Empowering wellness: Graduate student brings health education to Zimbabwe community

Shannon Smith, a graduate student in George Mason University’s Kinesiology Program, is pioneering a transformative health and wellness education initiative in Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe. Smith’s six-month community wellness program consists of health and wellness education for a cohort of 20 women. Participants receive education on diet, exercise, and mental health to ultimately become “wellness ambassadors” for their sub-communities. 

The idea for this program came after Smith visited friends in Victoria Falls, where she saw a banner for Pathways–Africa, a nonprofit organization with a mission “to empower and assist the people of Africa through the mutual development of sustainable resources for community planning, education and health services.” Smith connected with the organization director via email, and together they identified the community’s health education gap. “I offered to [host] a couple of workshops, and it turned into this pilot program we’re trying to build,” Smith said. 

The pilot program began earlier this year, when Smith facilitated an in-person workshop as the foundation for the content in the program. The cohort meets once a month for five months to discuss how they’re using the information, making changes, and sharing what they’ve learned. “At the end of the program, they’ll be more informed, have healthier lives, and be seen as leaders in their communities when it comes to wellness.” 

Smith’s experience in Victoria Falls has strong connections to her current studies in the Kinesiology Program in the College of Education and Human Development. Her programming directly ties to health promotion, the concept of exercise as medicine, and to previous collaborations with George Mason kinesiology professor Debra Stroiney.  

“I helped Dr. Stroiney with some ‘Exercise Is Medicine' activities last semester and am really looking forward to continuing to work in this space of exercise and food as medicine, whether it’s for an athletic or general population.” 

Smith has advice for anyone who wants to serve in their community. “Do it! Locally, it may be easier to find an organization or resources to start a small project. You’ll be able to see a direct impact close to home, which is always nice.” 

For those who are interested in serving abroad, she advised, “globally, there are more factors at play, but the reward can be much bigger if the country doesn’t have the same resources.” She said that flexibility is the key to overcoming cultural, language or resource barriers. 

Overall, Smith encourages anyone interested in service to get involved: “There’s always something to learn, you’ll make good connections, impact lives, and you’ll have fun, too.”