The Media Round Up

Israeli-Arabs comprise 20% of the population of Israel, yet are not truly represented in Israeli politics. Atlantic Fellow for Social and Economic Equity, Alon-Lee Green, is trying to change that. This recent opinion piece in The New York Times outlines his plan for politics in the country in collaboration with a group of Israeli-Arabs and Palestinians. 

Mentioned in Broadway World, a pair of shoes worn by Atlantic Fellow for Social Equity, Ella Havelka, will feature in a new exhibition at the Australian Museum of Performing Arts (AMPA). Ella was the Australian Ballet’s first dancer of First Nations heritage.

An article in the Daily Maverick by Atlantic Fellow for Health Equity in South Africa, Haseena Majid, comments on South Africa’s ongoing anti-immigrant tensions. She argues that the protests are not purely driven by xenophobia, but are a symptom of profound institutional distrust and a crisis of accountability. 

In an opinion piece in Global Issues, Atlantic Fellow for Health Equity Global, Mario Jimenez, highlights a critical health equity failure: no approved vaccine or treatment for the Ebola virus, not because scientists only recently discovered it, but because "the world failed to invest in it."

In an article in Het Parool, Atlantic Fellow for Equity in Brain Health, Geeske Peeters, is quoted on the challenges of an aging population in a story about a public event in Amsterdam where residents used simulation gear to physically experience what it feels like to age. 

Forbes magazine spotlights Atlantic Fellow for Health Equity Global, Dom Kelly, as a trailblazing disabled leader driving industry change. Kelly serves as the co-founder, president, and CEO of New Disabled South, making history as the first regional disability justice organization in the US South.

In Yahoo News, Atlantic Fellow for Health Equity in Southeast Asia, Jason John Joyce, was recently featured in coverage of the powerful 7.8 magnitude earthquake that struck the Southern Philippines.

In a recent episode of The Caste Pod podcast, Thenmozhi Soundararajan—an Atlantic Fellow for Racial Equity, founder of Equality Labs and author of  "The Trauma of Caste" —shares her personal journey toward recognizing caste oppression as the child of Dalit parents living in concealment. The discussion highlights how her career as a community organizer has been deeply shaped by a lifelong commitment to anti-caste philosophy, Black feminism and Indigenous ways of knowing. 

On the website Infobae, Atlantic Fellow for Equity in Brain Health, Dani Macri, is featured after producing and acting in "Olivia," a play that portrays a woman's progressive cognitive decline. The production, in Buenos Aires, coincided with the tenth anniversary of the Global Brain Health Institute (GBHI). Following performances, panels featuring neuroscientists, including Atlantic Fellow for Equity in Brain Health Adolfo García, discussed dementia and preventative measures.

Atlantic Fellow for Racial Equity, Koketso Moeti, featured on an SMWX podcast about the food security crisis in South Africa. As the founding executive director of amandla.mobi (a mobile phone civic engagement tool) and part of the Union Against Hunger, Koketso joined a panel discussion on the SMWX podcast series, Economic Justice Matters (produced in partnership with the Institute for Economic Justice) to unpack the stark realities of South Africa's systemic food insecurity crisis.

In an article on Yahoo News, there is a comment from Atlantic Fellow for Health Equity Global, Medha Makhlouf, about several states, including California and the District of Columbia, reducing state-funded health care coverage due to federal Medicaid cuts and the end of Obamacare subsidies. 

Atlantic Fellow for Social and Economic Equity (AFSEE) Lily Jamaludin and AFSEE Executive Director Armine Ishkanian recently hosted a panel conversation with award-winning British-Turkish novelist Elif Shafak at their fifth annual keynote lecture titled “How stories can transcend borders and boxes of identity.” 

Atlantic Fellow for Racial Equity, Minhaj Jeenah, was quoted in MSN South Africa’s article about concerns over the Coalitions Bill ahead of the 2026 municipal elections. Minjah signed a letter arguing that citizens should be given enough time and opportunity to review and provide input on the proposed bill. He expressed deep concern over the severely compressed timeline for the Coalitions Bill.

A study in Springer Nature was published on The Walking the Talk for Dementia initiative. The study, which examines the building of social networks and collaborations, was led by Atlantic Fellow for Equity in Brain Health, Walter Dawson, and coauthors include the WTD founder and Atlantic Fellow for Equity in Brain Health, Fernando Aguzzoli-Peres.

