Health, Society & Human Rights

In many East Asian communities, fair skin is often associated with beauty, encouraging people to minimize sun exposure. I became interested in what happens when a cultural preference begins to shape health behavior.

Through fieldwork in Xizhou, Yunnan, I investigated the relationship between sun avoidance, Vitamin D deficiency, osteoporosis risk, and perceptions of beauty. I documented my findings in an 11-page research report and began looking for a way to turn research into public engagement.

Inspired by traditional Bai visual patterns, I designed 10+ tanning stencils that allowed participants to experience sunlight differently—transforming sun exposure into a temporary form of body art. The project became both a design experiment and a public health intervention: a way to start conversations about sunlight, physical and mental well-being, and more inclusive definitions of beauty.

Programming included physician talks, CPR, EMT and Stop the Bleed training, hospital-shadowing opportunities, and fundraising supporting research on neglected diseases including tuberculosis, trachoma, dengue, and rheumatic fever.

For me, health advocacy begins with making knowledge and opportunities easier to access—and giving more people a way to participate.

My interest in food began with its effects on the body, but gradually expanded toward the larger systems and ideas surrounding what we eat. Across nutrition coursework, farm work, community service, and creative communication, I have come to see food not only as a source of health, but also as a question of sustainability, access, culture, and public understanding.