Global Scholars Symposium 2025

The OxCIN Global Scholars programme aims to build links between OxCIN and MRI researchers in the Global South. Global Scholars continue their research projects at their current institution, while being remotely affiliated with OxCIN for one year.

We are delighted to hold the Global Scholars Symposium 2025, where past and present Scholars, their supervisors, and OxCIN members come together to discuss global neuroimaging.

Preliminary programme 

Abstracts

Neuroimaging Beyond Borders: Towards Equitable Imaging Biomarkers in Psychiatry

Nick Crossley, Universidad Católica de Chile

Imaging research holds great potential to improve the lives of people with mental health disorders, both by advancing our understanding of underlying brain mechanisms and by providing stratification tools that help ensure patients receive the right treatment at the right time. However, much of this research is conducted in the Global North, risking the exclusion of the remaining 80% of the world’s population from its benefits. In this talk, I will briefly discuss these challenges and outline potential strategies to address them, focusing on issues such as costs and the characteristics of the populations studied, particularly their exposure to factors like poverty. I will also highlight how greater inclusion of research from the Global South can, in turn, enrich and advance psychiatric research in the Global North.

ULF MRI translational potential in early life: the UNITY collaborative

Kirsty Donald, University of Capetown

Ultra-low-field (ULF) MRI represents a transformative advance in global child brain health, offering more accessible neuroimaging for low-resource settings. This talk will outline the translational potential of ULF MRI in the early years, drawing on work within the UNITY Network (a multi-country consortium spanning Africa and Asia focused on adapting and validating ULF MRI technology for paediatric use). Building on evidence from local birth cohorts, we will explore how low-field systems can capture clinically meaningful structural and developmental markers during critical windows of brain growth. Examples from South Africa and experience with use in Kenya, Zambia, Malawi, Ghana, India and Pakistan will demonstrate how ULF MRI can be practically implemented to address important public health questions related to paediatric brain health and development.