ICFRC: Hope and Fears -Why Journalism Remains Essential in a Time of Global Democratic Erosion
Recorded: April 8, 2026
Runtime: 01:20:58
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Iowa City Foreign Relations Council Presents: Worker Resilience - From South Africa's Mines to Iowa's Farms, Fields and Meatpack
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What can Iowa learn from the struggles of mineworkers in South Africa? This panel discussion connects the global story of dust, disease, and dignity to the realities of Iowa's fields, factories, and immigrant workforce. Through powerful parallels, it highlights how protecting vulnerable workers is not only a matter of health, but also of justice and resilience. Understanding the nexus between work and community and the commonalities between people here and in South Africa is one important step in the global effort to finding solutions to ease the too-often invisible burden shouldered by vulnerable working populations.
Dr. Claudia Corwin is a Clinical Associate Professor on the faculty of the University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine. As both a surgeon and occupational medicine physician, she has broad clinical experience that informs her public health practice.
Dr. Vanessa Govender is a South African Specialist in Occupational Medicine with over 30 years of experience across clinical practice, public health, academia, and consulting, and particular expertise in mining health, occupational lung diseases, and health-risk policy, strategy and communication.
Naomi Marroquin works at Proteus, Inc., a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting agricultural workers and their families through job training, educational assistance, and affordable healthcare services.
Dr. David Bedell is a Professor of Clinical Family Medicine and has been with the U of I College of Medicine for 31 years. His clinical practice has been at the Universities' Lone Tree and Riverside clinics, both considered rural.
For more information about the Iowa City Foreign Relations Council, visit icfrc.org. To watch other ICFRC programs, please view our extensive collection at icgov.org/video.
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