Meet Alyssa Palmquist, who graduated with an MSc Anthropology and Development in 2018. Here, Alyssa speaks to us about her career with the World Health Organisation.
Tell us about your career since studying with us.
After completing my MSc in 2018, I moved to Geneva, Switzerland to start an internship at the World Health Organization. As someone who encountered anthropology through a global health and development lens, this offered a unique opportunity to apply the insights from my studies to very real and practical issues in this space. My career at WHO started with the Country Strategy and Support Unit, where I was able to work directly with the Heads of WHO Country Offices and their teams. This allowed me to better understand how the different levels of the Organization interact, collaborate and exchange information. Throughout this process, I was reminded of the importance of bi-directional exchange to honour the realities of those ‘on the ground’. Living and working in Geneva can sometimes feel like existing in a bubble; you are immersed in the policy and diplomacy aspects of global health, one step removed from the teams delivering medical supplies to remote health clinics or conducting training programs in local communities. Luckily, I had many of those experiences before starting my work with WHO, so I was fortunate to observe the full spectrum of global health – from the high-level discussions at the World Health Assembly to working on a farm in Rwanda, helping design malnutrition prevention programs for underserved families. I ended up staying at WHO for nearly six years, first with the Department of Data, Analytics and Delivery for Impact and later with the Department of Communications. And of course, during these years we all collectively experienced the societal ruptures of the COVID-19 pandemic. This was another challenging and fascinating aspect of my time at WHO – being able to witness the first-hand, ‘behind-the-scenes’ and heroic efforts of so many people coming together under very difficult circumstances. One of the most rewarding aspects of my time in both the data and communication teams was translating complex technical information into a format that was not only understandable, but impactful to a wider audience. I learned so much from working with leading statisticians, data scientists, and global health experts. However, I do feel that fields like anthropology are underrepresented in these often highly quantitative and technical spaces. As they say, ‘once an anthropologist, always an anthropologist’ and throughout my career at WHO I always came back to my initial work with the country teams, making sure to check any biases or assumptions and qualifying technical guidance with local realities and absorptive capacities. Although my time at WHO has now come to an end, this period of my life was instructive in so many ways, and I look forward to advocating for anthropology in whatever way I can as I take the next steps in my career.
What did you enjoy about studying Anthropology with us.
I truly enjoyed the cross-disciplinary nature of my programme at the LSE – combining anthropology theory with development practice. This was something unique that I hadn’t come across before, and it immediately appealed to me. By bringing these two fields into dialogue with one another, it revealed many interesting and nuanced aspects of each. This, in my opinion, is also one of the strengths of LSE: breaking down silos to ensure no field or area of research exists in isolation. This to me is incredibly valuable, and I hope that other institutions can take a similar approach in the future. And of course, the camaraderie and connections built with my course mates – many of whom I am still in touch with today. Every time I come back to London, it feels like a little piece of me is coming home. And as someone who has lived in many places around the world, that feeling of ‘home away from home’ is increasingly precious.
How did studying anthropology prepare you for your career?
Studying anthropology equips you with both a humble and a curious mind. You learn to challenge your own assumptions or biases in any context. You learn to listen, to seek first to understand. You learn to have respect for what is unfamiliar to you. You learn to not jump to conclusions and to engage critically. And these are not just valuable professional skills – they are valuable life skills. In a world that moves so fast, it can be very difficult to apply these lessons. But I am always conscious and committed to doing so, and I can credit my studies at LSE for gifting me with this perspective.
Could you tell us about the company you work for and what you enjoy most about working in the sector?
The mission of the World Health Organisation is to ensure the highest level of health and wellbeing for all people, not merely the absence of illness or disease. And this includes all aspects of health – from health promotion to universal health coverage to emergency preparedness and response. It is indeed a large portfolio, and one that suffers from a chronic lack of resources and financing. That being said, one of the aspects I enjoyed most about my time at WHO was a sense of shared purpose and passion. Everyone comes into the system from a different background, with unique experiences and perspectives. And this creates a beautifully diverse mosaic of health professionals from all over the world. I worked with people from dozens of countries, with varied linguistic and cultural backgrounds. And this allowed me to tap into my anthropology training – to understand and refine my ability to work in multicultural environments, even down to things like communication styles and feedback mechanisms. You must learn to be adaptable and responsive, once again challenging your own ways of being and doing as ‘normal’ in favour of an approach that respects all ways of working. Each year during the World Health Assembly I felt so privileged to be in the room – often times, to witness historic moments, such as when the Pandemic Agreement was adopted at the World Health Assembly earlier this year. And despite challenges around things like contract stability and long-term career planning, I do not take a moment of it for granted. All was instructive, and all served a greater purpose.
How do you apply anthropology in your work?
One of the most fulfilling aspects of my work was being able to share country impact stories. This was a common thread that ran through each of my roles and was a very humbling responsibility that drew directly upon my anthropology training. I was able to amplify and share stories written by our team and country colleagues on access to primary health care in the Lao People’s Democratic Republic; about efforts to promote safe and effective medicines in the Gambia; and about controlling essential medicine prices in Kyrgyzstan. Each of these was a small window into an entire world that I was able to amplify for policy and financial decision-makers. As an anthropologist, I always aimed to position myself as a channel through which to share these stories in a way that reflects the peoples and cultures who wrote them. Anthropology was even applied to the imagery that we used to accompany these stories – to question who took the photos, what they captured or perhaps kept hidden, what stories within the stories were being told. It was always an honour to be an anthropologist at WHO – to apply these skills and perspectives so that others may carry them forward in their work as well.
What are some important lessons you’ve learnt during your career?
It’s not always about being the most visible in the room – it’s often about being the most observant. Anthropologists are some of the most skilled and patient observers that exist. Use this skill to your utmost advantage, because it will serve you well. Observe the ways in which organisational culture unfolds and reveals itself over time. The jargon, norms and functions that become an unwritten code, a language of their own. Observe it both by being a part of it and being one step removed. By being able to shift between these two modes seamlessly, in the way that only you know how to. Be curious, and don’t hesitate to ask questions. Understanding is one of the greatest and most under-appreciated skills in the workplace. And I don’t mean a surface-level understanding; I mean an understanding of who a person is, why they act the way that they do, what makes them tick. Understanding other people is a superpower, in any aspect of life. And sometimes this requires you to take a backseat. To not only understand what is going on around you, but to better understand yourself within that environment. And most of all, have compassion. Be able to discern between what is urgent and what is important. And be kind – always be kind. Even and especially when you are met with unkindness. Even and especially when it’s difficult.
What advice would you give students who want to find similar roles?
For any role with the United Nations and its agencies, patience and persistence are key. Remember that things will take a lot longer than you realise, but you learn to refine your diplomacy skills through navigating this delicate balance. Not everything has to happen at once; have the tea or the coffee, build the relationship first. Because in the end, these are the things that will actually move the needle. There are a lot of ways you can engage with and learn more about working in the UN, from watching live sessions at UNGA or other events at https://webtv.un.org/en to signing up for job boards through https://careers.un.org/home?language=en or Stellis, the jobs page specifically for WHO: https://www.who.int/careers/apply-for-a-position. Postings usually get hundreds if not thousands of applications, so apply early and pay attention to keywords. Reach out to someone for an informational interview and let them know you applied. We need more young people in the UN system who bring fresh ideas and perspectives, yet the barriers to entry can be quite high. Remember that it’s not just about years of experience – it’s about the quality of that experience. This often includes a focus on regional or country-level work, which I would encourage you to explore early in your career. At the end of the day, do not sell yourself short and go for it!