Researchers lead international workshop to strengthen modelling of climate-sensitive disease
23 March 2026
Professor Bahman Rostami-Tabar and PhD student Harsha Halgamuwe Hewage, both from the Data Lab for Social Good Research Group, have helped deliver a landmark international workshop in Kigali, Rwanda.
The researchers co-designed, co-organised, and co-delivered the five-day Practical Workshop on Spatiotemporal Modelling of Climate-Sensitive Diseases. This brought together public health professionals from across Africa and Asia to advance the use of data modelling in the response to climate-sensitive diseases
More than 68 participants from 15 countries, 13 from Africa and 2 from South Asia, took part, including national health programme teams and DHIS2 implementing partners.
The workshop was designed to strengthen country-level capacity to analyse climate and health data, supporting more robust disease forecasting and climate-informed early warning systems. It was delivered in collaboration with the HISP Centre at the University of Oslo, HISP Rwanda, the Ministry of Health of Rwanda, the CSID Network and TRUST: The Norwegian Centre for Trustworthy AI.
Professor Rostami-Tabar emphasised the importance of building capacity at the local level:
Building local modelling and forecasting capacity is critical to ensuring that climate data translate into effective public health action. Through close partnership with ministries and research networks, we are supporting reproducible, policy-relevant analytics that strengthen resilience.
For Harsha Halgamuwe Hewage, the experience was as formative as it was impactful, and one made possible by the Data Lab for Social Good's commitment to giving its researchers real-world opportunities to grow.
He said, "Co-delivering this workshop helped me grow as a researcher and trainer. Working closely with country teams helped me understand the real challenges on the ground and shaped how I think about my PhD research. It also gave me the chance to build new collaborations with an international cohort and gain access to expert knowledge that is key for my PhD work."
Opportunities like this don't happen by accident. Professor Rostami-Tabar's leadership of the Data Lab for Social Good Research Group, and his genuine investment in the development of his students, created the conditions for Harsha to step into a role that would shape both his research and his career.
It reflects the culture within the group; where PhD students are not just supported in their work but actively brought to the table as collaborators and contributors on the world stage.
The initiative reflects Cardiff University's global civic mission and marks the first in a planned annual workshop series, reinforcing the University's long-term commitment to data-driven public health collaboration worldwide.
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