When asked, most people would say that they desire to change the world for good if given the power to do so. In fact, every politician irrespective of political ideology claims to intend to do the same. But…as they say, “The path to Hell is paved with good intentions”. So, with all of these “good intentions”, why are we still failing so miserably to accomplish any measurable success?

Well, the truth is, we actually have been successful… in some ways at least. Of course, not in all ways, but it would be incorrect to make the assumption that nothing positive has changed either. The problem is, sometimes we forget to acknowledge past achievements that have become normalized within our society. And in this forgetfulness, as we push for new social reforms, we accomplish many retroactive successes, where each new success is often paralleled with the loss of a previous one. It’s rooted in what can be referred to as “comfort logic”: a form of perception that is so attached to an established view of reality, that it fails to incorporate new ideas as they come to light. Thus, it is more comfortable to accept a perception that supports the beliefs and experiences we were exposed to during childhood than to accept alternative perspectives, even if these new perspectives might alleviate some of the pain and restrictions of these taught beliefs. This also means that unacknowledged successes from the past can be forgotten, so we then collectively grow comfortable that “nothing changes for good”.

I’ve watched my own deference to "comfort logic” play out throughout many chapters of my own life. While each of my careers (from cancer lab research to data engineering) were all pursued under the pretext of me wanting to make a difference in the world, each pivot filled me with a bit more disempowerment as I realized the limitations of my impact almost as quickly as my new career began. Yet, in the midst of my frustrations and attached to the “comfort logic” of my own country, my extensive travels shook me to an uncomfortable core, and removed the limitations in my perception that were keeping me paralyzed. Nomadic living provided me with clarity of direction and action. It wasn’t that my drive for change was an impossible feat; it was the scope in which I was trying to enact change.

My professional career began in the windowless rooms of sterile labs, where the passing of time disappeared into the abrasive fluorescent lights that illuminated my stagnant surroundings. Each day of lab work reminded me that, in reality, my work was making one data point at a time; far from being able to see a statistically impactful data trend; far from doing meaningful work that  would show results, at least within my foreseeable future. The lack of viability for my efforts drained me of my life force as the hours stretched into days, into months. After decidingly putting my lab days firmly behind me, I spent a year and some change taking odd, part-time jobs, while learning how to code. I thought: “If I was creating the data points, what would it look like from the big-data analysis perspective?” I was convinced that, with a job like a Data Scientist, my work would be valid and impactful. With such a technical job, I would have job security, a comfortable salary, and most importantly, the potential to work from anywhere. Eventually, this career pursuit gave me the freedom to travel abroad with no end date. It was during these long stints of travel that I started to learn about the much darker undertones behind international policies.

My first irrefutable exposure to the hallowing politics and pretences around visa distributions was when I was working for UNICEF as a Data Consultant. I had grown close with one of my coworkers, who also traveled often for the UN. We used to swap stories, travel adventures, languages, and even the occasional recipe in between work obligations. Since our friendship was remote, I proposed that we should meet in a city and travel around that country for a few weeks. I was shocked when she simply replied that that would be impossible. What I had not realized prior was that was, since she was a UNICEF Staff Member, she also was a holder of a UN Passport. And, like the US Passport at the time, it gave her automatic visas to nearly every country. She, however, was an Indian Citizen; for all personal travel, she must use her Indian Passport. During our discussion, I came to find out that her passport had far more limitations than mine, including bureaucratic hurdles, long processing times, and exuberant fees associated with any travel visa request. I was absolutely shocked. It shattered my perception of what I had previously understood about the world, and it initiated my curiosity around how different countries address international relations. I started to realize how we, as a global nation, could leverage the successful policies of one country and incorporate similar, maybe customized versions of the same in another country.

My work with UNICEF eventually morphed my Data Science career into a Data Engineering one; which ironically brought me back to the US medical world once more. Working as a Data Engineer gave me even more exposure to powerful people than being a Data Scientist. Now I directly touched the financials, so I spoke with members of the company’s C-Suite with some frequency. My reports were routinely ingested and leveraged for corporate decisions. I had the job stability with a comfortable salary, and the validity that I had once craved when I first began my career transition. I even had my dream apartment in Santa Monica; but something within me had fundamentally changed.

The reality was, returning to the US to work for a US corporation kept me trapped in a perspective I could no longer live within. My time living abroad (as well as working alongside so many international allies while contracting with UNICEF) opened my mind in new, often uncomfortable ways. It had shattered my “comfort logic”. So I began to assess my surroundings from a more expansive, inquisitive perspective. Despite the fact that I was working for a medical institution, the company was a for-profit corporation. Decisions were notably made to reflect what was best to the corporation’s bottom line first, then as a medical institution second. The policies and prices implemented were in stark contrast to the exceptional medical care I received internationally. Most notably in countries like Mexico and Brazil, who were routinely looked down upon by American medical professionals. My craving to make an impact in the world laid stifled, yet unrelenting; so, I made the decision to request working abroad from Brazil.

Brazil might seem like a random choice, or a potentially irrational one, when it comes to career elevation. But, for me, it was quite the opposite. I had been to Brazil once before, several months prior to taking my state-side Data Engineering role. I traveled there alone, as was my standard protocol. I was nervous. I had heard no shortage of stories related to how dangerous the country could be. But throughout my entire travels, whenever I made the acquaintance of a Brazilian, I was astounded by how genuinely kind and lighthearted they were. I had since learned to avoid my own countrymen while traveling due to embarrassment of the prejudiced behavior commonly shown by Americans traveling abroad; so to come across a country that holds no negative pretense against other countries captivated me. More than anything, I craved to spend time in Brazil and learn why Brazilians have such an open-minded mentality. Maybe I could adapt some of this mentality to help establish something similar within my own country.

