Sections

Eva-Leanne is a Registered Associate Nutritionist having graduated from the University of Surrey with a BSc in Nutrition. She continued her studies across Europe studying at La Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, the University of Reading and Università di Torino under EIT Food’s Master in Food System Programme with a focus on personalised nutrition and functional foods. Eva is currently embarking on a new academic journey as a Doctoral Researcher at Queen’s University Belfast.

She has been a member of the Nutrition Society Student Section since September 2019, occupying the Communications Representative role. Eva looks forward to optimising her comms skills in her new role as student section chair, serving to enhance opportunities available to student members, increase their uptake and help student voices be heard.

Tala is a 2nd year undergraduate student at UCL studying Nutrition and Medical Sciences. She is looking forward to taking on the role of International Student Representative and working with the Student Section on future endeavours. 

First year PhD student at Abertay University in Dundee researching preconception nutrition. 

I have had an interest in Mother and Infant Nutrition and public health since my undergraduate degree, which I also studied at Abertay University. I have been a student member of the Nutrition Society since 2018 and really enjoy all the events and benefits being a member of the Nutrition Society brings. I am passionate about promoting the Nutrition Society within my university and in Scotland, as I feel it is a great way to enter and gain an understanding of the world of nutrition science, especially academia and research. 

Clíona Ní Chonnacháin (ANutr) is a PhD student in the UCD Institute of Food and Health, supervised by Professor Eileen Gibney. She graduated from UCD in 2021 with a first class honours in Human Nutrition (BSc). Clíona's research focuses on the effects of dairy intake on the gut microbiome and gastrointestinal health, working on various Food for Health Ireland projects.

Mairi is a PhD student, Registered Associate Nutritionist (AfN) and personal trainer studying at Abertay University. Her research involves investigating the concept of refined sugar addiction and its relation to obesity and public health. Mairi loves the events organised by the Nutrition Society and wanted to get involved in the committee and to promote it within her university. Mairi believes attending these is a great way to meet other professionals in the field of nutrition and learn more about this fascinating topic.

Anya is registered associate nutritionist, with a bachelors in biological sciences and master’s in public health nutrition from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. Anya has worked in several research areas including AgroSciences and cancer metabolism, however since completing her MSc in 2023, her research interests are now more focused in nutrition for public health. She is currently midway through her second year of her PhD at Kings, which is investigating the impact of potatoes on health, under the supervision of Prof Wendy Hall and Prof Sarah Berry.

Anya is eager to expand her network and is passionate about connecting all students within the nutrition society by leading its activities section.

To follow

Umair Shabbir is a PhD researcher within the Nutrition Innovation Centre for Food and Health (NICHE) at Ulster University. His research investigates the role of B-vitamins in gut modulation and their impact on the immune function and ageing brain in health and disease as a part of the Trinity-Ulster-Department of Agriculture (TUDA) study.

As an Irish Section Student Representative for the Nutrition Society, Umair is keen to empower students to thrive and make a meaningful impact in the field of nutrition

Joanne is in the third year of her PhD, as part of the FoodBioSystems Doctoral Training Partnership, with the University of Surrey and University of Reading as her primary and secondary institutions respectively.  Having graduated from the University of Surrey in 2017, Joanne worked as a Dietitian in both adult and paediatric-based teams before returning to academia in 2022.  Joanne's research is based around iodine, and includes purchase and laboratory analysis of foods to milking cows. 

Dr Alexandra Mavroeidi, is a Senior Lecturer in Physical Activity for Health. She has worked in the field of nutrition, exercise/sedentary behaviour, and bone health for the past 22 years. She had been involved in several studies looking at the relative contributions of sunlight, diet, and physical activity on vitamin D status in women living in the north of the UK.

She became a state registered dietitian in 2000 and moved to Aberdeen the following year to undertake her MSc in Sports Nutrition. In 2002, she joined the Osteoporosis Research Unit and carried out her PhD looking at the effect of habitual physical activity on the bone mass of older postmenopausal women. She stayed in Aberdeen as a Lecturer in Exercise/Human Physiology at the University of Aberdeen until 2015.

