Over 12,000 Wisconsinites have died from COVID-19. Many more have suffered illness due to the virus. After two years battling COVID, uncertainty about our shared future remains. What is certain, though, is that Wisconsin is in need of information and healing as we continue to cope with the pandemic and its effects. Medical researchers in our state have been working hard over the past two years to mediate this complex public health crisis and to move us on towards a healthier future. To gather and share their wisdom, the Wisconsin Academy presents “COVID Two Years On,” a series of conversations with researchers in the field about the challenges and triumphs they’ve experienced and about the new insights they’ve gained working on COVID-related research.
All talks are free and hosted as webinars over Zoom. Pre-registration is required—click the registration button below each talk to sign up, and a join link will be sent to the email you provide.
“Considering COVID, Children, and Community”
with pediatrician Dr. Dipesh Navsaria
March 15 | 7-8:15 pm
Dr. Navsaria presented on the science of how stressors affect children and how the pandemic has specifically created challenges for families. He discussed the power of protective strategies at the micro-, meso-, and macro- levels to not only ameliorate stress, but to enable children to flourish and thrive.
“COVID-19 Epidemiology and Control: A Multilevel Perspective"
with public health researcher Dr. Jonathan Temte
April 7 | 7-8:15 pm
Dr. Temte has had the unique experience of transiting the pandemic on many levels: from home and community, through clinical practice, and as part of vaccine policy creation on state and national levels. This personal tour will provide perspectives on COVID-19 informed by studies of SARS-CoV-2 epidemiology within a Wisconsin school district and across the UW-Madison campus, the challenges of initiating Wisconsin’s vaccine distribution strategy, and the development and refinement of the nation’s COVID-19 vaccine policy.
“Pandemic Struggles and Silver Linings"
with infectious disease researcher Dr. Nasia Safdar
May 11 | 6-7:15 pm
Dr. Safdar focuses in on the epidemiology and pathogenesis––origins, make-up, and development––of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. She will also discuss outcomes of the COVID-19 pandemic and the mitigation steps necessary to move forward to a healthier future.