Rachel Ward

As a native of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA, I earned my Bachelor’s degree from the University of Pittsburgh where I was granted my first opportunity for international study with an internship in London. This experience inspired my interest to pursue a graduate degree abroad, and last September I was awarded my M.Sc. in Social Anthropology from the London School of Economics.

Immediately upon completion of my master’s thesis related to gender and shamanism, I was welcomed as a volunteer to learn more about the female machi (shamans) of South America. I spent three months living and working with the indigenous Mapuche people of rural Northern Patagonia, completing anthropological research, learning and communicating in Spanish, teaching English, and collaborating with a non-profit organization to construct a Mapuche Resource Center.

In my free time, I developed a proposal for a school-age cultural preservation program to safeguard indigenous language, art, and heritage by bringing together tribal elders and youth in a classroom setting. It is my hope to realize a similar project beneficial to the Aboriginal people of Australia and would be honored to collaborate with local Rotary clubs in this endeavor. This volunteer component of my Ambassadorial Scholarship constructively interfaces with my program at the Australian National University (ANU) where I am undertaking an M.Phil. (by research) in the study of Aboriginal women’s ceremonies.