>>THANK YOU FOR JOINING US FROM LESSONS FROM THE FIELD CONFRONTING THE CHALLENGE OF HEALTH RESEARCH IN HUMANITARIAN CRISES. I'M A SENIOR SCIENTIST AT THE FOGARTY NATIONAL CENTER AT THE NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH. THE WORLD HAS FACED AN ONSLAUGHT OF DISASTERS FROM WILD FIRES AND CIVIL WARS AND ARMED CONFLICT WITH POPULATIONS BEING FORCED TO FLEE THEIR HOMES AND HAVE SEVERE TRAUMA. IN THE LAST YEAR ALMOST EVERYONE ON THE PLANET HAS BEEN AFFECTED BY THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC. WE KNOW THESE TYPES OF CRISES ARE BECOMING MORE FREQUENT AND INTENSE AND COSTLY AND HAVE IMPACT ON HEALTH IN THE SHORT TERM AND LONG TERM. WE AT THE FOGARTY INTERNATIONAL CENTER HAVE SPENT THE PAST FEW YEAR TRYING TO BETTER UNDERSTAND THE ROLE OF GLOBAL HEALTH RESEARCH IN THE CONTEXT OF THE CHANGING PLANET. TODAY, OUR EVENT IS FOCUSSED ON TWO SIMPLE GOALS. FIRST, WE'D LIKE TO SHARE HIGHLIGHTS FROM A COLLECTION OF CASE STUDIES WE RECENTLY COMMISSIONED ON THE TOPIC AND SECOND, WE'D LIKE TO STIMULATE SOME DISCUSSION ON THE FIELD AND WHERE IT'S GOING. SO TODAY'S EVENT IS THE FIRST OF A SERIES OF FOUR EVENTS THIS WEEK. TODAY WE'LL BE PRESENTING HIGHLIGHTS FROM A SELECTED GROUP OF CASE STUDIES FROM THE COLLECTION. TOMORROW, WE'LL BE DIVING DEEPER INTO SEVERAL COST-CUTTING THEMES THAT HAVE EMERGE FROM THE COLLECTION SPECIFICALLY AROUND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT PARTNERSHIPS AND KNOWLEDGE TRANSLATION. ON WEDNESDAY, WE'LL TURN OUR ATTENTION TO FOUR CASE STUDIES SPECIFICALLY RELATED TO THE CRISIS IN SYRIA AND ON THURSDAY WE'LL TAKE A LOOK FORWARD AT THE FUTURE OF THE FIELD. TODAY'S AGENDA IS AS SHOWN HERE. AFTER MY INTRODUCTION, I'LL TURN TO MY COLLEAGUE, BLYTHE BEECROFT AND AFTER THAT WE'LL HEAR FROM OUR PANEL. OUR MODERATOR TODAY IS FROM THE GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY. HE'S BEEN A PART OF THE STEERING COMMITTEE THAT OVERSAW THE CASE STUDY, BRANDON KOMRT AND HEAR FROM FOUR AUTHORS OF CASES FROM THE COLLECTION STARTING FROM JORDAN AND ANOTHER SPEAKER FROM BANGLADESH AND THEN FROM EMIOREE UNIVERSITY AND THEN HEAR FROM THE INTERNATIONAL RESCUE COMMITTEE IN THE U.S. AFTER THEIR SHORT PRESENTATIONS, WITH VERY ABOUT 30 MINUTES RESERVED FOR DISCUSSION AND Q&A WHERE WE HOPE TO HEAR FROM YOU AND AFTER THAT WE'LL HAVE EVERYONE CHOOSE BREAKOUT ROOMS. I'LL EXPLAIN MORE HOW THIS WILL WORK WHEN WE GET TO THAT POINT AROUND 10:30 AND THE BREAKOUTS ARE AN OPPORTUNITY TO HAVE A LESS FORMAL DISCUSSION WITH THE PANELISTS AND EACH OTHER. IT'S AN OPPORTUNITY FOR Q&A AND FOR NETWORKING WITH YOUR PEERS. WE HOPE YOU'LL STAY FOR THAT PORTION OF THE PROGRAM. I'D LIKE TO BRIEFLY REVIEW A FEW LOGISTIC HOUSEKEEPING ITEM TO MAKE SURE HAVE YOU A GOOD EXPERIENCE WITH US TODAY. PLEASE NOTE TODAY'S PRESENTATION WILL BE RECORDED FOR PEOPLE TO WATCH IN THE FUTURE. IN ADDITION, THE SLIDES FROM OUR PRESENTERS WILL BE SHARED AFTER THE EVENT TO THOSE WHO REGISTERED. AND YOU'LL NOTICE THAT YOUR VIDEOS AND MICROPHONES ARE TURNED OFF DURING THE PROGRAM DUE TO THE SIZE OF THE AUDIENCE BUT DURING THE BREAKOUTS YOUR VIDEOS AND MICROPHONES WILL BE ENGAGED. THROUGHOUT THE PROGRAM USE THE CHAT FUNCTION IN ZOOM TO SHARE QUESTIONS YOU'D LIKE TO SEND TO THE PANELISTS AND ADDRESS THE PERSON YOU'D LIKE YOUR QUESTION ADDRESSED TO. AND IF YOU HAVE ANY TECHNICAL ISSUES CONTACT MY COLLEAGUE ARINA KADAM BY DIRECT MESSAGE IN THE CHAT OR BY EMALL. -- E-MAIL. AND WITH THAT, MY COLLEAGUE, BLYTHE, WILL BE LOADING HER SLIDES AND SHE IS A GLOBAL HEALTH RESEARCH POLICY ANALYST AT THE FOGARTY INTERNATIONAL CENTER AT NIH AND PLAYS A ROLE IN EMERGENCY CARE TO IMPLEMENTATION SCIENCE TO OF COURSE THIS PROJECT ON HEALTH RESEARCH AND HUMANITARIAN CRISES. BLYTHE'S PLAYED A CRITICAL ROLE IN PUTTING TOGETHER THE CASE STUDIES WE'RE SHARING FROM THE CONCEPTUALIZATION THROUGH REVIEW THROUGH WORKING WITH THE AUTHORS THROUGH THE PUBLICATION PROCESS AND WITH THAT I'LL HAND IT OVER TO BLYTHE. >> THANK YOU. I'LL BE GIVING A BRIEF OVERVIEW OF THE CASE COLLECTION AND BACKGROUND ON ITS GENESIS AND ORIGIN. THE CENTER FOR GLOBAL HEALTH STUDIES WHICH IS A DIVISION WITHIN THE FOGARTY INTERNATIONAL CENTER THAT OPERATES WITH A GLOBAL HEALTH POLICY OFFICE, FIRST DECIDED TO LAUNCH THE PROJECT LOOKING AT EVENTS IN HEALTH RESEARCH IN HUMANITARIAN CRISES IN 2017. THE TWO OVER ARCHING GOALS OF THIS PROJECT ARE TO FIRST CATALYZE RESEARCH AND HUMANITARIAN CRISES AND TO ENCOURAGE THE UPTAKE OF OUR RESEARCH AND EVIDENCE INTO BOTH HUMANITARIAN POLICY AND PRACTICE. GUIDED BY THESE TWO GOALS, WE REACHED OUT AND DID MULTIPLE CONSULTATIONS AND EVEN CONVENED A WORKSHOP IN NIH IN 2018 WITH MULTIPLE STAKEHOLDERS AND WERE ABLE TO IDENTIFY IMPORTANT GAP IN THE LANDSCAPE AND THAT WAS A NEED FOR HIGH QUALITY RESEARCH IN THE FIELD. WE DECIDED CASE STUDIES WOULD BE THE BEST WAY TO FILL THIS GAP AS THEY ARE ABLE TO GO BEYOND THE TRADITIONAL RESEARCH PAPER AND FOCUS ON WHY A PARTICULAR RESEARCH WAS IMPORTANT AND HOW IT WAS CONDUCTED. WE'RE ABLE TO HONE IN ON THE PROCESS. SINCE WE COMMISSIONED OUR COLLECTION, WHICH YOU'LL SEE HERE, IT'S A CROSS-JOURNAL COLLECTION AND PUBLISHED IN CONFLICT AND HEALTH AND THE BMC PUBLIC HEALTH AND COMMISSIONED 23 STUDIES AND 18 ARE PUBLISHED AND AVAILABLE TO ACCESS AND READ ONLINE. MANY CASE STUDIES ARE UNDER REVIEW AT THE JOURNALS. THE COLLECTION IN ITS ENTIRETY HAS THREE OBJECTIVES. WE HOPE IN READING THE CASES YOU'LL IDENTIFY SEE STRATEGIES AND HOPE IT DEMONSTRATE THE IMPORTANCE OF THE FIELD AND HELPS IDENTIFY AREAS OF HIGH PUBLIC HEALTH SIGNIFICANCE FOR FUTURE RESEARCH TO HELP CONCEPTUALIZE AND DEVELOP THE CASE COLLECTION, WE CONVENED A STEERING COMMITTEE CO-CHAIRED BY OUR PROJECT CO-CHAIRS AND WE'RE GRATEFUL FOR THEIR CONTRIBUTION TO HELP CONCEPTUALIZE THE COLLECTION AND LOOK AT CONTENT AND SCIENTIFIC RIGOR BEFORE THEY WERE INDEPENDENTLY REVIEWED BY THE JOURNAL. FOR YOUR INFORMATION AS AN OVERVIEW, THIS COLLECTION THE CASE STUDIES TAKE PLACE IN 27 DIFFERENT COUNTRIES ACROSS THE GLOBE HIGHLIGHTING A VARIETY OF HEALTH TOPICS AS YOU CAN SEE HERE. FOR OUR PURPOSES, I THINK IT IS IMPORTANT TO NOTE WE DEFINE HUMANITARIAN CRISIS IS WITH CONFLICT, FORCED DISPLACEMENT AND REFUGEES AND DISASTERS AND MAJOR DISEASE OUTBREAKS AND FOR THE READER TO UNDERSTAND IT'S NOT COMPREHENSIVE BUT DESIGNED TO REPRESENT A BROAD AND DIVERSE COVERAGE OF DIFFERENT HEALTH AREAS IN CRISIS SO YOU'RE ABLE TO SEEK OUT AND TAKE AWAY LESSONS IN THE FIELD THAT INTEREST YOU. IN TERMS OF AUTHORSHIP, THE AUTHORS OF THE CASES COMES FROM ACADEMIC INSTITUTIONS BUT ALSO HUMANITARIAN ORGANIZATIONS. THERE WERE FIVE PEOPLERS AUTHORED BY NGO STAFF AND NGO COLLABORATIONS. OUR AUTHORIZE ARE ALSO FROM COUNTRIES AFFECT CRISES. 