In 2015 she relocated to Glasgow due to family circumstances, where she undertook a 1-year lecturing position with the University of Glasgow as the level 3 BSc (Hons) Physiology co-ordinator. In 2016 she joined the Ageing Well Research Group at the Glasgow Caledonian University as a Research Fellow.

In 2018 she joined the Physical Activity for Health Group at Strathclyde University, as a Senior Lecturer. She is an active member of several professional societies including the Royal Osteoporosis Society, American Society of Bone and Mineral Research and American College of Sports Medicine. She was part of the scientific panels reviewing the vitamin D clinical guidelines on behalf of the Royal Osteoporosis Society (2019), and updated the current CMO’s UK Physical Activity Guidelines for Older Adults (2019). She has been a committee member of the Scottish Section of the Nutrition Society since 2017, and as Secretary since 2022.

In 2023, Alex moved back to Glasgow Caledonian University to assume the role of Head of Department for Occupational Health and Nutrition & Dietetics. 

I am Technical Manager of the Institute of Aquaculture at the University of Stirling with responsibility for 30 members staff. I have overall responsibility for the technical operations, and provision of resources necessary to ensure a standard of service which delivers on the University Strategic Plan

I have 36 years experience within the university since joining the Department of Biological Science in 1983, where I was trained in electron microscopy, histology, and tissue culture and worked in laboratories to supervise students in their practical classes. After obtaining an HNC in Biological Science, I joined the Natural Environment Research Council Unit of Aquatic Biochemistry under Professor J. Sargent in 1987, as a Grade 3 technician, and after promotion through the grades to Chief Technician in 1993, transferred to the Institute of Aquaculture in 1998.

I have participated in management training programmes including ILM5. I have also been a member of University Court as a representative of the staff assembly and participated in a number of University, Faculty and Divisional committees.

I have been appointed by the University Secretary as the Institution Lead in support of our participation in the Technician Commitment Initiative (TCI).

I have 30+ years experience with a wide variety of state-of-the-art analytical techniques. I possess a wide range of skills that provide advice and analysis to the aquafeed, fish farming and processing, agricultural and food producing sectors. I have also developed a novel blood test for the measurement of the omega 3 fatty acid status of human blood samples.

Working with Professor J.R. Sargent, Professor J.G. Bell, Professor D.R. Tocher and Doctors M.V. Bell and R.J. Henderson, I have 80 publications in scientific journals to which I have contributed both technically and intellectually.

First year PhD student at Abertay University in Dundee researching preconception nutrition. 

I have had an interest in Mother and Infant Nutrition and public health since my undergraduate degree, which I also studied at Abertay University. I have been a student member of the Nutrition Society since 2018 and really enjoy all the events and benefits being a member of the Nutrition Society brings. I am passionate about promoting the Nutrition Society within my university and in Scotland, as I feel it is a great way to enter and gain an understanding of the world of nutrition science, especially academia and research. 

As a Research Impact Officer with the University of Aberdeen, I work with a great team of stakeholders to maximise the potential of the Diet and Health Inequalities (DIO Food) project, funded through the Transforming the UK Food System for Healthy People and a Healthy Environment SPF Programme, delivered by UKRI. My role is to improve communication with stakeholders, including patients and the public, by making research outputs more accessible.

Dr James Dorling is Lecturer in Human Nutrition at the University of Glasgow. His research is broadly focused on three areas: (1) the impact of nutrition and physical activity interventions on obesity-related endpoints and biomarkers of aging; (2) the regulators of appetite and eating behaviours; and (3) the changes in appetite and eating behaviours in response to health interventions.

