The good Cornellians can do: Camille Ledoux ’20

Recently, Camille Ledoux’s three-year-old niece asked her a good question: ‘What is a vaccine, really?’

Camille, who just finished her PhD in human pathophysiology, dug deep to come up with a good answer. She shared her response in her newsletter, “Health in Plain English,” so that others can read this simple, kid-friendly explanation of vaccines.

“I love tinkering with ways to explain complex topics. In order to do it well,” Camille explains, “you have to distill some oftentimes really technical and jargon-filled language into words we use every day—without losing the nuance and complexity of the topic.”

In March 2024, Camille was invited to join the team of the Infectious Science podcast, as a scriptwriter and co-host. Since its founding, the show has reached listeners in 82 countries. Camille is proud of her role to help democratize science.

“I believe that public health belongs to the public,” she says. “We made this podcast for everyone, everywhere.”

Cornellians around the globe are sharing how they do good in communities big and small. Share your own story.