Global Health Lives

Professor Lina Madaniyazi is an associate professor in Nagasaki University, School of Tropical Medicine and Global Health. Lina is an environmental epidemiologist who focuses on the health impact of air pollution and climate change. In this episode Lina talks about the impact of global heating on mortality, the wide effects of air pollution on health. She also talks her journey from Xinjiang to Be...

Professor Karen Devries is a professor of social epidemiology at the London school of hygiene and tropical medicine. Karen uses epidemiological methods to understand and reduce violence against children, adolescents and women.  In this episode we will discuss the global statistics on violence against children and women and interventions to reduce violence in schools. Karen talks about how to do th...

Professor Nothando Ngwenya is a faculty member at the Africa Health Research Institute in South Africa. Nothando is a psychologist, who also has a degree in computer science and specialises in adolescent mental health. In this episode Nothando talks about complex trauma, adolescent mental health and the problems with measurement, her childhood growing up in Johannesburg, and her own issues with fe...

Professor Siri Aas Rustad is the research director at the Peace Research Institute Oslo. Siri researches conflicts around the world. In this episode Siri talks about the global conflict landscape, how the numbers are estimated, why the world is as it is, and her predictions for the future.  [Note, the episode was recorded in September 2025. All the numbers quoted are correct as of that month.]

Professor Essi Viding is a Professor of Developmental Psychopathology and the Pro-Vice Provost for the Mental Health and Wellbeing Grand Challenge at UCL. Essi is psychologist who works to understand the origins of behaviour and mental health disorders. In this episode Essi describes the developmental origins of mental health problems, the recent rise in mental health problems in adolescents and t...

Dr Hamza al-Kateab is a Syrian doctor, an activist and a public health advocate. He set up and ran a hospital in East Aleppo during the war in Syria. This work was documented in the film For Sama, created by his wife Waad al-Kateab. Hamza is now an activist working to stop the bombing of health facilities in Syria and other conflict areas through the campaign “Action For Sama” ( www.actionforsama....

Professor Francesco Checchi is a professor of epidemiology and international health from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. Francesco is an epidemiologist who has worked for 25 years in crisis and humanitarian settings with Médecins Sans Frontières and Save the Children and as an academic.  In this episode he talks about his work estimating mortality in conflicts and on vaccinatio...

Prof Naomi Priest is a lifecourse and social epidemiologist at the Australian National University. Naomi’s research focuses on understanding how social forces become embedded and embodied to influence health and health inequalities throughout life. In this episode, Naomi talks about how racism impacts child and adolescent health and school-based interventions to reduce racism. 

Dr Wouter Arrazola de Oñate is a medical doctor in public health and activist. He is the medical director of the Belgian lung and TB association.  In this episode, Wouter talks about his work in TB from a clinical and public health perspective and the importance of advocacy to improve health. 

Professor Rudzani Muloiwa is the head of the Department of Paediatrics and Child Health in the University of Cape Town and the Red Cross War Memorial Children’s hospital. In this episode, Rudzani describes the importance of child health, his career in the field, and growing up and living in pre- and post-Apartheid South Africa.  

Dr Bob Klaber is a consultant paediatrician and director of strategy, research and innovation at Imperial College Healthcare NHS trust in London.  In this episode, Bob describes his career in paediatrics and medical education, and talks about the importance of kindness in healthcare. 

Professor Kevin Fenton is senior public health expert and infectious disease epidemiologist. Kevin is the President of the Faculty of Public Health, the professional body for public health practitioners. He is the Regional Director for London in the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities, the statutory public health advisor to the Mayor of London and the Greater London Authority and the Reg...

Dr Kumanan Rasanathan is Executive Director at the Alliance for Health Policy and Systems Research at the World Health Organization. Kumanan talks about his work striving for health equity. He describes working on the WHO Commission on Social Determinants of Health, work on development of the Sustainable Development Goals and frontline public health work during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Dr Michelle Morse, the Chief Medical Officer of the New York City Department of Health.  In this episode Michelle talks about her work fighting for racial justice and health equity in the wake of the murder of George Floyd and the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Dr Nayreen Daruwalla is a clinical psychologist and, counsellor and researcher, who runs the violence against women group in the Society for Nutrition, Education & Health Action (SNEHA) in Mumbai. In this episode Nayreen describes her work helping survivors of violence against women in Dharavi, Mumbai. 

Professor Melissa Gladstone a Professor of Neurodevelopmental Paediatrics and International Child Health at the University of Liverpool. In this episode Melissa describes her work in child development and the concept of adverse childhood experiences. 

Dr Renzo Guinto is medical doctor and planetary health advocate from the Philippines. In this episode Renzo talks his work in global health and the new field of planetary health, his experience in setting up two centres in Southeast Asia, and the challenges facing migrant health in the Philippines. He also discusses the issue of decolonisation, including how he is trying to address this, and the i...

Mr Ananda Galappatti is a medical anthropologist and practitioner in mental health and psychosocial support in emergencies and adverse circumstances. Ananda describes his work on mental health in Sri Lanka, including during the conflict and the Indian Ocean tsunami disaster.

Dr Camilla Kingdon is a consultant paediatrician and neonatologist and the current president of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health in the UK. Camilla describes her early life growing up in South Africa when it was under Apartheid rule and then her career in paediatrics in the UK. She describes her role in supporting the paediatric workforce and the major challenges facing child heal...

Dr Flavia Bustreo is Vice-Chair of Fondation Botnar, Co-Chair of The Lancet Commission on Gender-Based Violence and Maltreatment of Young People and Chair of the Governance and Ethics Committee at the Partnership for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health (PMNCH). Flavia describes her early clinical work and peace activism and then all her policy work on child and adolescent health as part of the Worl...

Professor Rashida Ferrand is a Professor of International Health at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, a Wellcome Trust Senior Fellow in Clinical Science and an honorary consultant physician in HIV Medicine. Rashida talks about her work in adolescent health, HIV and sexual and reproductive health, in particular in adolescent HIV in Zimbabwe. She also discusses her focus on support...

Professor Nora Groce is the Leonard Cheshire Chair of Disability and Inclusive Development in UCL. Nora is an anthropologist who works on disability and social justice. She previously ran the global health programme at Yale University before moving to UCL. She has worked on many health issues and human rights documents advocating for people with disabilities and chaired the committee to include di...

Series 3 is out next month. Ahead of this, here is a chance to get to know some of the Global Health Lives team. What do they think about the podcast? What are they looking forward to? 

Professor David Osrin is a Professor of Global Health at UCL and a Wellcome Trust Senior Research Fellow in Clinical Science. Dave worked as a clinical paediatrician before conducting large community trials on violence against women and girls, maternal and child nutrition and urban health in Nepal and India. He also talks about his love of art and creating the Dharavi Biennale to showcase the work...

Dr Ozge Karadag is a senior research scholar at the Center for Sustainable Development of the Earth Institute at Columbia University in New York. In this episode Ozge talks about her work on migrant health, youth health and peer education as well as the mental healthcare system in Turkey. Ozge then discusses the COVID-19 pandemic and her work as part of the Lancet COVID-19 Comm...