12 Global Food and Nutrition leaders to follow on social media

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Every year, malnutrition costs economies around the world trillions of dollars due to increased healthcare expenditure and loss of productivity. 

The COVID-19 global pandemic led to a severe and widespread increase in global food insecurity, affecting vulnerable households in almost every country. The WFP estimates that 272 million people are already or are at risk of becoming acutely food-insecure in the countries where it operates.

The pandemic has reinforced the need for a profound change in our current food systems to combat food insecurity and malnutrition. At a time when Nutrition is at the center of food policy decisions around the world, here’s a list of twelve remarkable global nutrition leaders who are leading the global response to reverse the damage caused by the pandemic. 

Dr. Agnes M. Kalibata

Dr. Agnes M. Kalibata

Dr. Agnes M. Kalibata serves as the president of the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) since 2014. Earlier she has served as the Minister of agriculture and animal resources in Rwanda. During this, she implemented policies promoting the use of science-based approaches in agriculture to increase food production and improve food security. 

She is the 2012 recipient of the Africa Food Prize. She is also a member of the Malabo Montpellier Panel of Agriculture and Food Security Experts.

In 2019, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres appointed Dr.Kalibata as his special envoy for the 2021 Food Systems Summit.

Follow her here: https://twitter.com/Agnes_Kalibata

Dr. Akinwumi A. Adesina

Dr. Akinwumi A. Adesina

Dr.Akinwumi “Akin” Adesina is a Nigerian economist with a Ph.D. in Agricultural Economics and the incumbent President of the African Development Bank. He previously served as Nigeria’s Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development and the Vice President of Policy and Partnerships for the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA). 

One of the most prolific names in the food and nutrition space, Dr. Adesina was named Forbes African Man of the Year for his contribution to Nigerian agriculture. In 2017, he was awarded the coveted World Food Prize. 

Follow him here: https://twitter.com/akin_adesina

Dr. Andreas Bluethner

Dr. Andreas Bluethner

Dr.Andreas Bluethner serves as the director of Nutrition at the Bills & Melinda Gates Foundation. He leads the foundation’s global Nutrition strategy, which includes innovation, private sector engagement, and large-scale food fortification. He is also responsible for BMGF’s cross-foundation collaboration on nutrition.

Earlier, Dr.Bluethner served as director of Food Fortification & Partnerships for BASF SE, a leading chemical company. Before that, he spent time working with the UN, the German government, and the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN).

Follow him here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andreas-bluethner-9401381a/

Basanta Kumar Kar

Basanta Kumar Kar

Basanta Kumar Kar, fondly Known as the “Nutrition Man” is an internationally acclaimed leader in food systems who has won numerous accolades through his work on good nutrition and sustainable development.
He was conferred with the most prestigious Global Nutrition Leadership Award (2019), ‘Hero of the Decade’ recognition for contribution to the Swachh and Swasth (Clean and Healthy) India(2019), Government of India’s recognition on contribution to the National Nutrition Mission (2018), ‘Transform Nutrition Champion’ Award for India and Bangladesh(2016) and Odisha Living Legend Award(2016)
He is providing strategic leadership and advisory services to a number of organisations including “The  Coalition for Food and Nutrition Security (India)”; the country’s largest nutrition coalition with a vision to achieve sustainable food and nutrition security for all. He represents numerous policy and advisory bodies of the government and nutrition platforms in the Asia region.

Follow him here: https://twitter.com/basantak

Prof. Corinna Hawkes

Prof. Corinna Hawkes

Prof. Hawkes is serving as the director of the Centre for Food Policy at City, University of London. She has over two decades experience of working with UN agencies on the development and design of food policies to support healthy diets, nutrition, and public health throughout the food system.

Earlier she has served as the co-chair of the Independent Expert Group of the Global Nutrition Report. In 2016 Hawkes was made Chair of the Global Future Council on Food Security and Agriculture of the World Economic Forum, sits on the London Food Board, the EAT-Lancet Commission on Healthy Diets from Sustainable Food Systems, and the Lancet Commission on Obesity. She is an advisor to The Food Foundation and on the Board of RUAF, the international NGO concerned with urban agriculture.

She has published widely on the role of food policy on diets and nutrition.

