We are delighted to announce this year’s global health awardees whose accomplishments demonstrate exceptional commitment, innovation, and impact in global health. Many thanks to all who applied and to CUGH’s Awards & Nominations Committee for their efforts.
CUGH 2026 Distinguished Leadership in Global Health Award
- Dr. Robert Murphy, Executive Director of the Havey Institute for Global Health and Professor at the Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, USA
- Dr. Woutrina Smith, Associate Dean for Global Programs, Professor and One Health Institute Director Elect of the School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California, Davis, USA
CUGH 2026 Dr. Thomas Hall-Dr. Nelson Sewankambo Mid-Career Leadership Award
- Dr. Christine Ngaruiya, Director of the Stanford Emergency Medicine International Global and Population Health Section (SEMI) and Associate Professor in the Stanford Department of Emergency Medicine (DEM), Stanford University, USA
- Dr. Magaly Blas, Associate Professor at Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia (UPCH), Affiliate Associate Professor in the Department of Global Health at the University of Washington, and Director of Mamás del Río, Peru
CUGH 2026 Dr. Judy Wasserheit Young Leader Award
- Dr. Ayesha Ali, Medical Student at the University of Health Sciences Pakistan and Commonwealth Youth Health Network Coordinator for the Commonwealth Secretariat, Pakistan
- Dr. Hannah Stewart, Doctoral Candidate at UTHealth Houston School of Public Health and Chief Research and Knowledge Officer for Generation Mental Health, USA
2026 Dr. Anvar and Pari Velji – CUGH Awards for Global Health Excellence
Student Leader in Global Health Award
- Mustafa Rfat, PhD Candidate, Brown School of Social Work, Washington University in St. Louis and Incoming Assistant Professor, Grace Abbott School of Social Work, University of Nebraska Omaha, USA
Faculty Leader in Global Health Innovation Award
- Dr. Joannie Marlene Bewa, Faculty and Assistant Scientist, International Health Department, Johns Hopkins School of Public Health, USA
Teaching Excellence in Global Health Award
- Dr. Shahanaz Chowdhury, Professor, Bangladesh University of Health Sciences, Bangladesh
Young African Leader Award
- Dr. Comfort Peace Ayikoru, Medical Doctor, Infectious Disease Institute – Academy for Health Innovation, Uganda
Planetary Health-One Health Innovation Award
- Dr. Carlos A. Faerron Guzmán, Associate Professor of Global Health at the University of Maryland Baltimore Graduate School, Director of the InterAmerican Center for Global Health in Costa Rica, Senior Advisor for the Planetary Health Alliance at Johns Hopkins University, USA
2026 Dr. James G. Hakim Award
- Elvira Ineza, Medical Student, University of Global Health Equity School of Medicine, Rwanda
CUGH 2026 Global Health Video Competition
Global Health Challenges Category
- Olivier Hagenimana & Laura Ndanga, University of Global Health Equity, Rwanda
High Impact Programs Category
- Dr. M. Tasdik Hasan, Monash University, Australia
Honorable Mentions
- Annika Agarwal, University of Pittsburgh School of Public Health & School of Medicine, USA
- Olivier Nshuti Mbarushimana, University of Global Health Equity, Rwanda
- The Max Foundation
2026 Multimedia Reflection in Global Health Contest
Faculty/Practitioner Category
- Eucharia Oluchi Nwaichi, University of Port Harcourt, Nigeria
- “When the Ground Speaks: Lessons in Humility from the Niger Delta”
HIC Trainee Category
- Baryalay Khan, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, USA
- “Three Systems, One Patient”
LMIC Trainee Category
- Akech Dorcus, Makerere University College of Health Sciences, Uganda
- “The Measure of Care”
Honorable Mentions
- Kripa Sigdel, Tribhuvan University, Nepal
- “Between Fidelity and Flexibility: Helping Skills in Practice”
- Priya Amin, Harvard University, USA
- “Distance Traveled on the Path Given”
- Hridoy Kundu, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, USA
- “Who Gets to Understand? Language, Dignity, and Global Health on a Neurosurgery Floor“
- Akua Gyedu, University for Development Studies, Ghana
- “Moving the Earth with Half a Gauze”
- Adelphine Umugwaneza, University of Global Health Equity, Rwanda
- “Beyond Scalpel”
2026 Untold Stories in Global Health Contest
- Audrey Claire Benson, Barcelona Institute for Global Health, Spain
- “Unaccompanied Moroccan Boys in Ceuta, Spain”
- Dr. Jackie Odhiambo, University of California Global Health Institute, USA
- “Health Disparities in Widowhood”
Honorable Mentions
- Amit Banik, icddrb, Bangladesh
- “The silent crisis of dengue in rural Bangladesh”
- Anushka Peer, Duke University, USA
- “Assessing Adverse Health Implications of Toxic Heavy Metal Exposure Among Auto Mechanics in Accra, Ghana”
- Beau Morgan, Hellbender Harm Reduction and Quillen College of Medicine, USA
- “Trans communities in the South and Appalachia”
- Mustafa Rfat, Washington University in St. Louis and Unviersity of Nebraska Omaha, USA
- “Refugees with disabilities face life-threatening barriers to health care”
- Shaira Gabriela Camacho, Mexican Judicial Administration Authorities, Mexico
- “Judicial Experts as guardians of occupational health in Mexico”
- Dr. Timothy Gaul, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and Medical Education International (MIE), USA and North Macedonia
- “Averting a health care catastrophe in the Balkans”
- Dr. Yara Ashour, Al-Quds University, Palestine
- “Guillain–Barré Syndrome in Gaza”
CUGH 2026 Global Health Student Poster Competition
Subtheme 1: NCDs, Health Systems, Public Health, Primary and Surgical Care
- Ali Zaidi, University of Colorado Anschutz School of Medicine, USA
- “Improving Cardiac Care in Rwanda Through Cloud-Based Echocardiography Image Storage and Sharing”
Subtheme 2: The Social and Political Determinants of Health
- Yvette Nkurunziza, York University, Canada
- “Assessing the socio-ecological factors that contribute to the intimate partner violence among people living with HIV, in Kayonza district, Rwanda”
Subtheme 3: Environmental Determinants of Health, Planetary Health, One Health
- Francis Ofosu-Koranteng, York University/University of Ghana, Canada/Ghana
- “Antimicrobial Resistance in Aquaculture: Resistant Bacterial Isolates from Nile Tilapia in Ghana’s Volta Lake and Implications for Global Health”
Subtheme 4: Communicable Diseases
- Maria Barra, Rice University, USA
- “One-hour Extraction-free Loop-mediated Isothermal Amplification HPV DNA Assay for Point-of-care Testing in Maputo, Mozambique”
Subtheme 5: Research, Education, Translation, and Implementation Science, Bridging Research to Policy
- Theresa Norpeli Lanyo, University of Michigan, USA
- “Impact of Group Antenatal Care on Breastfeeding and Lactational Amenorrhea Knowledge: Findings from a Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial”
Subtheme 6: Global Health 2029 – Defining the Future of Global Health
- Gawon Yoo & Sarah Feinberg, Tufts University/Move Up Global, USA
- “Community-Defined Quality Improvement: A Novel Approach to Advancing Sexual and Reproductive Health Literacy Among Children and Adolescents in Rural Rwanda”
Global Health Education
- Ahila Arulmani, Touro University California, College of Osteopathic Medicine, USA
- “Piloting Curriculum Delivery Models for Community Health Worker Training in Diabetes Prevention and Management in Rural Tanzania”