上海德威外籍人员子女学校校友Noemi S 有关我在乌干达的日日夜夜

今天小编搜罗了上海德威外籍人员子女学校校友Noemi S 有关我在乌干达的日日夜夜希望给择校的家长们提供参考。

Uganda has assured me that no matter how hard, lonely or tiring it may be at times, no matter how unsure the future is, no matter what my next adventure may be, this is the kind of life I want: living and working abroad to provide mental health and psychosocial support for vulnerable children, families and communities in the humanitarian context.

Since Noemi S graduated from Dulwich College Beijing (DCB) in 2011, she has built a career as a psychologist who specialises in providing mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) for conflict- and crisis-affected populations in Europe, the Middle East and East Africa.

We were delighted to interview Noemi about her recent seven-month work placement in Uganda with the Child Protection unit of UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency:

01What motivated you to go to Uganda, and what did you do there?

I was selected for a German/Swiss 12-month young professionals program called Mercator Fellowship on International Affairs, which started in October 2020 and was composed of two work placements with international organisations. Throughout my fellowship year, my focus was strengthening the mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) of refugee children and families in the Middle East and East Africa. I chose a Danish non-governmental organization (NGO) in Jordan for my first work placement and ended up with the Child Protection unit of UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, in Kampala, Uganda.    Having had a substantial amount of work experience in the Middle East, I was motivated to dive into a new refugee context. Uganda hosts over 1.5 million refugees, mostly from Congo and South Sudan, and is a great example of a self-reliance policy that allows refugees freedom of movement and the right to work in Uganda. Among many tasks, I went on field missions to evaluate MHPSS activities and advise implementing partners on adapting said activities based on context-specific challenges, such as increased gender-based violence and suicide rates in the refugee settlements.

02What are some key takeaways – both personal and professional – from your time there?

It's difficult to sum up my experience in a few words. One thing I learned is how complex humanitarian aid in the refugee context is, especially in a country with such a high existing level of poverty. I learned that mental health needs to be viewed and addressed as much more crosscutting and holistically than it currently is. Everything is interconnected. 

For instance, if you don't address the mental state of a refugee enrolled in a livelihoods program, they will never fully benefit from that humanitarian aid because they may currently lack the mental and psychosocial capacity to work. An inter-sectoral response requires mental health and mental illness to be viewed as overarching in all programmes, whether it be education, health, livelihoods or other sectors. I was personally moved by how incredibly strong the refugee communities were. Their resilience and community spirit during the especially challenging times of the Covid-19 pandemic is remarkable. 

Another main takeaway is that I am more motivated than ever to continue working in this field.

03What surprised you the most about your experience?

Although I've lived in many countries, I still feel surprised about how quickly I am able to dive into completely foreign cultures. Arriving in Uganda marked my first time on the African continent, and I was positively surprised by how quickly I adapted to the chaotic way of life in Kampala. I was surprised by how "normal" living in Kampala felt after only a few weeks and how open other expats as well as locals were in helping me integrate and feel welcome.

04Did your Dulwich experience influence your passion / dedication to MHPSS? If so, how? Why did you decide to enter the field of mental health and psychosocial support?

It absolutely did! Dulwich was my first real exposure to the field of psychology as well as to vulnerable populations. Parallel to studying psychology (my favourite subject!) during the IB, I was involved in DCB's social projects such as teaching English to children in a migrant school outside of Beijing. These early experiences sparked my wish to study psychology with a focus on child development.    With that knowledge, I wanted to work with vulnerable populations such as the displaced. For me, MHPSS is all about applying my acquired psychology knowledge to working with crisis-affected children, families and communities and understanding their unique needs but also their resources and capacities. It is about destigmatizing mental illness and sustainably empowering vulnerable populations in strengthening their own mental health and psychosocial wellbeing and ultimately re-building their lives. That is my professional as well as personal goal. 

05Do you have any words of advice or encouragement for current students/alumni who are looking to do something similar in the future?

Keep an open mind and don't let others (including your parents!) tell you what to study or what kind of field to work in. Stay flexible. You don't need to have a 5-year plan in mind, you're still so young and have many different paths ahead of you. Indulge in the unknown, because it is full of opportunity, potential and room to grow. Think about what excites and interests you in this moment and go along that path, but don't be afraid to try new things.    For example, I had actually started a PhD in developmental psychology after my master's degree and realised after some time that it's just not for me, as I wasn't having anywhere near the extent of impact on children that I wanted to have as a psychologist. Everyone around me told me that it's an honor to have been selected for such a prestigious position and that I shouldn't give up an opportunity like that, which made me so insecure. After one year, I was courageous enough to drop out of the PhD and I can honestly say this is one of the best decisions I've ever made. But it's different for everyone!    Don't ever give in to what societal or cultural norms may dictate you to do when choosing your career. Be you, and don't ever go against your own beliefs and values!

  

We are so proud of Noemi and the work she is now doing to make a positive impact on the world. We wish her all the best in her future endeavours as a psychologist providing mental health and psychosocial support for vulnerable populations around the world.