17 OF 23 THE PAPERS FROM DIFFERENT AUTHORS AND 57 OF 132 AUTHORS FROM LMICs AND WE HAVE SEVERAL AUDIENCES. THE FIRST IS THE GLOBAL HEALTH TEACHING AND LEARNING COMMUNITY WE HOPE NOT ONLY INCLUDES TRAINING IN LMICs BUT YOUNG IN THEIR CAREERS OR NEW TO THE HUMANITARIAN SPACE AND JUST ENTERING THE FIELD. ORGANIZATIONS RESPONDING TO IN THE CRISES AND THE GLOBAL HEALTH COMMUNITY AT LARGE. WE HOPE THIS WILL HELP RECOGNIZE HUMANITARIAN HEALTH IS INTEGRAL TO RESEARCH. IT'S MY PLEASURE TO INTRODUCE OUR MODERATOR, BRANDON KOHRT. HE'S AN PROFESSOR OF PSYCHIATRY AT GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY AND ONE OF THE SCIENTIFIC PARTNERS IN ADVANCING HEALTH CRISIS. HE'S INTERNATIONALLY RECOGNIZED GLOBAL HEALTH MENTAL EXPERT IN DISCRIMINATION AND LACK OF ACCESS TO HEALTH CARE IN ADDITION TO OTHERS AND WORKED IN NIGERIA, ETHIOPIA, MONGOLIA AND HAITI AND INDIA. THANK YOU. >> THANK YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK. >> THANK YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO PARTICIPATE IN THIS IMPORTANT INITIATIVE AND ALMOST FOUR YEARS GOING ON IN OUR COLLABORATION. I'M DELIGHTED TO INTRODUCE THE FIRST PANEL OF THE CASE SERIES FOR THIS WEEK OF PRESENTATIONS. THIS PANEL WILL GIVE A REAL SENSE OF SOME OF THE TOPICS THAT WE'LL GO INTO IN GREATER DETAIL IN THE COMING DAYS. TODAY WE'LL TALK A LOT ABOUT THE IMPORTANCE OF PARTNERSHIPS AND TOMORROW YOU'LL HEAR MORE HOW HOW PARTNERSHIPS FEED INTO KNOWLEDGE TRANSLATION. ONE IS ABOUT SYRIAN REFUGEES IN JORDAN AND HAVE A WHOLE PANEL DEDICATED THAT ON WEDNESDAY AND AS MENTIONED ON THURSDAY WE'LL TALK ABOUT THE FUTURE OF HUMANITARIAN HEALTH RESEARCH. SO IN TERMS OF THE CONCEPTUAL CONCEPTUALIZATION HERE WE HAVE A SCIENTIFIC RESPONSIBILITY TO UNDERSTAND HOW HUMANITARIAN EMERGENCIES IMPACT HEALTH AND HOW BEST TO RESPOND TO THESE EMERGENCIES. HUMANITARIAN EMERGENCIES POSE UNIQUE THREATS TO HUMAN HEALTH. SOME ASPECTS OF THAT MAY BE A UNIQUE EXPOSURE. FOR EXAMPLE, AN INFECTIOUS DISEASE OR WAR OR ENVIRONMENTAL DISASTERS. AND MAY BE SOMETHING WE EXPERIENCE IN A NON-HUMANITARIAN STRESSOR AND HOW PROLONGED A STRESSOR MAY BE MAY BE DIFFERENT IN THE CONTEXT A HUMANITARIAN EMERGENCY AND THE PREVALENCE. THEY'RE CHARACTERIZED BY COLLECTIVE EXPOSURE, DISEASE, DISASTER, WAR. WE HAVE TO UNDERSTAND AT A SOCIAL, CULTURAL, ECONOMIC LEVEL HOW THIS TYPE OF COLLECTIVE SOCIETY WIDE EXPOSURE IMPACTS HEALTH AND YOU NEED COMORBIDITIES REFERRED TO AS SENDEMICES. AND ONE OF THE KEY THINGS RESEARCH IN HUMANITARIAN SETTINGS TEND TO DO IS TO IMPROVE THE INTERVENTIONS AND THE WAY WE RESPOND. WE CAN DEVELOP NEW INTERVENTIONS UNIQUE TO HUMANITARIAN SETTING AND MODIFY THE DELIVERY OF THE INTERVENTIONS BUT IT'S CRUCIAL TO HAVE RESEARCH TO STUDY HOW THESE THINGS WORK WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THE INVESTMENT IS RAPID AND ABLE TO QUICKLY SHOW RESULTS TO TRANSFORM THE LIVES OF THOSE MOST AFFECTED. HUMANITARIAN HEALTH ALSO OFFERS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR NEW SCIENTIFIC INNOVATIONS BASED ON THE HUMANITARIAN CONDITIONS THAT CAN THEN BE TRANSFERRED TO NON-HUMANITARIAN SETTINGS. JUST AS HISTORICALLY MILITARY HEALTH RESEARCH LED TO ADVANCES IN CARDIAC SURGERY OR NEUROLOGICAL UNDERSTANDINGS OF THE BRAIN. INCREASINGLY, THEY'RE BECOMING THE SITE OF NEW INNOVATION AND RESEARCHES SUCH AS MORE RAPID APPROACHES TO CLINICAL TRIALS AS DURING THE PANDEMIC AND DIFFERENT WAYS TO USE TECHNOLOGY SUCH AS GEOLOCATION AFTER A HUMANITARIAN EMERGENCY RELATED TO A DISASTER OR EARTHQUAKE. MODELLING OF DISEASE AND UNDERSTANDING WHY SOMETHING LIKE DIABETES MAY OCCUR IN THE CONTEXT OF A FAMINE AND THE BIOLOGY OF RESILIENCE. FINALLY, ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT THINGS ABOUT HEALTH RESEARCH IN HUMANITARIAN SETTINGS IS THIS CAN LEAD TO THE PREVENTION OF HUMANITARIAN EMERGENCIES. IF WE BETTER UNDERSTAND DISEASE SPREAD, HUMAN RESPONSE TO TRAUMA AND ADVERSITY, WE MAY BE ABLE TO PREVENT THESE IN THE FUTURE. IF WE THINK OF SETTINGS LIKE THE HAITI EARTHQUAKE FOR THE OUTBREAK OF CHOLERA IN YEMEN WE COULD REDUCE THE SEVERITY OF THE HUMANITARIAN EMERGENCY AND THROUGH MENTAL AND BEHAVIORAL HEALTH RESEARCH UNDERSTAND INTERGENERATIONAL VIOLENCE AND INCREASE THE PEACEFULNESS OF SOCIETIYS AND FAMILIES AND -- SOCIETIES AND HOPEFULLY PREVENT THE NEXT PANDEMIC JUST AS LESSOLESSO LESSOLESSO LESSONS WERE LEARNED IN SOME LOCATIONS TO PREVENT THIS IN OTHER LOCATIONS IN THE GLOBE. AND IN OUR SESSION WE'D LIKE TO RETHINK THE RESEARCH MODELS WE TYPICALLY USE. WHEREAS WE TYPICALLY START RESEARCH WITH A QUESTION, I WANT TO START WITH A COLLABORATION. IT WAS THE PEOPLE IN THE ROOM. THE PEOPLE MOST AFFECTED COMING TOGETHER WITH THEM TO DECIDE WHAT TYPE OF RESEARCH SHOULD BE DONE AND WHAT WOULD BE MOST HELPFUL AND WHEN WE BEGIN WITH THE COLLABORATIONS DISSEMINATION NATIONALLY HAPPENS AND FOLLOWS. SO JUST TO GIVE YOU A QUICK PREVIEW OF THE FOUR TALKS WE'LL DISCUSS TODAY AND I'LL GIVE YOU MORE DETAILS INTO INDIVIDUAL SPEAKERS' BACKGROUND AND A WANT TO HIGHLIGHT THE IMPORTANT THEME THAT CUTS ACROSS ALL THESE TOPICS. WE'LL BEGIN WITH THE CASE STUDY FROM JORDAN AND TALK ABOUT RESILIENCE AND HOW INDIVIDUALS RESPOND TO THE STRESS AND ADVERSITY OF LIVING IN A CONFLICT INFECTED REGION AND BE DISPLACED. THIS TALK WILL FOCUS ON PARTNERING WITH LOCAL ACADEMICS AS WELL AS HAVING THE COMMUNITY UNDERSTAND THE PURPOSES AND PROCESSES OF SCIENTIFIC QUESTIONS SO THEY CAN MORE ACTIVELY ENGAGE. THIS WILL BE FOLLOWED BY A PRESENTATION BY DR. AQTAR ABOUT SEXUAL AND REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH IN THE CONTEXT OF REFUGEES. HER DISCUSSION HIGHLIGHTS HOW IMPORTANT PARTNERSHIPS ARE WITH SENSITIVE TOPICS SUCH AS SEXUAL AND REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH AND NOT ONLY HOW IMPORTANT IT IS TO HAVE THIS COLLABORATION BE SUCCESSFUL BUT TO MAKE SURE RESEARCH DOESN'T DO HARM IN STUDYING THESE TOPICS. THE THIRD PRESENTATION WILL BE TALKING ABOUT THE IMPACT OF HURRICANE MARIA AND PUERTO RICO AND THE RESEARCH IS IMPORTANT TO SHOW HOW THE LONG STANDING CONTESTED RELATIONSHIPS SUCH AS BETWEEN U.S. FEDERAL GOVERNMENT AND THE PEOPLE OF PUERTO RICO CAN LEAD TO CONCERNS AND LACK OF