2024 Global Health Leadership Summit Program

Order of Events

Dr. Arun Dubey

Chief Academic O cer

Xavier University School of Medicine

Dr. J.G. Bhat

Chancellor

Xavier University School of Medicine

Dr. Linnea Smith

Founder

Amazon Medical Project

Dr. Richard Pestell VP for Academic A airs

Xavier University School of Medicine

Dr. Raul Mostoslavsky

Scientific Co-Director, The Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center

The Laurel Schwartz Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School

Mr. Ravi Bhooplapur

President

Xavier University School of Medicine

His Excellency

Mr. Dangui Oduber

Minister for Public Health and Tourism

Country of Aruba

It is with great pleasure that I extend my warmest welcome to each of you to the second annual Global Health Leadership Summit hosted by Xavier University Aruba.

This event represents an invaluable opportunity for us to come together, share insights, and collaborate on addressing the most pressing global health challenges of our time.

I would like to express my sincere gratitude to our esteemed guest speakers for their invaluable contributions to this summit:

Dr. Linnea Smith, Founder of the Amazon Medical Project, whose dedication to improving healthcare access in underserved communities serves as an inspiration to us all.

Dr. Raul Mostoslavsky, Scientific Co-Director of The Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center and The Laurel Schwartz Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School, whose groundbreaking research continues to drive innovation in the field of cancer treatment.

Mr. Dangui Oduber, Minister for Public Health and Tourism for the Country of Aruba, whose leadership has been instrumental in advancing healthcare initiatives in our region. Your expertise and insights are invaluable as we work towards building a healthier, more sustainable future for all.

I would also like to thank each of you, our attendees, for your dedication to advancing global health leadership. Your participation in this summit is a testament to your commitment to driving positive change in the world.

I look forward to a great day of learning, sharing, and growing together.

Warm regards,

Ravi

Bhooplapur

Ravi Bhooplapur President Xavier University Aruba

Ravi Bhooplapur has been President of Xavier University Aruba since 2008. He is a visionary leader and tireless philanthropist, having led many public and private humanitarian initiatives around the world.

Ravi worked in the Insurance industry for over 25 years. He is the Founder and CEO of Vision Financial Services and has worked with many hospitals and physicians worldwide. He also founded Gift of Life India, a project which began in 2001 and has been instrumental in saving more than 6,500 children by providing free heart surgeries to those su ering from congenital heart diseases in India and surrounding countries.

Ravi is a very active member of Rotary International. He served on the Rotary Foundation Finance Committee, which oversaw a budget of $150 million, held a 3-year term on the Rotary Investment Committee, which oversaw an endowment of $1.2 billion, and was a past Rotary District Governor from New York.

He currently sits as a Trustee at Old Westbury University, chairing fundraising for the university, is the Honorary Chair of the India Center at Je erson University, and is the former Chairman of the NAVIKA Foundation.

Ravi has received many awards throughout his career. He was the recipient of the "Ellis Island Medal of Freedom" in 2011, which is the highest civilian honor awarded for citizens with immigrant heritage. Last year, he was awarded an honorary doctorate degree from the prestigious Karnataka University for his outstanding philanthropy and

Dr. Bhat has been a liated with most major medical and educational institutions in the New York area for more than three decades. He is the co-founder of Atlantic Dialysis Management Services, a New York based dialysis chain providing high quality dialysis services to patients with ESRD. He is currently serving as director on Kidney Care Council, a Washington D.C. based industry group working with the government to improve quality of care for patients on dialysis. In recognition of his long and dedicated service to the people of New York State, Governor David Paterson appointed him to the prestigious New York State Public Health Council in 2010. He served as the Chairman of the Health Personnel Committee of Public Health and Health Planning Council from 2012- 2015.

Raul Mostoslavsky, MD

Dr. Mostoslavsky received his MD from the University of Tucuman, Argentina, and his PhD from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. He is currently the Scientific Director of the Massachusetts General Hospital Krantz Family Cancer Center, and the Laurel Schwartz Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School.

His laboratory is interested in understanding the role of chromatin dynamics in modulating cellular homeostasis, particularly the crosstalk between epigenetics and metabolism. In particular, his work has focused on the mammalian Sir2 homologue, SIRT6, a histone deacetylase. In early work, his laboratory identified SIRT6 as a key modulator of glucose metabolism, functioning as a histone H3K9 deacetylase to silence glycolytic genes acting as a co-repressor of Hif1alpha. This function appears critical for glucose homeostasis, as SIRT6 deficient animals die early in life from hypoglycemia (Mostoslavsky et al., Cell 2006; Zhong et al., Cell 2010). Later work demonstrated that SIRT6 functions as a major tumor suppressor in colon adenocarcinoma and skin cancer by inhibiting glycolytic metabolism (Warburg e ect)(Sebastian et al., Cell 2012; Kugel et al., Cell Reports 2015; Choi et al., Nat. Metab. 2021; Sebastian et al., Nat.Comm. 2022) and in pancreatic cancer by silencing Lin28b, a developmental gene (Kugel et al., Cell 2016). More recently, his laboratory identified the first human syndrome of SIRT6 deficiency (Ferrer et al., Genes&Dev 2018), and discovered SIRT6 as a driver of transcriptional pausing (Etchegaray et al., Mol Cell 2019). He also investigated roles for chromatin factors in DNA repair and early development (Toiber et al., Mol. Cell 2013; Etchegaray et al., Nat. Cell Biol. 2015; Martinez Pastor et al., Cell Rep. 2020). Overall, his laboratory has provided new insights into the relationship between metabolism and epigenetics, particularly in cancer, two fields that appear to crosstalk in a critical and previously unrecognized manner. His most recent studies are focused on the unique epigenetic and metabolic adaptations of cancer cells under nutrient deprivation, with a particular focus on metastatic disease (Linder et al., Nature Metab. 2023; Ferrer et al., in revision).

