Tucker Johnson, 2015 Warren Wilson College graduate with a degree in political science and global studies, was recently chosen to become part of the American India Foundation William J. Clinton Fellowship for Service in India. Johnson will leave for Kumaon, India in September to work towards improving public health.
From Warren Wilson College
Press Release
Warren Wilson College alumnus Tucker Johnson ‘15 is one of 33 people newly selected to the prestigious 2015 class of the American India Foundation (AIF) William J. Clinton Fellowship for Service in India. With a mission to “disrupt poverty and catalyze social and economic change in India,” AIF pairs nongovernmental organizations with an elite group of “highly skilled young professionals” charged with creating scalable, sustainable development projects. The Harrison, Maine native was chosen from nearly 1000 applicants, making him part of an exclusive group of roughly 395 total Fellows worldwide.
“There was this jaw dropping rush of emotion when I was accepted as a Clinton Fellow,” said Johnson. “I feel like I owe something to the greater world because of how lucky I’ve been in life. I know that I’ll be able to live my life a little bit happier knowing I did this committed service work.”
In route to his May 2015 Warren Wilson College graduation, Johnson double majored in political science and global studies and spent part of his freshman year in the southeastern African country of Malawi focused on HIV education and outreach. He subsequently traveled to Panama where he assisted with the building of a sustainable ecovillage, but his passion for public policy was founded in an internship with US Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D – Maine).
“Tucker’s recognition shows the value of the unique educational model we’ve developed at Warren Wilson College,” said President Steve Solnick. “His commitment to a broad liberal arts education, combined with his experiences living and working overseas, partnering locally with nonprofits through our service program and working with our College’s landscape crew all combined to make him such a strong candidate for this elite Fellowship. We are proud of what Tucker has accomplished and the model student he has become.”
Elijah Monroe, operations director for the Clinton Fellowship, interviewed Johnson during the rigorous process, including an initial meeting on the Warren Wilson campus. “Having a plethora of skills coupled with humility, flexibility and patience should allow Tucker to succeed in the often unpredictable challenges of working with the poor and marginalized,” Monroe said. “Providing public health to some of India’s most hard to reach communities in the Himalaya’s will call upon Tucker’s comfort with the outdoors and his ability to learn from the community.”
In September, Johnson, who is also an EMT, will relocate for 10 months to Kumaon, a rural region in one of India’s poorest states, where he will work on public health and livelihood projects. His work will directly impact a largely rural population, adding to the already 2.5 million lives AIF has impacted since its inception.
“India, because of the way it developed, is an incredible opportunity to look at policy and how it’s adapting to population and poverty,” said Johnson. “It’s a country that is incredibly overpopulated and incredibly under-resourced, but it has the infrastructure in place to deal with those issues and, for some reason, that hasn’t happened.”
As he prepares for his new life in the central Himalayas, Johnson said he looks forward to making an impact abroad and hopes to eventually use his experience as a platform for policy changes in the US.
“For every privilege that I have, there are people that don’t have that privilege, even something as simple as clean water,” he said. “Policy is my focus, and to work in that world, I need to acknowledge my privilege and work with it.”
For more information about the American India Foundation William J. Clinton Fellowship for Service in India, visit aif.org/investment-area/leadership.
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