People

As chair of the Gates Foundation, Bill Gates shapes and approves foundation strategies, advocates for the foundation’s issues, and sets the organization’s overall direction. Photo credit: Gates Notes LLC

Professor Deborah Prentice became the University of Cambridge’s 347th Vice-Chancellor on 1 July 2023. An eminent psychologist, Professor Prentice carried out her academic and administrative career at Princeton University, which she first joined in 1988. She rose through the academic ranks and took on administrative responsibilities of increasing scope, chairing the Department of Psychology for 12 years, serving as Dean of Faculty for three years, and then serving six years as Provost, with primary responsibility for all academic, budgetary, and long-term planning issues. Her academic expertise is in the study of social norms that govern human behaviour – particularly the impact and development of unwritten rules and conventions, and how people respond to breaches of those rules. She has edited three academic volumes and published more than 50 articles and chapters, and she has specialised in the study of domestic violence, alcohol abuse and gender stereotypes.

After reading Law at Newcastle and spending 12 months working as a graduate trainee in the Lord Chancellor’s Department, I joined the University in 1999. Since then I’ve worked in various Departments, starting in the Registrary’s Office and then moving on to become Faculty Administrator in Classics and then English. In 2010 I became Head of Corporate Governance in the first Community Services NHS Trust, helping to establish the Trust and supporting several mergers and a significant change management programme. During my time with the NHS I also undertook postgraduate study in business law, finance and governance, to become a Chartered Company Secretary and am now a Fellow of the Chartered Governance Institute of the UK & Ireland. In 2013 I re-joined the University becoming Deputy Director of the Institute of Continuing Education. I joined Churchill as Bursar in February 2017. My responsibilities include oversight of the College’s Amalgamated Investment Fund as well as the wider financial affairs of the College, governance, estates, operations and personnel.

Amy is the Director of Community Engagement & Family Interest Grants at the Gates Foundation in Seattle, Washington. In this role Amy manages the personal giving of the Gates family. Amy has worked at the Foundation for nearly 20 years, holding various positions including: Program Officer, Global Health (Family Planning & Reproductive Health), Special Program Officer to CEO Patty Stonesifer, and Program Officer for Special Initiatives, US Program. Prior professional experience includes: the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation (Population Program); Planned Parenthood Federation of America; and the Echoing Green Foundation. Amy received her BA from Mount Holyoke College (with Honors) and a MPH from Columbia University with a focus on Population and Family Health. She lives in Seattle with her husband and two children.

Mimi Gardner Gates was director of the Seattle Art Museum for fifteen years and is now director emerita, overseeing the Gardner Center for Asian Art and Ideas. Previously, she spent nineteen years at Yale University Art Gallery, the last seven-and-a-half of those years as director. She is a fellow of the Yale Corporation; Chairman of the Dunhuang Foundation; Chairman of the Blakemore Foundation; a trustee of the San Francisco Asian Art Museum; a trustee of the H. John Heinz III Center for Science, Economics and the Environment, and serves on the boards of the Yale University Art Gallery, the Northwest African American Museum, the Terra Foundation and Copper Canyon Press. Dr. Gates formerly chaired the National Indemnity Program at the National Endowment for the Arts and served on the Getty Leadership Institute Advisory Committee.

Usha Goswami CBE FRS FBA is Professor of Cognitive Developmental Neuroscience at the University of Cambridge and a Fellow of St John’s College, Cambridge. She is also founding Director of the Centre for Neuroscience in Education. After training as a primary school teacher, Usha decided to pursue research in child psychology, focusing on reading development and dyslexia. Most recently, she has been studying the neural mechanisms underpinning language encoding. Her research goal is to understand the brain basis of dyslexia and speech and language difficulties, to improve children’s experience of both diagnosis and remediation. She has received a number of awards for her research, including the British Psychology Society’s Spearman Medal and President’s Award and the Norman Geschwind-Rodin Prize for Dyslexia research, Sweden. Her work in developing the new discipline of neuroscience in education was recognised in 2019 by the Yidan Prize for Education Research, the largest international education research prize globally.

Jonathan Holloway, a U.S. historian, is University Professor at Rutgers University, the State University of New Jersey. He served as the 21st president of Rutgers from July 1, 2020, through June 30, 2025. He will become the President and CEO of the Henry Luce Foundation on October 1, 2025. Holloway’s scholarly work specializes in the post-emancipation United States with a focus on social and intellectual history. He is the author of several books, most recently The Cause of Freedom: A Concise History of African Americans. Prior to the presidency at Rutgers, Holloway was provost of Northwestern University from 2017 to 2020 and a member of the faculty of Yale University from 1999 to 2017. At Yale, he served as Dean of Yale College and the Edmund S. Morgan Professor of African American Studies, History, and American Studies. He received a bachelor’s degree with honors in American studies from Stanford University and a Ph.D. in history from Yale University. Holloway serves on the boards of the Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History and Culture, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the Institute of International Education. He is a Fellow of the Council on Foreign Relations.

