Time in Ecuador Helped Natural Resources Student Realize Interdisciplinary Nature of Global Health

Paulina Vergara Buitrago, pictured, studied in Quito in May of 2025 

What is global health?

A recent trip to Quito, Ecuador, showed Paulina Vergara Buitrago that there’s not one definition. Instead, the field is an amalgam of different disciplines, external factors and social determinants.

This realization is something Vergara Buitrago will carry with her.

“My ‘aha’ moments were centered on unlearning the idea that health is primarily an individual concern and realizing the deep interconnectedness of various factors,” she said.

Vergara Buitrago is a dual degree PhD and master’s student in the College of Liberal Arts and the College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences. She traveled to Quito in May of 2025 as part of the Center for Global Health and Social Responsibility’s course, Ecuador: Social, Environmental, and Cultural Determinants of Health.

The two-week course focuses on health care infrastructure, environmental and agricultural health, and Indigenous and intercultural health practices in the country.

Below, Vergara Buitrago reflects on her experience in Quito and what aspects of the course resonated with her most.

What did you enjoy most about the course?

I most enjoyed the experiences that demonstrated the practical integration of my learning and gave me a holistic understanding of cultural and environmental concepts.

• The visit to Pukyu Pamba provided sensory memories, the smell of herbs and sound of water flowing, and I witnessed life connected to Pachamama and natural cycles, which gave me a deep understanding of traditional knowledge systems.
• The Huerto Manías community mental health garden exemplified my evolved understanding of health determinants. I witnessed how care rooted in place, tradition, and collective work can restore a sense of purpose, fundamentally reshaping my view of mental health care.

What did you learn during the course in Quito that you’ll incorporate in your professional or academic work?

This experience deepened my appreciation for the role of local knowledge and cultural context in community well-being, which reinforced my existing professional interests.

• Interdisciplinary and community-focused research: The course reinforced my interest in research approaches that involve community participation to address environmental and social issues.
• Expanded view of health determinants: My view of health determinants expanded from clinical factors to include nature, community, and autonomy as essential health determinants.
• Holistic knowledge systems: I realized that knowledge comes not only from school but also from practice, memory, and tradition, and that interdisciplinary approaches can deepen our relationship with the land.

What “aha” moments did you have during the course?

• Health is collective, not just individual: I unlearned that health is primarily a personal responsibility or concern. Watching people with mental health challenges tend healing plants together at Huerto Manías, I saw how healing extends beyond clinical care, and becomes rooted in community, nature, and collective work.
• Knowledge is diverse: Experiencing farming practices based on the moon and knowledge passed down through families at Pukyu Pamba, I realized that knowledge comes not only from school but also from practice, memory, and tradition.

Why was it beneficial to take this course with students from different academic and professional backgrounds?

Taking this course alongside students from diverse academic and professional backgrounds was beneficial because it enriched the learning environment and broadened my perspective.

Each participant brought unique knowledge, methodologies, and ways of thinking, which fostered dynamic discussions and collaborative problem-solving.

For example, perspectives from public health, environmental science, education, and community development helped me see how health, culture, and ecology intersect in practice.