Follow her here: https://twitter.com/CorinnaHawkes

Dr. David Nabarro

Dr. David Nabarro

Dr. Nabarro is the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Food Security and Nutrition, and he is co-director and chair of Global Health at Imperial College London’s Institute of Global Health Innovation and strategic director of 4SD.

He has over 4 decades of experience in international public health as a community-based practitioner, educator, public servant, director, and diplomat, and also, he was awarded the World Food Prize in 2018. He is also a recipient of the Sight and Life Nutrition Leadership Award for his work in catalyzing sustainable change in global nutrition in 2012. 

He was appointed Special Envoy of WHO Director-General on Covid-19 in March 2020. In this role, he has played a leading role in the international response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Follow him here: https://twitter.com/davidnabarro

Jacqueline d’Arros Hughes

Jacqueline d’Arros Hughes

Dr. Hughes is a recognized leader in international agriculture research and management currently holds the post of Director General at ICRISAT, a CGAIR center that conducts agricultural research for rural development. She has received international fame for her work on plant health improving the livelihoods of some of the poorest communities.

Earlier she was the Deputy Director General-Research at IRRI and before that, DDG-R at the World Vegetable Center.

Follow her here: https://twitter.com/hughes_jackie

 Dr. Lawrence Haddad

Dr. Lawrence Haddad

He serves as the Executive Director of the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN). A British economist, Dr. Haddad completed his Ph.D. in Food Research at Stanford University. He was the founding co-chair and lead author of the Global Nutrition Report (GNR). Prior to that, he was the Research director at the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).

In 2018, the World Food Prize Foundation awarded Dr. Lawrence the World Food Prize for his: “relentless leadership and advocacy in mobilizing political will to make nutrition the focal point of development strategies”.

Follow him here: https://twitter.com/l_haddad

Dr. Shakuntala Haraksingh Thilsted

Dr. Shakuntala Haraksingh Thilsted

The winner of the world food prize 2021, Dr. Shakuntala HaraksinghThilsted is a global nutrition expert and a specialist in nutrition-sensitive approaches to aquatic food systems. Currently, she is the Global Lead for Nutrition and Public Health at WorldFish, which is a global CGIAR research center that has its headquarters in Malaysia. 

Thilsted’s trailblazing research on small native fish species in Bangladesh led to the development of nutrition-sensitive approaches to aquatic food systems at all levels, from the farm to food processing to final consumers. As a result, the diets for millions of the most vulnerable people were improved in Asia and Africa, the World Food Prize said on its website.

Follow her here: https://twitter.com/trinidad1949

Shawn K. Baker

Shawn K. Baker

Currently, he serves as the Chief Nutritionist for the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). Earlier Baker was the first director of nutrition at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

He chairs the USAID’s Nutrition Leadership Council that oversees the Agency’s Center for Nutrition in the Bureau for Resilience and Food Security and coordinates related efforts across USAID. USAID’s investments and engagement with partners are also guided by him to address malnutrition in developing countries.

Baker has over 30 years of experience in the global public health nutrition space, the majority of which is in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. He is also the recipient of the Global Nutrition Leadership Award. 

Follow him here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shawnkayebaker

Dr. Rolf DW Klemm

Dr. Rolf DW Klemm

Dr. Klemm is known for his astute work in researching and implementing nutrition programs. He serves as the Vice President of Nutrition at Helen Keller International. 

He is also a Senior Associate at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health (JHBSPH). Prior to this, he has served as the Technical Director of USAID’s flagship A2Z micronutrient project. 

 A trained nutritional epidemiologist, Dr. Klemm holds a Doctorate of Public Health from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. He has 30 years of experience in international public health, with expertise that spans nutrition efficacy and effectiveness research and program design, management, and evaluation.

Follow him here: https://twitter.com/RolfKlemm

Professor Tim Lang

Professor Tim Lang

Prof. Lang has been the Professor of Food Policy at City University London’s Centre for Food Policy. He has been active in research, advocacy, and advising governments and international agencies on food policy. His focus has been on how policy addresses the mixed challenge of food systems.

He has been a consultant to World Health Organisation, FAO, UNEP, and many leading global organizations. He also founded the Cambridge Forum for Sustainability and the Environment. 

He has authored and co-authored some of the finest publications on food policy including Atlas of Food, Food Policy, Food Wars, A Food Brexit: time to get real, and Feeding Britain, Our Food Problems and How to Fix Them. 

Follow him here: https://twitter.com/ProfTimLang