Julia completed a PhD Engineering in 2012, which focused on innovative financing solutions for global health. Stemming from her PhD research at Gates Cambridge, she originated, raised and deployed the world's first $108mm Global Health Investment Fund with Lion's Head Global Partners and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. The purpose of the fund was to provide financing to advance the development of drugs, vaccines, diagnostics and other interventions against diseases that disproportionately burden low-income countries. Before coming to Cambridge, Julia qualified as a Chartered Accountant with KPMG's Canadian biotechnology practice and undertook projects for a variety of organisations including GAVI and WHO. During her time in Cambridge, Julia co-founded the African Innovation Prize, served on the University Council, and initiated and convened the Cambridge Global Health Commercialization and Funding Roundtable. Julia is currently based in London's White City biomedical campus as Co-Founder & CEO of Micrographia Bio, a deeptech bio company focused on applying machine learning to bioimaging to accelerate drug discovery.

Professor Bhaskar Vira, FAcSS, is Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Education, and Professor of Political Economy at the Department of Geography, a Fellow of Fitzwilliam College, and an Honorary Fellow of St John's College. Trained as an economist, Bhaskar's research focuses on the political economy of land-use and landscape level strategies, water use and management, forest management, biodiversity conservation, ecosystem services and human well-being, with a specific focus on South Asia. He works with a number of PhD students and early career researchers on his broad interests in the political economy of environment and development, and has collaborations with colleagues in both academic and non-academic institutions in South Asia and around the world. He is currently leading a major initiative on Decent Work and Youth Livelihoods. He has led large scale applied research projects that involve interdisciplinary conversations across the natural and social services, and contributes regularly to policy advisory processes across the science-policy interface.

Lord Simon Woolley is the Founding Director of Operation Black Vote, the internationally renowned campaigning NGO which he launched in 1996. OBV works with ethnic minorities in the UK to increase understanding of civic society, participation in Parliament and public life, and to promote equality and human rights. Formerly an Equality and Human Rights Commissioner, in 2018 Lord Woolley was appointed by Prime Minister Theresa May to create and lead the UK Government’s pioneering Race Disparity Unit. The Unit collects, analyses and publishes data on how crime, education and health are affected by ethnicity. Fostered and then adopted as a small child, Lord Woolley grew up on a council estate in Leicester, and left school without A-levels. He later returned to formal study via an access course and gained a BA in Spanish and English Literature at Middlesex University and an MA in Hispanic Studies at Queen Mary University of London. He is passionate about educational access and the importance of recognising and supporting marginalised potential. Lord Woolley has a track record of addressing representational imbalances, transforming institutions, and nurturing individuals. His cross-party and cross-sector work with Operation Black Vote has seen the number of MPs from black and minority ethnic backgrounds rise from 4 to 65 over the past two decades. In collaboration with Magdalen College, Oxford, he has been instrumental in the development of Pathway to Success, a programme designed to equip future BME leaders with the tools and knowledge required for senior leadership. Repeatedly recognised in the Black Powerlist, Lord Woolley is dedicated to promoting opportunity for underrepresented communities and individuals, and to building consensus across political and community lines. Simon Woolley was knighted in the Queen’s Birthday Honours in June 2019 and was created a life peer in December of the same year. He sits as a crossbencher in the House of Lords. He was awarded an honorary doctorate by the University of Westminster in 2012. He is a regular contributor to newspapers nationally and internationally on topics relating to equality, diversity and social justice.

Professor Eilís Ferran, FBA PhD is Professor of Company and Securities Law at the University of Cambridge, and the Tom Ivory Professorial Fellow of St Catharine’s College, Cambridge. Eilís has written extensively on UK, EU and international financial regulation, company law and corporate finance law. Her publications include Brexit and Financial Services (Hart Publishing, 2018 (co-authored), The Oxford Handbook of Financial Regulation (OUP, 2015, co-edited) Principles of Corporate Finance Law (OUP, 2014, co-authored) and The Regulatory Aftermath of the Global Financial Crisis (CUP 2012, co-authored). She has advised UK Parliamentary committees and served as an academic member of the Stakeholder Group of the European Banking Authority. She is a non-executive director of Euroclear SA/NV and is the Chair of its Nominations and Governance Committee. Eilís is a Fellow of the British Academy and an Honorary Bencher of Middle Temple. Between 2012 and 2015 she served as Chair of the Law Faculty. Between 2015 and 2021 she was the University's Pro Vice Chancellor for Institutional and International Relations. In that role, she was the academic strategic lead for staff and for significant international partnerships, led the modernisation of career paths, oversaw the University's response as an employer to COVID-19, and was instrumental in the establishment of the Strategic Partnerships Office.