TRUST THAT IMPACTS RESEARCH PROCESS AND SHE'LL HIGHLIGHT THE IMPORTANCE OF WHO MAKES UP FOR THE COMPOSITION OF THE RESEARCH TEAM TO BE SUCCESSFUL. AND FINALLY, WE'LL END WITH DR. HOAGE OF LOOKING AT INTERNATIONAL RESCUE AND HIGHLIGHT THE CHALLENGES OF RESEARCH DURING OUTBREAK AND HOW IMPORTANT HUMANITARIAN ORGANIZATIONS ARE DOING THIS TO IMMEDIATELY TRANSFER RESULTS INTO ACTION AND SUCCESSFUL RESPONSE. WITH THAT I'M DELIGHTED TO TURN IT OVER FOR OUR FIRST PRESENTATION. PLEASE PULL OF YOUR PRESENTATION. SHE'S A PROFESSOR OF MOLECULAR CELL BIOLOGY IN JORDAN. HE'S A FELLOW AND EISENHOWER FELLOW AND WORLD EXPERT IN GENETIC POPULATIONS IN JORDAN AND ESTABLISHED STEM CELL RESEARCH LAW AND RESEARCH IN REFUGEE AND THE EPIGENETICS OF TRAUMA. SHE'S WON NINE DIFFERENT AWARDS FOR HER INITIATIVE WE LOVE LEADING AND PARTICULARLY THE NATIONAL REFUGEE AWARD IN 2020. SHE'S THE AUTHOR OF FIVE STARS DOING THE IMPOSSIBLE. THOUGH DR. DIJANI STARTED WITH ETHNIC MINORITIES SHE WAS INVITED TO A COLLABORATION WITH YALE UNIVERSITY TO STUDY THE MENTAL HEALTH IMPACT OF A PROGRAM ON REFUGEES IN JORDAN WHICH INTRODUCED HER TO THE FIELD OF HUMANITARIAN HEALTH RESEARCH AND A FIELD WE HOPE SHE NEVER LEAVES. THANK YOU AND I'LL TURN IT OVER TO YOU. >> THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR THE INTRODUCTION AND FOR BEING PART OF THIS PANEL AND BEING ABLE TO SHOWCASE OUR CASE STUDY TO A WIDER AUDIENCE TO WORK WORK TOGETHER AND COLLABORATE TO MAKE A BETTER WORLD. ONE THING I WANT TO ADD TO MY BIO, I'M FROM JERUSALEM, PALESTINE. MY FAMILY HAS BEEN HERE OVER 500 YEARS AND IN SPEAKING OF HUMANITARIAN CONDITIONS, AS WE SPEAK, WOMEN AND CHILDREN ARE BEING KILLED FOR THE RIGHT TO EXIST AND JUST HAVE THE BASIC HUMAN RIGHTS. IT'S VERY FITTING WHAT WE'RE DISCUSSING TODAY AND THE FIRST THING AS SCIENTISTS WE'RE HELD ACCOUNTABLE IS TO UPHOLD JUSTICE. IF WE WERE ABLE TO STOP ALL THESE WARS WE'D PREVENT A LOT OF THESE HUMANITARIAN CRISES HAPPENING FROM THE BEGINNING. WE MUST ALWAYS REMIND YOU ARE -- OURSELVES, WASN'T TO NOT JUST PATCH BUT HAVE A DUTY TO UPHOLD JUSTICE AND SPEAK OUT IN EVERY WAY WE CAN. AS A REFUGEE MYSELF FROM PALESTINE SUDDENLY IN JORDAN, I'LL HIGHLIGHT THE HUGE NUMBER OF REFUGEES AROUND THE WORLD AND HOW THE MAJORITY ARE IN THE MIDDLE EAST AND THEY'RE THE PALESTINIANS AND SYRIANS UNFORTUNATELY THE HIGHEST NUMBERS. BECAUSE OF THAT, LIVING IN JORDAN AND BEING THROUGH THAT CRISIS WHEN THE SYRIAN REFUGEE CRISIS HAPPENED WE BECAME ALERT AGAIN AND AGAIN AND ANOTHER PIECE OF INFORMATION AS MANY PEOPLE I ALMOST ALSO HALF SYRIAN. MY MOTHER'S FROM ALEPPO AND IT'S HAPPENING IN EVERY REGION IN OUR EVERYDAY LIVES AND A HUGE PERCENTAGE ARE UNDER 18 AND THIGHS CHILDREN ARE NOT JUST LOSING THEIR HOMES AND HEALTH BUT ALSO THEIR EDUCATION AND FUTURE LIVELIHOODS. THERE WAS AN INTERNATIONAL NGO THAT WANTED TO HELP THESE CHILDREN AND THEY WERE FOCUSSING ON SYRIAN REFUGEES AND THE FOUR COUNTRIES, TURKEY, JORDAN AND SYRIA AND ROLLING OUT A PROGRAM CALLED LOW LOST GENERATION. IT WAS A PSYCHOSOCIAL INTERVENTION WITH THE GOAL OF BUILDING RESILIENCE AND CREATING SUPPORT. SO THERE WAS A RECENT CALL TO DO RESEARCH UNDER HUMANITARIAN CONDITIONS TO UNDERSTAND WHICH INTERVENTIONS WERE ABLE TO PREVENT VIOLENCE IN HEALTH AND THE QUESTION WAS CAN YOU DO GOOD SCIENCE UNDER HUMANITARIAN CONDITIONS. THE STUDY DESIGN WAS TO LOOK AT COMPARING SYRIAN REFUGEES WITH JORDANIAN LOCAL POPULATION OF THE SAME POVERTY AND SOCIAL ECONOMIC STATUS IN FOUR AREAS IN JORDAN. THE IDEA WAS TO COLLECT THREE TIME POINTS, BEFORE THE INTERVENTION, TWO MONTHS AFTER AND THEN A YEAR AFTER. THE TYPE OF DATA BEING COLLECTED IS THE PSYCHOSOCIAL SELF-REPORTING MARKERS AND BIO MARKERS AND COGNITIVE FUNCTIONS AND GENETIC. THE TEAM WAS ALL WESTERN UNIVERSITIES. LED BY YALE UNIVERSITIES AND THEN OTHERS INVOLVED WITH THE NGO. THIS IS WHEN WAS APPROACHED AS A PROFESSOR FROM JORDAN WHO ALREADY HAS EXPERIENCE IN COLLECTING BIOMARKER TO BE PART OF THE TEAM TO DO BETTER SCIENCE. THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT BECAUSE THIS IS WHAT I'M GOING EXPLAIN IN THIS BRIEF TIME THE IMPORTANCE OF INCLUDING LOCAL PEOPLE. THIS IS SOMETHING YOU SHOULD LOOK AND SEARCH FOR THE LOCAL PEOPLE. THEY MAY EXIST IN THE COUNTRY OR NOT BUT MAYBE IN ANOTHER COUNTRY WHERE THEY IMMIGRATED BUT THEY EXIST AND WE MUST FIND THEM WHEREVER THEY ARE BECAUSE THEY WILL ALLOW TO US DO BETTER SCIENCE ALONG THE ROAD. THE SECOND THING ALSO AS WE AS A TEAM OF SCIENTISTS FROM INTERNATIONALLY AND LOCALLY CAME TO DO THE RESEARCH WITH THE MERCY CORPS. ONE THING IS THE INDEPENDENCE OF TEAM. IF MERCY CORPS IS GOING TO BE INVOLVED IN THE RESEARCH TEAM THERE WOULD BE A CONFLICT OF INTEREST BECAUSE THEY'RE ALREADY IMPLEMENTING THE PROGRAM SO HOW COULD THEY BE PARTNERS IN THE RESEARCH ITSELF. NOT ALSO MENTION THEY WERE NOT VERY ENTHUSIASTIC ABOUT SOME OF OUR TOOLS WE WERE GOING TO USE LIKE THE BIOMARKERS. THEY WERE SCARED IF WE STARTED USING BIOMARKERS THEIR REPUTATION AS NATIONAL NGOs WOULD BE TARNISHED AND IF YOU'RE HELPING THE PEOPLE IT BECOMES YOU ARE SERVING AND ONE OF THEM RATHER THAN COMING AT DOING EXPERIMENTS ON THEM FROM A BROAD LIKE A GUINEA PIG, RIGHT? WE SAID WE DON'T NEED MERCY CORPS TO BE PART OF THIS RESEARCH. WE, THE LOCAL SCIENTISTS, WILL EXECUTE THIS AND DO IT ON THE GROUND AND EXPLAIN TO THE PEOPLE THE SCIENCE. THIS DRIVES HOME THE POINT OF WHY LOCAL ACADEMICS. ONE, WE BELONG IN THE COMMUNITY. IT'S NOT THAT WE'RE COMING FROM ANOTHER COUNTRY TO DO RESEARCH ON THEM. WE'RE DOING RESEARCH ON OURSELVES. THIS IS IMPORTANT. PEOPLE TEND TO FORGET THAT. WHEN WE STARTED I WENT DOWN AND TALKED TO ALL THE PARENTS AND ADULTS AND TEENAGERS EXPLAINING AND THE APPROACH WAS TO STUDY TOGETHER. THE CHILDREN GETTING THIS PROGRAM FROM MERCY CORPS AND THEIR PARENTS. WE, AS A COMMUNITY, WANT TO EVALUATE THE PROGRAM WHETHER IT WORKS AND GIVES AGENCY TO THE TEENAGERS AND PARENTS AND CHILDREN THAT THEY HAVE SOME KIND OF OWNERSHIP ON THEIR LIVES AND FUTURE. WHEN THEY FELT THAT CONTROL AND CAN ASK THAT QUESTION, DOES THE PROGRAM WORK FOR ME OR NOT, THEY'RE PART OF THE SOLUTION, THEY WERE SO EXCITED TO BE A PART. THEY WERE HELPING DESIGN THE RESEARCH AND WHEN WE EXPLAINED THE SCIENCE WE HAD TO EXPLAIN A RANDOMIZED CONTROL TRIAL. WE EXPLAINED TO THE PARENTS WE CAN'T JUST ASSESS YOU BECAUSE THIS MAY BE BECAUSE OF WHAT'S HAPPENING AROUND YOU. AND WE DECIDED TO GIVE EACH CHILD A BAG TO PICK A LOLLIPOP AND AT THE END OF THE DAY WE'D