When I introduced myself at the start of this internship, I wrote about my interest in advocacy, leadership, and communications. As my time at Results Canada comes to an end, I’ve been reflecting on how much this experience has expanded all three. What I expected to be a chance to strengthen a few practical skills became a much fuller learning experience, one that changed how I think about communications work and helped me better understand my own strengths.
One of the biggest lessons I learned is that communications is much more layered than it looks from the outside. During my internship, I worked on blog writing, social media copy, WordPress publishing, metrics, and content planning. What looks like a simple post or article often involves much more behind the scenes: audience awareness, strategy, tone, collaboration, revision, and timing. I came away with a much deeper appreciation for how intentional good communications work needs to be.
The biggest surprise for me was how much I enjoyed writing. Going into the internship, I thought I would be most drawn to visual content and design. Instead, I found myself connecting most with blog writing and copywriting. I really enjoyed the process of taking complex issues and finding ways to communicate with them clearly, accurately, and in a way that would actually make someone want to keep reading.
What also stood out to me was how advocacy communications differs from simply sharing information. At Results, the content I worked on was always connected to a bigger purpose. Whether it was World TB Day, women’s and children’s health, or volunteer advocacy, the goal was not only to inform but to help people care, understand, and act.
This internship made me reflect more on the role of communications in advocacy. Before this experience, I think I understood advocacy mostly through action itself, like speaking up, organizing, or pushing for change. But I now see that communications is a huge part of what makes advocacy possible.
Communications helps translate issues in a way that people can understand and connect with. It turns facts into messages that can resonate, and it helps create the awareness and urgency that action depends on. I learned that communications is not just there to support advocacy from the sidelines. It is one of the tools that helps advocacy reach people and have an impact.
Another reason this internship was so valuable to me is that it gave me my first real look at how a professional workplace in the global health field operates. Before this, I had learned about global health mostly through coursework, student leadership, and advocacy spaces, but this was different. I got to see how meetings are run, how teams coordinate, how projects are tracked, and how communication work fits into a larger organizational structure. Even small things, like using Planner, joining team meetings, and seeing how ideas move from discussion to action, helped me better understand what this kind of work looks like in practice.
I also feel very grateful for the people I worked with. The Senior Communications Manager and my supervisor, Denise, was incredibly thoughtful in the way she gave feedback. I made my share of mistakes during the internship, but she always pointed them out in a constructive and kind way that helped me improve without making me feel discouraged. That made a big difference in my confidence and learning. The Senior Policy Officer Alif was also consistently helpful and supportive. Having people around me who were patient, encouraging, and willing to answer questions made the internship feel like a space where I could genuinely grow.