校友风采

Noemi S

有关我在乌干达的日日夜夜

将心理学知识应用于受危机影响的儿童、家庭和社区，从他们的独特需求出发，依据他们所拥有的资源和能力，可持续地实施心理援助以增强他们的心理健康，并最终重建他们的生活，这是我的目标。

从欧洲，到中东，再到东非，Noemi在世界各地为弱势群体提供心理援助。在此期间，她看到了世界的处处不同，也更多地意识到自己所做的事情，可以释放的巨大能量。通过自己的所作所为，为世界作出贡献，是熠熠生辉的理想。而这理想的起源，始于在德威的点点滴滴。

最近，Noemi刚刚结束她在联合国难民署儿童保护部门位于乌干达的工作，我们有幸采访到她，一起聊聊这七个月中，她的所见所闻，所思所想！

01你为什么去到了乌干达？在那里，你做了什么？

我被选中参加一项名为Mercator Fellowship的国际事务相关项目，该项目与国际组织合作，组织青年专家们在相关领域进行分为两段的，为期共12个月的国际事务工作。   我先后在位于约旦的一个非政府组织和位于坎帕拉的联合国难民署儿童保护部门工作。在此期间，我的项目关注重点是中东及东非难民儿童和家庭的心理援助工作。   在中东有了大量的工作经历和切身体验后，我希望可以去看看在其他地方的难民的生存情况。我来到了乌干达。乌干达收容了超过150万难民，其中大部分来自刚果和南苏丹。这里还是一个“自给自足”政策的经典案例，难民们可以在乌干达自由行动，并有权利在此工作。我在执行工作时进行了实地考察，以评估当地的心理健康与社会心理援助（M HPSS）活动；并根据当地具体情况中的挑战，如难民安置点中基于性别的暴力侵害行为以及自杀事件的增加，向我的执行伙伴提出了调整建议。

02通过乌干达的经历，你最重要的收获是什么（个人成长或职业发展）？

这很难用只言片语来进行概括。但这段经历让我深深地意识到，在一个高度贫困国家，关于难民的人道主义援助是一个多么复杂的课题。我们需要全面地看待和处理他们的心理健康问题，因为一切都是相互关联的。举例来说，如果不能去解决难民在维持生计中发生的心理问题，那么他们就无法真正从心理援助中获益，因为他们在现阶段可能是缺乏足够的心理能力去工作的。在整体的心理援助中，所有环节中心理健康问题都需要被分析和重视，不管是教育，健康，生计还是任何其他板块。在此期间，我也被难民群体的强韧所感动。在新冠疫情这个尤为充满挑战的时期，他们所展现的坚韧和社区精神是非常卓越的。另一个对我来说很大的收获就是，通过这段经历，我更加坚定要继续深耕在这个领域。        

03这段经历中最让你惊喜的是什么？

我在许多国家生活过，但我仍没想到自己可以如此迅速地融入一个陌生的文化。其实这是我第一次到非洲大陆，仅仅几周后，我就对在坎帕拉有些混乱的生活状态感到“习以为常”。在这里的其他外国人和当地人也都有帮助我融入当地社会并使我感到宾至如归。

04你在德威的经历是否于你对MHPSS产生热情有所影响？如果有的话，是如何影响的呢？你是为什么决定进入心理健康与社会心理援助这个领域呢？
在德威的经历对我影响颇深！在德威，我第一次真正接触了心理学，并且了解到了弱势群体的存在。在IB课程中学习心理学（我最喜欢的科目）期间，我参加了一些北京德威英国国际学校组织的社会项目，比如去往北京郊区的打工子弟学校教孩子们英语。这些早期的经历，激发了我以儿童心理发展为重心，继续学习心理学的愿望。具备相关知识后，我想要为更多弱势群体提供援助，比如流离失所的难民们。   对我来说，MHPSS就是将心理学知识应用于受危机影响的儿童、家庭和社区，从他们的独特需求出发，依据他们所拥有的资源和能力，可持续地实施心理援助以增强他们的心理健康，并最终重建他们的生活，这是我的目标。

  

05对于希望在未来做类似事情的在校学生/校友，你有什么建议或鼓励吗？

保持开放的心态，不要让别人(包括你的父母)告诉你要学什么、在什么领域工作。   保持灵活。你不必制定5年计划，你还很年轻，还可以选择很多不同的路径。欣赏未知，因为它充满机遇、潜力和成长。   想想此时此刻什么让你兴奋和感兴趣，然后沿着这条路走下去，但是不要害怕尝试新事物。拿我自己来说，我在获得硕士学位后，其实有选择开始攻读发展心理学博士学位，但过了一段时间后我意识到这不适合我，因为做一名心理学家对孩子的影响远不及我所期望的那样。我身边的每个人都告诉我，能被选中担任这样一个有声望的职位是一种荣誉，我不应该放弃这样一个机会，这让我感到很不安。一年后，我蓄满足够的勇气放弃了博士学位，坦白说，这是我所做过的最好的决定之一。但是每个人的情况都是不一样的！   在选择职业时，千万不要屈从社会标准。做你自己，永远不要放弃自己的信念和价值观！

  

我们为Noemi以及她现在

为对世界产生积极影响

所做的工作感到自豪。

我们祝愿她

在未来作为一名心理专家一切顺利，

为世界各地的弱势群体

提供更多援助和支持。