Imperial and AIMS team up to tackle global challenges

Students from Imperial and AIMS are developing creative solutions to some of Africa's most pressing problems.

As part of the Global Fellows Programme, hosted by the African Institute for Mathematical Sciences (AIMS) in Rwanda, the students, including 15 from Imperial, took part in an intensive, five-day professional skills programme to develop pioneering new ideas. The Global Fellows Programmes are the product of close collaboration between the International Relations Office and Graduate School at Imperial with partner institutions.

The participants were tasked with addressing a challenge of their choice under one of the programme’s sub-themes: Finance & Economics; Biomedical Science; Agriculture; Urban Health; and Health Economics and Policy.

"The programme has highlighted multiple exciting opportunities for and interest in collaboration with top-tier researchers from Africa..." Professor Majid Ezzati School of Public Health

On the last day of the programme, the five project presentations were evaluated by a panel of judges who selected the strongest proposal.

The Global Fellows Programme also offered participants the opportunity to meet with like-minded scientists and share ideas in their field. During the five-day programme, Imperial and AIMS students had to learn how to navigate intercultural communication, use different academic backgrounds to capitalise on each team member’s strengths, utilise opportunities to ask questions, and support each other.

Professor Majid Ezzati, Chair in Global Environmental Health at Imperial, who was a guest speaker on the programme, said: “The programme has highlighted multiple exciting opportunities for and interest in collaboration with top-tier researchers from Africa to do cutting-edge science tackling important problems that touch on different aspects of wellbeing, health, and sustainability.”

Professor Wilfred Ndifon, President of AIMS Research & Innovation Centre and Chief Scientific Officer at AIMS Global Network, said: “The Global Fellows Programme aspires to build connections and links that last long beyond the duration of the programme. Only the best is good enough for Africa – Imperial College London is among the best in the world and a partner we value.”

The participants were guided through the programme by a team of AIMS and Imperial coaches, who provided opportunities for discussing post-doctoral opportunities and science entrepreneurship.

Professor Ezzati was joined as a guest speaker by Professor Marisa Miraldo from Imperial’s Business School.

Alongside their group work, the Global Fellows Programme participants also visited the Rwanda Biomedical Centre and the National Bank of Rwanda to learn more about the country and the strategies it has been employing to address some of its challenges.

"Meeting new people, getting out of my comfort zone, and working on a project in a research field different from my own has been a rewarding experience that, in my opinion, all PhD students should try to undergo." Raul Pacheco Imperial PhD student

These trips were complemented by a panel of speakers who delivered talks on the programme’s sub-themes and offered the students an insight into how similar problems were being tackled in Africa and beyond.

The students also had the opportunity to see more of the country through local market trips, museum visits, and a game drive in Akagera National Park.

Raul Pacheco, an Imperial PhD student on the programme, said: “The Global Fellows Programme has been one of the highlights of my time as a PhD student. Meeting new people, getting out of my comfort zone, and working on a project in a research field different from my own has been a rewarding experience that, in my opinion, all PhD students should try to undergo. The social aspect of the programme – simply getting a coffee or dinner with other Imperial and AIMS students – was great.”

Following their work on the programme, some of the participants from Imperial have already applied to the Global Fellows Fund to undertake a research placement at one of the five AIMS Centres.

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The Imperial-TUM-NTU Global Fellows Programme: ‘Data-driven innovations for zero pollution mobility’ 8-12 July 2024 is now open to Imperial doctoral students to apply. Applications close at 11am, 4 January 2024.