What fuels Jasmine Patel’s passion for advocacy and health policy? “The ability to educate and change,” she says.
Jasmine first tapped into this ability as a volunteer in underserved international communities during her undergraduate studies. Jasmine spent two weeks in rural Panama, helping to build greenhouses and educate the community on sustainable agricultural practices. Later, Jasmine volunteered in rural Guatemala, working with infants born with abnormalities. While there, she recognized a huge gap in health education within the community.
“Women weren’t aware of the importance of caring for their health during their reproductive years,” says Jasmine, “in large part because they were illiterate.” Jasmine later co-founded an organization that used photographs and visuals to educate women in rural communities on better caring for their health.
Today, through her role in Woodberry Associates’ Coalition & Nonprofit Management Division, Jasmine steers policy and outreach on cardiovascular and international health policy.
She sees the parallel with her early volunteer experiences.
“There are populations not spoken for,” Jasmine notes, “and these people deserve education about protecting their own health and creating policy change.”
Jasmine Patel is Senior Director of Coalition & Nonprofit Management at Woodberry Associates.