Jade is the Director of Finance and Operations at Gates Cambridge, where she leads the Trust’s financial strategy, budgeting, reporting, and investment oversight, alongside responsibility for all operational functions. Her remit includes governance, risk management, compliance, and the delivery of efficient systems and processes to support the Trust’s mission. She is a member of the Trust’s senior management team and works closely with the Provost, Board, and key stakeholders. Prior to joining the Trust, Jade served as Head of Finance for the Department of Engineering at the University of Cambridge, having previously held the role of Finance Business Partner at the British Antarctic Survey, part of the Natural Environment Research Council. She is a Fellow Chartered Accountant and holds a PhD in Biological Sciences from the University of Cambridge.

Director of Governance and Compliance, University of Cambridge

Luisa joined Gates Cambridge in October 2015, having previously worked at Cambridge Judge Business School. She brings considerable student recruitment and admissions experience to the team. A graduate of Cardiff University, where she read European Studies, in her spare time Luisa enjoys reading, travel and is a regular Parkrunner on a Saturday. She looks forward to working with the diverse Gates Cambridge community.

Jack joined Gates Cambridge in January 2024, and brings a wealth of experience in community building within a higher education setting. Jack was a member of Darwin College during his PGCE, and also holds a BSc (Biology) and MRes (Risk & Disaster Reduction). In his spare time, Jack enjoys spending time with his young family, traveling, and playing golf.

Carlos joined Gates Cambridge in February 2019 after a nine year stint at the International Programmes Department of Pembroke College, Cambridge University, where he was the Senior Coordinator of the Pembroke-King’s Programme and the Tutor of a group of Spring Semester Programme students. In parallel to that he obtained his PhD on Gothic narrative conventions and Spanish literature of the fin de siècle in Anglia Ruskin University in 2018. In his spare time he enjoys reading crime fiction and he is a big fan of Ian Rankin’s John Rebus novels.

Arianna joined the Gates Cambridge Trust in March 2024, after working at Girton College Library as a Library Assistant since finishing her MPhil in Early Modern History in 2023. During her MPhil, she was a member of St Edmund’s College and an active member of the University’s Jiu-Jitsu club. Prior to moving to Cambridge, Arianna worked for English Heritage, and the St George’s, University of London, library. She graduated with a First Class Honours degree in History from Queen Mary, University of London, in 2021.

As well as working as Gates Cambridge's Communications Officer two and half days a week and as a freelance journalist. Mandy’s background is in education and health journalism. She was features editor of the Times Higher Education Supplement and also worked for the BBC as a senior broadcast journalist as well as for the writers' association International PEN as a researcher on freedom of expression issues.

Usha Virdee joined the Gates Cambridge Trust in March 2009 and holds the position of Accounts Officer. Previously she worked as an Accounts Administrator for Magdalene College. Usha studied Pharmacology at university. She enjoys travelling and visiting many different countries.

I was born in Eastern Canada and raised in rural Washington-State in the US. I completed my BS in Computer Science & Data Science, my BA in Sociology, and my MS in Computer Science & Engineering at the University of Washington. I had the honor of researching three different branches of Computer Science: (1) AI Bias, Ethics, Fairness, and Governance, (2) Commonsense Reasoning and development in AI, (3) Designing equitable pedagogies in Computer Science curricula, (and anything else that interests me in a manic spur of the moment). I have also had industry experience in AI development at Google Brain, DeepMind, and AI2. During my PhD in Digital Humanities at Cambridge, I hope to research how to effectively legislate AI governance in protection of intersectional identities from the Global South, especially in the Middle East, North Africa, and Central Asia. I hope to pursue fieldwork in critical areas that are most adversely-affected by the recent accelerated developments of AI, and research how it is that AI can be universally-regulated to avoid such outcomes. In deep gratitude, I am honored to join the Gates Cambridge community and continue to learn about the humanities’ intersections with technology from scholars of other fields.

