Toby Le is a PhD student from the Department of Medical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases at the University of Manitoba, studying under the supervision of Drs. Keith Fowke and Julie Lajoie. As part of his doctoral studies, he works with a community of female sex workers from Kenya to investigate the effects of a common injectable contraceptive, Depot Medroxyprogesterone Acetate (DMPA), on the immune system and its implications on HIV susceptibility. Beyond his academic studies, Toby is also a research assistant at the National Collaborating Centre for Infectious Diseases (NCCID), where he has led several public health knowledge translation projects, including a COVID-19 variants tracking webpage that curated over 18,000 views. Currently, Toby is working with the NCCID and the Public Health Agency of Canada to organize stakeholder engagement sessions on the Pan-Canadian Action Plan on Antimicrobial Resistance.
The NCCID – CFID Infectious Diseases Knowledge Translation Award
The National Collaborating Centre for Infectious Diseases (NCCID) and the Canadian Foundation for Infectious Diseases (CFID) offer the Infectious Diseases Knowledge Translation Award to encourage student involvement in knowledge mobilization and health promotion on preventing and controlling infectious diseases.
An award of $5,000 will be presented to an undergraduate student, graduate student or clinical trainee annually. The award is to be used to support a proposed project for outstanding knowledge translation or health promotion in an infectious disease topic for public health audiences. Successful applicants will receive two meetings with NCCID and CFID members to review their project and offer support and guidance on knowledge translation. The NCCID-CFID award will be presented during the AMMI Canada /CACMID Annual Conference.
Application
Applications are due no later than February 13, 2026.
2023 NCCID – CFID Infectious Diseases Knowledge Translation Award – Monika M Kowatsch
Trainee: Monika M Kowatsch, PhD, University of Manitoba
Supervisor: Keith Fowke
Project: “Drawing back the curtain on basic science: community engagement in Canada and Kenya”