Invited Speakers

Andrew Prentice is Professor of International Nutrition at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine. He lives and works in The Gambia where he leads the Nutrition & Planetary Health Theme. For almost 50 years he has led nutrition research at the remote rural fieldstation of MRC Keneba. He directs a broad portfolio of discovery research aimed at developing more effective nutritional interventions for poor populations in sub-Saharan Africa. He currently devotes most time on 2 research areas: infection and anemia; and the nutritional programming of lifelong health through epigenetic changes in the very early embryo. He has played senior roles on many expert advisory groups and as a Council Member of IUNS and FANUS. He is a fellow of the UK Academy of Medical Sciences and was recently elected to the US National Academy of Sciences. He received the 2025 IUNS Lifetime Achievement Award.

Johann Carl Jerling is a Professor of Nutrition at the Centre of Excellence for Nutrition at the North-West University, South Africa. He holds a Ph.D. in Nutrition and has an established scientific track record with more than 70 peer-reviewed publications, focusing on a range of topics that include diet and haemostasis, micronutrient bioavailability, and nutrition and cognitive development.

Over time, his work has evolved from disciplinary research to a focus on leadership as a critical success factor of change in nutrition systems. He is the founder and Director of the African Nutrition Leadership Programme (ANLP), which has contributed significantly to leadership capacity development across Africa since 2002.

Johann has designed and led numerous international leadership development initiatives, working with governments and global platforms to strengthen leadership in complex, multi-sectoral environments. His contributions have been recognised through election as a Fellow of the International Union of Nutritional Sciences and the Nutrition Society Award from the Nutrition Society of South Africa.