Previous Education

University of Washington Computer Science & Engineering 2024
University of Washington Computer Science 2022
University of Washington Sociology 2022

"Can we print a functional intestine?" This was my first question when I saw how living cells were printed with a 3D printer. It's perhaps oddly specific, but due to Hirschsprung disease, a large part of my intestine was removed when I was a baby, and I spent countless days in the hospital. Therefore, I know how advances in science and technology can dramatically increase patients' quality of life, and these experiences formed my research interest. I first studied physics engineering at the RheinMain University, and then, during my Masters at the University of Freiburg, I fell in love with the field of biofabrication, which also led me to research at Brigham and Women's Hospital/Harvard Medical School. In Cambridge, I will investigate how we can utilize bioprinting to fabricate multi-organ-on-chip systems which potentially can be used for personalized medicine. Next to science, I am passionate about higher-education politics. I believe everybody, regardless of their social and economic background, should have the same opportunities for an education, which is simply not the case yet. I am incredibly honored to join the Gates Cambridge community and deeply grateful to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation for their support.

Previous Education

Albert-Ludwigs-Universitat Freiburg Microsystems Engineering 2022
Hochschule RheinMain (HSRM) Physics Engineering 2018

I grew up in Princeton, New Jersey, and studied Chemistry and Biology at MIT. My love for science and personal aspirations for motherhood inspired my dedication to advancing women’s health research by bridging critical knowledge gaps in the field. As an undergraduate, I engineered synthetic extracellular scaffolds to develop lab-grown models of the uterus, allowing us to uncover key insights into menstrual disorders such as endometriosis. I have since extended this work at the Wellcome Sanger Institute near Cambridge, integrating my tissue engineering expertise with cutting-edge genomics tools to generate novel models of human placental development. I am eager to continue this work during my MPhil and beyond, which I hope will revolutionise how we study enigmatic processes in reproductive biology and ultimately contribute to life-saving interventions for pregnant women worldwide. I am incredibly grateful for the support of Gates Cambridge and honoured to be part of a community of like-minded scholars committed to making a difference.

Previous Education

Massachusetts Institute of Technology Chemistry and Biology

The development of plants possessing greater resilience to pathogen infection is essential in the face of a global climate crisis and food security issues. However, the creation of these plants requires an extensive knowledge of a plants immune system and how it is activated by infection. It is well established that the interplay between the epigenome and transcriptome is critical across biological systems, from humans to plants, and this relationship is one I’ve found immensely interesting throughout my studies. In both my undergraduate and masters studies, I have witnessed first-hand how important analysing both the epigenome and transcriptome is to understanding complex processes from development to the immune system. My PhD would explore the epigenetic and genetic regulation of a plant’s immunological memory, and how we can use this knowledge to engineer plants which are more resistant to pathogen infection.

Previous Education

King's College London (University of London) Molecular Genetics
University of Cambridge Biological Sciences (Genetics)

Originally from Monterey, CA I completed my BS in Chemical Engineering at the University of California, Berkeley after transferring from Monterey Peninsula College. Throughout my educational career, I developed my passion for research in synthetic biology, mentorship, and outreach. At Cambridge, I hope to overcome contemporary uropathogenic Escherichia coli antibiotic resistance and other bacterial resistance towards UTIs through the discovery of novel alternatives to traditional beta-lactam antibiotics. After my PhD, I hope to continue research projects that will advance global health as well as increase diversity in STEM education.

Previous Education

University of California, Berkeley Chemical Engineering 2023
Monterey Peninsula College Chemical Engineering 2021

My curiosity for neuroscience grew from my love for mystery, recognizing the similarities between the intricate ‘whodunits’ I adored as a child and the body’s real life mystery: the brain. At Lafayette College, I pursued a dual degree in neuroscience and philosophy, investigating sensory hair cell function and death with Dr. Tamara Stawicki. There, I became interested in how the brain interacts with the sensory environment at the cellular level. My research with Dr. Lucas Cheadle at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory deepened my interest in the fascinating world of neuron-glial interactions in brain development, plasticity, and disease. During my PhD in Physiology, Development, and Neuroscience with Dr. Elisa Galliano’s lab, I will investigate how microglia drive neuronal plasticity in the olfactory system. Through this work, I aspire to uncover how diverse brain cells work together harmoniously and advance our understanding of glial activation in neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s disease. Additionally, I look forward to expanding my science accessibility outreach in the greater Cambridge community. I am honored and inspired to join the Gates Cambridge scholarship community.

