Courageous Authenticity: Bringing Our Inner Wisdom to Our Work, Partnerships, and Communities

To create the innovative solutions global health demands, we rely heavily on scientific knowledge, the scientific method to test hypotheses, and observable measurable data. However, we can also incorporate additional ways of knowing into our process, to fully honor and receive wisdom from all aspects of our humanity and to foster meaningful and impactful outcomes. We can learn to value our imagination and intuition as useful tools for innovative problem-solving. We can learn to honor ancestral viewpoints and incorporate learnings from the community, their experiences, and their land. We can learn to partner as people first, to manifest infinite possibilities of common ground and open ourselves to more connection points than scientific purpose alone. As we do this, we can become extremely fulfilled as we find deeper purpose in our work, our calling. Here, we offer ideas for global health practitioners and researchers to explore introspection to aid in deeper partnerships and engagement. First, we delve into deliberate introspection to foster greater awareness of our inner and outer landscapes. Second, we invite other ways of knowing to broaden our perspective and bring greater creativity to our global health research process. Third, we pause to consider the calling of a global health career. Finally, we approach ways to engage with others to heal collective trauma and to see ourselves as activists and healers in our capacity to build a more just, equitable and healthy world. Although it takes time to build relationships this way with oneself, our global health partners, and the work itself, this expansive way of working can be transformative. We invite you to acknowledge and honor all aspects of yourself and weave them into your global health work, partnerships, and vision.