The VEClim project, coordinated by Dr Kamil Erguler of CARE-C, presented at the 2024 Ronald Ross Lecture

Researchers of CARE-C at The Cyprus Institute, Dr Kamil Erguler and Dr Ahmet Arca, had the opportunity to present the VEClim project and platform at the 2024 Ronald Ross Lecture, which took place on 15 February, 2024 at The Cyprus Institute premises in Nicosia, Cyprus.

The early warning decision support system for climate-sensitive vector-borne diseases (VBDs), developed within the context of VEClim, aims to improve prediction and management of such diseases. The VEClim platform, presented at the event, utilises data-driven, mechanistic, and climate-sensitive geographical modeling, in order to display a range of useful information such as vector presence, seasonal activity profiles, and risk maps.

The project is coordinated by Dr Erguler at CARE-C, and is funded by the Wellcome Trust, as part of the Digital Technology Development Awards in Climate-Sensitive Infectious Disease Modeling, marking the foundation’s first direct award to a Cypriot institution.

The 2024 Ronald Ross Lecture, entitled “Biological Invasions: Insights from the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services Assessment on Invasive Alien Species and Their Control” was presented by the distinguished scientist, Prof. Helen Roy MBE Hon. FRES, Professor at the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology and the University of Exeter. Prof. Roy, as the co-chair of the IPBES thematic assessment on Invasive Alien Species their Control, asserted that preventing and controlling invasive alien species are attainable goals that will yield significant long-term benefits for people and nature.

The event was part of the Ronald Ross Lecture Series, a joint initiative between The Cyprus Institute and the British High Commission in Nicosia, aiming to bring eminent British scientists, leaders in their field, to Cyprus. Named after Sir Ronald Ross, the British scientist awarded the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine in 1902, the Lecture was attended by members of the academic, political, and diplomatic community including members of the CyI Board of Trustees. Among the attendees was Mr. Ben Rawlings, British Deputy High Commissioner to Cyprus.

You can watch the full lecture and VEClim presentation here and you can access the VEClim platform here.

This project is supported by the Wellcome Trust 226065/Z/22/Z2023