Plenary lecture: "Compassion as strategy: innovating for global health & Gandhian thought"
Dr. Kezevino Aram has served as President of Shanti Ashram since 2014.Shanti Ashram, founded in 1986 on Mahatma Gandhi’s vision of Sarvodaya (progress for all), is an international center for learning, development and collaboration. It accompanies communities in their efforts to move out of poverty, address inequalities, build creative leaders and ensure sustained development. Today, Shanti Ashram serves over 100,000 vulnerable children across 100 villages in TamilNadu.
In 2017, Dr. Aram founded the International Center forChild and Public Health (ICPH) on the 30th anniversary ofShanti Ashram. ICPH is an innovative model of integrating primary care with public health, where the best of global knowledge steers comprehensive interventions for children. Besides contributing to the public health discourse and policy at the national level, ICPH directly impacts the health outcomes of vulnerable children in 100 service villages.
Dr. Aram was invited to serve on the ‘Experts Committee’ of the Government of Tamil Nadu in March 2020 when the COVID-19 pandemic affected India. Her mandate was to advise on child health and child protection issues. Over the last two decades, Dr. Aram has worked with the Government of India to make several notable contributions to India’s Public Health landscape.
Internationally, Dr. Aram has continued to leverage her global leadership positions for the common good. She was invited to serve on the World Economic Forum’s Advisory Committee on the Social Determinants of Health Platform. Dr. Aram also serves as Co-moderator and Executive Committee Member of Religions for Peace-International where she works closely with faith-based organizations in 90 countries to advance Peace building efforts.Dr. Aram served as a Board Member of KAICIID, a prestigious Inter-Governmental Organization for Interfaith Dialogue. Dr. Aram also serves as the Vice Chair of the Advisory Board of Arigatou International where she has collaborated to advance the interfaith collaboration to ensure wellbeing and progress of children worldwide. Dr. Aram served as a Trustee at the M. S. Swaminathan Research Foundation and now is on the National Centenary Committee of Prof.M.S.S. She serves as Member of the Global jury of the prestigious Niwano Peace Prize since 2022. In 2024, Dr.Aram was appointed as Co-Chair of the prestigious Georgetown–Lancet Commission on Faith, Trust, and Health. The commissions agenda is to reframe and prioritize the intersection of these fields by analyzing the evidence base, generating thought leadership through multidisciplinary dialogue, and leveraging high-profile Commissioners to champion this work. Its work will also aim to shape policy and practice by developing and recommending strategies and tools that strengthen public trust in health, fostering mutual respect and collaboration at local, national, and global levels.
Dr. Aram received her Master of Public Health degree from the School of Public Health, Harvard University, with a double major in child health and international health. She received her Medical Degree from the PSG Institute of Medical Sciences & Research and completed her special training in Paediatrics at the Masonic Medical Centre for Children in Coimbatore, India.
Dr. Aram was awarded the 2021 Leadership Award in Public Health Practice by the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health - making her the first Indian to receive the award. Her other awards include distinctions from each of her alma maters; from Harvard University, Dr. Aram received the Albert Schweitzer Award for Commitment to Public Health Practice and the Dr. Fan Chin Memorial Award for Innovation in Child Health, from the PSG Group of Institutions she received the Distinguished Alumni Award, and from the Masonic Medical Centre she received the Best Junior Medical Officer award. Dr. Aram has also received the Dharma Chakra Award for contributions to Child Health and the Outstanding Young Indian Award. She also serves as a commissioner in the recently convened Lancet commission on Faith, Trust & Health. Dr.Kezevino Aram received the Tagore Literacy Award 2023 from IAEA for her exemplary work in advancing literacy & holistic development amongst girls and women. She joins a distinguished scroll of 24 women leaders in India who have been decorated with this honour.
Dr. Aram is deeply committed to the Gandhian spirit and convenes many initiatives that focus on community cohesion and active peace building. Widely travelled, she speaks 8 Indian languages and loves music, reading, family time and interacting with children
