November 6 through 10, 1999, nineteen MSU KIFPH Fellows reunited to participate in a remarkable Leadership Forum sponsored by the W. K. Kellogg Foundation in Washington, D.C. The W.K. Kellogg Foundation Leadership Forum was attended by over 610 people, including 105 international leadership Fellows (KIFPH; Kellogg International Fellowship Program- Food Systems [KIFPFS] and Kellogg International Leadership Program [KILP] I and II) and more than 400 leadership Fellows from the Kellogg Foundation’s National Leadership Fellowship Programs (KNF/KNLP Groups 1-16).

Background: In 1985 the W.K. Kellogg Foundation recognized MSU's community-oriented medical education programs and its expertise in primary health care and chose MSU to launch and develop Kellogg's International Fellowship Program in Primary Care and/or Health Care Management. The four-year project (1986-1990) led to relationships with 29 leading health scientists and their institutions in 18 countries on five continents. The project was directed by Dr. Roy J. Gerard, professor and founding chair of the MSU Department of Family Practice and founding director of the MSU Institute of International Health. Dr. Herbert L. Whittier, professor of Anthropology and associate director of the MSU IIH, was the associate director of the MSU/KIFPH. David Horner, director of the MSU Office of International Students and Scholars was the assistant director of the MSU KIFPH, and Ms. Kay Backus, program coordinator in the Department of Family Practice was the program coordinator for the MSU KIFPH. Dr. Evangelos Petropoulos, Director of the IIH, originally a KIFPH Fellow from Zimbabwe, played a key part in facilitating the original KIFPH management team to orchestrate a special meeting of the KIFPH Fellows at the WKKF Leadership Forum. Project funding concluded in Sept. 1990, but the group continued to interact with each other and the IIH. Each of the fellows and their institutions continue as valued resources for MSU, and MSU continues to serve as a resource for them. The original MSU KIFPH management team and the Institute of International Health had been keeping in contact with the Fellows and trying to facilitate the development of a program that would bring the Fellows together for a conference aimed at pooling the Fellows expertise and experience to formulate strategies for helping to solve global health problems. The opportunity for this arose when WKKF called for a Leadership Forum for November 1999.

In addition to the KIFPH group, MSU also provided the management for the KIFPFS group. The KIFPFS was administered through the Institute of International Agriculture in the College of Agriculture. Dr. Harold Riley directed the KIFPFS with Dr. Daryll Fienup as associate director and Ms. Ardell Ward as program coordinator. Following the conclusion of these two programs, the WK Kellogg Foundation administered two additional international leadership programs (KILP I and KILP II) from within the Foundation.

November 1999: During the five-day forum in Washington, fellows, mentors, and advisors participated in a series of talks and discussions on concepts on leadership and actions useful for facilitating the move into the new millennium. Workshops were held each day focusing on current problems that we have been and will be facing on both global and local levels as we move into the future. Leadership experts provided summaries of their points of view on leadership and the technological, social, and cultural forces that will alter the way change occurs in the future. The subtitle of the forum perhaps summarizes the trend of the meeting best—"Leading Change in the New Millennium: a Call to Action."

The KIFPH Fellows who attended the summit included: Jaime Arias (Colombia), Chen Zhi Xing (China), Carlos Climent (Colombia), Mia Defever (Belgium), Julio Frenk (Mexico), Pramila Ghei (India), Rodrigo Guerrero (Colombia), Sagar Jain (USA-North Carolina) Hilda Kigutha (Kenya), Tamar Krulik (Israel), Marcus Liveris (Australia), Afaf Meleis (USA-California) Clara Misrachi (Chile) Zohair Nooman (Egypt), Evangelos Petropoulos (USA-Michigan), Alberto Schwarcz (Argentina), Wang DeBing (China), Wang Shaoxian (China), Don White (England)

Fellows unable to attend included: Chen Yude (China),David Greer (USA-Boston), Snehendu Kar (USA-California), David Kindig (USA-Wisconsin), Liu Yongliang (China), Theresia Sri Suhesti (Indonesia), Zhang Mingdao (China). Sadly, three fellows have died since the close of the program in 1990: Antonio Carvalho (Brazil), Martin Bass (Canada), and Antonio Torrado (Portugal).

KIFPH Fellows and staff at the forum: (l-r) (Row 1): Pramila Ghei, Kay Backus, Wang DeBing, Wang Shaoxian, Afaf Meleis, Herb Whittier, (Row 2) Marcus Liveris, Roy Gerard, Sagar Jain, Don White (Row 3) Clara Misrachi, Mia Defever, Tamar Krulik (Row 4) Jaime Arias, Chen Zhi Xing (Row 5) Zohair Nooman, Evangelos Petropoulos, Carlos Climent (Row 6) Alberto Schwarcz, Julio Frenk, David Horner (Not pictured is Rodrigo Guerrero).

In addition to participating fully in the forum, the KIFPH Fellows had their own agenda—to revitalize themselves as individuals and as a group. On Saturday the 6th, the 19 Fellows in attendance gathered and spent the entire day discussing the innovative projects that they had worked on during the Fellowship program, what had transpired with these projects, and their other activities in the health arena since the closing meeting of the Fellowship program (coincidentally in Washington and Virginia) in 1989, as well as some of their concerns for the future. It was a powerful session and all had exemplary programs to present. On Monday the 8th, the fellows gathered once again in the afternoon and had a continuation of the meeting, this time focusing on activities that they might be able to work on as a group or in smaller groupings.

