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Thinking Africa Lectures Series
Upcoming
Denis Regnier : Reimagining Medical Education in Rural Africa
Tuesday, February 18, 2025, from 4:15 PM to 5:30 PM in the Olmsted, Mandelle Hall.
The lecture will be live-streamed.
About the Lecture
Reimagining Medical Education and Healthcare in Rural Africa: Insights from the University of Global Health Equity, Rwanda
In this talk, Denis Regnier explores the innovative approaches to medical education and healthcare delivery pioneered by the University of Global Health Equity (UGHE) in Rwanda. Focused on transforming health systems in rural Africa, UGHE’s model integrates social medicine, equity, and community engagement to train the next generation of health professionals. Drawing on his experiences as Head of Humanities and Social Sciences and Lead Faculty for Global Health Equity and Social Medicine, Regnier will discuss how UGHE reimagines medical education to address structural determinants of health while ensuring that marginalized communities are at the center of healthcare design and delivery. This presentation provides insights into the challenges and opportunities of implementing equitable healthcare in resource-limited settings and highlights the transformative potential of a socially grounded medical training.
About the Speaker
Denis Regnier is an anthropologist and the Lead Faculty for Global Health Equity and Social Medicine and an Assistant Professor at the University of Global Health Equity (UGHE) in Rwanda. From 2020 to 2024, Regnier served as the Head of Humanities and Social Sciences at UGHE, where he led initiatives integrating the social sciences and medical humanities into global health education. His work centers on the intersections of inequality, health, global health delivery, and social justice, with a particular focus on rural and underserved communities. Regnier has extensive research and teaching experience in Madagascar and French Polynesia. He is the author of Slavery and Essentialism in Madagascar: Ethnography, History, Cognition (Routledge, 2021) and co-editor of Family Violence and Social Change in the Pacific Islands (Routledge, 2023) and Tensions et Modernités dans le Pacifique Insulaire: Relations Postcoloniales et Conflits Épistémiques (Maison des Sciences de l’Homme du Pacifique, forthcoming). With a strong background in interdisciplinary pedagogy and field-based research, Regnier’s contribution to medical education seeks to better address the structural determinants of health. His current scholarship and teaching emphasize community-centered approaches and the role of social science in advancing health equity.
Seeing Africa Film Series
PAST
Coconut Head Generation by Alain Kassanda (2023, 89 min; France, Nigeria)
Film Screening & Director Q&A- January 25, 2025 (Dewing Hall, 103)
About the Film
At Ibadan, Nigeria’s oldest university, students transform their Thursday Film Series into a vibrant space for dialogue and debate, even in a country where dissent is often met with punishment. Their screenings of works by John Akomfrah, Jean-Marie Teno, Med Hondo, and others serve as springboards for compelling discussions on corruption, gender roles, LGBTQ+ rights, colonialism, and more.
The film captures the students’ daily lives—playing soccer, cooking instant noodles, and bonding—while also spotlighting their pivotal role in nationwide protests against police brutality. These young Nigerians face systemic challenges like frequent blackouts, overcrowding, and consequences for standing up for their beliefs, proving they are anything but the “coconut heads” older generations dismiss them as.