Imagine a life living in constant fear. Your country is rampant with civil war. Rebel groups are all over your country committing extreme atrocities. They are kidnapping and converting youth all over the place. So what options are available available to you and your family? The most logical option would be to travel to the nearest refugee camp. Not only do you have to cross hundreds of miles of jungle and hazardous land with possibilities of being attacked and eaten by large animals, you may even encounter members of a rebel group on the way to this camp. You will have to survive on wild fruits, roots, and dirty water (Ochieng). All these dangers will be worth it once you finally reach your temporary home of the refugee camp.  Now, one could argue that there are many reasons why refugee health is compromised in camps. Those reasons could include poor sanitation, a lack of clean water, inadequate allocation of resources, or even lack of refugee education. The reality is that there is a vast array of problems with refugee camps. Each of those problems goes back to one central problem. That issue is largely a lack of education. This lack of education is not only portrayed through the refugees who live in the camp, but also through the workers and agencies who are in charge of the camp. The issue reaches both sides of the spectrum.  While the agency staff of (for example) the United Nations High Commission for Refugees, a global humanitarian organization, are providing the refugees with necessities, they are truly uneducated on what it is that the refugees actually need. On the other hand, because access to adequate education is not readily available in the camps, the refugees cannot become educated not only academically, but also with life skills and important information about their health and wellbeing.  The "health" I am referring to goes beyond physical health. The refugee youth have been through brutal and horrendous experiences which quite possibly could have left them suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, or PTSD, to an extent or with some sort of built up anger. School and education is a good way to divert the attention of easily influenced children on educating themselves rather than resorting to joining these rebel groups. By educating these children, you are enriching their brains. Imagine if an entire generation of a country missed out on a vital opportunity for mental growth because they were busy being child soldiers or they were just not provided with the means to get an education in their place of refuge. That would leave their country of origin with no one to rebuild the corrupt system they once fled from. Health and education go hand in hand when such a large community of people's futures are at stake. We can aid in improving the health and well being of the refugees and workers by contributing to refugee agencies and providing proper education.