Mairi is a PhD student, Registered Associate Nutritionist (AfN) and personal trainer studying at Abertay University. Her research involves investigating the concept of refined sugar addiction and its relation to obesity and public health. Mairi loves the events organised by the Nutrition Society and wanted to get involved in the committee and to promote it within her university. Mairi believes attending these is a great way to meet other professionals in the field of nutrition and learn more about this fascinating topic.

Prof. Alex Johnstone is based in The Rowett Insitute, at the University of Aberdeen, where she is Theme Lead for Obesity, Nutrition and Disease. She is a UK registered Nutritionist with the Association for Nutrition. Alex manages a research team to successfully lead high calibre research activities, in collaboration with internal and external colleagues. She is actively engaged in organising and delivering teaching/learning excellence and the translation of the team’s innovative science to a range of stakeholders, while also achieving high impact, through sustained knowledge exchange activities, and having real commercial and community benefit. Alex has experience in leading UKRI and EU funded multi-disciplinary projects in nutrition, with emphasis on obesity and energy balance and currently leads the £1.6M ‘FIO Food’ research grant, funded from UKRI Transforming Food Systems, which is research on Food Insecurity and Obesity, with emphasis on the retail food sector.

Ms Caroline Litts is an AfN Registered Nutritionist (Nutrition science) and lecturer in Nutrition and Food science at Robert Gordon University (RGU).

Caroline graduated from RGU with a First-class Honours in Nutrition, and The University of Aberdeen with an MSc in Human Nutrition (distinction). Caroline worked for The World Obesity Federation, Community Food Initiatives Northeast, and The Rowett Institute before joining RGU.

Caroline now lectures at RGU on the undergraduate course BSc (Hons) Food, Nutrition and Human Health and the online postgraduate course MSc Public Health Nutrition. Her research interests include obesity, its’ associated comorbidities and the role of nutritional components in development and management of these diseases

To follow

Dr Carrie Ruxton PhD, lead consultant at Nutrition Communications, has over 20 years' experience as a registered dietitian and nutrition expert. Dr Carrie Ruxton is an award-winning dietitan, health writer and TV nutritionist.  With a PhD in Child Nutrition and over 100 published articles on diet and health, Carrie has a strong grounding in nutrition science. She has an understanding of the food industry and its important role in the nation's diet. 

As well as helping companies to develop healthy, innovative food and beverage products, Carrie regularly appears in magazines and newspapers, and has a number of radio and TV credits (Channel Four news, BBC Three's 'Honey We're Killing the Kids', Radio Scotland, Five Live, BBC Belfast). 

Carrie has worked with a wide range of organisations including the NHS, Food Standards Agency, major food companies, ingredient manufacturers, the European Commission, PR agencies and national newspapers.  

Carrie's expertise in communicating clear, evidence-based nutrition and diet messages has involved her in many different projects all over the world. 

Dr Suzanne Zaremba is an AfN Registered Nutritionist (Nutrition Science) and Lecturer in Nutrition at the School of Medicine, University of Dundee. Suzanne teaches nutrition predominantly on the University of Dundee MBChB and University of St Andrews Scottish Graduate Entry Medicine MBChB curriculums. Her research interests include appetite, primary school food provision and optimising diet and lifestyle to improve health outcomes, particularly for cancer prevention. Suzanne is a Fellow of the Scottish Cancer Prevention Network.

Professor Alison Gallagher is currently Head of Doctoral College (Coleraine/Magee) at Ulster University.

With over 90 peer-reviewed publications (h-index of 30), Alison contributes to the research conducted within the Nutrition Innovation Centre for Food and Health (NICHE) at Ulster. Her research interests resonate within the area of obesity and include development of risk factors for disease, low-energy/non-nutritive sweeteners and their potential impact on health, physical activity and health (including implementation of lifestyle interventions at key stages across the lifecycle).

