Helped develop , collect , and analyze a ' customer satisfaction survey ' for people who receive direct harm reduction services from BHRC Assisted in the starting phases of planning BHRC ’ s annual Celebration of Life event , taking the lead on developing agendas for the team meetings , taking notes , and reaching out to local businesses to collect raffle donations Re-organized and renamed BHRC ’ s documents and folders to better suit their day-to-day needs
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Community Partner : Baltimore Harm Reduction Coalition Intern : Julia Burleson Site Supervisors : Rajani Gudlavalleti , Cam Kerr , Harriet Smith
What is Baltimore Harm Reduction Coalition ?
Baltimore Harm Reduction Coalition ( BHRC ) is a community-based organization that mobilizes community members for the health , dignity , and safety of people targeted by the war on drugs and anti sex-worker policies ; we advocate for harm reduction as a part of a broader movement for social justice .
At the beginning of the summer , I was nervous about this internship because I knew very little about harm reduction and had never worked on drug-related issues . Before I started interning at Baltimore Harm Reduction Coalition ( BHRC ), I read many articles and papers to understand what harm reduction philosophy was , but I still had no idea of what practical harm reduction work looked like .
Throughout the summer , I ’ ve had numerous opportunities to learn about how we put harm reduction into action and how to conduct harm reduction work . From preparing safer-use and hygiene kits for outreach / service provision to helping create and analyze participant satisfaction surveys about our services , my days were full and exciting . I began most days by making safer-use kits with other interns , volunteers , and sometimes staff . While we made kits , we always had interesting conversations about identity , non-profits in Baltimore , music , family , and so much more . Often , these conversations would linger in my mind long after the workday had ended because people had new and interesting perspectives that I don ’ t normally hear . I am so grateful to my coworkers for these conversations that have helped identify my biases and inform my opinions on social issues .
After lunch , I would work on one of my office-based projects or help anyone in the office who needed an extra hand that day . Since I was able to work in-person for most of my internship , I got to know many of the staff and interns at BHRC well by the end of the summer . While I was nervous at the beginning of the summer , everyone at BHRC has been nothing but kind , supportive , and welcoming . BHRC has such an amazing , funny , and supportive team who uplift each other and are passionate about harm reduction and social justice work . In particular , my supervisors , Harriet , Rajani , and Cam , have been invaluable mentors this summer . They ’ ve been invested in my personal and professional development since the beginning and have helped me become a better person . Thank you , BHRC and CIIP , for an incredible summer !