Wafaa El-Sadr, MD, MPH, MPA, founder and director of
ICAP at Columbia University in New York and an international expert in infectious diseases and public health, will kick off this year's Annual Meeting in Toronto on November 9.
"We are deeply honored to have Dr. El-Sadr as our opening keynote speaker," said President David Fidock, PhD, FASTMH. "ICAP is an extraordinary program, with over 2,500 staff supporting programs that focus on HIV and other health threats in over 40 countries worldwide, mostly in Africa. Under her leadership, ICAP has become an international leader in addressing various global health challenges with a focus on health systems strengthening. She is a gifted speaker, whose remarkable leadership provides key lessons for our Society’s collective mission to study, prevent and treat infectious diseases in the tropical regions of the world."
A Global Health Leader
Dr. El-Sadr is Executive Vice President for Columbia Global, University Professor of Epidemiology and Medicine, Director of ICAP at Columbia University and the Mathilde Krim-amfAR Professor of Global Health at the Columbia Mailman School of Public Health.
As the EVP for Columbia Global, she oversees a university-wide initiative that aims at advancing global research, programs and training. She founded and directs ICAP, a global health center at the Columbia Mailman School of Public Health that integrates research, education and training, program design, implementation, scale-up and evaluation. ICAP’s work is centered on health systems strengthening through partnership with governments, non-governmental organizations, civil society groups, academic institutions and communities.
Dr. El-Sadr received her medical degree from Cairo University in Egypt, a Master’s degree in public health (Epidemiology) from Columbia Mailman School of Public Health, and a Master’s degree in public administration from the Harvard University Kennedy School of Government. She was named a MacArthur Fellow in 2008, a member of the National Academy of Medicine in 2009, a fellow of the African Academy of Sciences in 2018, and a member of the Council for Foreign Relations in 2021.
_______________________________________________
This year's meeting is the first outside of the United States, taking place at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. ASTMH encourages attendees to register early and apply for their visas as soon as possible.
Please note: The Government of Canada requires that you register for the ASTMH 2025 Annual Meeting before we can provide you with a letter of invitation for visa purposes.