After completing her BSc Hons Human Nutrition and PhD at Ulster, Alison worked as Research Fellow (University of Strathclyde), then Research Officer (Northern Ireland Young Hearts Project) before returning to Ulster as Lecturer in 1999; being promoted to Senior Lecturer and subsequently Professor of Public Health Nutrition. A Registered Nutritionist (Public Health), she was the first Fellow of the Association of Nutrition (FAfN) on the island of Ireland. Alison is a passionate advocate for the European Nutrition Leadership Platform (ENLP), having participated in the ENLP seminar in 1997 and being involved with this international leadership programme ever since, and is the current Chair/President of the ENLP Board (www.enlp.eu.com). Alison is also a member/Vice-chair of Northern Ireland Chest Heart Stroke Scientific (NICHS) Research Committee, expert member on the Scientific Advisory Panel on Sweeteners supported by the International Sweeteners Association (ISA), member/Chair of the Editorial Advisory Board of the Nutrition Bulletin and a member of the UK Nutrition and Health Claims Committee (https://www.gov.uk/government/groups/uk-nutrition-and-health-claims-comm...).

An active member of the Nutrition Society, Alison Chaired the Scientific Committee for the Federation of Nutritional Sciences (FENS) 13th European Nutrition Conference (www.fens2019.org) and was appointed as Editor-in-Chief for Proceedings of the Nutrition Society in 2021.

Dr. Emma Feeney is a Lecturer / Assistant Professor in UCD’s Institute of Food and Health, where she co-ordinates modules in Human eating behaviour, Food Ingredients, and Sensory science, and was recently nominated for a Teaching and Learning Award at UCD in recognition of her teaching practice.

With a background in Genetics, Human Nutrition, and Sensory Science, Emma’s research interests and publications span a range of aspects including sensory evaluation, taste and appetite measurement, nutritional intake assessment, dairy food consumption, sodium reduction, food bioactives, and food structure.  She has overseen human intervention studies in a number of clinical and research settings, and has experience in dietary assessment of both children and adults, presenting her research at numerous national and international conferences.

In addition to her teaching and research commitments, Emma is an Associate Editor at BMC Nutrition, and a First Editor at the British Journal of Nutrition.  

Caomhan is a Lecturer in Dietetics within the School of Biomedical Sciences (SoBMS) at the Coleraine campus of Ulster University. He was awarded a PhD in Human Nutrition in 2016 having previously graduated from Ulster University with a BSc (Hons) Dietetics (2012) and BA (Hons) Irish History and Politics (2001).

Having worked in various roles within the Northern Ireland Civil Service (2001 – 2007), a passion for nutrition and health led to a change of career in 2008 and Caomhan graduated with a BSc Hons Dietetics (1st Class Honours) in 2012, winning the prestigious Complete Nutrition Student of the Year award in his final year. He has been registered as a dietitian with the Health and Care Professions Council since 2012 and worked as a clinical dietitian at the South West Acute Hospital within the Western Health and Social Care Trust before returning to undertake a PhD at Ulster.

Combining his expertise in dietetics with analytical biochemistry, Caomhan completed his PhD as part of an international collaboration between Ulster University and the National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) in the Netherlands. His PhD project focused on developing a novel biomarker approach to assessing exposure to low-calorie sweeteners leading to numerous opportunities to disseminate his findings and present on the topic of sweeteners and health to fellow researchers, clinical practitioners, and policymakers nationally and internationally.

Caomhan, who is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy, became Course Director of the BSc (Hons) Dietetics programme at the Coleraine campus in 2018.

His teaching interests include:

• Assessment of Nutrition Status
• Nutrition support
• Inter-professional education

Caomhan’s research interests primarily lie in the wider area of obesity and related metabolic disorders with specific interests within this that include:

• Low-calorie sweeteners (exposure and impact on health)
• Health inequalities
• Portion control
• Technology-enhanced health interventions

Clíona Ní Chonnacháin (ANutr) is a PhD student in the UCD Institute of Food and Health, supervised by Professor Eileen Gibney. She graduated from UCD in 2021 with a first class honours in Human Nutrition (BSc). Clíona's research focuses on the effects of dairy intake on the gut microbiome and gastrointestinal health, working on various Food for Health Ireland projects.