I lived in Brazil for just shy of a year and a half; and I decided to leave my Data Engineering career, permanently, during this timeframe. Brazilians taught me how to live life well, with gratitude and chosen peace, while the world is swallowed in chaos. There is a collective commitment to hoping for a better future while stubbornly finding joy in The Now, which is reiterated with their country-wide mentality:

“No final, vai dar tudo certo.” // “In the end, everything will all work out.”

I began volunteering alongside Cariocas to learn how they addressed issues like homelessness and disproportionate poverty; ailments my own city struggled with. Through demonstration, Brazilians showed me how powerful changes are not just made, but maintained and built upon, by being involved at the human-level of things. This opened my mind in new ways, solidifying my focus and passion in global initiatives, where my skills could be leveraged “for-people” instead of “for-profit”. I realized how my career in tech had not only detached me from my sense of connection with others, it had also ripped away my femininity and softness; my compassion. These are the gifts and sides of me that are actually most effective and impactful for change, and most committed to addressing injustices. In order to truly be in a place in the world where I could make a real, positive impact, I first had to make the changes within myself that were keeping me locked in my own spirals of chaos. I was happy to continue down this path, slowly seeing the cobblestones of my future life path unfolding. One where I participated in creating a more unified global community.  When the I.C.E. raids in the United States began showing up on local news stations in Rio, I felt called back, beckoned to take responsibility for what was happening within my own country and be a part of the change. As I made my way back to the US, the wisdom Brazil taught me continued to echo in my being. But my ambition to make an impact in the world is what carries me forward.

I knew that I needed to expand my career prospects to a path that would grow with me as I continue to learn throughout my life. What type of career will support this level of diversification? I loved being a consultant for UNICEF, but I found the scope of my role was restricted to simple analytics and notably removed from the scope of decision-making. My work as a data engineer brought me closer to these rooms, but I had little to no control over what analytics were important to assess. I summarized that my career prospects needed to be expansive, to have the capacity to grow with me as I continue to gain perspective and wisdom from living a life that supports my international interests and desire to help create and maintain a “for-people” global community. Education within international policy is the necessary next step.

As a California native, and a long-time resident of Southern California, I have watched USC make headlines as a university that stands by its ideals and its students, in the face of opposition. Whether it came from the community surrounding it or push-back from the Federal government. I have watched this university remain committed to fueling a revolutionary tomorrow, through the nurtured minds and talent that pass through its classroom doors. It is clear that USC’s style of education empowers its students to make radical impacts for social good, far beyond what is specifically addressed in the classroom. It is this premise of “defiance with intention”, along with a community-first approach, that has fortified my decision to pursue a Masters with USC. A school so accustomed to supporting its intensely driven students to reach heights well beyond what they originally thought was possible. USC fundamentally understands that passionate action is essential, but it is also only advantageous when it is rooted in strategy and intelligence.

When I discovered USC’s Master in Public Policy, I was captivated. It felt like the natural next step in my career: a degree that leverages my previous experience in analytics enhanced with the expertise of current social policy implementations. For all of the gumption I feel within this industry, the reality is, the more I learn, the more disempowered I feel about what impact I’m actually able to accomplish when there is so much I don’t know. However, the essence of MPP at Price seems to welcome confusion as an opportunity to find new clarity, and it empowers its students’ most ambitious goals through hands-on experience and community guidance. Two areas in which I am currently lacking in my own expertise.

In order to accurately assess international policies and effectively normalize the data to translate to functional action, I humbly need more perspective on how this is already being accomplished. Learning how to accurately gauge how impactful various forms of philanthropy have historically been, not just in Brazil or the United States, but as a cross-comparison analysis would fill in some of the gaps in my understanding. How do we create global-minded policies to leverage resources we already have to solve long-standing injustices? What methods have truly been impactful for creating long-term change that minimizes unjust inequality? What are the main blockers, and how can we either remove these blockers or in some way make them obsolete? The questions I have just begun to ask are already part of the reasons why USC Faculty founded The Center of Philanthropy and Public Policy; where professors, policy makers, and advisors have effectively designed solutions to these problems. I was especially intrigued by Associate Professor Nicolas J. Durquette's work assessing the economics of charitable donations in the United States. I felt like Brazil’s approach to social injustices were more personal, which seems in direct contrast to America’s way of offsetting inequality by writing donation checks while being generally removed from the actual problem. But, when reading through Professor Durquette’s work I realized my perspective might be short sighted. I’d love to learn more about how our various approaches, from country to country, can be leveraged to solve problems that seem insurmountable, but in actuality, the solutions are just on the other side of our limited perceptions. In the same vein, given my deep connection to Brazil, I’m also keenly interested in USC’s international collaboration with Rio’s own Escola Brasileira de Administração Pública e de Empresas (EBAPE). Doing a semester abroad at EBAPE would allow me to return to Brazil with a renewed perspective, where I can continue to learn more from a culture that has profoundly influenced my desire to move into the arena of policy reform.

With the education I seek to receive at Price, I would no longer be required to remain idle on the sidelines when it becomes clear that certain policies are no longer effective. I would have the expertise to not only critically question, but to even design and implement a more effective approach. In summary, MPP will provide an iron-clad foundation of intentional investigation and inquiry that will guide my footsteps as a powerful advisor who seeks to make a level of social impact that my own mind cannot yet conceive. It will be an absolute honor to study alongside you and your faculty members at Price School, and together become allies powerful enough to correct social inequalities and form a thriving global society rooted in togetherness.