Meet Our Scholars
Aishat Alaran
Nigeria
A Pharmacy graduate, who has won a place at the University of Cambridge to read for an MPhil in Population Health Sciences, Aishat's study of more than 250 community pharmacists in Nigeria highlighted a serious lack of awarenss about tobacco harm reduction and safer nicotine products among healthcare professionals in the country.
Prof. Dr. Mihaela Răescu
Romania
A member of the Faculty of Dental Medicine at Titu Maiorescu University in Bucharest, Professor Dr. Răescu’s two scientific studies showed that switching completely from combustible cigarettes to heated tobacco products can boost the oral health of smokers as well as increasing the success of dental implants.
Samrat Chowdhery
India
A founding member of the Association of Vapers India and a recent president of the International Network of Nicotine Consumer Organisations, Samrat’s two Scholarship projects demonstrated the potential for safer nicotine products, such as vaping and Swedish-style snus, to help India’s smokers and smokeless tobacco users.
Yusuff Adebayo Adebisi
Nigeria
A recent Pharmacy graduate who has already published more than 50 articles in academic journals including The Lancet, Yusuff’s work to raise awareness about the benefits of safer nicotine products across Africa helped him win a Diana Award. He is now establishing a Tobacco Harm Reduction research hub in Nigeria.
Will Godfrey
USA
An experienced journalist, Will runs an international news website to advocate for rational and compassionate approaches to drug use, drug policy and human rights. Launched in 2018, Filter has covered tobacco harm reduction issues around the world, helping smokers to make informed decisions about their health.
Sahan Lungu
Malawi
A business consultant who advised tobacco farmers about the potential of moving to alternative crops, Sahan teamed up with fellow Scholar, Blandina Nkhata, to create a short documentary on smoking and tobacco harm reduction in Malawi. He is now carrying out a snus-use feasibility study for Malawian users of smokeless tobacco.
Blandina Nkhata
Malawi
Working as a team, Blandina and fellow Scholar, Sahan Lungu, created a short documentary exploring attitudes on smoking and tobacco harm reduction in Malawi, one of the world’s poorest countries. The film, examining the current awareness of safer nicotine products in the country, was shown on two Malawian TV stations.
Elisa Correa
USA
A filmmaker from Chile, Elisa produced a high-quality short documentary on the smoking and vaping ban in New York City Housing Authority properties. Interviewing those affected by the ban, Elisa created a powerful film highlighting the effects of an ill-considered policy on smokers and those seeking healthier alternatives.
John de Miranda
USA
A long-time teacher of alcohol and drug counsellors at the University of California, San Diego, John’s new passion for tobacco harm reduction saw him create the Smoking and Recovery Toolkit to combat high rates of smoking among people in recovery or seeking treatment for dependency on alcohol or other drugs.