchio
University of Pittsburgh | Greensburg
Heinz Programming Area:
Olivia Policicchio spent seven weeks doing a virtual internship at the University of Nicosia in Cyprus. During her internship, she was a research assistant for a professor at the University with a concentration in the geopolitics and energy policies of the Eastern Mediterranean. During this internship, Olivia expanded her knowledge of the rich history of the Mediterranean and how that knowledge correlates to current issues of the region. With the growth of the Mediterranean Olivia did a research project that included the Geopolitics of the countries of Greece and Cyprus, and the growth of natural gas distribution with recommendations of green energy and arguing in favor of the Greece Cypriots. Through this internship she gained practical skills like asking difficult questions, navigating time zone barriers, utilizing technology to communicate with advisors across the world, and the usage of international research databases.
The cultural experience gave her global knowledge of foreign issues and how they affected the economy and international relations of these two countries. This internship experience is a step in the direction of her career and personal goals of creating a greener world. She is eager to travel to Cyprus and experience the beautiful culture in the near future!
CEE Title: Global Health Workshop: Global diseases and the impact in a post-pandemic world
Through our Community Engagement Experience (CEE) we aimed to encourage awareness of global diseases. Our CEE identified that the Greensburg community members needed to expand their global awareness of diseases. Our CEE focused on diseases that Tatyana Reyes studied in Costa Rica with a global focus on pathologists and international medical professionals. The importance of spreading awareness that we recognized for our CEE came from the current pandemic and therefore influenced our goal was to educate the community. Our CEE consisted of a seminar presentation. There was also a Kahoot Quiz game at the end of the presentation based on the material. Our CEE benefited the Greensburg community by informing future and present healthcare professionals on diseases and career options. The information will broaden the healthcare professional’s knowledge which will benefit the patients at the hospitals. Our CEE was held in person but with Covid-19 we did offer a Zoom call for others to join in. In-person there were about 10 participants, and the Zoom call had over 20 participants. The CEE was open not only open to the campus and Greensburg community but the whole online community as well. The CEE was presented to raise awareness of global health for the community. Overall, our CEE on global health presented itself to be impactful and beneficial to the community