With its 2022 Global Health Symposium, “Making Connections: Health, Climate & Equity,” the University of Wisconsin-Madison Global Health Institute (GHI) also marks its 10th anniversary.

The April 19 celebration, co-hosted by the Office of Global Health in the School of Medicine and Public Health, will bring together faculty, staff, clinicians and students who will share their global health work with the campus and wider communities. The evening will also celebrate GHI’s 10 years of working with UW-Madison’s 21 schools, colleges and divisions—inspiring joint projects, educating tomorrow’s leaders and promoting research and outreach to improve well-being.

Plans are to hold this year’s symposium in-person at the Health Sciences  Learning Center (HSLC) with live-stream video available. The event will begin at 4:30 p.m. with registration, followed by the keynote address and town hall conversation on the future of global health. Posters will be available for viewing beginning at noon in the HSLC Atrium through the close of the reception at 8:30 p.m. All plans are subject to change if needed to ensure everyone’s safety during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Faculty, staff, clinicians, students and the wider global health community will present posters showing their global health work.

Our keynote speaker

Jalonne White-Newsome, Ph.D., M.S., is a life-long learner and advocate who founded Empowering a Green Environment and Economy, LLC, a strategic consulting firm, with the mission of transforming communities through the development of people-centered solutions. She serves a diverse set of clients to tackle issues such as climate change, public health, environmental injustice, and advancing racial equity.

Symposium speaker looks to connections to advance climate justice

White-Newsome has worked in environmental philanthropy, state government, non-profit, grassroots, academia and private industry. She created and implemented the Climate Resilient and Equitable Water Systems (CREWS) Initiative at the Kresge Foundation, was  the first Director of WE ACT for Environmental Justice’s federal policy office in Washington, DC, and illuminated the impact of climate change & extreme heat on the low-income, elderly in Detroit in her doctoral research.

A native of Detroit, White-Newsome earned a Ph.D. in environmental health sciences from the University of Michigan School of Public Health, a master’s degree in environmental engineering from Southern Methodist University, a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from Northwestern University, and her certificate in Diversity and Inclusion from Cornell University. She serves on multiple national and local academic, non-profit and for-profit Boards, a writer, and sought after speaker nationally and internationally. She has been recognized by Grist magazine, Michigan League of Conservation Voters and the Environmental Protection Agency for her work in the environmental justice, advocacy and health fields. She is also an adjunct professor at The George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health.

This year’s symposium will also feature a panel discussion on health and equity across sectors, including mental health, climate and vaccine availability. Faculty, staff, students and clinicians will present their global health projects during a poster fair, and the evening will conclude with a gala reception to celebrate GHI’s 10^th anniversary.

The panel discussion

The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) provide a broad framework to “achieve a better and more sustainable future for all.” What are the SDGs? What value do they have for the UW-Madison global health community? How do current projects and initiatives intersect with the SDGs? In a far-ranging discussion, a cross-disciplinary panel of past and present GHI leaders will share their experience with the SDGs and open the floor for a discussion of the strengths and drawbacks of the global goals.

GHI Associate Director Lori DiPrete Brown moderates the panel discussion, “A Future of Hope: Putting the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals to Work,” that includes:

• GHI Director Jonathan Patz
• GHI Associate Director James Conway
• Professor Emeritus Christopher Olsen
• GHI Associate Director Janis P. Tupesis

What is GHI?

The Global Health Institute was established in 2011 to bring together global health educational and research efforts on campus. It especially grew out of the Center for Global Health, organized in 2005 by leaders from international studies and the health science schools. In its 10 years, GHI has awarded nearly $2 million in grants and awards to faculty, staff, clinicians and students, leading to new collaborations, extramural grants and progress in areas as diverse as Indigenous wisdom, improved food systems, disaster management and emergency medical care in low-income settings.

“Too many of our global health interventions are narrowly focused, and, as we try to solve one problem, we inadvertently can create two or three more. This responsibility takes an orchestrated effort. So we are bringing together faculty, staff, and students from across campus to address the health implications of climate change, racial inequity, urban design, air quality, water safety, food security, gender inequality, access to care and more. We want our approach to disease prevention to be as comprehensive as possible.”—GHI Director Jonathan Patz

The Institute’s impact can also be measured in how it has convened unexpected partners to launch successful interdisciplinary programs, from the Certificates in Global Health and 4W (Women & Well-being in Wisconsin & the World) to the Planetary Health Graduate Scholars program and the initiative for Health-Oriented Transportation.

This will be the 17^th Global Health Symposium, showcasing the wealth of disciplines needed to address the complex determinants of global health. Watch videos from past symposiums here.