Previous Education

Lafayette College Neuroscience

When my grandfather was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease, I was driven to deepen my understanding of human cognition to develop solutions that could help people like him. At The Johns Hopkins University, I pursued a B.S. in Biomedical Engineering, Applied Mathematics and Statistics, and Economics, developing interdisciplinary skills to achieve my goals. Through my research, I explored the largely unknown processes underlying human decision-making under uncertainty. As a Gates Cambridge Scholar, I will pursue a PhD in Engineering, building upon my past research by investigating how humans form internal representations of uncertainty and developing computational models that emulate such representations. Improving our understanding of how the brain tracks uncertainty is crucial to advancing our understanding of human cognition in health and disease, and will pave the way for developing trustworthy and energy-efficient artificial intelligence. While at Cambridge, I will also work to expand STEM outreach initiatives in under-resourced communities and lead dialogue on developing responsible AI regulatory policies. In my free time, I hope to work on my jazz improv skills on the piano!

Previous Education

Johns Hopkins University Biomedical Engineering, Applied Mathematics & Statistics, Economics 2023

“If brain regions were filed under literary genres, the frontal lobes would surely be found in the Fantasy section.” My journey with this fantasy began at University College London during my undergraduate studies in Neuroscience. I became particularly drawn to the complexity of emotions and the prefrontal cortex, a heterogeneous and intricate region that remain understudied. I was motivated to explore how abstract emotional experiences can be grounded in distinct patterns of prefrontal circuit activity. My curiosity also extends to situations in which these processes go awry, particularly in psychiatric disorders, where disruptions in the prefrontal cortex can have profound consequences. Now continuing this journey through my PhD, I intend to investigate the functional asymmetry between the left and right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, examining whether they differ in processing emotional valence and functional connectivity. Beyond theoretical research, I also hope to translate my findings into refined therapeutic strategies. In many ways, I feel I am charting my own story through the brain’s Fantasy section, seeking to decode some of its most intricate and compelling narratives.

Previous Education

University College London Neuroscience

I was born and raised in Chicago, Illinois, and received my B.A. in American Studies and History from Northwestern University. At university, I developed an interest in the history of American imperialism and the history of popular culture. I was particularly fascinated by the intersection of these fields–what could imperial themes in popular culture tell historians about how everyday people thought about their country’s empire? For my senior thesis, I explored ideologies of imperialism in popular American children’s texts from the first half of the twentieth century. I will continue this research at Cambridge, taking a comparative approach between American children’s books and classic British children’s texts. This research will shed light on the distinctive qualities of US imperialism at the popular level, not just the diplomatic one. I believe strongly in the impact of historical research, and have witnessed firsthand how a greater understanding of history can shape an individual's engagement with the world. After Cambridge, and with the support of the Gates community, I hope to not only share my research with the broader public but also strengthen a public commitment to historical engagement.

Previous Education

Northwestern University American Studies & History

I completed my undergrad in Behavioral Neuroscience at Northeastern University and my Master’s as a Fulbright grantee in Cognitive Neuroscience at Maastricht University in the Netherlands. I am currently an MD/PhD student at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences. During my academic journey, I have researched topics ranging from exercise’s effects on cognition to the neural mechanisms underlying social behaviors to quantifying inter-subject and inter-session fMRI variability. Inspired by the children I now help treat, I aim to build on my past research and clinical experiences by pursuing a PhD in Medical Science at Cambridge’s MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit. There, I will investigate the relationship between electrophysiological findings, clinical phenotypes, and connectivity profiles underlying neurodevelopmental disorders linked to synaptic vesicle cycling genes. My goal is to become a physician-scientist who bridges international neuroscience research and pediatric care, translating research into therapies that improve the lives of children with neurodevelopmental disorders. I am honored and excited to work with my fellow Gates Cambridge scholars to create meaningful, global change in our respective fields.

Previous Education

Northeastern University Behavioral Neuroscience
Maastricht University Cognitive Neuroscience
UofA for Medical Sciences Medicine

Born and raised in Hong Kong, I am very grateful to have had teachers who from early on nurtured my passion for historical inquiry. My research to date has centred around post-imperial projects of world-making and solidarity. As an undergraduate, I investigated postcolonial economic thought in the Caribbean, with a particular focus on Michael Manley, members of the New World Group, and advocacy for the New International Economic Order. During my MPhil, I returned to the topic of the New International Economic Order, examining how various British constituencies responded to this bold programme demanding global economic reform. At Cambridge, I intend to explore an adjacent instance of postcolonial ‘world-making’ by examining how networks and expressions of Afro-Asian solidarity in support of the Black Power movement emerged and evolved – both across the Caribbean and within the United Kingdom. I hope that this research will shed light not only on how intersectional solidarity manifests and operates, but also on the implications of such historical solidarity for contemporary anti-racism movements. I am honoured to be able to pursue this research as part of the Gates Cambridge community.

