Modi Mwatsama

Modi is Head of Capacity and Field Development at the Wellcome Trust, where she is leading the programme of research to advance science-based solutions for climate change and health.

She joined Wellcome in 2018 as Senior Science Lead for Food Systems in the Our Planet, Our Health Programme. She has a particular interest in agenda-setting and implementation research as well as research approaches which involve co-production with policymakers and practitioners and help to strengthen capacity in low- and middle-income countries.

Prior to Wellcome, Modi was Director of Policy and Global Health at the UK Health Forum. She spent over 15 years focused on research, advocacy, and policy-development for the prevention of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in UK, European and WHO/UN institutions. As NCDs are the main health benefits of climate change mitigation actions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, this led her to transition into Climate & Health over time.

Modi was a member of the UN Food Summit’s Action Track 2 Leadership team and her advisory roles include the EAT Foundation board and BBC Rural Affairs Committee. She is a Registered Nutritionist and studied public health policy processes during her Doctorate at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.