One Wish: Nakyda Dean ’08

Nakyda Dean ’08 earned her medical degree at Loyola of Chicago, completed an OB/GYN residency at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, and a Health, Equity, Action, and Leadership (HEAL) Fellowship at the University of California, San Francisco, taking care of patients in Malawi and the Navajo Nation. She works at a tribal hospital in the Navajo Nation.

My wish for 2025 is for a more empathetic society. As I navigate my world through the intersectionality of being a Black, middle-class, heterosexual, nondisabled woman, I can’t help but feel the palpable existence of racism, classism, homophobia, ableism, and misogyny. The world appears so alienating and divisive. There is less collaboration among people of the same group and even less among different groups. In the United States, the “Great Melting Pot,” DEI programming in higher education is being stripped away, as if teaching people how to understand one another better and bridge cultural differences isn’t beneficial.

An empathetic society could lead to more understanding, cooperation, and kindness in our interactions. Without empathy, we will continue to maneuver in a world where we only care about issues that severely and directly impact us. Countries that contribute most to climate change but feel less of the impact won’t feel compelled to do something about it. People will see images of innocent citizens dying by a police force or in the streets of Gaza and start victim-blaming or criticizing them before taking the time to understand the tragic impact on the deceased’s family and community. Without empathy, there is no humanity.

Building an empathetic society takes effort and intention, but the benefits can be transformative, creating a more compassionate and just world.

Read all 11 Wishes for 2025 from Cornell visionaries.