Birmingham and University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign announce new Global South Fellows

The University of Birmingham and the University of Illinois Urbana–Champaign have announced the latest cohort of researchers on their Global South Fellows Program.

Selected from over 1,400 applications worldwide, the 12 research fellows were announced at this week's Birmingham-Illinois Strategic Partnership Summit led by University of Illinois Urbana–Champaign Chancellor Charles L. Isbell, Jr and University of Birmingham Vice-Chancellor Professor Adam Tickell.

Part of the award-winning Birmingham–Illinois Partnership for Discovery, Engagement and Education (BRIDGE), the scheme brings high-performing early-career researchers to Birmingham and Illinois. They spend up to three months working on their research projects covering areas such as crime and inequality, climate-resilient food production, air pollution, nanoplastics in river estuaries, and cancer biomarkers.

The second cohort of Global South Fellows and their projects are: 

• Dr Renato Videira - FEARP-USP, Brazil - How educational investments affect inequality and violent crime among young individuals in Brazil.

• Dr Richard Kindong - University of Ebolowa, Cameroon - Helping Cameroon’s fishing communities adapt to climate change by improving fair, sustainable management of fisheries.

• Dr Ernest Bonah - University for Development Studies, Ghana - Sustainable and Climate-Resilient Food Systems in Africa.

• Dr Chinedu Uduma Ibe - University of Nigeria, Nigeria - Using new techniques to understand Nigeria’s granite rocks and their potential resources.

• Dr Shalom Ìbírónkẹ́ - Bowen University, Nigeria - Using theatre to help Nigerian universities improve education and opportunities for students with disabilities.

• Dr. Iram Amin - University of the Punjab, Pakistan - Exploring whether blood markers of liver cancer come from liver cells.

• Dr Deo Okure - Makerere University, Uganda - Helping African countries use satellite information to better understand air pollution and take faster, more effective action to improve air quality.

• Dr Ernest Bonah - University for Development Studies, Ghana - Sustainable and Climate-Resilient Food Systems in Africa. 

• Dr Monica Ituma - Chuka University, Kenya - Co-constructing Inclusive Pedagogies for Virtual and Multicultural Learning Spaces Through Collaborative Teacher Education Across the Global North and Global South. 

• Dr Emmanuel Dzisi - Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Ghana - Electrification Pathways for Informal Urban Transport Systems in the Global South.

• Dr Rosa Medina Riveros - Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Colombia - Democratizing English-Spanish Bilingualism through Translanguaging and Innovative Pedagogies in a Public School in Colombia. 

• Dr Felipe Delpino - Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein, Brazil - Machine Learning Approaches to Predict Multimorbidity and Health Service Utilization among Ageing Populations: A Comparative Analysis between Brazil and the United States.

• Dr Yog Raj Lamichhane - Pokhara University, Nepal - Exploring Writers’ Psychological Experiences: Comparison of Original Academic Writing Content with AI-Reconstructed Version in Writing Process. 

• Dr Claudio Alvarado Lincopi - Museo Chileno de Arte Precolombino, Chile - Collaborative Public Humanities, Intercultural Museum Practices, and Indigenous Urban Memory in Contemporary Latin America, with Particular Attention to the Relationship between Museums, Urban Space, Visual Culture, and Decolonial Methodologies.

• Mr Renato Vieira - School of Economics, Business Administration and Accounting at Ribeirão Preto (FEA-RP), University of São Paulo, Brazil - How Educational Investments Affect Inequality and Violent Crime among Young Individuals in Brazil.

Speaking at the Summit in Illinois, Professor Adam Tickell said: "We are proud that our Global South Fellowship Program is already developing mutually beneficial partnerships with researchers and their home institutions across the Global South.

"We welcome this new cohort of researchers whose work as part of the Program will undoubtedly enhance people’s lives by delivering innovative research in sustainability, education equity and global health."

The BRIDGE Signature Initiative provides seed funding for high-potential projects, supporting academics in producing high-quality research in areas such as teacher development, educational leadership, AI and education, educational partnership with communities, and enhancing education opportunities for underrepresented groups. It aims to enhance impact on policy and practice. 

Chancellor Charles L. Isbell, Jr, said: “The Global South Fellowship Program is one of the many ways that institutions like Illinois and Birmingham are deepening relationships in the Global South and preparing the next generation of global problem solvers. By advancing scholarship in critical areas that serve society, we ensure that the impact we leave on the world is one that will shape a better future for our descendants."

Professor Tickell also attended the University of Illinois Homecoming event - including an American Football game between the University of Illinois and Purdue University. This led to an exchange of 'football' shirts between Professor Tickell and Chancellor Isbell. The Birmingham Vice-Chancellor presented Chancellor Isbell with a Birmingham City FC soccer shirt, receiving an Illinois football jersey in return.

The University of Birmingham and Birmingham City Football Club (BCFC) share a strategic alliance creating opportunities in research, education and health, raise aspirations across Birmingham, and enhancing the city’s reputation on the global stage. American football megastar Tom Brady is a minority owner and advisor to BCFC.

Professor Tickell also attended the British Consulate General Chicago launch of 'Clean Energy and Equitable Transportation Solutions' - a new book based on the research of the Global Centre for Clean Energy and Equitable Transportation Solutions (CLEETS).

Funded by UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) and the National Science Foundation (NSF), CLEETS brings together the Universities of Birmingham and Cardiff with the Discovery Partners Institute, part of the University of Illinois System. The centre focuses on reducing emissions from road transport, using three regions as case studies: the West Midlands and South Wales in the UK, and the US Great Lakes megaregion.

Book co-author and UK lead Professor Jonathan Radcliffe, from the University of Birmingham, said: "Transportation is a vital part of everyday life, and critical for the economy and meeting the needs of communities. CLEETS is developing sustainable and equitable transportation strategies that help to accelerate the transition to zero-emission clean energy and connected vehicles, as well as modelling their impact on climate change."

CLEETS features an interdisciplinary team of academics with expertise in energy and transport demand, air quality and health, and local governance.