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,FOUNDATIONS OF
GLOBAL HEALTH
An Interdisciplinary Reader
EDITED BY
PETER J. BROWN
EMORY UNIVERSIT Y
SVEA CLOSSER
M I D D L E B U R Y CO L L E G E
N E W Y O R K O X F O R D
OXFORD UNIVERSIT Y PRESS
,
, PREFACE: INTRODUCING
GLOBAL HEALTH
G lobal health is an exciting field that has gained a great deal of student interest in
the past two decades. Studying the complex health and socioeconomic problems
of people throughout the world, including the global majority who live in low- and
middle-income countries, can help any student become a global citizen. The study of
global health from an interdisciplinary perspective can be simultaneously encouraging
and discouraging, in ways that we think can help students develop more nuanced per-
spectives on the world.
In our opinion, the true purpose of higher education is to lead us out of our self-
centered universe to a place where we can perceive the world from others’ perspectives
and have a positive impact in the global community. Many college students need to break
out of a bubble that is often characterized by great privilege. After learning about the
challenges that people living in poverty face, many students have a sincere desire to do
something—to make a difference in the world. Such empathy and desire to help others
is a great thing. We encourage that. At the same time, students can have a certain naiveté
and lack of humility in their desire to “save the world.” So we also encourage the cultiva-
tion of humility and an appreciation of complexity.
As teachers, we are excited about students’ interest in and enthusiasm for global
health and social justice. We too are aspiring global citizens, and we are deeply commit-
ted to helping improve the health and well-being of others throughout the world. But we
can only do this in our own small ways. With this book, for example, our modest goal is
to help others learn about the health problems and living conditions of people living in
the “majority world.”
It is necessary to learn not only about the world’s complex and interwoven prob-
lems but also about successful solutions. Some are quite simple, like oral rehydration
therapy (ORT), which has saved the lives of millions of children from dehydration
caused by diarrhea. ORT is as inexpensive as it is effective. ORT is one of the simplest
solutions in global health, not requiring trained healthcare personnel to implement.
Some solutions are more complex, like the worldwide eradication of smallpox
in 1979 (although that remarkable success took nearly 200 years between the
ix
Interdisciplinary Reader install download
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health-an-interdisciplinary-reader/
Download more ebook instantly today - Get yours now at ebookluna.com
,FOUNDATIONS OF
GLOBAL HEALTH
An Interdisciplinary Reader
EDITED BY
PETER J. BROWN
EMORY UNIVERSIT Y
SVEA CLOSSER
M I D D L E B U R Y CO L L E G E
N E W Y O R K O X F O R D
OXFORD UNIVERSIT Y PRESS
,
, PREFACE: INTRODUCING
GLOBAL HEALTH
G lobal health is an exciting field that has gained a great deal of student interest in
the past two decades. Studying the complex health and socioeconomic problems
of people throughout the world, including the global majority who live in low- and
middle-income countries, can help any student become a global citizen. The study of
global health from an interdisciplinary perspective can be simultaneously encouraging
and discouraging, in ways that we think can help students develop more nuanced per-
spectives on the world.
In our opinion, the true purpose of higher education is to lead us out of our self-
centered universe to a place where we can perceive the world from others’ perspectives
and have a positive impact in the global community. Many college students need to break
out of a bubble that is often characterized by great privilege. After learning about the
challenges that people living in poverty face, many students have a sincere desire to do
something—to make a difference in the world. Such empathy and desire to help others
is a great thing. We encourage that. At the same time, students can have a certain naiveté
and lack of humility in their desire to “save the world.” So we also encourage the cultiva-
tion of humility and an appreciation of complexity.
As teachers, we are excited about students’ interest in and enthusiasm for global
health and social justice. We too are aspiring global citizens, and we are deeply commit-
ted to helping improve the health and well-being of others throughout the world. But we
can only do this in our own small ways. With this book, for example, our modest goal is
to help others learn about the health problems and living conditions of people living in
the “majority world.”
It is necessary to learn not only about the world’s complex and interwoven prob-
lems but also about successful solutions. Some are quite simple, like oral rehydration
therapy (ORT), which has saved the lives of millions of children from dehydration
caused by diarrhea. ORT is as inexpensive as it is effective. ORT is one of the simplest
solutions in global health, not requiring trained healthcare personnel to implement.
Some solutions are more complex, like the worldwide eradication of smallpox
in 1979 (although that remarkable success took nearly 200 years between the
ix
