Queen Elizabeth Scholars: McGill University and University of Ghana Funded

The School of Public Health is pleased to announce to the University community that Queen Elizabeth Scholars program has awarded a grant of Canadian $466, 000 to Dr. Richmond Aryeetey of the School of Public Health, and Dr. Grace S Marquis of McGill (featured in the first picture) University in Canada to implement a project entitled “A network of interdisciplinary, solution-oriented researchers to improve the livelihoods and food and nutrition security of adolescent girls and women farmers in rural Ghana”.

This project is focused on capacity strengthening and creating a global interdisciplinary research team (researchers, farmers, community leaders, local institutions, and entrepreneurs) to develop solutions to the complex, interrelated agriculture and food security problems and is focused on adolescent girls and women. In three years, the project will:

1. Increase numbers of Ghanaian (UG) and Canadian students in a postgraduate degree at McGill who conduct interdisciplinary research on agriculture, food security, and nutrition.
2. Enhance leadership, professional, and interdisciplinary research skills among Ghanaian (UG) and Canadian scholars working on global issues.
3. Increase level of engagement across disciplines and institutions of Canadian and Ghanaian (UG) scholars working on agriculture and food security, nutrition, and related issues.

The Canadian Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Advanced Scholars Program is managed through a unique partnership between Universities Canada, the Rideau Hall Foundation, Community Foundations of Canada and Canadian universities. It is made possible with financial support from the International Development Research Centre and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council.
The winning projects span diverse subject areas ranging from agriculture and food security to climate change, employment and growth, and maternal and child health. Successful projects were selected by an independent selection committee representing research and funding communities from around the world.

The media release for the QES-AS can be found here: http://www.univcan.ca/media-room/media-releases/queen-elizabeth-scholars-next-generation-pursue-innovation-community-building-projects/ 

The School of Public Health congratulates Dr. Richmond Aryeetey and his team on receiving approval for funding.

 

Dr. Richmond Aryeetey

Profile of Dr. Richmond Aryeetey. PhD, MPH
Richmond Aryeetey is a Public Health nutrition scientist with interest in infant and young child feeding as well as food systems and how they interact with other environmental and policy determinants of dietary intake and NCDs in urban populations. Other relevant areas of research include physical activity environments and the factors that motivates people to engage in physical activity. Richmond’s previous research activities include mapping of various food and physical activity environments including school food environments, as well as food available in health care facility settings. Richmond has worked with the University of Ghana since 2007 when he joined the School of Public Health.
He is currently leading a multi-site project with Yale University that is mapping determinants of scaling up national breastfeeding program implementation. He is also a Co-Investigator of a Canadian Government funded 5-year grant aimed at increasing collaborative actions to address household food insecurity malnutrition in the Eastern region of Ghana. Dr Aryeetey currently co-chairs the Evidence-Informed Decision-making in Nutrition and Health Network championing the use of evidence for Decision making in Nutrition program Scale up.