Several excellent ideas surfaced. One of the ideas that all agreed upon was to produce a summary of the presentations they had made on the previous Saturday. This compilation would allow a reexamination of their successful projects with the added perspective of 10 years, provide an evolutionary perspective by presenting other activities these original projects may have inspired, and provide a forum for presenting some ideas for the new millennium. Dr. Roy Gerard, KIFPH director, agreed to coordinate this activity. Another activity engendered by the meeting includes pulling together substantial articles written by the Fellows focused on projects in the third world and publishing them in a special Spring 2000 issue of the Journal of Health and Population in Developing Countries, edited by one of the Fellows, Dr. Sagar Jain. A second journal editor, Dr. Mia Defever, also one of the Fellows, encouraged Fellows who are interested in policy-related issues to prepare submissions for the journal she edits, "The European Health Policy Forum." A fourth activity, for which Dr. Herbert Whittier agreed to be responsible, is focused on cyberspace and includes starting a Webpage for the KIFPH activities (currently to be part of the IIH Webpage). Dr. David Horner agreed to assist with a fifth activity--the development of a KIFPH listserve to facilitate the fellows’ networking activities. Ms. Kay Backus facilitated KIFPH activities throughout the conference.

Also present at the forum were 8 members of the Kellogg International Fellowship Program in Food Systems (KIFPFS). None of the MSU administrative team for that group (see below) was able to be present at the forum and so Dr. Herb Whittier joined them and helped coordinate a couple of activities, including the group photo below. The eight KIFPFS Fellows attending the Summit included: Sitt El Nafar M. Badi (Sudan); Samuel (Sam) Sefa Dedeh (Ghana); Julio Cafferata Paz (Peru); Shanti Lal Bapna (India); Haruna Ibrahim Lipumba (Tanzania); Maximilliano Cox (Chile); Yan Ruizhen (China); and, Sathyapala Pinnaduwage (Sri Lanka). Of the total cohort of 31, one died during the fellowship and the other 22 were unable to attend.

KIFPFS Fellows at the Kellogg Leadership Summit in Washington, November 5-10, 1999 (l-r): , Sathyapala Pinnaduwage, Yan Ruizhen, Shanti Lal Bapna, Julio Cafferata Paz, Haruna Ibrahim Lipumba, Samuel (Sam) Sefa Dedeh, and Herb Whittier (KIFPH). Not in the picture were KIFPFS Fellows Siti El Nafar M. Badi and Maximilliano Cox.

The Kellogg Foundation representatives asked each of the groups to select the person or institution that was most significant to their group during the life of their program and to contribute to a small gift that would be given in recognition of that contribution. The KIFPFS Fellows all chose MSU (Institute of International Agriculture) as the unit that was most significant to their program and asked Dr. Herbert Whittier to accept the award on behalf of MSU. The KIFPH group divided their contribution to make a special award to KIFPH Program Coordinator Kay Backus and to recognize the MSU leadership group that worked with them. Dr. Whittier was pleased to accept the gift of two silver candlesticks provided by the KIFPFS and KIFPH Fellows on behalf of the MSU KIFPFS and KIFPH directors involved.
 
 

Dr. Whittier receiving the KIPHFS and KIFPH Fellow’s tribute of silver candlesticks.

Networking meeting on KIFPH activities for the new millennium (l-r) Roy Gerard, Evangelos Petropoulos, David Horner, Wang DeBing, Chen Zhi Xing, Wang Shaoxian, Mia Defever, Kay Backus.

The forum presented many stimulating keynote speakers, but one of the most significant aspects of the meeting for the KIFPH Fellows was the opportunity to network with old and new colleagues over topics of mutual concern in the areas of program development and leadership.
 
 

Dr. Petropoulos and Dr Nooman (Suez Canal University Medical School) discuss issues of medical education.

Dinner at the Hunan Restaurant in adjacent China Town became an opportunity to continue the discussion of health issues for the new millennium (l-r) Leonne and Marcus Liveris, Roy Gerard, Kay Backus.

 

Dave Horner (l), leading a Delphi exercise, assisted by Afaf Meleis and Herb Whittier, pulls together a list of health topics critical to the new millennium developed by the KIFPH Fellows at the Hunan Restaurant Meeting.

Even leaders can’t work all the time. On the final night, most of the KIFPH Fellows threw their concerns to the wind and vented the tension and stresses of long meetings to the rhythms of a fine multifaceted dance band orchestrated by the WKKF. (l-r) Kay Backus, Afaf Meleis, Alberto Schwarcz, Clara Misrachi and Zohair Nooman, "cut a rug".

The administration of the KIFPH at MSU thanks the WKKF for providing food and lodging for both the staff and the Fellows during participation in the forum. The Foundation also generously provided airfare for international fellows. In addition, the IIH provided for an additional night’s lodging and meals for a day for fellows and KIFPH staff so that they could arrive a day early and spend an entire day in the special KIFPH group meeting on Saturday November 6th. The IIH also provided for transportation and registration expenses for the KIFPH staff to attend the Leadership Forum.