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Grace Gray & Ariana DeLaurentis
GDS | Class of 2024 & 2020
"Hello GDSers, this is Grace Gray (GDS ‘24) and Ariana DeLaurentis (GDS ‘20)! We are currently sitting in Villa Pamphili, soaking up the first bit of winter sun after days of winter rain. We are here in Rome studying at The American University of Rome for an M.A. in Food Studies.
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What does that mean exactly? Great question! Instead of answering, we’d like to share small flavors of joy in our lives of late. For one, Grace has joined a self-proclaimed anarchist food recovery group that runs free food distributions downtown every Saturday. She is loving every minute and learning her “Roman Italian” from some spirited locals, and forming friendships through the universal language of cibo (food!). In class, she led our cohort in a meditation on more-than-human kin relationships for our upcoming thesis.
Ariana embraced Grace’s lesson and took her journal outside to sit among the weeds and ponder her own internal weeds around how to do research (see picture). As a cohort, we attended the One Health Symposium where we “learned” about the interconnectedness of human health, animal wellbeing, and ecosystems. In true GDS fashion, Ariana is now giving a presentation on indigenous responses to One Health through the lens of Vivir Bien in Bolivia. She has also been enjoying reconnecting with her Italian roots through small conversations with her limited Italian in restaurants, cafes, and bars.
Next week, we are both looking forward to our first field trip to a collectively owned farm that is reclaiming land in Northern Rome. Stay tuned for more!
We can’t wait to hear what you all have been up to, and feel free to get in touch as we co-reckon on this global and development-ful world we call home."
Want to contact Grace and Ariana?
Grace: gracegray841@gmail.com
Ariana: adelaurentis97@gmail.com
Maggie Gratz
GDS | Class of 2017
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"Like many GDS students, I came to UVA planning for a career in international development. And while my roles have changed, the throughline driving me hasn’t — I’ve always been inspired by mobilizing people to take on the toughest challenges affecting their communities. After GDS and my MPP at Batten, I spent time in Sri Lanka through a Fulbright grant; worked in local and national politics; served as Deputy Chief of Staff at Global Refuge, a US resettlement agency; and led strategy and operations for a mayoral transition. I also earned my MBA at the Stanford Graduate School of Business to build fluency in the language and tools of the private sector. Today, I live in San Francisco with my wife, Katie Deal (UVA ’17), and work at Boston Consulting Group, where I focus on partnering with state and local governments on priorities ranging from economic development and emergency response, to budget development and operations. If you’re in the Bay Area, interested in cross-sector partnership work, or simply exploring what "impact" means to you, please reach out!"
GDS ’17 | Batten ‘18
Want to contact Maggie?