FLIP A COIN TO DECIDE WHICH COLOR OF LOLLIPOP THEY WOULD CHOOSE AND DO SELF-REPORTING BUT IT WASN'T ENOUGH BUT LOOK AT PHYSIOLOGICAL OUTCOMES AND EXPLAIN TO THEM ABOUT HOW CORTISOL GETS IN YOUR HAIR AND A GOOD WAY TO UNDERSTAND HOW MUCH IT CHANGED AND THEY SAID YOU CAN GET FREE HAIRCUTS AT THE SAME TIME AND THEY WERE PART OF THE DESIGN AND THAT RAISED AWARENESS OF THE PROGRAM AND WHEN WE DID THE EXPERIMENTS AND SHOWED CORTISOL WAS REDUCED BECAUSE OF THIS INTERVENTION WE CAME BACK AND SHOWED THIS DATA TO THE CHILDREN AND PARENTS. IT'S COMING FULL CIRCLE GIVING THE SATISFACTION TO UNDERSTAND THEY HAVE CONTROL AND HAVE AGENCY AND CAN ASK SCIENCE QUESTIONS AND MAKES US DO BETTER SCIENCE. IT'S ALSO BUILDING CAPACITY. BECAUSE OUR RESEARCH TEAM WERE ALSO SYRIAN AND JORDANIAN. WE TRAINED TO CARRY OUT THE DATA COLLECTION. A DATA POINT WE WERE DOING WAS TAKING SELF-REPORTS AND MANY OF THESE SURVEYS WERE EITHER WESTERN OR REGIONAL. THE RESEARCHERS WERE GOING OVER THE QUESTION TO MAKE SURE THEY WERE CULTURALLY APPROPRIATE AND EVEN LOOKING AT THE RESULTS. AND NOT EVERY OUTCOME IS GOING TO COME OUT BETTER AND THAT MEANS YOU'RE DOING GOOD SCIENCE. IF EVERY TOOL YOU USED SHOWED THE PROGRAM WAS WORKING THEN SOMETHING MAY HAVE BEEN WRONG BUT THE COOL THING WAS THAT MY TEAM AND STAFF REALIZED THESE KIDS WERE DOING TRAUMA RELATED SURVEYS THAT WERE MAKING THEM FEEL TERRIBLE AND BAD BY REPLAYING THEM AGAIN AND ASKED CAN WE DO A SURVEY MORE POSITIVE AND DEVELOPED A RESILIENCE TOOL FOR SYRIAN AND JORDANIAN KIDS INSPIRED BY THE STAFF TEAM AND TAKEN UP BY THE SCIENTISTS AND MEDICAL ANTHROPOLOGISTS AND DESIGNED TO BE LOCALLY APPROPRIATE. WE THEN NOT JUST PUBLISH THE TOOL WE CAN USE ONLINE NOW BUT THE ISSUE IS WE NEED TO ALSO FOCUS ON THE POSITIVE. WE FOUND THE INTERVENTION THOUGH IT INCREASED RESILIENCE -- WE THOUGHT, IT DID NOT. THIS WAS A PROGRAM DESIGNED ACCORDING TO WESTERN MEASURES WHERE RESILIENCE WAS BASED ON THE INDIVIDUAL AND WE FOUND WITH THIS TOOL IS RESILIENCE IN THESE COMMUNITIES IS BASED ON FAMILY AND COMMUNITY. SO THE INTERVENTION WASN'T WORKING FOR THAT COMPONENT. BECAUSE OF THE RESEARCH THE WHOLE PROGRAM IS BEING REDEVELOPED TO INCLUDE FAMILIES AND COMMUNITY TO BUILD RESILIENCE. AND I WANT TO POINT TO LOCAL PEOPLE BEING INVOLVED IN THE DESIGN OF THE INTERVENTION AND HERE'S ONE DEVELOPED BY REFUGEES THEMSELVES CALLED WE LOVE READING AND IT'S NOT JUST ABOUT EDUCATION. IT HITS A NUMBER OF THINGS AND LOCAL PROGRAMS HAVE A MORE HOLISTIC APPROACH AND TARGET MANY MORE OTHER COMPONENTS THAN JUST MENTAL HEALTH AND EDUCATION. AND WE LOOKED AT INFLAMMATION MARKERS IN THE BLOOD AND CORTISOL IN THE HAIR AND THE FIRST TIME DONE UNDER HUMANITARIAN CONDITIONS WITH THE FULL SUPPORT OF THE LOCAL COMMUNITY. I'M GOING END WITH THE LAST COMPONENT. THIS IS THE RESEARCH TEAM THAT WORKED ON THIS. THIS WAS COOL ABOUT LOOKING AT THE IMPACT OF TRAUMA AND IT WASN'T THAT WE JUST LOOKED AT THE GENE INVOLVED IN THE IMMIGRATION LOOKING AT HOW IT IMPACTS TRAUMA PERCEPTION BUT CONNECTED IT BACK TO THE RESILIENCE AND BEHAVIOR AND WERE ABLE TO SHOW IN MALES WITH THE CERTAIN VARIANT OF THIS GENE HAD LOWER PERCENTAGE OF TRAUMA ACROSS TIME AND NOT JUST IN RESEARCH BUT TOOK IT FURTHER TO LOOK AT CAN THIS SIGNATURE OF TRAUMA BE TRANSFERRED ACROSS GENERATIONS. SO WE ASK A GOOD QUESTION WITH LOCAL SCIENTISTS AND COMMUNITY, WE COME UP WITH NEW QUESTIONS BECAUSE OF THE LOCAL KNOWLEDGE AND NOW LOOK CAN THE SIGNATURE OF TRAUMA BE TRANSFERRED FROM GRANDPARENT TO GRANDDAUGHTER AND DAUGHTER AND THIS QUESTION CAME UP IN THE RESEARCH IN THE LAST COUPLE YEAR. NOW, LAST MONTH A WHOLE REVIEW WAS ON THE ROLE OF EPIGENETICS AND PSYCHOLOGICAL RESILIENCE LOOKING AT THE POSITIVE NOT JUST NEGATIVE IMPACT. IN JORDAN WE WERE DOING CUTTING-EDGE RESEARCH WITHOUT KNOWING IT AND WE GOT A PLAN TO ANSWER THAT QUESTION WITH OUR SYRIAN REFUGEES AND I'LL END HERE. A MOVIE WAS DONE CALLED TERROR AND HOPE THE SCIENCE OF RESILIENCE AND TO EXPLORE WHAT WE'VE DONE IN COLLABORATING WITH THE FULL SUPPORT AND INTEGRATION OF THE COMMUNITY THEMSELVES. AND THE PARKER IS HOW WE TAKE SERVE THE CHILDREN IF WE'RE TO MOVE FORWARD. >> THANK YOU SO MUCH. >> THANK YOU. WE'LL HAVE QUESTIONS AT THE END AND HAVE BREAKOUT ROOMS WHERE YOU CAN HEAR MORE ABOUT HER STUDY AND WORK. I'D LIKE TO INVITE OUR NEXT PRESENTER TO SHARE YOUR SCREEN AND I'LL DO A QUICK INTRODUCTION. I THEY'VE HAD 11 YEARS OF EXPERIENCE. SHE'S THE ASSISTANT DIRECTOR FOR SEXUAL AND REPRODUCTIONIST -- PRODUCTIVE HEALTH. PRIOR TO JOINING THE SCHOOL SHE LED THE NEONATAL AND HEALTH PROGRAM IMPLEMENTED IN 14 DISTRICTS. DR. AKTAR FIRST BECAME INVOLVED IN 2018 WHEN THE WHO GOT INVOLVED WITH THE PROGRAM. I'LL TURN IT OVER TO YOU. >> I'D LIKE TO SHARE RESEARCH ON OUR PROJECTS. I'D LIKE TO SHARE THE RESEARCH AND BRIEFLY ABOUT WHAT THE EFFORT IS ABOUT. MANY KNOW BANG LADESH IS HOSTING A MILLION FORCIBLY DISPLACED MYANMAR NATIONALS. AND THEY HAVE TAKEN SHELTER AND THIS HAS CREATED A CONDITION IN BANGLADESH AND REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH SERVICES ARE CRUCIAL FOR THIS GENERATION ARE MORE THAN HALF ARE ADOLESCENT GIRLS. AND WE NEED TO MEET THE NEEDS AND THIS RESEARCH WAS A MULTI-COUNTRY PROJECT IN THREE LOCATIONS. IN BANGLADESH THERE'S EFFORTS TO UNDERSTAND THE SEXUAL HEALTH BEHAVIOR AND BARRIERS AMONG THE GIRLS AND WOMEN. AND THIS CAN HELP THIS POPULATION. TODAY, I'D LIKE TO HIGHLIGHT TWO KEY LESS OONS. THE FIRST IS UNDERSTANDING THE LOCAL CONTEXT AND THE COMMUNITY AND SOCIO-CULTURAL AND GEOGRAPHYING AND LOCAL POLITICAL CONTEXT. AND SOME SPENT ONE MONTH EXPLORING AND UNDERSTANDING THE CONTEXT AND STRATEGIES FOR THE RESEARCH BY VISITING SEVERAL TIMES AND TALKING TO THE PEOPLE AND STAKEHOLDERS TO IDENTIFY THE CHALLENGES. THAT HELPS TEAM TO FORM AND FAMILIARIZE THEMSELVES WITH THE CONTEXT AND COMMUNITY DYNAMICS WHICH ULTIMATELY HELP US IN PLANNING THE ARRANGEMENT. THE TOPIC SEXUAL AND REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH IS A CHALLENGING TOPIC WITH THE COMMUNITY. THERE'S HEALTH RELATED PERCEPTIONS AND KNOWLEDGE ARE IMPACT THE ORTHODOX AND [INDISCERNIBLE] AND THERE'S ISSUES OF SHAME AND UNEXPECTED TO DISCUSS OPENLY. EVEN THE SENSITIVE NATURE IN THE CONSERVATIVE CULTURE OF THE MENSTRUAL HEALTH AND OTHERS ARE A CHALLENGE FOR US. AND IT WAS CHALLENGING TO COLLECT INFORMATION ON SEXUALLY TRANSMITTED INFECTION. AND THEY WERE RELUCTANT TO ALLOW THEIR TEEN AGE DAUGHTERS TO TALK ABOUT THESE ISSUES AND WE ASKED QUESTIONS