PPIA Public Service Weekend Reflection: A Weekend on Diverse Voices in Public Policy and International Affairs
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By Isabella Martin
I arrived at Dulles International Airport and traveled to my hotel in Foggy Bottom. Before the conference started, I decided to skip an Uber ride and Bird scooter to Georgetown. Out of the 40-minute commute, I lasted only about 10 minutes on the scooter before falling off and then walked the remaining 30 minutes up the Potomac River. Eventually arriving in Georgetown, the area is truly surreal. The historic buildings and beautiful streets made for a delightful on-foot trip. Finally making it to Georgetown University, the conference began with a campus tour. The history and the brilliance of the University, paired with my previous 40-minute uphill walk, took my breath away. I was able to meet a couple of my fellow conference participants on the campus tour and we talked about everything from our experience in politics to similar organizations that we were involved with. In addition, we saw incredible landmarks of the university like Madeleine Albright’s office at the Mortara Center and the famous steps from the film, The Exorcist. When we came back from the tour we had a variety of talks from the McCourt School of Public Policy and the Walsh School of Foreign Service. At the end of the night, we listened to Muthukumara Mani, Lead Economist in the Office of the Chief Economist of the World Bank’s South Asia Region. He talked to us about his journey through his career and how we are the future of the world. The next couple of days included a case study on the Gross National Happiness (GNH) of Bhutan, a keynote discussion with Ziad Ziad (a member of the Public Policy Strategic Response Team at Facebook), talks from alumni panelists, professors from Georgetown University, and more. We discussed the entrance to graduate school, possible career avenues, and the importance of diversity in public policy and international affairs. We also explored networking and how to successfully create relationships in the professional world. The most important part of the weekend, however, was the connections we made from the conference. Before every speaker or activity, we introduced ourselves in the format of my quote from the beginning of the blog. We learned about each person, be it student or speaker, and their origins and perspectives from these introductions. Each time I said “Looahvulle, Kentucky”, I was asked questions about my university and the culture in Kentucky. I also learned that only Kentuckians pronounce it “Looahvulle”. In return, I asked my fellow conference attendees about their respective schools and states. We talked about our family backgrounds and our diverse array of cultural backgrounds. We shared stories and laughs. We got to know each other very well, despite only sharing 3 days together.
“The Public Policy and International Affairs Program (PPIA) works to promote the inclusion and full participation of underrepresented groups in public service and to advance their leadership roles throughout our civic institutions serving domestic and international affairs.” The PPIA Public Service Weekend at Georgetown University focused on diverse voices in public policy and international affairs. I initially attended the conference without knowing what to expect. We discussed diversity as far as race and ethnicity, but we delved further into a much more deeper concept. Diversity means more than what is on the physical surface. While we all held different racial and ethnic identities, we focused on the importance of diversity in experience, ideas, and culture. I was the only attendee from Kentucky and was able to meet people from all across the United States. We have different perspectives because of our backgrounds but are all fighting the same fight. From learning about the identities of other students and professionals, I became more secure in my own identity and my place in my service to the United States. I am now all the more motivated to seek a graduate program in public policy and international affairs and am also excited to pursue a career that allows me to be a leader in my field. PPIA empowered me in my diverse background and has helped me to realize the importance of my voice in public policy and international affairs.
“Hi everyone! My name is Isabella Martin and I am a junior Political Science and Economics major with minors in International Business and Russian Studies at the University of Looahvulle.”
My favorite part of attending conferences is interacting with students from all around the country and the world, professors that have studied a wide range of topics, and professionals that are gracious enough to educate the new generation of leaders. I applied for the PPIA Public Service Weekend at Georgetown University conference without knowledge of how many students were able to attend, which professionals I would meet, and really what the conference was about. My acceptance email said that I was one of thirty to be accepted to the program and I was immediately added to a “Georgetown University: PPIA Public Service Weekend” Facebook page with my fellow conference attendees. I did not know anyone prior to the start of the conference, so I flew to Washington DC and stayed at a hotel by myself. It was not my first time traveling to Washington DC, but it was my first trip alone.
I arrived at Dulles International Airport and traveled to my hotel in Foggy Bottom. Before the conference started, I decided to skip an Uber ride and Bird scooter to Georgetown. Out of the 40-minute commute, I lasted only about 10 minutes on the scooter before falling off and then walked the remaining 30 minutes up the Potomac River. Eventually arriving in Georgetown, the area is truly surreal. The historic buildings and beautiful streets made for a delightful on-foot trip. Finally making it to Georgetown University, the conference began with a campus tour. The history and the brilliance of the University, paired with my previous 40-minute uphill walk, took my breath away. I was able to meet a couple of my fellow conference participants on the campus tour and we talked about everything from our experience in politics to similar organizations that we were involved with. In addition, we saw incredible landmarks of the university like Madeleine Albright’s office at the Mortara Center and the famous steps from the film, The Exorcist. When we came back from the tour we had a variety of talks from the McCourt School of Public Policy and the Walsh School of Foreign Service. At the end of the night, we listened to Muthukumara Mani, Lead Economist in the Office of the Chief Economist of the World Bank’s South Asia Region. He talked to us about his journey through his career and how we are the future of the world. The next couple of days included a case study on the Gross National Happiness (GNH) of Bhutan, a keynote discussion with Ziad Ziad (a member of the Public Policy Strategic Response Team at Facebook), talks from alumni panelists, professors from Georgetown University, and more. We discussed the entrance to graduate school, possible career avenues, and the importance of diversity in public policy and international affairs. We also explored networking and how to successfully create relationships in the professional world. The most important part of the weekend, however, was the connections we made from the conference. Before every speaker or activity, we introduced ourselves in the format of my quote from the beginning of the blog. We learned about each person, be it student or speaker, and their origins and perspectives from these introductions. Each time I said “Looahvulle, Kentucky”, I was asked questions about my university and the culture in Kentucky. I also learned that only Kentuckians pronounce it “Looahvulle”. In return, I asked my fellow conference attendees about their respective schools and states. We talked about our family backgrounds and our diverse array of cultural backgrounds. We shared stories and laughs. We got to know each other very well, despite only sharing 3 days together. 
Isabella Martin is a McConnell Scholar in the Class of 2021. She is studying political science, economics, Russian studies, and international business at the University of Louisville.