Our Mission
The mission of the Global Health and Leadership Conference at Harvard is to inspire interest in global health and empower youth to serve as the next generation of civically-minded leaders.
|
Founded in 2017, the Global Health and Leadership Conference at Harvard promotes engagement with a wide array of global health topics and fosters collaborations between Harvard professors, undergraduates, and high school students from around the world. We seek to educate high school students about the complex and intersectional factors that underlie global health beyond the realm of biomedicine – from issues of socioeconomic disparities to climate change, law and criminal justice, and immigration.
Conference participants attend a keynote speaker series led by global health professionals across diverse disciplines, and also partake in Q&A sessions and career panels. In addition, students will attend interactive workshops led by Harvard undergraduate global health organizations. Students may choose to participate in the Community Project Pitch Competition and/or the Case Study Competition. The Pitch Competition challenges students to research, design, develop, and propose a global health-related civic project in their home communities. The Case Study Competition is a fast-paced exercise in a timed setting – during the Conference, participating students will be placed in teams and must research and write a policy proposal in response to a given prompt. |
|
Meet Our Team
2025 Board of Directors
2025 Board of Directors
|
Alyssa Cai, '27
President 
Alyssa Cai is a sophomore from Lake Hopatcong, New Jersey planning to concentrate in Neuroscience with a secondary in Philosophy. Outside of VISION, Alyssa is also involved in The Harvard Undergraduate Research Journal, Harvard Review of Philosophy, Global Research Consulting, and Mission: Brain. Alyssa also enjoys volunteering, reading, playing volleyball, and painting. She is incredibly excited to help create this year’s Global Health Leadership Conference!
Aneesh Mazumder, '27
Executive Board Member 
Aneesh is a sophomore at Harvard College from Dallas, Texas, studying Neuroscience and Government. He is currently conducting research on neurodegenerative diseases at Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital. There, he is working to understand the mechanisms underlying Alzheimer’s and develop innovative diagnostic and therapeutic strategies for the disease. Additionally, at the Massachusetts General Brigham MESH Incubator AI group, he is exploring the implementation of artificial intelligence-based technologies, such as large language models, across various domains of the clinical workflow. Outside of research, Aneesh serves as an advocate for legislation that promotes more equitable healthcare at the state and federal level.
Rachel Lee, '26
Executive Board Member 
Rachel is originally from Orange County, California, so she loves the beach and some warm weather! She is involved with Eleganza, MIHNUET, HSHS, and other amazing student groups on the Harvard campus. As a pre-med student, Rachel is continuing to learn the importance of promoting diversity and empowering youth through education and mentorship as well as how global health is critical for interdisciplinary collaborations. In her free time, she likes exploring Boston, finding new coffee shops, and watching movies!
Manya Gupta, '28
Executive Board Member 
Manya is a first year studying Economics and Molecular and Cellular Biology at Harvard College. She is passionate about global health and medicine, and loves to explore how they intersect with economics. She is super excited to be on the Vision Board this year! She is looking forward to the opportunity to give high schoolers more exposure to global health. High school is where Manya first became interested in global health, so it’s amazing to be able to spread that passion to current high schoolers. In her free time, Manya loves to read, hang out with friends, and spend time outside in her hometown of Philadelphia, PA.
|
Elena Luo, '28
Executive Board Member 
Elena attended the conference as a high schooler and it opened her eyes to the world of public health, so she knew she definitely wanted to join this organization now as a Harvard student to provide similarly great experiences to others! Elena is originally from New Jersey and in her free time, she is an avid runner, hiker, biker, and vacation planner. Music is another one of her passions as she has been playing the piano since she was six and the violin since she was ten.
William Leung, '26
Executive Board Member 
William is a junior in Currier House studying Neuroscience and Government. He got involved in GHLC because of his interest in global social medicine, his academic research, and his experience with community psychiatry in the Boston area. He is looking forward to meeting everyone throughout the duration of the conference.
Anna Shao, '28
Executive Board Member 
Anna is originally from Chicago, Illinois. She likes being involved in the Boston and Cambridge communities. She mentors students from Allston-Brighton at the Harvard Ed Portal and leads hands-on experiments in a second-grade classroom as part of ExperiMentors! She also reports for the Harvard Crimson, which involves interviewing people and sometimes attending city hall meetings. During her spare time, Anna enjoys drawing and painting, especially with oil pastel. She has recently picked up digital art and is experimenting with digital photography. GHLC is important to her because she cares about increasing health equity, an aspect of which includes raising awareness and education. She believes understanding is essential for service
Paul Lewis, '18
Founder 
Paul Lewis is a medical student at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Harvard College where he concentrated in Neurobiology with a secondary in Global Health and Health Policy. Paul is the Founder of Harvard College VISION Global Health Society and the Global Health and Leadership Conference. Paul is the recipient of the Robert T. Benjamin Prize for his contribution to the health and wellness of Harvard, The Harvard Phillips Brooks House Association Houston Award for exceptional commitment to serving underprivileged communities, and the Harvard Transcript Project Prize for excellence in writing and reflection. He was awarded the Finley Fellowship from Harvard to spend a postgraduate year in Japan learning about end-of-life care. He aspires to become a physician leader involved in the holistic health of communities by caring for the whole person during treatment, promoting dignity for the marginalized, and acting as a mentor for youth to become conscientious caregivers.
|