ON SEXUALLY TRANSMITTED INFECTIONS. TO CREATE A COMFORTABLE ENVIRONMENT WE MODIFIED STRATEGIES. WE FIRST INTERVIEWED THE WOMAN OF THE HOUSEHOLD AND WOMEN. LATER WE APPROACHED SOME MOTHERS AND AND IN SOME CASES WE HAD INTERVIEWS WITH HEALTH RELATED ISSUES AND THEY WERE RELUCTANT TO TALK ABOUT PREGNANCY AND OTHER TOPICS. WE WANTED TO IDENTIFY ONE OR TWO ISSUES AND THEN SELECTED MEN ON THEIR HEALTH. THAT ACTED AS A [INDISCERNIBLE] BETWEEN THE COMMUNITY AND THAT STRATEGY WAS FOUND TO BE VERY HELPFUL. THE COMPLEXITIES THAT INTRODUCE CHALLENGES AT DIFFERENT STAGES OF RESEARCH. ANOTHER KEY LESSON WE LEARNED FROM OUR RESEARCH WAS METHODS INVOLVING COMMUNITY AND LOCAL STAKEHOLDERS IN THE RESEARCH. WHEN CONDUCTING THE RESEARCH WE FOUND THAT THE RESEARCH DURING THE TIME WAS UNKNOWN AND THERE WERE FEW CONDUCTED AT THAT TIME. THEREFORE, THERE WAS LESS INFORMATION AVAILABLE. SO WE DECIDED TO TEST THE STRATEGY. WE CHANGED OUR STRATEGY. THEY BROUGHT IN GATE KEEPERS IN COLLABORATION WITH LOCAL STAKEHOLDERS. WE IDENTIFIED THE LOCAL COMMUNITY LEADERS WERE INSTRUMENTAL IN ENSURING ACCESS TO THE COMMUNITY. THE RESEARCH TEAM EXPLAINED THE PROGRESS OF THE RESEARCH AND IMPORTANCE OF UNDERSTANDING WOMEN'S REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH. AND INTRODUCED THE RESEARCH TEAM AND WE LOOKED AT ADMINISTRATIVE AND SAFETY MANAGEMENT AND WE INFORMED STAKEHOLDERS AND HAD RESEARCH LED BY WHO AND WE PRESENTED OUR RESEARCH FINDINGS AND SHARED THIS AND IT HELPED TO INFORM AND REACH. IF YOU WANT KNOW MORE ABOUT THE RESEARCH PLEASE GET A HOLD OF ME. THANK YOU. >> THANK YOU FOR THE IMPORTANT AND CHALLENGING WORK YOU'RE DOING. SHE'LL ALSO LEAD A BREAKOUT ROOM FOR DISCUSSION AFTER THE PRESENTERS. IT'S MY PLEASURE TO INTRODUCE OUR NEXT SPEAKER DR. OCASIO. SHE EX PLI FIEZ -- EXEMPLIFIES IN DOING WORK THAT TRANS FORMS OUR CAREER. SHE WAS COMPLETING HER Ph.D. WHEN HURRICANE MARIA HIT HER HOME AND BECAME INVOLVED IN THE HUMANITARIAN RESPONSE PEOPLE FOR PEOPLE FOR PUERTO RICO AND WAS INVITED TO CO-LEAD A RESEARCH STUDY SHE'LL BE PRESENTING ABOUT THE LIVED EXPERIENCE OF THE 2017 HURRICANES AMONG PUERTO RICO RESIDENTS AND DIASPORA AND FINISHED HER DEGREE AT THE UNIVERSITY OF RODCHESTER AND IS A POST-DOCTORAL FELLOW AT THOE EMORY ROLLINS SCHOOL OF PUBLIC HEALTH. >> HU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY. I'M DR. VEGA OCASIO AND TALKING ABOUT THE CASE STUDY IN PUERTO RICO ON CONDUCTING IMMERSIVE COMMUNITY-BASED ASSESSMENT OF POST-HURRICANE EXPERIENCE AMONG PUERTO RICANS LOOK AT THE MEDICAL ECOLOGICAL MODEL. I'LL INTRODUCE A LITTLE BIT THE CASE STUDIES AND THEN TALK ABOUT THE LESSONS LEARNED. IN SEPTEMBER, 2017 PUERTO RICO WAS HIT BY TWO DEVASTATING SEQUENTIAL HURRICANES, IRMA AND MARA RESPECTIVELY. HURRICANE MARIA IS CONSIDERED TO BE THE WORSE STORM TO STRIKE THE ISLAND IN DECADES. THE NATURAL DISASTERS EXPOSED AND EXACERBATED LONG STANDING SOCIAL, ECONOMIC, VARIETAL AND HEALTH CRISES IN THE COUNTRY AND GENERATED A HUMANITARIAN EMERGENCY DISRUPTING THE SYSTEM, COMMUNITIES AND CAUSING DEATH AND DESTRUCTION. THE IMPACT OF THESE NATURAL DISASTERS AFFECTED PUERTO RICO MOST NEGLECTED AND MARGINALIZED RESIDENTS WITH FEWER RESOURCES AVAILABLE TO HELP RECOVER AND REBUILD, MANY LIVE IN MORE RURAL AND COASTAL COMMUNITIES AND HARD TO REACH AREAS. TO GIVE AN EXAMPLE, MOST THE COMMUNITIES IN THESE AREAS SPENT AT LEAST A YEAR WITHOUT ELECTRICITY AND ALSO WATER. AND IT LEFT THEM WITHOUT FOOD, ELECTRICITY AND TO THESE DAYS PUERTO RICAN STILL RECOVERING FROM THE DISASTER. THE FOCUS OF THE CASE STUDIES WITH YOU TO DESCRIBE THE LIVED EXPERIENCES OF BOTH RESEARCHERS AND ALSO COMMUNITY MEMBERS TO DRAW RECOMMENDATIONS FOR RESEARCHERS WHO NEED TO CONDUCT RESEARCH IN THE TIME OF HUMANITARIAN DISASTERS. WE HIGHLIGHTED FOUR LESSONS LEARNED BUT TODAY WE'LL JUST TALK ABOUT TWO AND THERE'S THE IMPORTANCE OF APPLYING A MULTI DISCIPLINARY, CRITICAL, ECOLOGICAL FRAMEWORK AND INCORPORATING COMMUNITY PARTICIPATION IN EVERY STEP OF THE STUDY. THE CRITICAL ECOLOGICAL MODEL. WHAT IS THIS? BECAUSE OF THE NATURE OF THE DISASTER AND THE SOCIAL ENVIRONMENT NEEDED TO BE IMPLEMENTED TO CAPTURE THE ECOLOGICAL INTERACTION THAT LED TO THE DISASTER. THE CRITICAL MEDICAL ECOLOGICAL MODEL ALLOWS TO EXAMINE HUMAN INTERACTIONS WITH THEIR ENVIRONMENT IN A WAY THAT'S COMPREHENSIVE AND INCLUDES THE PHYSICAL AND BIOLOGICAL ELEMENT THAT ARE INVOLVED IN PROCESSES OR DIFFERENT OUTCOMES. AND THERE'S ECONOMIC, DEMOGRAPHIC CULTURE AND ASPECTS OF COMMUNITY SUCH AS HEALTH AND ACCESS TO HEALTH CARE WHILE ALSO ACKNOWLEDGING THE INTERDEPENDENT ROLE OF BIO-ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS AND THEIR ASSOCIATIONS WITH DISEASES. THIS HELPS IN THINKING HOW HUMANS ARE INFLUENCED BY THE MACRO AND MICRO SYSTEM AND SOCIAL CONDITIONS AND CHALLENGES. THERE'S ALSO LIMITED AUTONOMY TO RESPONSE TO SUCH AN EMERGENCY AND FACTORS SUCH AS WIND, RAIN AND INCLUDES THE IMMUNE SYSTEM RESPONSES, STRESS HORMONES AND MULTIPLE LEVELS OF HUMAN ORGANIZATION. AND IF YOU TWO TO OUR CASE STUDY THAT IS PUBLISHED ONLINE YOU'LL SEE A DETAILED TABLE OF ALL THE COMPETENCE YOU CAN FIND THAT INFLUENCE THE OUTCOME OF THE RESEARCH. IN THIS PROJECT, THE MODEL ALSO ALLOWS TO BUILD THE RESPONSE AND RESEARCH STUDY. IT ALLOWS THE TEAM TO GATHER FIRST-HAND QUALITATIVE EXPERIENCES FROM COMMUNITY MEMBERS AND ALSO IDENTIFY BROADER CONTEXT OF THE SITUATIONS THAT LEAD TO THE CONDITIONS, BEFORE, DURING AND AFTER THE HURRICANE CAN IMPACT. AND SECOND IS A COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIP OF THE IMPORTANCE OF INVOLVING COMMUNITY PARTNERS IN OUR RESEARCH. THE UNIVERSITY OF RODCHESTER HAS A LONG STANDING COLLABORATIVE HISTORY WITH PUERTO RICO FOR THE PAST 20 YEARS. WITH THE TEAM MOSTLY COMPOSED OF PUERTO RICAN DIASPORA SUCH AS MYSELF AND THE TEAM HAS WORKED WITH PROJECTS. THEY'RE RELATED TO MATERNAL HEALTH OR INFECTIOUS DISEASE, ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH AND THEY'RE INVOLVED IN QUALITATIVE AND QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH. AND THEY JOINED THE TEAM OF UNIVERSITY OF RODCHESTER TO FOL ACTIVITIES AND TRANSITIONED TO A COMMUNITY PEOPLE TO PEOPLE FOR PUERTO RICO AND TEAMS IN COMMUNITY THESE RELATIONSHIPS WERE IMPORTANT TO FORM OUR CASE STUDY AND TO BUILD THE RELATIONSHIP WE BUILT AMONG THE PAST YEARS OF EXPERIENCE IN PUERTO RICO AND ALSO USING THE PEOPLE TO PEOPLE OF PUERTO RICO ASSISTANCE IT ALLOWS TO BUILD TRUST AND USE THAT TRUST LATER