Previous Education

University of Cambridge Economic and Social History 2022
Harvard University History 2021

As a Biochemistry Master’s student, in India, I developed an interest in Plant Sciences. As a Research Fellow, in New Delhi, my research focused on understanding the evolution of photosynthesis, which is useful to plant breeders for varietal trait development and Food Security. Previously, in a collaborative research project at Cambridge, we identified that monocots graft at the root-shoot interface, this pivotal work overturned the long-standing consensus that monocots cannot graft. Further, I am working on translational impact of the grafting approach using perennial monocots, which will be useful in imparting disease resistance in economically relevant crops like banana and oil palms. During my Gates Cambridge PhD Scholarship, I will aim to integrate the most efficient version of photosynthesis, known as the C4 pathway in rice, using the newly developed technique of cereal grafting and hybridisation. Rice is a global food staple and converting rice to use C4 photosynthesis is expected to not only increase yields by 50% but will also enhance water and nitrogen use efficiency. My research vision is to carry out cutting-edge fundamental and translational research that will lead to real impact to farmers both in India and globally.

Previous Education

University of Lucknow Biochemistry 2010
University of Lucknow Botany/Chemistry/Zoology 2008

I am pursuing a PhD in Politics and International Studies at Cambridge University, researching European nuclear & human rights frameworks. I am a policy analyst with a background in technology, development, and security policy for leading think tanks, government, and international organizations. I hold a Masters in International Policy from Stanford University and Bachelors in Political Science from the University of California, Berkeley. My experiences include collaborating with the United Nations Innovation Cell to monitor open-source information from the War in Ukraine, consulting with the United Nations Development Programme in South Africa to increase technology access for marginalized youth, supporting the U.S. Department of State on nuclear nonproliferation initiatives, and researching at Stanford University on human rights institutions in Southeast Asia. I am also an avid researcher and author, publishing with organizations like the Stimson Center, Bulletin of Atomic Scientists, and Smithsonian Institution. I have represented my research at international conferences including at the International Atomic Energy Agency in Austria, Nehru Memorial Museum in India, and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in the U.S. Beyond my diverse policy interests, I co-founded a nonprofit that provided free career development and mental health mentorship virtually in over 35 countries during the COVID-19 pandemic. I am especially passionate about promoting youth literacy and education, and have tutored immigrant youth in core subjects, organized textbook donations for low-income schools, and became certified in TEFL to teach English as a foreign language. In my personal time, I enjoy exploring the world around me and can be found reflecting in nature or listening to music. I also enjoy learning new languages, creating art, and spending time with my dog, Rishi. To connect with me, visit www.linkedin.com/in/justjanani or www.justjanani.com

Previous Education

Stanford University International Policy/Security 2022
Diplomatic Academy of Vienna Exchange Program from Stanford 2021
University of California, Berkeley Political Science 2019

The social battles I fight today started in my late teens, facing a world that expected me to fail and sought to isolate me for embracing my true self. But I chose to carve my own path, embrace my identity, and defy societal expectations. My journey has always been about ensuring that marginalized communities don’t endure the same struggles I faced. With relentless determination, I graduated as valedictorian in college, earned the Humanitarian and the Dean’s Distinguished Leadership Awards at UChicago, was named an Obama Scholar, and earned numerous other accolades—now hanging on the wall of my childhood home in Bahawalpur, Pakistan. Through Gender Rights Watch (GRW), the organization I co-founded, I continue to advocate and conduct research to improve the lives of millions. The Gates Cambridge Scholarship opens yet another chapter in my mission for justice and equality. My PhD research, focused on the Economics of Gender, explores the determinants and consequences of labor market exclusion for trans and queer communities in South Asia. I dedicate this scholarship to my late Amajan (grandmother), who served as a motivation throughout my journey, and to the oppressed minorities I aim to uplift through this prestigious platform.

Previous Education

University of Chicago Public Policy
University of Chicago Social Sector Leadership

I hold a bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering from Nigeria, where I was introduced to the concept of energy efficiency and its significance in improving energy access. Pursuing an MPhil in Energy Technologies offered an opportunity to understand, in-depth, the existing energy systems and evaluation tools in green economies and further explore transferable lessons in energy transition applicable to developing countries like mine. Recognising the impact of energy research in buildings, especially in my country, I am committed to contributing original research that advances our understanding of building energy performance. My proposed PhD research aims to integrate Human-Centric Design principles with energy management systems to minimise operational energy use in buildings. My overarching goal is to leverage my expertise to design efficient and affordable solutions that improve demand-side management in the built environment and address energy access challenges for at-need communities. I am very excited about engaging in the innovative research environment at the EECI lab as a Gates scholar. Through my research endeavours, I aspire to contribute positively to the energy landscape, both in Nigeria and beyond.

