The importance of volunteering and how they shape your public health career, with Christina Ricci

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In this episode, Sujani sits down with Christina Ricci, an epidemiologist with the Public Health Agency of Canada and an avid volunteer. They discuss the importance of volunteerism and what motivates Christina to keep volunteering.

You’ll Learn

• How Christina got into the field of public health
• Christina’s volunteering journey and what motivated her to continue seeking out volunteer roles
• How Christina’s early volunteer experiences shaped her interest in public health and vice versa
• What some of the most rewarding volunteer positions have been for Christina and what skills she learned - both expected and unexpected
• Why it is important for Christina to continue volunteering, even after she landed a full-time public health job  
• How to identify and land volunteer experiences, both formally and informally
• How to integrate volunteer work into your resume
• Factors to consider before taking on a volunteer role
• Tips on how to balance volunteer work with other work and play
• Advice from Christina for students and early career professionals as it relates to public health volunteer work

Today’s Guest

Christina is an Epidemiologist with the Public Health Agency of Canada and completed her Masters of Public Health in Epidemiology at the University of Toronto. Outside of work she volunteers with various universities doing systematic reviews, as a program manager for an NGO improving disability services access and disability inclusion stigma in West Africa as well as with the United Nations to name a few. She has also started her own program for newcomers to Canada to connect them to resources through webinars and workshops.  

Resources

• Recommendations from Christina on where to look for volunteering opportunities
  • United Nations Volunteers
  • We Make Change 
  • Young Diplomats of Canada
  • FORA
  • Apathy is Boring
  • Unite2030
  • Capital Integration Movement 

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