Announcement of the 1st Kiyoshi Kurokawa Award Recipient: Recognizing Innovative Leaders in Health Policy

TOKYO, Feb. 1, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Health and Global Policy Institute (HGPI; Secretariat: Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo; Chair: Ryoji Noritake) is proud to announce the recipient of the 1st Kiyoshi Kurokawa Award. The announcement took place during HGPI's flagship event, the "Health Policy Summit 2025" in Tokyo on February 1, 2025. Established to promote innovation in health policy across the Asia-Pacific region, this award recognizes young leaders and organizations making exceptional contributions to health policy and practice.

Background

The Kiyoshi Kurokawa Award was established as part of HGPI's 20th-anniversary initiatives in 2024. Since its founding in 2004, HGPI has worked as an independent think tank with the mission of achieving citizen-centered health policy. This award reflects the vision and legacy of HGPI's Honorary Chairman for Life, Kiyoshi Kurokawa, who played a central role in launching and guiding the organization.

Kiyoshi Kurokawa has been instrumental in bringing together diverse stakeholders and providing policy options with a global perspective. His dedication to principles such as "independence," "non-partisan," and "feasibility" has earned HGPI recognition both in Japan and abroad. The Kiyoshi Kurokawa Award embodies his commitment to supporting the next generation of leaders while creating a platform for global innovation in health policy.

About this award

The Kiyoshi Kurokawa Award was created to honor young leaders who are driving transformative changes in health policy. It seeks to amplify their impact, spreading their influence from the Asia-Pacific region to the global stage. The award celebrates individuals and organizations that demonstrate: 

• Innovation: Developing novel approaches and solutions that challenge existing frameworks.
• Impact: Delivering measurable, positive outcomes for both local and global communities.
• Future Vision: Envisioning and working toward sustainable changes that address long-term challenges.

The selection process for this award was conducted with careful consideration, aligned with HGPI's philosophy of "achieving citizen-centered health policy." For this inaugural award, candidates from diverse backgrounds and fields, including those from Vietnam, India, the Philippines, Indonesia, Nepal, and Australia, were evaluated based on their innovation, regional and international impact, and exemplary leadership as role models for the next generation.

The 1st Recipient Dr. Renzo R. Guinto (Associate Professor, SingHealth Duke-NUS Global Health Institute (SDGHI), Duke-NUS Medical School, National University of Singapore)

Dr. Renzo R. Guinto, MD, DrPH is a Filipino physician currently serving as Associate Professor at the SingHealth Duke-NUS Global Health Institute (SDGHI) at Duke-NUS Medical School in Singapore. A global leader in climate and health, Dr. Guinto is widely recognized as a pioneer in the interdisciplinary field of planetary health. His groundbreaking work focuses on climate-resilient and environmentally sustainable healthcare systems, the mental health impacts of climate change, and the intersections between climate, migration, and health.

Comments

The Selection Committee highlighted Dr. Guinto's achievements in the following areas:

• Innovative Research and Policy Advocacy: Developing resilient and sustainable healthcare systems and addressing climate change's impacts on mental health, migration, and health equity.
• International Leadership: Serving in key advisory roles for the Philippines' Climate Change Commission, the World Health Organization's (WHO) advisory group on climate and health ethics, and several influential Lancet Commissions.
• Education and Network Building: Advancing planetary health education and research across the Asia-Pacific region and fostering collaboration between local communities and global stakeholders.

Kiyoshi Kurokawa, Member of the Selection Committee (Honorary Chairman for Life, HGPI):

"The Kiyoshi Kurokawa Award represents a tangible step toward achieving our vision of citizen-centered health policy. This award celebrates the dedication of young leaders and organizations that are tackling regional and global challenges with innovation and sustainability. Dr. Guinto's work exemplifies the spirit of this award. As a 'pracademic,' he has effectively combined academic rigor with actionable policy advocacy, addressing the urgent issue of climate change. His leadership and commitment are truly inspiring.

It is also deeply meaningful that HGPI, celebrating its 20th anniversary in 2024, has been able to establish such an award. This milestone reflects the growth of our organization and the invaluable support of our stakeholders. We have consistently promoted healthy debate and collaboration among diverse actors, and it is gratifying to see these efforts culminate in an initiative like the Kiyoshi Kurokawa Award.

HGPI will continue to serve as a platform for addressing global challenges in collaboration with civil society. I hope this award will encourage younger generations to bring new perspectives and actions that will shape the future of healthcare and society as a whole."

Ryoji Noritake, Chair of the Selection Committee (Chair, HGPI):

"The Kiyoshi Kurokawa Award further embodies HGPI's mission to advance citizen-centered health policy. By recognizing and supporting young leaders and organizations, this award aims to promote innovation and drive progress toward a sustainable future in healthcare policy.

Dr. Renzo R. Guinto's contributions serve as an outstanding example of bridging academia and policy. His work not only addresses pressing regional issues but also shares valuable insights with the international community, creating ripple effects across borders. We hope this award inspires future leaders and reinforces the importance of collaboration across the Asia-Pacific region and beyond.