Previous Education

University of Cambridge Energy Technologies 2024
Federal University of Technology Owerri Mechanical Engineering 2021

I am a researcher with interests in disaster management, sustainable architecture, accessible design, and disability justice. I completed my undergraduate education at Williams College (class of 2025), where I majored in geosciences with a concentration in coastal and ocean studies. My academic career is guided by a deep curiosity about design in extreme environments, including both physical extremes (climate change, natural hazards, resource scarcity, and geographic isolation) and social extremes (crisis and conflict zones, cultural marginalization, and economic disparity). My undergraduate thesis mapped the effects of inundation on critical infrastructure in hurricane-prone coastal Louisiana, raising questions about infrastructure resilience (or lack thereof) in disaster zones. My MPhil research will investigate the architectural evidence of disability in protracted displacement, focusing on how displaced disabled individuals adapt to “temporary” residences and resist spatial violence.As a Deaf and multiply disabled researcher, my lived experiences profoundly inform my work and my commitment to adaptive design solutions that challenge structural inaccessibility and disability exclusion.

Previous Education

Williams College Geosciences

I grew up in rural southern Illinois and earned a Bachelor’s and an MFA in Creative Writing while building a career as an author and lecturer. My work explores the cultural and historical dimensions of horticulture through public-facing scholarship.Over the years, I developed a deep passion for archival research. My work has taken me to archives across the U.S. and the United Kingdom, as well as various historical sites and societies, where I have explored the intersections of literature, botany, and environmental ethics.During my PhD in English, I am expanding this research by examining controlled environments—glasshouses, conservatories, and container gardening—in nineteenth-century popular literature. These spaces provide insight into ecological intervention, gendered interactions with nature, and the tensions between the wild and the cultivated. Through this research, I aim to contribute to discussions on the Anthropocene, environmental stewardship, and literature’s role in shaping human relationships with nature.

Previous Education

Columbia College Chicago Fiction Writing
Emerson College Creative Non-Fiction

I arrived at Cambridge in 2012 to pursue an MPhil in Environment, Society and Development to learn how best to negotiate environmental pressures when alleviating poverty through economic growth. I am particularly interested in developing policies that address both extreme poverty and biodiversity loss--two of the most critical challenges of our era. In 2013, I received a second Gates Cambridge Scholarship to pursue a PhD that addresses climate change policy and environmental justice, and received my PhD in 2017. Before Cambridge, I worked for six years directing international development and conservation initiatives for a coffee importing company. In this role, I raised over $4 million for livelihood improvement programs, some of which were featured at the Clinton Global Initiative and in National Geographic's Wild Chronicles series.

At the University of Cambridge, I studied the political economy of health. During my PhD, I studied the link between privatisation policies and increased alcohol-related mortality rates. I have worked in health and healthcare research since I completed my studies because I am passionate about health and healthcare and I believe that we can use our achievements in science and technology to improve people's health all over the world. As a Gates Cambridge alumna, I strive to make people believe they can create change and improve not only their own lives but also the lives of others.

Links

https://www.linkedin.com/in/darja-irdam-b76365158

I work as a management consultant with a focus on healthcare, mostly in life sciences. My work uses a variety of data sources to understand customer needs and improve my client's efforts toward patient centricity in the products and services they offer. I'm a passionate believer that analytics and human-centered design should inform strategy.

I also am a leader in my firm's internal think-tank, focused on tackling big topics that impact people's healthcare. We leverage a variety of data sources and market research from around to world to study topics in public health, healthcare disruption, digital transformation, and medical development.

