Grant Number:	5U2RTW010125-11 Interpret this number
Primary Investigator:	Berhane, Kiros
Organization:	Columbia University Health Sciences
Project Title:	Geohealth Hub for Research and Training in Eastern Africa - U.S.
Fiscal Year:	2026

Abstract We request the renewal of a tiered training program that equips research teams with the skills to advance the occupational and environmental health research and translational agenda in the linked U01 (1/2: GEOHealth Hub for Research and Training in Eastern Africa – Ethiopia). The training program will benefit the public health of the US population by increasing the capacity of the linked U01 team to assess health impacts of air pollution on diseases such as asthma, cardiovascular disease and cognitive outcomes. It also includes testing of new US-developed air quality monitoring technologies across a range of high exposures, which could not be done in the United States. This training will support the health impact assessments conducted in the U01 and the findings will inform policies that will benefit the public health of the US population. The training program will also benefit US trainees by providing opportunities to participate in novel research that is not carried out in the United States. The training program will build the competencies needed to address critical research themes emerging from comprehensive earlier Situational Analysis and Needs Assessments: indoor and outdoor air pollution, with a focus on children's and women's health; and occupational health, specifically heat exposure and worker productivity. Building on the current program, the proposed activities will advance translation of relevant scientific evidence around these pressing areas into impactful actions, both abroad and in the US. The training program will be implemented in collaboration with Addis Ababa University (Ethiopia), University of Nairobi (Kenya), and Makerere University (Uganda). Additional training partners will be in Rwanda, Ghana, and Cameroon, expanding beyond Eastern Africa. The U2R team includes experienced experts from Columbia University, Colorado School of Public Health, Colorado State University, and the University of Maryland who have records of collaboration with all partner institutions. Tiered training activities will promote enhanced research capacity—creating scientific leaders who can advance research that addresses issues in occupational and environmental health—and skills in policy translation, for national and regional contexts. In line with these goals and to ensure sustainability, the partner institutions will assume leadership for locally developed training. The Hub Scholar program will continue to use an array of training modalities, including visits to US institutions, creating a mechanism for shared learning benefitting US based trainees; in-country MS- and PhD-level training and workshops with co-advising by US-based mentors; and synchronous and asynchronous distance-based approaches - all linked to research conducted in the U01. We will continue to use innovative approaches to facilitate policy translation through real-world engagement with stakeholders. Evaluation will track participants' success in meeting their immediate development goals and in completing and expanding the proposed research programs. Through careful case studies, we will continue to examine the impact of trainees on policy indicators, such as implementation of new national air quality standards and guidelines, regulations, and changes in practices.