Kol Shalom members share insight drawing from their expertise, wisdom, and the world beyond in a “Ted Talk” style event.
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In 2003, as I was preparing to conduct research on the HIV epidemic in China for my PhD in medical anthropology, I learned that I may have to delay my trip due to the outbreak of a new respiratory disease called SARS. Luckily, the epidemic ended almost as quickly as it started, and I went forward with my work as planned. Seventeen years later as I witnessed another outbreak of a similar disease, I figured the timeline would be similar. I was obviously wrong – but have learned a lot of lessons along the way in terms of how China has responded to the current pandemic. So much of what I learned studying an infectious disease in China has helped me understand China’s response and reflect on our own response here in the US.
Kol Shalom member, Elanah Uretsky received her PhD in Medical Anthropology from Columbia University. She is Associate Professor and Chair of the International and Global Studies Program at Brandeis University and author of the book Occupational Hazards: Sex, Business, and HIV in Post-Mao China.