Previous Education

Auburn University BS Microbiology/ BA German 2012

Dr. Dzeng is a sociologist and hospitalist physician conducting research at the nexus of sociology, medical ethics, palliative and end-of-life care, and human-centered design. She is an Assistant Professor at UCSF in the Division of Palliative Medicine and Social and Behavioral Sciences, Sociology program. She is an affiliated faculty member of the Philip R. Lee Institute for Health Policy Studies and a Senior Atlantic Fellow for Equity in Brain Health based at the Global Brain Health Institute at UCSF's Memory and Aging Center. She completed her PhD in Medical Sociology and an MPhil in Development Studies at the University of Cambridge at King’s College as a Gates Cambridge Scholar and was a General Internal Medicine post-doctoral clinical research fellow and palliative care research fellow at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. As an undergraduate and engineering graduate student at Stanford, she participated in the first class of Stanford's Biodesign Innovation program where she co-invented and patented a device to non-invasively cool the heart through the esophagus to prevent myocardial damage during a myocardial infarction (US Patent 7,758,623; 2010). In August, 2019 this patent was licensed to Attune Medical.Her current research examines the influence of neoliberalism and specifically the culture and ethical implications of neoliberalism on an institution's ethical priorities in the United States and United Kingdom and its effects on the provision of non-beneficial high-intensity life-sustaining treatments near the end of life in older adults with dementia and serious illness. This research builds on her doctoral research which explored the influence of institutional cultures and policies on physicians’ ethical beliefs and how that impacts the way they communicate in end of life decision-making conversations. Through a comparative ethnography employing semi-structured in-depth interviews and participant observation, Dr. Dzeng seeks to understanding the macro-, meso-, and micro-sociological factors (and in particular ethical decision-making climate) that contribute to potentially non-beneficial high-intensity care near the end of life. Using this ethnographic data, she will subsequently co-design a systems-level intervention using human-centered design to mitigate the culture of burdensome end-of-life care.

Previous Education

University of Cambridge MPhil in Development Studies 2008
Johns' Hopkins University MPH, Public Health, MD, Medicine 2007
Stanford University BS, Biology, MS, Chemical Engineering 2003

The focus of my MBA is international entrepreneurship, as well as its socially transformative role. Previously, I studied philosophy and law, and worked as a clerk to an appellate Justice, then as a diplomat and trade negotiator. I have very broad interests, so I'm looking forward to learning from the diverse range of talented, excited, people I will meet at Cambridge. I hope to collaborate with others to identify new opportunities at a university famed for its innovation in a wide variety of fields, including in applied sciences.

My research strives to unravel the complexities inherent in the pathogenesis of neurodegenerative diseases. With a passion for medical science, I moved south from Ohio to study biomedical engineering at the University of South Carolina, where I became increasingly intrigued by the human body as I worked on projects to provide elegant solutions to complex health problems. With a particular interest in Alzheimer’s disease, I utilized an array of biophysical techniques to investigate compounds found in diets around the world and their potential to suppress protein aggregation in the brain. My fascination with the extent to which small molecules influence disease led me to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, where I instigated the beginnings of a project aiming to detect chemical exposures in the workplace and improve safety therein. Returning to research in the molecular processes underlying protein misfolding disorders, I joined the Centre for Misfolding Diseases as a Whitaker International Program Fellow to work under the supervision of Professor Chris Dobson. I now continue to apply my chemical, biological, and computational background to further investigate the folding and misfolding of proteins associated with Alzheimer’s disease and related disorders. Outside of the lab, I enjoy introducing young students to the world of science through varied teaching and community outreach programs, as well as pursuing my interest in studying financial structures and markets.

Previous Education

University of South Carolina
University of Cambridge

Links

https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryangeiser

Science policy and administration expert with a focus on research and development management, quantum technologies. data management and international relations.

Links

https://www.visnea.org/team
https://www.linkedin.com/in/maria-pawlowska-a77ab334

I studied my PhD at the Institute of Astronomy, Cambridge from 2017 to 2021. On August 2025 I will start my role as Assistant Professor at Arizona State University. Here is the biography I submitted as an incoming Gates Scholar. My experience in life taught me not to conform with the stereotypes imposed by those in power. I believe that every person can achieve greatness and should be allowed to fulfill their dreams. Being a Mexican, I see science as the means to take down the walls built by those trying to divide us, empower people to make informed decisions and appreciate that all lives have equal value. My passion for science transformed into a deep curiosity to understand our universe and the conditions that allowed for our existence. My desire to understand the world took me from Mexico to Canada where I became the first person at the University of Calgary to finish two majors in physics and astrophysics in four years. Later, I joined Dr. Rachid Ouyed and his group to study the Quark Nova, its astronomical signatures and implications. Now in Cambridge, I am honoured to join Dr. Nikku Madhusudhan and his group in studying and characterizing the atmospheres of exoplanets. We are as close as we have ever been to understanding our place in the universe and the uniqueness of our existence. The quest for habitable planets thrills me and I believe that this excitement is shared with the rest of humanity. My path to becoming a Gates-Cambridge scholar has not been linear and I owe a large amount of gratitude to every person who believed in me and helped me become who I am. I hope this opportunity will allow me to inspire others to pursue their goals and create scientific opportunities in Latin America.

Previous Education

University of Calgary

Links

https://luiswelbanks.com