Humphrey Fellows participated in a panel discussion on public health, sharing their professional work and how the Humphrey Program impacts both U.S. and global communities on critical issues in public health. Fellows Dr. Alexandra Marcano from Venezuela, Dr. Sina Haj Amor from Tunisia, and MSc. Pavle Zelic from Serbia engaged with Emory's University Chair of the Hubert Department of Global Health, Dr. Usha Ramakrishnan, former Humphrey Coordinator at Emory University, Dr. Roger Rochat, and Chief, Epidemiology Workforce Branch for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Eric Pevzner. They were joined by Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board Members, Emory University faculty, and State Department officials, including Deputy Assistant Secretary for Academic Programs Ethan Rosenzweig and Branch Chief, Humphrey Fellowship and Community College Programs Kelsi Ward Molowa, who moderated the panel. Dr. Marcano described her work in providing quality medical assistance to indigenous people and how a need exists to better integrate traditional medicine with biomedicine. Dr. Amor talked about the immense mental health impact of COVID-19 and the importance of enhancing mental health services and programs for children. Mr. Zelic spoke about his academic background in public health communications and his relationships with leading academics with expertise in crisis communications and combatting misinformation at the CDC, Emory University, University of Georgia, and Harvard University. He shared his work on a project regarding countering abuse of opioids and a project on COVID-19 stories that he created with Fellows Nida Ali, Elisaveta Petrova-Geretto, and Alexandra Marcano.

Humphrey Fellows Afiavi Caca Akibode (Togo)  and Jean Berchmans Siboniyo (Burundi) brought their respective organizations, Calia Expertise and the Association of Mentors for Business and Entrepreneurship (AMEBE), together to collaborate with the Department of Global Development at Cornell University to host a joint virtual conference for women entrepreneurs, smallholder farmers, community leaders and beneficiaries based in Burundi and Togo. The conference was designed to create a safe space for women to share how they celebrated International Women's Day, challenges they continue to encounter, and changes they would like to see. The conference also highlighted the Humphrey Fellowship Program, emphasizing the benefits women and other African populations gain from the fellowship. Additionally, it served as a foundational activity between the organizing entities, their beneficiaries, and Cornell University to work together to support women's entrepreneurship and community development. Sixty-six individuals attended the conference, including women beneficiaries of AMEBE and Calia Expertise, the faculty and staff of Cornell University, Women Connect from Kirkwood Community College, and Humphrey alumna Eugenia Saini, an Argentinian agronomist and Executive Secretary of FONTAGRO. Given the diverse audience in attendance, participants networked with each other and discussed future collaborations. 

During her fellowship, Humphrey alumna Gulnora Bogdalova completed her professional affiliation with the American Psychological Association (APA) Office of International Affairs (OIA) in Washington, D.C. She worked directly with Dr. Amanda Clinton, Senior Director of the Office of International Affairs at the APA, on the International Competencies and Mobility in Psychology Project (ICMPP), a large-scale effort to compare training in psychology in different countries. This experience expanded Dr. Bogdalova’s perspective on psychological education beyond the borders of the United States. It allowed her to reflect on the quality of education in Uzbekistan by investigating competency-based approaches. After completing her professional affiliation, she continued to work as a consultant for the APA OIA. Currently, she is a member of the Global Psychology Alliance, an international community of psychologists actively addressing global issues using psychological science to elevate the field and enhance human well-being worldwide. This ongoing partnership led Dr. Clinton to visit Uzbekistan to encourage evidence-based practice in psychology. Her presence as an APA representative and her educational presentations cultivated interest and skills among Uzbek psychologists. Dr. Clinton led workshops and participated in meetings at six universities across Uzbekistan. Her workshops on “How to Conduct Research for Publication” showed Dr. Bogdalova's colleagues' best practices and available resources through the APA. She also presented on self-care for participants of the Self-Defense Classes for Women and Girls, a project Dr. Bogdalova created to address family abuse in Uzbekistan. In a few months, Dr. Clinton plans to return to Uzbekistan to teach classes in research methods in psychology, neuroscience, and leadership. Along with her colleague, Dr. Dilbar Mukhamedova, Dr. Bogdalova will also represent Uzbekistan at this year's APA International Summit on “Psychology and Global Health: Leadership for Emerging Challenges.” They hope to utilize the summit to meet with leaders in psychology and create a plan for strengthening programs that support evidence-based psychology in Uzbekistan.

Dr. Gulnora Bogdalova was a Humphrey Fellow at Penn State from 2018-2019. Aside from being the lead psychologist for her project Self-Defense Classes for Women and Girls, she is a docent at the National University of Uzbekistan. 

Humphrey alumnus Dr. Adegoke Dawodu, a Senior Medical Officer at Sacred Heart Hospital in Lantoro Abeokuta, Nigeria, was astonished by the number of severe high blood pressure cases he encountered daily. During several rounds at the medical ward, he met many young undergraduates who were not aware of their blood pressure levels. He shared that many of them did not understand the dangers of high blood pressure or the need to commence lifestyle modification, take medication, and regularly attend clinics. Dr. Dawodu also deduced that many who failed to control their high blood pressure often experience chronic kidney disease, making them entirely dependent on hemodialysis to survive. Unfortunately, undergoing hemodialysis sessions is expensive, and the COVID-19 pandemic has only further exacerbated people's inability to afford it. Knowing this, Dr. Dawodu started an awareness campaign in major markets in Abeokuta by offering free medical consultations and talking to people about hypertension risk factors, how to diagnose it, and how it can be treated. He also dispels misconceptions and myths about hypertension and offers information on the likely complications associated with high blood pressure. Recently he has expanded from markets to motor parks in Abeokuta, where he has been warmly welcomed and thanked for his efforts to help people without having them pay for a medical consultation. Dr. Dawodu used personal funds to procure a portable sphygmomanometer and stethoscope to kick start the project. With the success of this pilot project in Abeokuta, Dr. Dawodu hopes to expand the project to other local government areas and states in the near future. Dr. Adegoke Dawodu was Humphrey Fellow at Tulane University from 2011-2012.