He has directed and taught The Chromatin Dynamics Course at Harvard Medical School for the past 10 years, he had organized numerous international Meetings, served as Permanent Member in the CMAD NIH Study Section, and has been funded continuously by NIH for the past 15 years. For his work, he received numerous awards, including the 2002 Science Amersham Prize, the MLSC New Investigator Award, the 2015 Glenn Award, the 2017 Raices Awards for International Cooperation, and the 2018 MGH Graduate Students Division (GSD) Mentoring Award.

Linnea Smith, MD

Born and raised in Wisconsin, with stints in Kentucky and Tennessee, Dr. Linnea Smith pursued her medical education at the University of Wisconsin - Madison, graduating in 1984. After completing additional training in Internal Medicine, she embarked on a career in a small group practice in Prairie du Sac. However, her life took a remarkable turn when she visited Peru in February 1990. What started as a vacation transformed into a lifelong commitment. Moved by the need for medical care in the Peruvian jungle, she returned armed with medical supplies and a leave of absence from her Wisconsin practice, dedicating herself to serving the local community.

Settling in Peru, she found a home and purpose with Explorama, a support system that provided lodging, transportation, and encouragement. Despite the challenges of limited resources and language barriers, she persisted in her mission to provide medical care to those in need. With the support of Rotary Club members, she oversaw the construction of a clinic along the Amazon River, ensuring better access to healthcare for the local population. Over the years, she trained local sta , including nurses and technicians, fostering a sustainable healthcare model for the community.

Her e orts garnered support from various quarters, including generous donations from tourists, Rotary clubs, and charitable trusts. Despite the uncertainties brought by the pandemic and her advancing age, she remains committed to her work, though now focusing more on supervising the Peruvian sta . Grateful for the opportunity to make a di erence, she continues to be inspired by the dedication and abilities of her team, while cherishing her time with loved ones back home.

Hon. Dangui Oduber

Upon completing high school in Aruba, Dangui Oduber migrated to The Netherlands to continue with his studies. He attended lnholland University of Applied Sciences in the city of Rotterdam, where he graduated in 2005 with a bachelor's degree in Economics, Management and Law. Subsequently his professional career started

at Dutch insurance companies "HDI Verzekeringen N.V" and "Nationale Nederlanden". After having acquired su cient international professional skills, Dangui Oduber returned to Aruba where he furthered his career working at SETAR N.V., Aruba's telecommunication company.

In 2013 Dangui Oduber decided to enter the political arena and joined the political party "Movimiento Electoral di Pueblo" (MEP), which is aligned with his political ideology, and is also the same party his father led for more than 25 years. During his first election he got su cient votes from the people to secure his seat in the Aruban Parliament.

Having proven himself in the Parliament of Aruba, in 2017 Dangui Oduber got elected to become the Minister of Tourism, Public Health, and Sports. Under his leadership Aruba's tourism performance not only thrived up until 2020 before the global pandemic hit, but he also led the tourism recovery plan that brought the country economically back on its feet. Additionally, Aruba has been recognized internationally for its unique and innovative approach regarding health credentials during the pandemic. As a young and driven Minister, Dangui Oduber is still currently representing the Aruban people as Minister of Tourism and Public Health since he was reelected in 2021 to serve during Cabinet Wever-Croes 2 period (2021-2025).

Dangui Oduber is the middle of three children of Aruba's former Prime Minister Nelson Orlando Oduber. He was born in Aruba on July 13, 1978 and is married with two sons. Growing up in a family with a long political history, he decided to become an Aruban politician as a member of the political party "Movimiento Electoral di Pueblo" (MEP), following his father's footsteps.

Board of Trustees

Mr. Ravi Bhooplapur President

Mr. Edwin Casey Chairman

Dr. J.G. Bhat Chancellor

Dr. P.K. Prahalad Trustee

Dr. Ravindra Kota Trustee

Mr. Frank Croes Trustee

Dr. Rachel Karmally Trustee

Dr. Akwasi Achampong Trustee

Dr. Faten Kerazan Trustee

Dr. Peter Urazov Trustee

Dr. Israel Posner Trustee

Dr. Amin Mahmoud Trustee Emeritus Former Deputy Prime Minister of Jordan

Dr. Obi Nwasokwa Trustee Emeritus

Dr. Anthony Shallash Trustee Emeritus