Atlantic Fellow for Racial Equity, Aria Florant, is quoted in a story by Associated Press News that details an editorial partnership between "Nonprofit Quarterly" (NPQ) and "Liberation Ventures" to launch a site-wide storytelling takeover called the "Week of Repair" from Juneteenth through July 4, 2026. Timed alongside the United States' 250th anniversary, the 16-day campaign aimed to showcase essays, poetry, and art centered on reparations and multi-racial democracy to prevent official commemorations from glossing over historical harms. Aria, the co-founder and president of Liberation Ventures, expressed that the initiative is coordinating dozens of nationwide reparations groups to share truer historical narratives and envision a better future. 

Atlantic Fellow for Health Equity in Southeast Asia, Sabrina Gacad, is highlighted in a PhilStar Global opinion piece by the Australian Ambassador Marc Innes-Brown as an exemplar of inclusive leadership. The article commends her work as the founder of Lunas Collective, a grassroots, volunteer-driven network dedicated to supporting women and the LGBTQIA+ community against gender-based violence in the Philippines. 

Atlantic Fellow for Equity in Brain Health, Mike Hanrahan, featured on Today FM - The Last Word with Matt Cooper Ireland. Mike discussed his time during his fellowship year at Trinity College and emphasized the importance of creative arts for brain health. 

Atlantic Fellow for Health Equity Global, Adrian Billings, is quoted in an article in The Texas Tribune criticizing the lack of maternity care in rural Texas. Commenting on the high number of rural counties without hospitals or delivery rooms, Billings argued that prioritizing corporate profits over patient care has left rural communities dangerously under-invested. 

A column in La Silla Vacia, discussing how what we think others think of us fuels political polarization, was co-authored by Atlantic Fellow for Equity in Brain Health, Pablo Alexander Reyes Gavilan. Pablo and coauthors surveyed citizens on political identity, language, dehumanization, and well-being.

In an interview with ABC News Australia, Atlantic Fellow for Social Equity, Sean Gordon, criticized the latest New South Wales state budget as a missed opportunity for First Nations communities. Sean, the chief executive of the Indigenous consultancy firm Gidgee Group, labeled the fiscal plan "disappointing," arguing that its heavy focus on managing deficits came at the expense of meaningful investment in Indigenous people. Read the ABC News website article.  

Atlantic Fellow for Equity in Brain Health, Susanne Röhr, has co-authored a study in National Library of Medicine examining the relationship between lifestyle habits and cognitive performance in young adults. The research shows these effects begin as early as age 20.

Atlantic Fellow for Racial Equity, Tess Peacock, co-authored an op-ed in the Daily Maverick explaining a landmark court ruling for children in South Africa. The High Court has officially ruled that early childhood development is a fundamental right. The court also declared that when local government departments make late or inconsistent subsidy payments to poor preschools and crèches, they are breaking the law and violating the Constitution.

In El Espectador, Atlantic Fellow for Social and Economic Equity, Rafael Barrio de Mendoza, is quoted on Keiko Fujimori’s presidential win and the revival of Fujimorism in Peru. According to Barrio de Mendoza, Fujimori’s victory stems less from overwhelming popular support and more from a fractured, demoralized, and deeply exhausted opposition. 

Atlantic Fellow for Equity in Brain Health, Ignacio Illan-Gala, and colleagues recently published a study in the journal Neurology demonstrating that using Alzheimer's biomarkers (via blood or spinal fluid tests) is highly beneficial for diagnosing and predicting cognitive decline in elderly patients over the age of 80. 

Researchers from the Global Brain Health Institute (GBHI) based at Trinity College Dublin are serving as key partners in a newly launched, PEACEPLUS-funded healthcare initiative. The project focuses on establishing a new framework of comparable public health indicators across Ireland and Northern Ireland, providing policymakers with the unified data needed to drive better health outcomes.

The Atlantic Fellows for Social Equity (AFSE) recently celebrated the launch of "People, Place and Nature in Indigenous-Settler Relations: Recentering the More-than-Human World," a new book co-authored by Melissa Kennedy and Dr. Erin O’Donnell. The launch event featured a panel discussion moderated by AFSE Executive Director Damien Miller. The discussion focused on how shifting research away from purely human-centered angles can help heal environmental damage and challenge colonial narratives.