TO DOCUMENT THE DISASTER EXPERIENCE IN PUERTO RICAN COMMUNITIES AND AMONG THE DIASPORA COMMUNITY TO RELOCATE TO THE UNITED STATES. AND THEY HAVE TRUST ARRIVING FROM THE RESEARCH S WHICH COMMUNITIES THROUGH THE ISLAND OR THROUGH SUBSEQUENT EXPERIENCE THROUGH THE RELIEF RESPONSE. AND DOCUMENTING AND VOICING THE EXPERIENCES TO IMPROVE THE STRESS OF THE METHODS AND TO CREATE A MUTUALLY SUPPORTIVE RESEARCH ENVIRONMENT. EACH PARTNER, EACH COMMUNITY LEADER ASSISTS US IN THE DEVELOPING OF THE RESEARCH QUESTION, THE LOGISTICS AND THE CONDUCT OF THE RESEARCH. WE ALWAYS AT EVERY SINGLE STEP OF THIS CASE STUDY, WE PRIORITIZE OUR PARTNERS. WE PRIORITIZE OUR COMMUNITY LEADERS AND COMMUNITY MEMBERS. THE RESPECT PROVED IT BE A LESSON AMONG RESEARCHERS BECAUSE IT PROVIDED A DEEPER UNDERSTAND OF THE IMPORTANCE OF CREATING A MEANINGFUL RELATION. BEYOND THE RESEARCH NEEDS AND BEFORE THE DISASTER EVEN OCCURRED. AND IF THE TEAM COMING FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF RODCHESTER WERE MOST MOSTLY PUERTO RICANS WE AND WE WERE BRING BACK OUR SKILLS AND OUR RESEARCH REFLECTS LOCAL EXPERIENCES AND THEIR VOICES. TO CONCLUDE THE CASE STUDY IS THOUGHT TO DESCRIBE FACTORS RELATED TO RESEARCH DURING HUMANITARIAN CRISES. THE CRUCIAL LESSON WAS TO UNDERSTAND THAT RESEARCHERS NEED TO BE SENSITIVE TO AND COLLECT MANY EVENTS AND TO ALLOW THE TEAM IN A SCIENTIFIC WAY TO EXPRESS THOSE EMOTIONS. WE HOPE THE DATA COLLECTED DURING THE RESEARCH WILL SERVE FUTURE STUDIES AS BEST PRACTICE FOR COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT AND TO ADDRESS THE DATA COLLECTION RAPIDLY POST DISASTER IN A WAY MULTI DISCIPLINARIRY. MULTI DISCIPLINARDISCIPLINARY. THANK YOU. >> OUR NEXT PRESENTER WILL BE DR. LAURA HOH. THE DIRECTOR OF STRATEGIC INITIATIVES AT THE INTERNATIONAL RESCUE COMMITTEE. SHE HOLDS DEGREES FROM HARVARD AND JOHNS HOPKINS SCHOOL OF NURSING AND THE BLOOMBERG SCHOOL OF PUBLIC HEALTH. SHE'S BEEN WORKING OVER TWO DECADE IN SOCIAL, COMMUNITY-BASED INTERVENTION RESEARCH AND FRAGILE AND CONFLICT-AFFECTED SETTINGS IN THE DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO, CHAD AND SIERRA LEONE. SHE SPENT SIX MONTHS IN TANZANIA AND NOW 14 YEARS LATER HAS BEEN WITH THEM SINCE. I'M INTERESTED IN HEARING FROM DR. HO WORKING AT THIS INTERSECTION. OVER TO YOU. >> THANK YOU. I'M GOING TO TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT DOING RESEARCH DURING EPIDEMIC RESPONSE. THERE'S BEEN SEVERAL EBOLA OUTBREAKS SINCE THE ORIGINAL OUTBREAK IN WEST AFRICA AND GOING BACK TO THAT TIME AND A LOT OF THINGS ARE BEING LEARNED AS WE WERE GOING. WE'VE SEEN DIFFERENT RESPONSE AND THERE'S MORE KNOWLEDGE HOW TO MANAGE RESPONSE. IN 2014 PEOPLE WERE STILL LEARNING I WENT TO SIERRA LEONE INITIALLY TO FORM A RESPONSE NOT TO DO RESEARCH AND HELPING THE MINISTRY OF HEALTH AND GAINED AN OPPORTUNITY TO DO RESEARCH AND THAT WAS WHEN EBOLA STRUCK. AT THE BEGINNING OF THE RESPONSE THERE WAS A LOT OF ATTENTION PAID TO THE EBOLA TREATMENT UNIT. AND MOST THE PEOPLE AND I HAD BEEN WORKING ON IMPROVING PREVENTION CONTROL BECAUSE WE'VE BEEN SUPPORTING THEM PREVIOUSLY FOR PRIMARY HEALTH CARE AND REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH AND THERE WAS A LOT OF RISK FOR HEALTH CARE PROVIDERS WHO WERE SEEING PREGNANT WOMEN COMING IN WHO MAY BE INFECTED WITH EBOLA AND WE WORKED WITH NGOs TO SCALE UP PREVENTION INFECTION CONTROL TO ALL THE DISTRICTS IN THE COUNTRY SO ALL THE STAFF WERE PREPARED AND LOOK AT THE SUPPORT AND HOW IS THIS AFFECTING HEALTH CARE WORKERS. AND WE WANTED TO LOOK WHAT WE WERE DOING AND HOW IT WAS ORGANIZED. AND WE HAD FOCUS GROUP DISCUSSIONS AND HEALTH COMMITTEE MEMBERS AND OTHER COMMUNITY MEMBERS AND THERE WAS AN OBSERVATION OF THE FIRST HALF MEMBERS IN WHAT WAS BEING DONE. AND THERE'S COMMUNITY MEMBERS THAT WERE GATHERED TO LOOK AT WE LOOKED AT PREVENTION CONTROL AND HOW IT US WELCOME BACK MANAGED AND TEST OUT THINGS FOR THE DATA COLLECTION. THIS DOESN'T APPLY ONLY TO RESEARCH DURING A PANDEMIC BUT THE NATURE OF THIS ACUTE ONSET OF CRISIS AND AND IT CAN HIGHLIGHT THAT [INDISCERNIBLE] AND THERE WERE DIFFERENT ASPECTS ACROSS PARTNERS. THERE'S A GROUP OF RESEARCHERS WE CONNECT EE EED WITH WHO WERE DOING RESEARCH AND HAD BEEN WORKING TOGETHER FOR SOME TIME AND HAD HAD EXPERIENCE ON PREVIOUS RESEARCH ON EBOLA IN UGANDA. A AND WE LOOKED AT TWO DISTRICTS AND WE WANTED A RELATIONSHIP WITH THE INSTITUTION AND THE RESEARCHERS AND I REACHED OUT TO INSTITUTIONS AND CONNECTED TO OTHER RESEARCHERS AND THERE WAS TIME TO DEVELOP THE RELATIONSHIP WITH THE RESEARCHERS TO MAKE CONNECTIONS. AND THERE'S CHALLENGES. AND BECAUSE OF THE TRAVEL RESTRICTIONS UNIVERSITIES WOULD NOT ALLOW TRAVEL TO SIERRA LEONE AND IT WAS ONLY BECAUSE THEY WERE BEING HOSTED THEY WERE ABLE TO TRAVEL TO THE FIELD DESPITE HAVING THE EBOLA RESPONSE AND THERE WERE A LOT OF CONCERNS AND THERE WAS PREVENTION CONTROL TO MAKE SURE WE WERE KEEPING HEALTH CARE WORKERS. THE OTHER THING IS ENSURING ENOUGH RESEARCHERS ARE AVAILABLE. AND WE ALWAYS HAD DEDICATED STAFF ON THE GROUND AND WE TRIED TO DO MOST THE WORK OURSELVES AP IT'S IMPORTANT TO HAVE FULL-TIME RESEARCH STAFF TO NOT RELY ON PROGRAM STAFF. AND REALLY BEING THOUGHTFUL ABOUT IS THE RESEARCH TAKING IN THE RESPONSE AND IT'S IMPORTANT TO LEARN FROM RESPONSES TO PROVE THEM. AND I'M GOING END IT THERE. AND JUST TO ACKNOWLEDGE THE ORIGINAL RESEARCH WAS FUNDED BY EHRHA AND AN NCBO. THANK YOU. >> WE NOW HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY FOR ABOUT 20 MINUTES OF QUESTION AND ANSWER. I WOULD INVITE EVERYONE TO PUT ANY QUESTIONS OR TOPICS YOU'D LIKE TO DISCUSS INTO THE CHAT AND I'LL MODERATE SOME OF THESE WITH OUR SPEAKERS. I WOULD ALSO ASK ALL FOUR SPEAKERS PUT YOUR CAMERAS ON NOW TO START A DISCUSSION AND THERE'S A QUESTION IN THE CHAT ABOUT YOUR WORK AND THE PROCESS BY WHICH YOU RAPIDLY ENGAGE MEMBERS AND IDENTIFY MEMBERS OF THE COMMUNITY ESPECIALLY IN THE HUMANITARIAN SITUATION AND NOT HAVING TIME TO BUILD RELATIONSHIPS. SAY MORE ABOUT HOW YOU DID THAT AND RECOMMENDATIONS FOR OTHERS. >> THE UNIVERSITY OF RODCHESTER HAS HAD AN ACTIVE COLLABORATION IN PUERTO RICO FOR 20 YEARS AND WE DO RESEARCH AND UNDERSTANDING EXPERIENCES. AND COLLABORATION IS GETTING TO THE WORK IS STARTED WITH THE PAST COLLABORATIONS. THE COMMUNITY LEADERS WE USED TO WORK IN THE PAST WHETHER FOR EXAMPLE WE HAD WORK IN UNDERSTANDING THE EXPERIENCES AND RESPONSES OF THE POPULATION CONCERNING THE ZIKA VIRUS. AND WE