On Survival and Foreign Assistance with Jessica Benton Cooney

Jessica Benton Cooney is a Senior Strategic Communicator and Storyteller who most recently ran the Communications team for USAID's Bureau of Democracy. Human rights, and Governance. She served with USAID overseas in Afghanistan and Liberia, and before that, with the Peace Corps in El Salvador. On this episode, Jessica is sitting down with us to share the tale of her near death experience in Liberia, her miraculous survival, and her decision to return to Liberia on her own terms. She's also passing along her wisdom on the art of storytelling, particularly when interviewing human rights activists and democracy defenders. AND her cat even weighs in on the power of intuition. We're just a couple of elder millennials, trying to make sense of the world. You don't want to miss this one!

For more on Jessica's experience with cerebral malaria and the importance of foreign assistance programs like the Presidential Malaria Initiative, read the article that prompted me to contact Jessica: https://thehill.com/opinion/healthcare/5265538-i-survived-cerebral-malaria-but-millions-of-others-wont-without-american-leadership/amp/