Past Events
Overview
NIH hosted a series of online-only, interactive panel discussions from August to October 2020 featuring information on the funding opportunity announcements, cross-cutting topics of importance to the initiative, relevant scientific issues, and the state of data science in Africa.
Click on each drop down menus below to view video recordings of past sessions.
DS-I Africa Program Launch
The DS-I Africa Program Launch session offered screenings of a collection of video screenings on August 10, including introductory remarks from Dr. Francis Collins and presentations from DS-I Africa program officers to review the purpose and objectives of the Funding Opportunity Announcements (FOAs). The video screenings were followed by a Q&A session featuring program officers for each FOA and interactive breakout clinics spanning a variety of topics: application process, grants management advice, and tips from NIH grant recipients.
Click on the drop-down menus below to watch the video presentations.
In his welcoming address, Dr. Collins describes the great potential of rapid advances in data science for improving health in Africa and the vision for how the NIH’s new Common Fund initiative will support African leadership and global partnerships for research and training in this exciting field.
The NIH Vision for Harnessing Data Science and Innovation for Health in Africa The NIH Vision for Harnessing Data Science and Innovation for Health in Africa
Watch the full video below or click on presentations from each of the panelists to watch only those segments.
- Overview - Laura Povlich, Program Officer, Fogarty International Center (FIC), NIH
- Research Hubs - Brad Newsome, Program Officer, FIC, NIH
- Research Training Program - Laura Povlich, Program Officer, Fogarty International Center (FIC), NIH
- Ethical, Legal, and Social Implications Research - Jay Churchill, Health Scientist Administrator, National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), NIH
- Open Data Science Platform & Coordinating Center - Tiffani Lash, Program Director of Division of Health Informatics Technologies (Informatics) at National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB), NIH & Ishwar Chandramouliswaran, Program Director of Office of Data Science and Emerging Technologies at National Institute of Allergies and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), NIH
Funding Opportunities Announcements Presentations Funding Opportunities Announcements Presentations
Monday August 10, 2020
9-11 am Eastern Daylight Time (New York, NY)
4-6pm East Africa Time (Nairobi, Kenya)
During this session, participants participated in an interactive Q&A panel featuring DS-I Africa program officers. The video recording is available below:
Panelists:
Laura Povlich, Program Officer, Fogarty International Center (FIC), NIH
Brad Newsome, Program Officer, FIC, NIH
Jay Churchill, Health Scientist Administrator, National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), NIH
Tiffani Lash, Program Director of Division of Health Informatics Technologies (Informatics) at National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB), NIH
Ishwar Chandramouliswaran, Program Director of Office of Data Science and Emerging Technologies at National Institute of Allergies and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), NIH
FOA Q&A Session
Interactive Breakout Clinics
Participants also chose to participate in one of the following breakout clinics sessions:
Success Stories: Case studies of successful grantees
Hear advice from researchers who have successfully applied for and received NIH funding.
Presenter: Rajesh Vedanthan, Associate Professor, New York University Langone Shivani Patel, Assistant Professor, Emory University
Live demo of application process
Watch a live demo of the electronic application process through the Application Submission System & Interface for Submission Tracking (ASSIST) system.
Presenter: Laurie Roman, Customer Service Manager for eSubmissions, ASSIST & CRIMS electronic Research Administration, Office of Extramural Research, NIH
Grant management advice
Learn about the role of grant management specialist at NIH and hear advice regarding the policy and budget aspects of NIH applications.
Presenter: Satabdi Raychowdhury, Grant Management Officer, Fogarty International Center, NIH Mollie Shea, Grant Management Officer, Fogarty International Center, NIH
Top Tips from Peer Reviewers
Hear advice from researchers who have served as reviewers on peer review panels.
Presenter: Venkat Narayan, Professor, Emory University
Making the Most of the Symposium
Learn about how to navigate and optimize your participation in the Symposium platform.
Presenter: Maggie Dugan, Knowinnovation
Q&A Session and Interactive Breakout Clinics Q&A Session and Interactive Breakout Clinics
Cross-Cutting Topics
The Cross-cutting Topics session offered screenings of video presentations from inspiring leaders from a variety of fields and sectors on August 11-12 and August 17-19, 2020. The video screenings were followed by live panel discussions with experts on topics of importance to the DS-I Africa initiative.
Click on the drop-down menus below to watch the video presentations for each cross-cutting topic.
Tuesday, August 11
9-11 am Eastern Daylight Time (New York, NY)
4-6pm East Africa Time (Nairobi, Kenya)
Moderator:
Patricia Brennan, Director, National Library of Medicine, NIH
Panelists:
Brian Gitta, CEO and Co-Founder, Matibabu and Think IT
Catherine Kyobutungi, Executive Director, African Population and Health Research Center
Julie Makani, Associate Professor in the Department of Haematology and Blood Transfusion, Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences
Beatrice Murage, Senior Scientist, Philips
David Moinina Sengeh, Minister of Basic and Senior Secondary Education and Chief Innovation Officer; Government of Sierra Leone
Aisha Walcott-Bryant, Research Manager at IBM Research Africa
Video presentations from each of the panelists are available for viewing on the Keynotes Videos page.
