Profile - Karolyn Yardley

After studying commerce and biology at Dalhousie University I came to the University of Ottawa to study nursing and am now entering my fourth year and final year of the program. I was thrilled when I found out that I had been given this incredible opportunity because it is directly in line with my interests and experiences. I have developed a deep seated interest in maternal health and women’s issues over the course of my studies in nursing. I spent last summer volunteering in maternal child health clinics and orphanages in Arusha, Tanzania. Over the past year I worked with the International Education Centre at Algonquin College on a CIDA funded project that involved designing a website on international development for students and faculty to use as resource. I am really looking forward to returning to Tanzania this summer so that I can learn more about the issues that women in Tanzania face from the women themselves.

This trip combines two of my passions, travelling and volunteering. I have travelled to over twenty countries including India, where I spent a few months in Calcutta teaching English and volunteering in an orphanage. At home in Ottawa I have spent time volunteering for The Mission, Meals on Wheels, The Ottawa Civic Hospital and at many other institutions and events.

Through this project I hope to raise awareness of international development issues, identify existing problems, and share information that will truly enrich the lives of those I work with. I am excited to work on this project because it takes an upstream approach to healthcare and I think that it has the potential to make a lasting difference.

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