Submission Number: 481
Submission ID: 1618
Submission UUID: f87c656a-996a-4482-88b4-0eee138b5f06

Created: Sat, 03/15/2025 - 22:23
Completed: Sat, 03/15/2025 - 22:23
Changed: Mon, 04/14/2025 - 04:40

Remote IP address: 2600:8802:6908:6500:996:3f96:7d51:d2f7
Submitted by:Anonymous
Language: English

Is draft: No
{Empty}
Benjamin
Forte
he/him
Palos Verdes Estates
California
United States
90274
Environmental Engineering
English (5), Spanish (4)
Part of my volunteer experience included working at the Lusking Orthopaedic Institute for Children in downtown Los Angeles. The hospital runs a clinic in Calexico, California on the US–Mexico border. The clinic treats patients from Mexico and other parts of Latin America and they travel on temporary visas to see their doctors who travel from Los Angeles for the day. They often travel long distances and sometimes have very long waits for their appointments. I had the opportunity to work at the clinic, leading patient recreation with the families of patients while they waited for their appointments. My job was to entertain the families and patients and create a positive environment. I also shadowed the doctors working with patients with cerebral palsy. One of the most meaningful things was conversing in Spanish with the patients and their families. Not only was I working on my Spanish speaking ability, I was learning about the lives of these people. Speaking with these families opened my eyes to the socio economic challenges that people from other parts of the world may face.
Global experiences and perspectives eliminate tunnel vision. Not everybody comes from the same background, meaning problems will be solved differently from one person to the next. It is the same with places – not all geographic locations suffer the same problems. With diverse experiences and perspectives, knowledge can be drawn to solve problems with various contexts. My exposure to the healthcare disparities along the US-Mexico border showed me how engineering must be used to satisfy local needs. It showed me that not all problems can be solved with one solution, but rather the accumulation of many different solutions can be used to solve one problem. As an aspiring Environmental Engineer, I know I will need to collaborate with others to solve complex problems from multiple angles.
I hope to become a member of the Global Engineering RAP at Â鶹Ãâ·Ñ°æÏÂÔØBoulder because it aligns with my goals to use engineering principles to solve global issues. Collaborating with peers that share similar goals and passions will expose me to a deeper understanding of how to solve global problems. It will spark my critical thinking to allow me to approach problems from many different angles. This program will provide me with the diversity of knowledge to adapt to different regions of the world and cater to the needs of different places. In return, I look forward to contributing my experiences of volunteering and leadership roles to foster an environment where people can work together and learn from each other. I am the kid that fits in everywhere and gets along with everyone, seeing each experience as a new opportunity to learn and grow. I wish to use my diverse involvement to create a positive environment on not only the Global Engineering RAP, but also in the field of engineering itself.