Dr Trish Heavey is the lead for the SHE Nutrition and Health group in the Technological University of the Shannon. The SHE (Sport, Health and Exercise science) group prioritises research on women and girls with the primary mission to work to bridge the gender data gap in sport, health and exercise. Dr Heavey’s research team aim to explore the role of nutrition on health, well-being, and disease with a particular emphasis on the nutritional needs and challenges of women through-out the lifespan including the menopausal transition.

Trish is a registered Nutritionist (Public Health) with the Association for Nutrition and an IUHPE Registered Health Promotion Practitioner. She is actively involved in teaching on the BSc (Hons) Nutrition and Health Science programme as well as supervising several postgraduate students.

Dr Áine Hennessy is a Lecturer in Nutritional Sciences at the School of Food and Nutritional Sciences at University College Cork, where she teaches across undergraduate and postgraduate programmes on core nutrition topics including nutritional assessment, food choice and eating behaviour, nutritional epidemiology and public health nutrition.

She is a Lead Investigator at the Irish Centre for Maternal and Child Health Research (INFANT), a Principal Investigator at the Cork Centre for Vitamin D and Nutrition Research at UCC, and a Funded Investigator in the Co-Centre for Sustainable Food Systems.

Áine graduated from University College Cork with a BSc in Nutritional Sciences in 2010 and a PhD in Nutrition in 2013. Her PhD investigated the role of fortified foods in the diets of Irish adults and preschool children using Irish national food consumption data. During her postdoctoral training at the Cork Centre for Vitamin D and Nutrition Research, her focus shifted to nutritional epidemiology – including health and nutritional exposures during pregnancy and early life and associations with clinically validated health outcomes. In 2019, Áine was awarded an independent research fellowship from Science Foundation Ireland to support her work on functional indicators of iodine status during pregnancy and associations with infant neurodevelopment outcomes.

In addition to her teaching and research commitments, Áine is a Section Editor (Vitamins and Micronutrients) at the European Journal of Nutrition.

To follow.

To follow

Dr. Aileen McGloin was appointed as Director of Nutrition in March, 2022 having acted as Marketing and Communications Director for the previous four years.  Her role focuses on addressing key public health nutrition issues such as obesity and food poverty. Aileen leads the nutrition team at safefood, working in many areas, from policy development, to managing research and community programmes. 

Prior to that, Dr McGloin was safefood’s Communications Manager for Digital and Health. Combining her background in food, health and behaviour change with experience in PR, marketing and digital communications, she led safefood's digital communications since 2010.

Aileen holds a 1st Class honors degree in Human Nutrition from the University of Ulster and a PhD in obesity in children. She has 20 years of experience working in research, management and health communication roles across the food industry, public relations, academia and public service.

Umair Shabbir is a PhD researcher within the Nutrition Innovation Centre for Food and Health (NICHE) at Ulster University. His research investigates the role of B-vitamins in gut modulation and their impact on the immune function and ageing brain in health and disease as a part of the Trinity-Ulster-Department of Agriculture (TUDA) study.

As an Irish Section Student Representative for the Nutrition Society, Umair is keen to empower students to thrive and make a meaningful impact in the field of nutrition

Dr Marianne Walsh is Nutrition Manager at the National Dairy Council. With over 15 years’ experience, she has worked mainly in Nutrition Research but also as a consultant, with private clients and the food industry. She holds a first-class honours degree in Human Nutrition from the University of Ulster and received a scholarship to complete her PhD in Metabolomics at Trinity College Dublin. Following this, she worked as a Project Manager and Research Fellow at University College Dublin, researching the impact of genetics on individual dietary requirements. During this time, she was an occasional lecturer at the university and also held the post of Nutritionist at the UCD Elite Athlete Academy, where she worked with a wide range of athletes including Olympians and a Para-Olympian. She has been a guest speaker at several international conferences on nutrition and has published her work in leading academic journals.

