My time in Cape Town came with three important lessons.
1. “All grown-ups were once children…but only a few of them remember it.”
Above is a quote from one of my favorite books, The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. Working with the kids at SOS Children’s Village this summer has reminded me of the importance of being curious in the way children are; they possess an innate curiosity that comes from learning and experiencing something for the first time. In one of my lessons, two of the kids brought a spider to visit our class (which I was informed of when I tried to open the box) and when I asked them why, they told me it was because it was the coolest one they’ve seen. How often do we stop to think about whether we had seen a particular spider before? Usually, I walk by because all spiders look the same to me and I’m not a particularly big fan of arachnids. But to the children, they are continuously curious about what new information they can discover.
As a university student on the pre-medical track, I often get caught up on what is expected of me and the requirements I must meet to graduate smoothly. The children reminded me to not forget that innate curiosity and drive to learn something more, even in the midst of meeting deadlines and going on to complete the next task on my to-do list. And in remembering that curiosity, I hope to use it to ground the purpose of why I pursue the things I do.
I also found curiosity in the projects I did outside of my health literacy program. Twice a week, the other scholars and I visited the on-site nursery and spent time with the youngest children of the village. Lily and I would excitedly browse PnA, the neighborhood art store, before these visits to prepare an art activity for the kids. In an origami activity, I remember that once we showed the children how to open and close a fortune teller, the kids became extremely invested in making one of their own and figuring out how to manipulate the paper. Additionally, I had the opportunity to build on a previous Laidlaw scholar’s photography lessons with some of the kids and teach Korean to a teen who was well-versed in K-culture and loved K-pop. In both cases, they were the ones to reach out to me first, after they learned that I enjoy taking photos and could speak Korean. The children actively pursued their interests whenever they had the chance, and as much as I was there to teach them, I learned volumes from the children—from their determination, their resilience, and their passions.
A photo taken by one of the teens!
And carrying these lessons forward, when I saw a huntsman spider for the first time after traveling home, I took a moment to learn that despite their size, they are harmless to humans, naturally timid, and useful creatures to have in your garage to hunt indoor pests.
2. To understand a culture is to know its history.
On a trip to Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden, we encountered a groundskeeper in the Medicinal and Useful Plants Garden. He shared that his mother’s experience with traditional South African healing, also known as African Traditional Medicine, was what inspired him to work there. He kindly introduced us to the various flora, among which were the blue sage and wormwood species pictured above. He spoke passionately about how those two specific plants sustained his health during the COVID-19 pandemic, noting that they had been used for centuries in South Africa to treat respiratory illnesses. When I asked him if medical clinics in Cape Town integrate African Traditional Medicine into their practice, he chuckled softly. He explained that while some make an effort, the vast majority rely on allopathic medicine, leaving the art of African Traditional Medicine to be carried by families who pass the knowledge down from generation to generation.
I found his stories and knowledge both exciting and compelling, as I had spent time studying culture and health in my classes and in research at Brown University. My first Laidlaw summer involved working on a research project also centered at this intersection, where one focus of the study was to investigate how Filipino sociocultural factors influenced health behaviors during the COVID-19 pandemic. This experience gave me an important perspective on how integral culture is in understanding how we seek care.
Traveling to Cape Town, I was conscious of the fact that I was not well-versed in the culture of South Africa’s medical system. It differs fundamentally from the US healthcare system, leading to different inequities, strengths, and weaknesses. When I was teaching health literacy, I didn’t want to make assumptions about their experiences with seeking care. Instead, I chose to focus on topics that could be universally applied, such as handwashing, that I felt qualified to teach. This required me to become very honest with myself about the limitations regarding what I believed I could deliver competently, without teaching about a culture that I myself did not grow up in. For these reasons, conversations with locals such as the groundskeeper and the SOS staff were vital in designing a culturally competent program and understanding the children.
The philosophy of how to heal, why we get sick, and how we take care of others is deeply rooted in a country’s history and its people. Visiting history museums like the Castle of Good Hope and Robben Island Museum provided critical perspective on how Cape Town’s legacy of colonialism, slavery, and apartheid actively shapes the stark environmental and income disparities visible across neighborhoods today.
A photo of the exit of Robben Island Museum.
These experiences taught me that I do not need to be an expert in order to be a good leader. The knowledge I am unfamiliar with can be bridged by conversations with people who are familiar. Although I may not have had perfect knowledge of South Africa’s healthcare system, that did not mean that I could not learn it. If anything, asking questions rather than trying to know all the answers made me a better-informed leader.
3. An incredible team becomes a source of strength.
On June 22, 2026, I wrote in my journal:
“A country that felt so unfamiliar has started to feel like home.”
And truly, in the short six weeks I resided in Cape Town, I became familiar with calling out “Science kids to the board room!” to playful figures running around the village ten minutes before class, with exploring the streets around our Airbnb, and with taking time to share my challenges and successes during evening debrief sessions. Each moment when a child could recall something that I had taught, or when they would share that they practiced a healthy habit or helped another child make healthier decisions, was unbelievably rewarding.
This would not have been possible without the incredible team I had in Cape Town. Check out our podcast posted on the Laidlaw network, where I reflect together with my cohort on our hybrid LiA experience! [https://laidlawscholars.network/videos/lia-final-reflections-collaboration-authenticity-and-joy]
In working with Lily, Anjelica, Elizabeth, and Youness, I learned from how they implemented their own programs, the questions they raised because of their care for the children, and the individual passions driving them to create meaningful change. When working with children, it is important to understand when I should be flexible and when I need to be decisive. It also requires a level of sternness, which did not come naturally to me at first. From my team’s leadership and their advice, I was able to learn when it is a leader’s job to push a child forward, even when that may be the uncomfortable thing to do, rather than continuing to support them from behind.
This experience strengthened my passion for public health, especially regarding structural inequalities, delivering culturally sensitive interventions, and global health. I hope to use it to inform my future endeavors in entering conversations that seek to uplift marginalized communities and make healthcare more accessible by bridging the gap between one’s circumstances and needs. It also confirmed my aspiration to become a doctor, as I learned so much about how healthy habits are built from a young age and how pivotal a single good interaction with a safe adult can be for a child’s development.
Thank you to Youness Robert-Tahiri, my wonderful LiA coordinator, for your guidance and support in building and implementing this project at SOS Children’s Villages Cape Town this summer. Thank you to my friends, fellow Laidlaw scholars, and roommates Lily Coral, Anjelica Young, and Elizabeth Wallace for their friendship and insightful conversations. Thank you to the Swearer Center for Public Service, Dr. Grace Argo and K Yin of the Brown University Laidlaw Scholars Program, and Dr. Melissa Palma of FYLPRO and the Warren Alpert Medical School for their mentorship throughout my time in the program. Finally, I am extremely grateful to the Laidlaw Scholars Foundation for the opportunity to pursue this LiA and the lessons I have learned as a Laidlaw Scholar.
Elizabeth, Anjelica, and Lily at Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden.
A double rainbow at SOS Children's Village Cape Town!
The site of Lion's Head from the beach.