HAInews 2023/02Summer School and Expert Workshop for Alumni

Health in the context of the Earth's stress limits and non-communicable diseases such as cancer or cardiovascular diseases are the topics of two events that the Heidelberg Institute of Global Health (HIGH) at the University also offers for Heidelberg alumni. The Summer School and the Alumni Expert Workshop are designed for participants from low- and middle-income countries (LMIC).

The Summer School "Health in the Anthropocene: what can I do?", which took place from 21 June to 26 July as an online event, was aimed at practising doctors, translational researchers and young scientist activists who want to improve health care in LMIC countries and are planning corresponding projects. In addition to people working in the public health sector, the course was also attended by bachelor's, master's and doctoral students from the fields of public health, global health or medicine. The course provided a basic understanding of the relationship between the planet's carrying capacity and the associated public health implications in LMIC countries. Moreover, participants were supported in their project planning and student participants were helped to develop project ideas for their home country and to evaluate their chances of success. Concrete results at the end of the course were short presentations for potential donors and jointly developed measures for the implementation of the planned projects.

Non-communicable diseases (NCDs), such as diabetes or respiratory diseases, are now among the main causes of death and disability worldwide. They will be the topic of the five-day Alumni Expert Workshop "Prevention and Control of Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs): Best Practice Examples and Ways Forward", organised by Dr Andreas Deckert from HIGH. Participants are public health professionals from low- and middle-income countries who are involved in the prevention or control of NCDs and who have studied or attended training in Germany. In the workshop, they will discuss the latest evidence on NCD prevention and control, including identifying gaps and challenges and discussing coping strategies.