Margaret Tiuchta (Chair), University College Dublin
International Relations Manager for the School of Medicine.
Before undertaking this role, she has been working in administrative and student facing roles across the University. Margaret successfully mentored, trained and managed a number of professional teams and individuals within the School of Medicine. She is an active member of the Athena Swan implementation plan for School of Medicine and a member of the EDI School of Medicine Committee. She is also the creator of International Relations Managers Forum across all Medical Schools in Ireland. Margaret is passionate about current issues in higher education with an in-depth understanding of international strategy development, student recruitment and budget management.
Dr Laura Harrington, McMaster University
Assistant Vice-President of the Faculty of Health Sciences
Laura is the key liaison between the University and the Faculty on administrative issues and leads the finance, human resources, capital, space, facilities and risk management portfolios. With a background in both science and business, Laura has been instrumental in several strategic projects for the University and Faculty. Laura is a McMaster alumna, with her PhD in chemistry (2004) and her Master of Business Administration (2017). She has been involved in several pan-University committees, and she is currently a member of the Joint Boards of Governors for St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton and its Research Institute.
Teresa Svarvell,
Lund University
Head of International Office
Teresa Svarvell has been at Lund University, Faculty of Medicine since 2011 in different positions. She has been an International Coordinator for many years working among others with the Nursing and Rehabilitation programmes.
As Assistant Head of the Education Unit she has been working with supporting the programme boards in administrative and legal issues. She re-joined the International Office as Head of Office in 2022. Her background is in language teaching in the Swedish Upper Secondary School.
Wang Xi,
Fudan University
International Manager, Office of Global Partnerships
Wang Xi received her Bachelor's degree in Archival Science from Shanghai University in 1995. She received a Master’s degree in British and American Literature in 2010 from Fudan University.
From 2000 to present, she has been working as an International Manager in the Office of Global Partnerships, Fudan University.
Rodrigo Andrés Figueroa Cabello,
Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile
Director of International Affairs
I’m a four-children, married psychiatrist specialized in traumatic stress. Before being a psychiatrist, I practiced emergency medicine in the Prehospital Emergency Medical Service of Santiago, Chile, and enlisted as a member of the fire corps. As a Medical Officer of the Chilean Airforce, I was deployed in Haiti in 2005, the 8.8 earthquake in Chile in 2010, and the entrapment of 33 miners underground after a mining accident in 2010. So far, my career has been devoted to giving support to those affected by violence, accidents, disasters, and disruptive situations. In 2018 I assumed as Director of International Affairs of the PUC Chile School of Medicine.
As the new Director of International Affairs, I have been devoted to promoting international cooperation of the PUC Chile School of Medicine. U21 is the perfect platform to enhance a first-class international cooperation with colleagues and friends from prominent universities of the world
Annie Temane, University of Johannesburg
Associate Professor
Annie Temane, PhD is an Associate Professor in the Department of Nursing at the University of Johannesburg. Her research focuses on mental health, ethics and coaching.
Irene Hui, The University of Queensland
Principal International Manager, Faculty of Medicine
Irene manages the Global Partnerships and International Student Recruitment functions at the Faculty of Medicine. She is passionate about building a global connected UQ community. Since joining the International Development Group in 2020, she has enjoyed bringing together health professionals and students from different cultures and disciplines through a wide range of U21 HSG activities, including the Medical Clinical Placement Programme and IPE International Student Challenge. Irene has also benefited firsthand from the U21 network through her education at the Universities of Edinburgh, Hong Kong and Queensland.
Verónica Fernández Castro, Tecnológico de Monterrey
Director, International Department
Verónica Fernández is originally from Monterrey, Nuevo León. She has a degree in Marketing with a degree in 1994, a Master's degree in Administration in 1999 and a Master's degree in Educational Technology in 2007 awarded by the Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey. After performing, in the marketing area, working for large national corporations ( the cement and commercial industries), she has devoted herself to Education initially at the Virtual University of the TEC, performing various functions such as Headquarters Coordinator external, Coordinator of multidisciplinary teams, independent consultant in instructional design for courses, professor and member of the chair of "innovation research in technology and education". Now, since 2016 she have being working at School of Medicine and Health Science of Tecnológico de Monterrey as Director of International Department.
Stan Ko, University of Nottingham
PhD (Leeds) PGDipEd (Sheffield) FHEA FIBMS
I started my scientific career as a trainee biomedical scientist in the Royal Army Medical Corps. After 12 years of service, I left the army and took up graduate research positions at University of Hong Kong, Institute of Cancer Research Fulham, University of Leicester then MRC Cambridge Laboratory of Molecular Biology before starting a PhD at the University of Leeds. During my PhD, the findings of intestinal epithelial cell tumorigenic changes induced by macrophages formed part of the evidence for the establishment of the ‘Tumour-associated macrophages’ concept. I left Leeds in 2013 and joined University of Central Lancashire to set up the biomedical theme of the new undergraduate medical curriculum. I joined Nottingham’s Medical School in 2018 teaching on cell biology, genetics and microbiology aspects of the graduate entry medicine and medical physiology BSc programmes at the Royal Derby Hospital Division.
Dr Erik Beune, University of Amsterdam
Dr Erik Beune is Policy Advisor Internationalisation and Assistant Professor, Amsterdam University Medical Centers, Faculty of Medicine. He has a background in Interdisciplinary Social Science and in Physiotherapy. He received his PhD from Amsterdam University Medical Centers at the Department of General Practice on culturally appropriate hypertension care among African origin populations.
He is involved in training for medical students at Amsterdam University Medical Centers about socioeconomic inequalities and diversity. His research is focused on the development, implementation and evaluation of culturally sensitive interventions (e.g. physical activity, obesity prevention, adherence to treatment recommendations) into public health and primary care, for disadvantaged groups in multi-cultural settings. Mixed methods and community based participatory research designs are main methods used.
Rebecca Reynolds, University of Edinburgh
Professor Reynolds is Dean International, College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine, University of Edinburgh, Professor of Metabolic Medicine, University of Edinburgh, Honorary Consultant Physician in Diabetes & Endocrinology, NHS Lothian and Deputy Head of the Centre for Cardiovascular Sciences, University of Edinburgh.
Her research focus is a life-course approach to prevention of non-communicable diseases. She has a) used healthcare-record data-linkage and cohort studies to document the consequences of a mother’s health in pregnancy on the health of next and future generations; b) identified underpinning mechanisms through experimental medicine studies embedded within clinical practice; and c) tested novel interventions to improve pregnancy outcomes in clinical trials.