News & Events

As part of its newly-launched “The Future of Health” conversation series, the St. Luke’s Medical Center College of Medicine-William H. Quasha Memorial, through its new Planetary and Global Health Program, will be holding the sixth episode entitled “The Future of Food, Nutrition, and Health” on July 7, 2021, Wednesday, 4:00-5:30 pm Manila time.

This particular episode is mainly co-presented with the Zuellig Family Foundation in commemoration of Nutrition Month this July.

The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the importance of good population health – including food access and optimal nutrition. However, the reality in the Philippines and in various parts of the world is that many people, especially children, still do not have reliable access to nutritious high-quality food and therefore suffer from different forms of undernutrition. Meanwhile, obesity and noncommunicable diseases continue to be on the rise, with the consumption of unhealthy food driving these pandemics. And as climate change and other types of environmental crises unfold, there is a growing discourse around transforming food systems to make them not just good for people’s health, but for the planet as well. What then is the future of food, nutrition, and health in the era of COVID-19 and beyond?

This new series, which adopts an innovative conversation format, convenes health leaders from the Philippines and abroad to not only examine the current health situation but also envision the future of health in the post-coronavirus era, with the hope of advancing health policy discourse in the Philippines and globally through a futures-oriented discussion.

For this sixth webinar, leaders from various sectors will share their diagnosis as well as their prognosis of issues around food systems, nutrition, and public health in the country and across the world. Panelists include:

• Dr. Corazon VC. Barba, Technical Adviser, Nutrition International-Zuellig Family Foundation Project and Professor Emeritus, Institute of Human Nutrition and Food, University of the Philippines Los Baños;
• Rogelio Garcia, City Nutrition Action Officer, Tacurong City, Sultan Kudarat and Region XII President, Nutrition Action Officer’s Association of the Philippines (NAOPA);
• Dr. Ranjiha Puskur, Representative to India and Gender Research Program Leader, International Rice Research Institute (IRRI);
• Dr. Alessandro Demaio, Chief Executive Officer, VicHealth, Australia and former Chief Executive Officer, EAT, Norway, and;
• Louise Mabulo, Chef, Farmer, Entrepreneur and Founder, The Cacao Project and The Culinary Lounge.

The conversation will be moderated by Dr. Renzo Guinto, Associate Professor of the Practice of Global Public Health and Inaugural Director of the Planetary and Global Health Program of the St. Luke’s Medical Center College of Medicine-William H. Quasha Memorial.

The event is open to the public. Register at http://bit.ly/stlukesfoodnutritionhealth.

The webinar series is also co-presented by the following organizations: Department of Health; Rappler; Harvard Club of the Philippines; University of Asia & the Pacific School of Law and Governance; Development Academy of the Philippines Graduate School of Public and Development Management; Management Association of the Philippines; Philippine Futures Thinking Society; Philippine Society for Public Health Physicians; Philippine Alliance of Patient Organizations; Center for Engaged Foresight; Health Justice; PH Lab; Likhaan Center for Women’s Health Inc.; Asian Center for Drug Policy; Health Care Without Harm; Civika Asian Development Academy; Southeast Asia Climate and Health Alliance; Healthy Philippines Alliance; and Asian Medical Students Association-Philippines.