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Alia Mulbagal

Alia Mulbagal

Finance student at the University of Maryland's Robert H. Smith School of Business; winner of the 2026 ASPPH Public Health Innovation Lab and guest on IDEA Exchange by ASPPH.

Sep 24, 2026

5:49
So for each of you, was there a particular experience or moment or maybe even a person that made you realize, yeah, this is something that I want to pursue or this is the work I want to dedicate myself to? And maybe, you know, even if it's not public health specifically, what made you decide on the current field that you're studying?
6:09
I think a big experience or person I've had in my life that's been important to me is my mom.
6:16
And I think growing up seeing how she lived life, we're an immigrant family.
6:22
So she came from India 20 years ago and kind of seeing how she evolved here through bountiful amounts of information that she didn't have before.
6:34
I think that process and learning and how much information and education can make a difference is kind of what brought me to finance and international financial policy.
6:46
I work a lot with communities in South America, specifically marginalized communities of women who are looking to start their own businesses and providing them with microloans.
6:57
And so a lot of that surrounded itself with education, being able to have financial literacy itself first and And so what we saw and what I've been currently doing is kind of just educating people on financial policy and other issues just so they're able to have the resources that they need.

9 MINS LATER

15:51
So if you wouldn't mind sharing a little bit about your project, what it is in a nutshell, and then also sharing what initially inspired you all to focus on this particular public health challenge affecting college communities.

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