Los Angeles and Washington, DC, September 29, 2025— The USC Annenberg Center on Communication Leadership and Policy (CCLP) at the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism, the USC Institute on Inequalities in Global Health (IIGH), and the Keck School of Medicine (KSOM) of USC are proud to announce the inaugural cohort of Senior Fellows in Global Health Communication Leadership. Four senior fellows from Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, and South Africa will work over the coming academic year on independent projects that use innovative communication strategies to amplify neglected global health issues.
The fellows have selected topics as diverse as aging, climate change, and sexual and reproductive health for amplification through storytelling, digital media, communications research, and other strategies. Their work will bring together
CCLP’s prestigious senior fellowship program with IIGH’s research, teaching, and policy engagement in global health. Since 2024, CCLP and IIGH, together with the African Center for the Study of the United States, have co-convened a series of public programs on the future of Africa’s health, featuring all-African panels of experts.
“We welcome the range of important projects selected by our inaugural cohort of senior fellows in global health communication leadership,” said Adam Clayton Powell III, CCLP’s Director of Washington Programs. “This new program builds on our longstanding USC Africa-U.S. Initiative by creating new platforms for Africans to communicate about Africa.”
The four fellows in the inaugural cohort are:
Dr. Yewande Alimi, One Health Unit Lead, Africa Centers for Disease Control (Ethiopia). Dr. Alimi will develop a virtual storytelling lab and digital advocacy toolkit to broaden and humanize understanding of the health effects of climate change.
Dr. Jepchirchir Kiplagat, Lecturer, Moi University (Kenya). Dr. Kiplagat will produce a multimedia communication campaign and advocacy platform that seeks to humanize the experience of aging with HIV.
Mia Malan, Founder and Editor-in-Chief, Bhekisisa Center for Health Journalism (South Africa). Malan will develop short videos on the impact of climate change on health, to be used in social media reels, a multimedia story, training materials, and a TV program.
Hon. Ben Malunga Phiri, MP, President of the Eastern and Southern African Parliamentary Caucus on Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights, Population and Development (Malawi). Phiri will develop a toolkit to address religious and cultural barriers to communicating about sexual and reproductive health in Malawi.
“We are proud to invest in African communication leadership at a time when the United States and other donors are signaling a withdrawal from the global health field,” said Jonathan E. Cohen, JD MPhil, Clinical Professor and Director of Policy Engagement with IIGH. “The projects supported by these fellowships are Africa-led in both subject matter and design, and will directly benefit their communities as a result.”
The inaugural cohort will work during the 2025-2026 academic year. As part of their USC affiliation, fellows will contribute to CCLP/IIGH public programming, receive student research assistance, and collaborate with USC faculty from diverse disciplines within journalism, communication, and global health.
For more information, please contact Adam Clayton Powell III (acpowell@usc.edu), Jonathan Cohen (jecohen@usc.edu), and Jung-Hwa (“Judy”) Kang (junghwak@usc.edu).
