Emily Hoppes, MA

Emily Hoppes, MA

October 2013

Emily Hoppes graduated with her MA in Bioethics from Wake Forest University in 2011. As a member of the Peace Corps, Emily lives in a tiny village in Tanzania with no electricity or running water, has learned to speak the local language, and attempts to fully integrate herself into the community. Upon graduation, Emily was excited to take her new knowledge to Africa and apply it to the Peace Corps. Once she arrived in Africa, however, she found the problems she had hoped to address were much more complicated. As an avid blogger, Emily struggled to find the words to describe her experiences. Yet, Emily notes, her bioethics education prepared her for such a complex task: analyzing and interpreting problems. Emily quickly found that her bioethics education affected and influenced her everyday life in Africa because it taught her “to look at every angle, look through every lens, and leave nothing out, because that one small thing could make all the difference.” Her MA in Bioethics helped her to document experiences and reflect on even the most extended problems. Emily’s reflections stem from her identity as a MA in Bioethics graduate, a passionate Catholic, and a current Peace Corps volunteer. Her reflections can be found on her blog, entitled Change Hearts “Reflections on Ethics, Social Justice, Faith, and Life.”.

Emily continues to use her MA in Bioethics daily. Emily has lived the challenges facing many third-world countries and better understands the time and energy it takes to partner with a community. Emily relies on her bioethics degree as she partners with the community to “identify problems, think of possible solutions” and seek resolution. Currently, Emily utilizes this thought as she and the community work with engineers to bring water to village. Her education on community-based aid has been put to practice while her faith prompts her to look closely at other communal issues. Emily now seeks to further explore the ethical dimensions of HIV/AIDS and sex education and today, more than ever, believes that gender equality issues must become a part of the mainstream bioethics discussion. As Emily continues to live and learn alongside the people of Tanzania she is grateful for her bioethics education and proud to be a Wake Forest University alumna.