Students: Crossing Cultures

Unique study abroad program offered at Pitt Public Health

By Caitlin McCullough

Each summer since 2023, the University of Pittsburgh course “Public Health Threats in Suriname: From Ecosystem to Human Health” has offered undergraduate and graduate students a two-week, immersive experience combining didactic and experiential learning across transdisciplinary science, practice and policy.

Students documented their summer program in Suriname by writing essays and taking lots of pictures.

Molly Reilly (Global Health Certificate ’25), who joined 2025 cohort as a rising senior pursing a Bachelor of Science in microbiology, Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences, appreciated the chance to explore the intersection between environmental health and microbiology. “We saw the scientific research side of public health in action through visiting labs that worked on various mosquito-borne illnesses,” Reilly said, describing a trip to that country’s Bureau of Public Health as a personal highlight. “Studying in the same place that we were learning about gave me a unique perspective.”

The course is led by School of Public Health Dean Maureen Lichtveld MD, MPH, Jonas Salk Professor in Population Health, and Firoz Abdoel Wahed, MD, PhD, MPH, assistant professor of environmental and occupational health. Other instructors include government officials, medical sciences faculty from the Anton De Kom University of Suriname and community members—local experts in toxicology, pharmacology and ecosystem science as well as traditional healing. Students examine environmental health threats specific to the region, such as mercury offset from local gold-mining operations.

Nailah Simmons (MPH, EOH ’26; BSPH ‘25), who grew up in Beaver County and took the course in 2023, noted similarities between what she learned in the field and the environmental threats facing her hometown, where residents contend with emissions from an ethane cracker plant built on former community green space that affect air quality, contributing to illness and driving residents to move away.

Simmons also valued the field experiences in Suriname that focused on rural lifestyles and ecosystems. “I like countryside vibes. You can go outside and breathe, enjoy nature and relax,” she explained. “I saw a lot of similarities between Suriname and home in terms of pace and respect for nature.”

When Grace Resop (MPH, HUGEN ’25) went to Suriname in 2024, she found a thesis advisor in a Surinamese infectious disease doctor for her project, “Uncovering the Burden of Hepatitis C Vertical Transmission in Suriname: A Path Toward Improved Testing and Care.”

“The experience was immensely valuable in helping me gain a more comprehensive and global view of public health,” Resop said of her trip. “To see how a country with fewer financial resources can tackle public health is astounding. It really puts into perspective that public health is dependent on passionate people to make a real difference in their communities.”

Now pursuing her MPH in the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, Simmons is developing a pediatric screening tool for community health workers in East Palestine, Ohio. She’s a newcomer in the community looking to build trust and combat survey fatigue, bringing previous experience in community-based participatory research. “It doesn’t need to be complex to build these relationships,” she’s learned. “Really, it’s just human connection.”

She carries a fond memory of relationship building from her trip to Suriname in which the whole group, including Lichtveld and Wahed, joined in a traditional dance as a lecturer demonstrated the steps while also teaching the history and meaning of the dance.

“It brought to light for me the humanity of public health. We’re all working toward a common goal and we’re not as different as it seems on the surface,” Simmons reflected. “I still think about that moment today. It’s easy to get distracted, but working together with other people to build healthier communities? It’s just a good feeling.”