Hi friends! My name is Isabelle Lian and I am a sophomore majoring in Neuroscience and minoring in Management. This will be my second semester interning with Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast (PPGC) and working with NCI. I am so excited to be continuing this internship with this amazing group!
Planned Parenthood has a national reputation and is at the forefront of reproductive health. As such, their potential to make change is amplified. They offer essential reproductive health care to tens of thousands of people— especially youth, disseminate sexuality education, and disband social stigma surrounding reproductive health. As a part of a changemaking organization would be an experience of a lifetime—witnessing the development of progressive policies, crafting outreach strategies through the interpretation of data, and the whole hustle of it all. It has been truly gratifying and awakening experience to learn from the inside of an organization that makes national headlines.
Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast plays an intriguing role in Southern society, perhaps more drastic than the West Coast where I am from. Constantly battling with conservative legislators in Louisiana and Houston who do not seem to share the same hope in reproductive rights, PPGC must yell louder to be heard. This also introduces important diplomatic ideas that I am very interested in: how to find common ground with people with opposing ideas, how to maintain our compassion for all people despite challenging situations, and the potential for compromise and cooperation in such a controversial field.
The power of data and factual evidence is evermore essential in debate. Representing the perspectives of the people that they serve, PPGC must strive for strong policies that are supported by quantifiable information. Many people overlook the importance of numbers as reflections of universally accepted truths. My internship with PPGC has centered largely around researching sexual health statistics across Louisiana. Collecting this data has given PPGC a way to easily access these statistics with a simple click. Continuing into this semester, I will be furthering PPGC’s mission to create a more compassionate and dignified world.