Dr. Oliver Shannon is an early career researcher and lecturer in Human Nutrition & Ageing at Newcastle University. His research explores the impact of healthy dietary patterns and dietary inorganic nitrate on brain and cardiovascular health in older adults.  He has published >75 peer-reviewed journal articles, including in field-leading journals such as the British Journal of Nutrition and the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.  He was the winner of the 2024 Nutrition Society Julie Wallace Award for early-stage scientific excellence in the field of nutrition.  Dr. Shannon is passionate about supporting the development and progression of other early career members by faclitating opportunities for collaborations, networking, and skill development.

Professor Victor Zevallos completed his doctorate degree at King’s College London and worked at various research institutes in Europe and America. He was recently appointed Professor in Nutritional Immunology and Microbiome at Karl Landsteiner University, Austria.

He is interested in novel approaches to understanding the immunological effects of diet on gut health and disease using advanced analytical tools in combination with in vivo and in vitro models. He has received awards from academic and government organisations in the UK, USA and Germany.

Victor is passionate about leadership and nutrition. He is keen to support early career members and to promote equality, diversity and inclusion in higher education. 

Dr Lauren Devine is a Post-Doctoral Research Fellow within the Institute of Food and Health, University College Dublin. She was awarded her PhD in Human Nutrition in 2023 from the Nutrition Innovation Centre for Food and Health (NICHE), Ulster University, having previously completed her BSc (Hons) (First Class) in Food Design and Nutrition in 2019. In her current role, Lauren leads the research in UCD on a European-funded project, PLAN’EAT; an applied research project that aims to understand how environmental, social, cultural, and individual factors influence university students’ dietary choices and to co-design solutions to support university students’ transition towards more sustainable and healthy dietary behaviours using a Living Lab approach. Lauren has published her research in peer-reviewed journals and presented at scientific conferences, for which she has won several awards.

Alongside her role, Lauren is an active member of the Nutrition Society and previously held the role of Nutrition Society Irish Section Student Representative (2020-2022). Lauren is also actively involved as a committee member on the Institute of Food Science and Technology (IFST) NI Branch since 2019 and was previously the UK Student Representative, Communications Officer, Co-chair, and Chair of the IFST UK Student Group (2019-2022). Lauren also has lecturing experience with Dietetic, Human Nutrition, and Food and Nutrition undergraduate and postgraduate students and successfully completed the Higher Education Academy Associate Fellowship (AFHEA) in 2021.

Lauren is delighted to join and contribute to the Society's Early Career Membership Section Committee and is passionate about advancing early career members opportunities, skills, and professional development.

To follow

Dr Alex Griffiths is a Senior Lecturer in Nutrition at Leeds Beckett University. Alex’s PhD research related to the application of nutrition to optimise performance and health in athletes and the general population alike. Alex’s current research interests primarily relate to the role of dietary manipulation in optimising health. Specifically, Alex is interested in the role of dietary patterns such as the Mediterranean diet and Eatwell guide on weight status and healthy ageing. Alex is an active researcher within the Obesity Institute at Leeds Beckett University, interested in weight management strategies with real life impact for individuals across the life-course.

Bells graduated from the University of Roehampton, London, in September 2024 with a first-class honours degree in Nutrition & Health. Throughout 2022–2024, Bells acted as the U.K. and Ireland Student Representative for The Nutrition Society Student Section. Bells is very passionate about combining science and creativity and has experience in writing evidence-based articles, chairing webinars, and leading group workshops.

In 2023, Bells was awarded the Nutrition Society Summer Studentship Grant. Her research project was titled ‘A preliminary examination of emotion, cognitive function, and the gut microbiota in vegans, vegetarians, and omnivores’. Bells is dedicated to contributing good quality, reliable nutrition information and is interested in a number of different areas, including sustainability, plant-based eating, mental health, and public health.

Being at the very beginning of her career in nutritional science, Bells is thrilled to be able to support other Society members by joining the Early Career Membership Section Committee. 