Watch the recording of the live interactive session hosted on August 11:
Data Science Partnerships: Going Beyond Academia for Health Impact Data Science Partnerships: Going Beyond Academia for Health Impact
Wednesday, August 12
9-11 am Eastern Daylight Time (New York, NY)
4-6pm East Africa Time (Nairobi, Kenya)
Introduction:
Bruce Tromberg, Director, National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering, NIH (by video)
Moderator:
Roger Glass, Director, Fogarty International Center, NIH
Panelists:
Gregory Gamula, Dean of Engineering, University of Malawi, The Polytechnic
Andrea (Andi) Gobin, Director of Invention Education & Lecturer, Rice 360 Institute for Global Health, Rice University
Robert Karanja, CEO, Villgro Kenya
Fadhili Chacha Marwa, CEO, Enzi Health
Theresa Mkandawire, Associate Professor, University of Malawi, The Polytechnic
Elioda Tumwesigye, Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation, Government of Uganda
Video Presentations
Watch the full video below or click on presentation titles from the panelists to watch only those segments (click here for the audio-described video).
- NEST 360 Invention Education Program - Andi Gobin
- Building a System of Innovators: the Malawi Experience - Gregory Gamula & Theresa Mkandawire
- The Role of Academia in the Knowledge Economy - Robert Karanja
- Enzi Health Limited: The Experience of a Data Science Entrepreneur - Chacha Marwa
Interactive Session
Watch the recording of the live interactive session hosted on August 12:
Harnessing Innovation and Entrepreneurship in Data Science for Health Harnessing Innovation and Entrepreneurship in Data Science for Health
Monday, August 17
9-11 am Eastern Daylight Time (New York, NY)
4-6pm East Africa Time (Nairobi, Kenya)
Moderator:
Martin Were, Associate Professor of Biomedical Informatics, Vanderbilt University; Founding Director, Institute of Biomedical Informatics, Moi University, Kenya
Panelists:
Mahadia Tunga, Co-founder and Director of Capacity Development, Tanzania dLab
Ignace Kabano, Head of Training, African Center of Excellence in Data Science, University of Rwanda
Amel Ghoulia, Scientific Community Coordinator, Exaptive for the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
Jeremie Zoueu, National Polytechnic Institute, Côte d’Ivoire; African Spectral Imaging Network (AFSIN)
Video Presentations
Watch the full video below or click on presentation titles from the panelists to watch only those segments
- Introduction: Training the Next Generation of Leaders in Data Science and Health Innovation - Martin Were
- Building pipeline of data scientists: Lessons from Tanzania Data Lab(dLab) - Mahadia Tunga
- Capacity building via peer learning and collaborative science - Amel Ghoulia
- AFSIN's Experience in Training the Next Generation of Leaders in Data Science and Health Discovery - Jeremie Zoueu
- Need for Data Science in Africa: Current and Prospects – Igance Kabano
Interactive Session
Watch the recording of the live interactive session hosted on August 17:
Training the Next Generation of Leaders in Data Science and Health Innovation Training the Next Generation of Leaders in Data Science and Health Innovation
Tuesday, August 18
9-11 am Eastern Daylight Time (New York, NY)
4-6pm East Africa Time (Nairobi, Kenya)
Introduction:
Joshua Gordon, Director, National Institute of Mental Health, NIH
Moderator:
Pamela Andanda, Professor of Law, University of Witwatersrand
Panelists:
Clement Adebamowo, Professor, University of Maryland Medical School
Josephine Agyeman-Duah, Doctoral Researcher, University of Oxford
Rosemary Musesengwa, Senior Researcher, University of Oxford
Video Presentations
Watch the full video below or click on presentation titles from the panelists to watch only those segments
- Introduction - Joshua Gordon - Introduction
- Strategies for integrating ELSI framework into data science research - Pamela Andanda
- Integrating ELSI into Data Science Research: The Role of the Ethicist - Rosemary Musesengwa
- Big Data: Ethics, Legal, and Social Implications of Data Science Research - Josephine Agyeman-Duah
- Data Justice and Data Science Research in Africa - Clement Adebamowo
Interactive Session
Watch the recording of the live interactive session hosted on August 18:
Ethical, Legal, & Social Implications (ELSI) of Data Science Research Ethical, Legal, & Social Implications (ELSI) of Data Science Research
Wednesday, August 19
9-11 am Eastern Daylight Time (New York, NY)
4-6pm East Africa Time (Nairobi, Kenya)
Moderator:
Katherine Lawrence, Research Area Specialist Lead and Research Investigator, University of Michigan
Panelists:
Nicola Mulder, Professor and head of the Computational Biology, University of Cape Town; PI of H3ABioNet
Benedict Paten, Associate Professor, Biomolecular Engineering, UCSC
Geoffrey Siwo, Research Assistant Professor, University of Notre Dame
Russ Taylor, Professor of Astronomy, University of Cape Town
Susan Veldsman, Director, Scholarly Publishing Unit, Academy of Science of South Africa (ASSAf)
Video Presentations
Watch the full video below or click on presentation titles from the panelists to watch only those segments (Click here for the audio-described video).
- Introduction - Katherine Lawrence
- An introduction to the Data Biosphere - Benedict Paten
- Building capacity for genomics data analysis in Africa - Nicola Mulder
- African open science platform: Contributing knowledge to the next-generation infrastructure for Africa - Susan Veldsman
- Big Data on the African continent: An African solution - Russ Taylor
- Beyond open data: People, computers & technologies - Geoffrey Siwo
Interactive Session
Watch the recording of the live interactive session hosted on August 19:
Data Ecosystems and Gateways to Foster Research Community Networks Across Africa Data Ecosystems and Gateways to Foster Research Community Networks Across Africa
State of Data Science Series (SODS)
The DS-I Africa State of Data Science Series (SODS) is a collection of online, interactive panel discussions that took place on a weekly basis in September and October 2020. These sessions featured presentations by experts in their field, a moderated discussion, and opportunities for Q&A. Visit the SODS page to watch video recordings of each session.
This page last reviewed on March 3, 2021