USED THE COLLABORATIONS AROUND THEY INTRODUCED THOSE TO OTHER COMMUNITY MEMBERS. AND -- >> THERE'S A QUESTION ABOUT RESEARCH IN CONFLICT AFFECTED AREAS. CAN YOU SAY A LITTLE BIT ABOUT HOW YOU DID THAT GIVEN THE STRONG BIOLOGICAL NATURE AND ISSUES RELATED TO GENETICS IN SAMPLES AND CORTISOL AND THINGS LIKE THAT. WHAT FEEDBACK DO YOU HAVE IN DOING THIS KIND OF RESEARCH? >> OTHER THAN THE TRADITIONAL IRB APPROVALS FROM THE VARIOUS UNIVERSITIES INVOLVED, WE ALSO MADE SURE THE GOVERNMENT KNEW WHAT WE WERE DOING AND TOOK APPROVAL IF THEM AS WELL AND MOST IMPORTANTLY WE EXPLAINED ALL THAT BIOLOGY TO THE ELDERS OF THE COMMUNITY AND PARENTS AND EVEN THE KIDS SO THEY CAN UNDERSTAND THE BEAUTY OF SCIENCE AND GIVING THEM THE AGENCY AND TRUST THAT THIS IS ALL GOING TO BE CONFIDENTIAL DE-ANONYDE-ANONYMIZED AND IT WAS BUILDING COMMUNICATION WAS IMPORTANT AND WE NEED MORE ETHICAL APPROVAL COMMITTEES AND NOT EVERYBODY UNIVERSITY HAS AN IRB APPROVAL BOARD AND EVEN SO MORE ARE ON THE BIOLOGY BIOMARKERS BUT HAVE LESS IF YOU'RE DOING SELF-REPORTING AND NOW BECAUSE OF THE ESCALATION OF THE REFUGEE AND SO MANY COMING INTO JORDAN HAVING THE ETHICAL APPROVALS FROM THEIR OWN LOCAL UNIVERSITIES, THEY JUST USE THOSE BECAUSE THERE'S NOTHING THAT EXISTS. ONE THING WE'RE DOING IS ADVOCATED THE MINISTRY OF SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT WHICH IS THE GATE KEEPERS TO ESTABLISH AN IRB COMMITTEE THAT DOES NOT JUST STOP RESEARCH BUT TO MAKE IT SMOOTHER AND MAKE SURE IT'S ETHICAL AND EVERYBODY KNOWS WHAT'S HAPPENING BECAUSE THERE'S A LOT OF REDUNDANCY. ONE INTERNATIONAL NGO IS DOING ONE RESEARCH AND THE OTHER IS DOING ANOTHER AND SOMETIMES DOING IDENTICAL THINGS BOUGHT NO ONE KNOWS BECAUSE THERE'S A NO OVER ARCHING MONITORING. TO STREAMLINE THE EFFORTS, TO BUILD ON EACH OTHER AND COMPLEMENT EACH OTHER AND DO BETTER SCIENCE, SUCH OVERSIGHT IS NECESSARY AND SOMETHING WE'RE WORKING ON WITH A BIG GRANT. >> AND THIS CAN HELP TREMENDOUSLY. WHAT ARE THE BEST WAYS TO IDENTIFY LOCAL PARTNERS AND INCENTIVIZE THEM TO ENGAGE AND WORK TOGETHER WHETHER IN SIERRA LEONE OR TANZANIA OR ANYTHING ELSE? >> OTHER SPEAKERS TOUCHED ON THIS IN TOUCHING ON THEIR RELATIONSHIPS WITH COMMUNITY PARTNERS. THERE'S PRINCIPLES AROUND PARTNERSHIP THAT TRANSLATE TO RESEARCH AND IT'S ABOUT RESPECT AND COMMUNICATION AND I THINK IN THE CASE OF EBOLA, EVERYONE WAS MOTIVATED IN HOW TO ADDRESS THE CRISIS AFFECTING MUCH OF THE COUNTRY AND EVERYONE WANTED TO DO WHAT THEY COULD TO ADDRESS THE SPECIFIC ISSUE. >> I'M INTERESTED IN TERMS OF YOUR WORK GIVEN HOW SENSITIVE IT IS, THAT YOU DISCUSSED IN YOUR PRESENTATION, WHAT DO YOU THINK THE KEY THINGS ARE TO BE ABLE TO BUILD THAT TRUST WITH THE COMMUNITY OR THE CITIZENS OF THE HOST COUNTRY ESPECIALLY GIVEN THE IDENTIFY AROUND WHO YOU ARE AS A PERSON IN RESPONSE TO PUTTING THE REFUGEE OR WHO YOUR COLLABORATORS ARE SO THERE'S ALSO PERSONAL DYNAMICS THAT PLAY OUT IN TRUST. COULD YOU SAY MORE ABOUT THAT? >> THANK YOU. IT HAS CREATED TENSION AND DISTRUST AT THE LOCAL LEVEL. SO WHEN WE CONDUCT OUR RESEARCH AT THAT TIME IT'S AN AREA THE REGISTRATION PROCESS WAS SO THEY WERE AFRAID OF THAT. THEY IT WAS DIFFICULT AND CHALLENGING TO MAKE THEM UNDERSTAND WHY SEXUAL AND REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH IS VERY IMPORTANT. AND WHAT WE DID IN OUR RESEARCH TO GAIN THE TRUST ACTUALLY TO ENTER THE COMMUNITY WITH THE HELP OF [INDISCERNIBLE]. WE FIRST APPROACHES AND EXPLAINED AND WHAT ARE THE HEALTH SECTOR PROBLEMS. AND UNDERSTAND THE PARTICIPANTS AND COMMITTEE MEMBERS AND THOSE DOING THE RESEARCH. IN SOME CASES THAT WORKED WELL. AND WE GAINED THEIR TRUST BUT UNFORTUNATELY SOME WERE NOT COOPERATING SO IT CREATED BARRIERS. IN THOSE CAMPS IT WAS VERY CHALLENGING FOR US AND IN SOME WE HAD TO POSTPONE THE DATA FOR A FEW DAYS FOR THE SITUATION TO SUBSIDIZE AND WE TOOK ANOTHER STRATEGY TO GAIN THE TRUST OF THE COMMUNITY. AS THE TOPIC WAS SEXUAL AND REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH AND THAT THE TIME THERE WERE CULTURAL THOUGHTS TO SEEK SERVICES. AND WE ACTUALLY INFORMED THE STAKEHOLDERS. IT WAS DIFFICULT TO ANTICIPATE WHERE THE CHALLENGES WOULD COME FROM. DUE TO THE SITUATION WE COULD COLLECT DATA ONE DAY AND NEXT DAY WE COULDN'T. THE TRUST ISSUES ARE COMPLEX AND THERE'S MULTI-LAYERS OF INTRINSIC FACTORS. THE RESEARCH IS IMPORTANT TO UNDERSTAND THE MAIN GATE KEEPERS AND HOW THE COMMUNITY CAN GAIN TRUST. >> IT'S A PERSON AFFECTED WITH EMERGENCY WHY SHOULD I PARTICIPATE IN A STUDY WITH EVERYTHING GOING ON AROUND ME SO ACCESS TO SERVICES SEEMS LIKE A GREAT BENEFIT. WE ALWAYS LOOK AT SUSTAINABILITY AND THE RESEARCH INFORMS SUSTAINABLE SERVICES AND YOU SPENT MONEY AND RAISED EXPECTATIONS AND NOT MADE A LONG STANDING IMPACT. BASED ON THE EXPERIENCE WITH THE READING PROGRAM OR OTHER EXPERIENCES, WHAT DO YOU SEE THE PIPELINE IS TO HOW RESEARCH CAN CONTRIBUTE TO SUSTAINABILITY? >> THAT'S A VERY IMPORTANT POINT. I DON'T LIKE TO USE THE WORD REFUGEES OR BENEFICIARIES BECAUSE IT MAKES A MIND SET OF I AM IN NEED OF SNOB SAVE ME. THOSE UNDERGOING THE CRISIS, WE NEED TO SHIFT HOW AS HUMANITARIAN AID TO THINK OF EMPOWERING THEM BEING THE GUIDE ON THE SIDE TO HELP THEM IDENTIFY THEIR CHALLENGES AND COME UP WITH THEIR OWN SOLUTIONS. BECAUSE IF THEY COME UP WITH THEIR OWN SOLUTIONS IT HELPS THE THOUGHT PROCESS. FIRST, IT HELPS THEM IN THEIR MENTAL HEALTH THEY HAVE AN OBJECTIVE AND GOAL AND KNOW BETTER THE ROOT CAUSES OF THAT PROBLEM AND CAN BUILD A SOLUTION THAT WORKS AND PEOPLE OWN BECAUSE THEY DEVELOPED IT THIRDLY, WHEN YOU CREATE SOMETHING YOU WANT IT TO SUCCESS BECAUSE YOU HAVE A STAKE IN IT AND BOOSTS RESILIENCE AND HELPS IN BUILD FUTURE TO REBUILT THEIR COUNTRY OR PLACE IN A COMMUNITY AND NOT TO BE OBSERVED AS BURDENS BUT AS ASSETS FOR THE COMMUNITY WHETHER IT'S IN THE MIDDLE EAST OR THOR REFUGEE GO TO EUROPE OR THE UNITED STATES. IT HAS TO BE A SHIFT OF PERSPECTIVE TO ALLOW THAT TO HAPPEN. AND ONE PROGRAM WAS DESIGNED BY REFUGEES FOR REFUGEES IN ADDRESSING THE CHALLENGE THAT CHILDREN DON'T READ FOR FUN AND THAT BECAME A MOTIVATOR. IF THE CHILDREN ARE MOTIVATED TO READ FOR FUN THEY'LL SEEK OPPORTUNITIES TO LEARN EVEN IN THE WORSE CONDITIONS WHETHER AT THE BODDER OR BECAUSE OF -- BORDER OR BECAUSE OF COVID THEY'RE OUT OF SCHOOL BUT THEY'LL SEEK THE TINTS AND THAT WILL STAY WITH THEM AND THEY'LL BECOME LIFE LONG LEARNERS. BUT THE COOL THING IS THOUGH IT STARTED AS A PROGRAM FOR AND ENDED UP A PROGRAM FOR MENTAL