Registered Associate Nutritionist, Lucy Jessop, has worked in the Human Nutrition field since graduating from the University of Surrey in 2022. She currently splits her working week into two parts.

Part one is dedicated to patient facing work- in the role of Health Coach on the Diabetes Remission team at Oviva. In this role, she supports patients through a 12-month weight management programme with the aim of achieving diabetes remission. Helping patients to make numerous small changes to their diet and lifestyle is key to weight management, improved blood glucose control, cardiovascular health and better long-term health outcomes. Coaching is delivered via one-to-one phone calls or face-to-face appointments, group sessions and digitally, via AI enhanced app coaching. This role requires a range of skills and knowledge, including behavioural change techniques, clinical skills, nutrition knowledge and practical cooking and recipe know-how.

The second part of the week is devoted to nutrition focussed content creation, for example: - healthy recipe development; translating complex nutritional science into accessible tips/advice; developing meal plans (for specific dietary needs); writing evidence-based nutrition and health claims and analysing recipes for nutrition. In this freelance role, Lucy combines her previous experience as a Food Editor and Recipe Writer with her nutritional expertise, to deliver evidence-based nutritional information in an accessible format.

She also has experience delivering culturally sensitive, healthy cooking workshops within the Bengali Community. This NHS funded project, with a focus on preventing Type 2 Diabetes entailed translating complex nutritional science into accessible and engaging information as well as sensitively adapting traditional Bengali recipes to improve their nutritional value.

Lucy is excited to join the Early Careers Committee and keen to support others in navigating a rewarding career in Nutrition.
 

Charles Msigwa is a dedicated public health nutritionist currently working with the international NGO, Catholic Relief Services (CRS), in Tanzania. With over five years of experience, he has been instrumental in strengthening health systems and implementing nutrition and health programmes nationwide. His expertise lies in maternal, infant, young children, and adolescent nutrition, where he has worked closely with government authorities, regional secretariats, and institutions such as the Tanzania Food and Nutrition Centre to enhance the delivery of comprehensive health and nutrition services at both the community and health facility levels.

Charles has actively participated in both national and global platforms, sharing his expertise in addressing malnutrition among vulnerable populations. He has contributed to shaping nutrition strategies and promoting best practices through his work with ministries and institutions in Tanzania, with a focus on creating sustainable improvements in health systems. He has been involved in the implementation of various nutrition and health interventions, focussing on capacity-building for key frontline health workers at all levels.

Charles’s research interests include maternal, child, and adolescent nutrition, the prevention of stunting and non-communicable diseases (NCDs), Social and Behaviour Change Communication (SBCC) strategies, and the intersection of nutrition and health systems strengthening. He is particularly interested in how community-based approaches, SBCC strategies, and digital health tools can be leveraged to improve nutrition outcomes in resource-limited settings. His work focusses on developing innovative strategies to combat malnutrition and support sustainable public health interventions.

Committed to mentoring the next generation of public health nutrition professionals, Charles is a member of The Nutrition Society's Early Career Member Section committee and other global public health nutrition networks such as the World Public Health Nutrition Association and the Global Adolescent Nutrition Network. His aim is to foster partnerships, networking, and collaborative approaches to improve public health nutrition outcomes globally.

Dr Martina Rooney is the Research Programme and Grants Manager at the Co-Centre for Sustainable Food Systems, based at University College Dublin. 

Martina holds a first class honours degree in Nutritional Sciences from University College Cork, a Masters in Dietetics from Queen Margaret University and a PhD in B vitamins, MTHFR genotype and vascular health from Ulster University. She has lectured at several universities across Ireland and the UK, worked as a Research Scientist for Food for Health Ireland, and has received awards for her research and teaching. 

As Social Media Editor for the Nutrition Society Publications accounts, Martina is delighted to bring her science communication experience to the ECM committee and be involved in opportunities to help early-career researchers in Nutrition to develop, grow and thrive.