Keck School of Medicine and Institute on Inequalities in Global Health to host CUGH 2024 satellite session in global health

USC Global Health: Crossing Boundaries for Innovation and Impact in Health Equity

March 7, 2024

1:00 PM – 4:00 PM (PST)

Westin Bonaventure Hotel

Santa Barbara Room

404 S Figueroa St, Los Angeles, CA 90071

(see below for Getting to the Conference)

Register

Free and open to the public – conference registration not required

The Department of Population and Public Health Sciences at Keck School of Medicine and the USC Institute on Inequalities in Global Health, will host an in-person satellite session on University-wide work around global health at the 15^th Annual Conference for the Consortium of Universities for Global Health. The pre-conference session, titled USC Global Health: Crossing Boundaries for Innovation and Impact in Health Equity, is free and open to the public, and registration for the conference is not required.

The satellite session, which will include opening remarks from Dean Carolyn C. Meltzer, includes several panels of 7-minute “lightning” talks with expert participants examining multidisciplinary research and training in global health. Howard Hu, MD, MPH, ScD, Flora L. Thornton Chair of the Department of Population and Public Health Sciences and Sofia Gruskin, JD, MIA, director of the Institute on Inequalities in Global Health led in organizing the event and will help moderate the session’s panels.

With participants from schools across USC, the session will serve to acquaint attendees with the large variety of USC-based activities around global health. It is the first of its kind to bring together global health work happening across the University in fields such as anthropology, communications, cinematic arts, law, medicine, public health, public policy, pharmacy, and social work. Time will be provided for participants to take advantage of this convergence, and Hu and Gruskin aim to facilitate networking, workshopping, and collaboration. “The pandemic has been a stark example both of how threats to population health transcend national boundaries in today’s world as well as how the solutions require working across disciplines of every kind imaginable,” says Hu. “With its incredible and diverse strengths, USC is well-positioned to play a leadership role in global health.”

In between panels, students and researchers will share information through a poster session on topics around pandemic preparedness, climate change, HIV and Tuberculosis, environmental pollution, and more.

USC is one of over 190 members of the Consortium, which is made up of academic institutions and other organizations around the globe and hosts a variety of events, committees/working groups, and resources. Established in 2008 with funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the Rockefeller Foundation, the Consortium aims to address global health challenges through supporting universities as what the organization calls “transforming force[s] in global health.” USC and the Institute have been involved with the Consortium since 2012, and Gruskin serves on the Executive Planning Committee.

This year marks the first time the conference is being held in Los Angeles. The city will welcome several thousand global health experts including scientists, students and implementors from academia, NGOs, government, and the private sector to learn from one another, collaborate and forge new partnerships.

“The opportunity the Consortium offers to learn across disciplines and geographies, and across many areas of research is unsurpassed,” says Gruskin. “It can help tilt the axis towards Los Angeles as the premiere U.S. city engaging in global health activities that ensure research, education and community programs – whether happening at home or in other parts of the world – are conducted ethically and equitably, and that they demonstrate our explicit institutional commitment to centering equity in all aspects of our local and global engagement.”

Hu and Gruskin encourage anyone interested in health on a global – or local – level to attend, learn and connect. “Working with partners locally and globally is not only immensely satisfying,” notes Hu, “it’s also fun and enlightening.”

Getting to the Conference (Westin Bonaventure Hotel)

From University Park Campus
Board the eastbound Metro E Line at the Expo Park/USC stop and exit at the 7th Street/Metro Center stop. From there, it is an 8-10 minute walk to the Westin Bonaventure Hotel.

From Health Sciences Campus
Take the USC Intercampus (ICS) shuttle at the bus stop on Eastlake just south of Biggy. Take the ICS shuttle to Union Station. At Union Station, board the westbound Metro D Line train and exit at the 7th Street/Metro Center stop. From there, it is an 8-10 minute walk to the Westin Bonaventure Hotel.

For the USC ICS Shuttle Schedule, you can check here: USC ICS Shuttle Schedule