Dr Gladys Kalema-Zikusoka

Dr Kalema-Zikusoka is Uganda’s first wildlife veterinarian. She is the founder of both an award-winning NGO, Conservation Through Public Health and an award-winning social enterprise, Gorilla Conservation Coffee. Both organisations are dedicated to the coexistence of endangered mountain gorillas, other wildlife and humans in Africa. She is a true trailblazer, leading Uganda and the rest of the world to recognise the interconnectedness between the health of wildlife and humans. This has led to her being recognised as a 2021 UNEP Champion of the Earth and she won the 2022 Edinburgh Medal for her impactful work addressing human, animal and environmental health together. Dr Gladys works tirelessly to bring to the world’s attention the importance of a One Health approach to conservation, which recognises these links and creates programmes that foster synergies between conservation and public health by promoting animal welfare, wildlife conservation and public health for the mutual benefit of all – and for the sake of collective global health and biodiversity conservation.