Through this award, HGPI aspires to act as a hub for knowledge exchange among young professionals in the Asia-Pacific region. We aim to share Japan's accumulated expertise in health policy globally while incorporating international perspectives into domestic healthcare discussions. By fostering this two-way flow of knowledge, we hope to contribute to a healthier, more equitable world while continuing to promote healthy debate."

Future Prospects

The Kiyoshi Kurokawa Award aims to spotlight and amplify innovative initiatives from the Asia-Pacific region, sharing these efforts with the global community. By providing a platform for young leaders, HGPI hopes to advance sustainable health policy solutions worldwide while fostering international dialogue. This initiative also seeks to bridge the gap between Japan and the international community, enabling the exchange of best practices, lessons learned, and new ideas to inform both global and domestic healthcare policy.

About Renzo R. Guinto:

Renzo R. Guinto, MD DrPH is Associate Professor of Global and Planetary Health at the SingHealth Duke-NUS Global Health Institute (SDGHI), Duke-NUS Medical School, National University of Singapore. Hailing from the Philippines, Renzo is one of the world's pioneers and leading voices of the new field of planetary health. He works on diverse aspects of the climate and health nexus such as climate-resilient and environmentally sustainable health systems; impacts of climate change on mental health; climate, migration, and health; climate implications for global health interventions; climate and health education; ethical issues around climate and health, among others.

Additionally, Renzo is one of the staunchest voices in the international movement around "decolonizing global health" – fighting epistemic injustices in knowledge production; pushing for diversity and inclusion in policy- and decision-making; challenging power asymmetries that perpetuate health inequities; and amplifying Global South voices in global health.

As a "pracademic" bridging the worlds of academia and policy, Renzo played important advisory roles, such as in the Philippines's Climate Change Commission, World Health Organization's Technical Advisory Group on the ethics of climate and health, and several Lancet Commissions such as the Lancet Commission on Sustainable Healthcare and the O'Neill-Lancet Commission on Racism, Structural Discrimination, and Global Health. He also served as consultant for various organizations including the Philippine Department of Health, World Bank, USAID, International Organization for Migration, and Wellcome Trust, etc.

Renzo contributed to the establishment of programs and policy frameworks, such the Migrant Health Program and the Philippine Migrant Health Network, National Tourism Development Plan, and National Climate Adaptation Plan – all in his home country, Philippines, as well as the World Bank's Strategy for COVID-19 and Climate-Smart Healthcare and WHO's Global Research Agenda on Health, Migration and Displacement, etc.

To promote planetary health in the Asia-Pacific and globally, Renzo pioneered innovations in planetary health education for basic, undergraduate, graduate, and professional levels. He also led research projects ranging from universal health care to pandemic prevention, and served in editorial boards of several influential journals such as The Lancet Planetary Health.

Renzo also led and established committees, networks, and institutions – he served as chair of the Thematic Working Group on Climate Resilient and Sustainable Health Systems of Health Systems Global, chair of the Committee on Environmental Health and Ecology of the Philippine Medical Association, and convener of Planetary Health Philippines.

Renzo also has been a member of several advisory boards and committees – Climate Cares Centre at Imperial College London; Primary Care International; Health in Harmony; Child Family Health International; One Sustainable Health for All Forum; and Philippine Society of Public Health Physicians, among others.

Renzo obtained his Doctor of Public Health from Harvard University and Doctor of Medicine from the University of the Philippines Manila, and received further training from Oxford, LSHTM, Copenhagen, Western Cape, ITM Antwerp, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm School of Economics, and East-West Center in Hawaii. Currently, he also holds visiting appointments at the St. Luke's Medical Center in the Philippines and the University of Cambridge.

One of the world's most effective planetary health communicators, Renzo has traveled to and lectured in nearly 70 countries and 100 universities across the world; published more than 200 reports and articles in scientific journals, books, and popular media; and directed and produced short films that communicate the message of planetary healing to the world.

For his leadership and scholarship, Renzo has received numerous accolades. In 2019, he was named an Obama Asia-Pacific Leader, while in 2020, he was included by Tatler Magazine in its Gen.T List of 400 leaders of tomorrow who are shaping Asia's future. In 2022, Renzo was named one of The Outstanding Young Men (TOYM) of the Philippines and given the inaugural Planetary Health Innovation Award by the Consortium of Universities for Global Health in Washington, DC.

About HGPI:

Health and Global Policy Institute (HGPI) is a non-profit, independent, and non-partisan think tank established in 2004. Guided by its mission to achieve citizen-centered health policy, HGPI provides policy options through evidence-based, multi-stakeholder dialogue while maintaining independence from political parties and organizations. HGPI continues to contribute solutions to global healthcare challenges through collaboration and innovation.

For Inquiries:

Contact: Kawata / Sugawara / Okita
Email: [email protected] 

Announcement website: https://hgpi.org/en/news/kiyoshi_kurokawa_award_001.html 

SOURCE Health and Global Policy Institute