HAME IT ENDED UP -- HEALTH AND ENDED UP A PROGRAM FOR BUILDING ENTREPRENEURS AND LEADERS IN THE COMMUNITY AS THEY DISCOVER THEIR OWN POTENTIAL. IF I CAN DO THIS, WHAT ELSE CAN I DO? A AND WE URGE ALL INTERNATIONAL NGOs TO COME IN WITH SUPPORT BUT THE WHOLE THING HAS TO BE ORCHESTRATED, CREATED BY THE PEOPLE THEMSELVES FOR THEMSELVES AND JUST NUDGED ALONG WITH HEALTH. I'LL ADD SOMETHING ABOUT THE RESEARCH. ONE CAN COME IN AND DO RESEARCH TO SEE THEIR IMPACT AND WHAT IS HAPPENING RIGHT AND AGAIN, NOT ALL PROGRAMS ARE ACTUALLY RESEARCHED PROPERLY. JUST A FEW HERE AND THERE BECAUSE IT MAKES SENSE AND THE BUY IN FROM THE PEOPLE AND NOW FOR SCIENTIST TO COME IN AND STUDY THEIR IMPACT AND WANT IT SHOW AND LEARN HOW TO DO IT BETTER. THERE'S NO POWER DYNAMICS. IT'S A REAL TRUE COLLABORATION OF CREATING A BETTER FUTURE FOR EVERYONE. AND LASTLY, THERE ARE THINGS WE CAN LEARN WEST-EAST. THE PEOPLE LIKE IN WE LOVE READING WE ARE CREATE PROGRAM BEING EXPORTED TO DEVELOPED COUNTRIES AS WELL AND SHIFTING THE DYNAMICS OF EVERYBODY HAS SOMETHING TO GIVE AND CONTRIBUTE TO THE BETTERMENT OF HUMANITY. >> THANK YOU. IT'S AN EXEMPLAR PROJECT AND HOPE MANY TRY TO REPLICATE WHAT YOU'VE DONE. >> LAURA, I WANT TO DIRECT A QUESTION TO YOU GIVEN EXPERIENCE AS A RESEARCHER AND THINKING ABOUT LOGISTICS AND MANAGEMENT. IF INSTITUTIONS LIKE NIH CAN CONTRIBUTE TO CAPACITY BUILDING LIKE GRANTS MANAGEMENT, WHAT WOULD BE THE WAYS TO DO THAT? THINKING HOW IRC IS CONSTANTLY ENGAGING AND BUILDING MECHANISMS WITH PARTNERS AROUND THE WORLD, WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE. >> WHEN WE THINK OF CAPACITY SHARING AND IT'S A MUTUAL SHARING OFFEN IT'S SO SO MUCH ON THE TECHNICAL EXPERTISE BUT THE LOGISTICS IN HOW TO MANAGE THESE TYPES OF GRANTS. WE HAVE OCCUPATIONAL CAPACITY DEVELOPMENT WHICH MEANS WE CAN LOOK AT WHAT ARE THEIR NEEDS. AND IT'S NOT JUST ABOUT TECHNICAL THINGS BUT MAY BE ABOUT MANAGING HUMAN RESOURCES OR COMPLIANCE ESPECIALLY WITH COMMERCIAL CONTRACTS AS WE GET INTO THAT MORE EVEN IN THE RESEARCH AREA AND ONE THING THAT'S IMPORTANT IS DONORS PUT FUNDING INTO SUPPORT THE ACTIVITIES. RECENTLY THERE'S BEEN A CONTRACT FOR A LARGE CONSORTIA AND RESEARCH SHARING IS A LARGE PART AND TENDS TO BE MORE FOCUSSED ON THE RESEARCH PIECE BUT THE ORGANIZATIONAL CAPACITY PIECE IS IMPORTANT AND AS THE NGO IT GOES ACROSS ALL KINDS OF PARTNERSHIPS AND THERE'S TOOLS FOR FIGURING OUT WHO CAN SHARE WHAT STRENGTHS WITH EACH OTHER AND HOW WE TRANSFER KNOWLEDGE ABOUT SOME OF THESE COMPLIANCE THINGS. >> THE GAP IS SHRINKING AND WHAT IS THE ROLE OF CAPACITY BUILDING AND IT'S MORE ABOUT CAPACITY SHARING AND EXCHANGE WHICH GOES TO THIS. >> THERE'S A LOT OF GOING ON FOR NGOs IN CAPACITY LOCALLY BUT NOT SO MUCH FOR UNIVERSITIES. AND I'M SPEAKING AS A REFLECTION IN JORDAN WHICH IS PROGRESSIVE IN TERMS OF ACADEMIA BUT THE ADMINISTRATIVE, THERE'S NOT ENOUGH ADMINISTRATIVE TRAINING FOR HOW TO DEAL WITH THE GRANT. THEY MAY GET A GRANT BUT DON'T KNOW HOW TO DEAL WITH IT. ONE ADVICE FROM ME IS IF THE RESEARCH GRANTS THAT COME INTO YOUR LOCAL ACADEMIC UNIVERSITY TO HAVE A CONDITION THAT A PORTION OF THAT MONEY HAS TO GO TO BUILDING CAPACITY. AND THERE MUST BE A DEPARTMENT FOR GRANTS. IN MY UNIVERSITY THERE ARE NO DEPARTMENTS OR EVEN AN OFFICE FOR WRITING THE GRANT. I HAVE TO DO THE WHOLE BUDGET AND EVERYTHING. MAYBE THE WAY TO FORCE THE UNIVERSITY TO DO IT BECAUSE EVERYBODY DONATES MONEY AND RESPONSIBILITY AND SOMETIMES THERE'S JUST IGNORANCE AND MAYBE SOMETIMES OUT YOU PUT IT IN AND WE'LL GIVE YOU THE GRANT BUT YOU NEED TO COME OUT WITH AN OFFICE FOR THE GRANTS AND IF YOU'RE WAITING FOR THEM, NO ONE WILL DO IT SO IT COMES WITH THE GRANT. >> I THINK THAT'S IMPORTANT. I LIKE THAT. SO THANK YOU TO OUR FOUR SPEAKERS, VERY MUCH. THIS IS NOT THE LAST YOU'LL HEAR OF THEM. WE ARE GOING TO HAVE SOME BREAKOUTS NOW GO INTO TOPICS IN MORE DETAIL. I'LL TURN IT BACK OVER TO DESCRIBE HOW WE'LL BE GOING INTO THE BREAKOUT SESSIONS AND WHAT TOPICS WILL BE DISCUSSED. THANK YOU. >> AS BRANDON MENTIONED THAT'S NOT THE END OF THE PROGRAM. I DID WANT TO REMIND EVERYONE ATTENDING THAT TOMORROW WE'LL HAVE A SIMILAR SESSION FOCUSSED ON SOME OF THE CROSS-CUTTING THEMES THAT CAME UP IN TODAY'S DISCUSSION AS WELL. SO PLEASE JOIN US AT THE SAME TIME TOMORROW FOR A SESSION ON CROSS-CUTTING THEMES SUCH AS COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, PARTNERSHIP AND KNOWLEDGE TRANSLATION. IF YOU'D LIKE TO READ SOME OF THE PAPERS BY THE PRESENTERS TODAY OR THE OTHER AUTHORS IN THE COLLECTION, I JUST PUT A LINK IN THE CHAT TO THE FULL COLLECTION. GO TO THAT LINK AND CHECK OUT THE FULL RESEARCH STUDIES AND CASE STUDIES IN THAT COLLECTION. SO NOW I'D LIKE TO TAKE A MINUTE TO EXPLAIN HOW THE NEXT PART OF OUR PROGRAM WILL WORK AND HOW TO BREAK OUT TO SESSIONS AND MY COLLEAGUE WILL SHARE A SCREEN TO HELP UNDERSTAND HOW THE ZOOM BREAKOUT MODE WILL WORK. BASICALLY WITHIN YOUR ZOOM INTERFACE AT THE BOTTOM OF YOUR SCREEN YOU SHOULD SEE A BUTTON THAT SAYS BREAKOUT ROOMS AND A BUTTON IN RED WITH FOUR SQUARES. IF YOU DON'T SEE THAT CLICK MORE BUTTON AND SEE IF YOU SEE THAT AND IF NOT YOU MAY HAVE AN OLDER VERSION OF ZOOM AND WE RECOMMEND UPDATE YOUR ZOOM TO THE LATEST VERSION TO SEE THAT WHAT WILL HAPPEN IS YOU'LL CLICK ON THE BREAKOUT BUTTON AND SEE FOUR NAMES OF ROOMS COME UP. EACH ROOM HAS A NAME OF ONE OF OUR PANELIST AND A DISCUSSION TOPIC. BREAKOUT ROOM ON PARTNERING WITH LOCAL ACADEMIC INSTITUTIONS FOR SUSTAINABLE IMPACT. THE SECOND ROOM IS DR. AKTAR ON PARTNERING WITH LOCAL STAKEHOLDERS INCLUDING GOVERNMENT AND COMMUNITY LIEDERS AND THIRD ROOM IS DR. VEE GA O CAS YO EN EN GAINING COMMUNITY MEMBERS IN RESEARCH AND LAST ROOM IS LARA HO IN PARTNERING IN INGOs. AND OUR PANELISTS ALSO HAVE A FEW QUESTIONS TO HELP FACILITATE A DISCUSSION. WE'LL GO TO THOSE ROOMS IN JUST A MOMENT. A COUPLE TECHNICAL NOTES. WHEN YOU GET IN THE ROOM FEEL FREE TO TURN ON YOUR CAMERA AND MICROPHONE AND BE PATIENT BECAUSE IT MAY TAKE A MINUTE OR TWO FOR OUR ZOOM TO TRANSFER YOU TO THE BREAKOUT ROOM. I ALSO WANT TO MENTION YOU'LL HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO MOVE DIFFERENT ZOOM ROOMS. FEEL FREE TO MOVE BETWEEN ROOMS TO INTERACT WITH DIFFERENT SPEAKERS OR JOIN DIFFERENT DISCUSSIONS. WE'LL REMAIN HERE IF YOU HAVE ISSUES. AT THAT POINT, FEEL FREE TO GO AHEAD AND JOIN THE BREAKOUT ROOM OF YOUR CHOICE AND WE'LL GET STARTED WITH THOSE DISCUSSIONS IN JUST A MOMENT. THANKS, EVERYONE.