Authors Sonali Korde, the MD Anderson Visiting Fellow for Rice University's Baker Institute for Public Policy, and Michelle Nodskov, Assistant Director of GLHT Education Programs, Rice360 Institute for Global Health Technologies, published a brief titled “Innovative Models for Advancing Child Health in Africa” for Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy on September 5, 2025.
The brief examines the impacts of U.S. government policy changes and funding cuts for maternal and newborn health in Africa, highlighting opportunities to explore alternative models that advance global health improvement goals in these areas. Within the brief, the authors share insights from the NEST360 alliance's work to end preventable newborn deaths in African hospitals.
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Sonali Korde is the MD Anderson Visiting Fellow at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, specializing in humanitarian affairs, international development, global health, and foreign policy. She is also a Senior Middle East Advisor for All Hands and Hearts, a humanitarian NGO, and serves as an adjunct clinical instructor of the Baylor College of Medicine’s Center for Global Surgery, with focus on mentorship and guidance for the Global Surgery Advocacy and Policy Fellowship. Korde also serves on the advisory councils of two NGOs, specializing in health and humanitarian assistance. She has extensive experience working in Africa and the Middle East on humanitarian issues, conflict, and complex crises. Korde also has a strong background in global health, having worked on the front lines in Africa to combat infectious disease threats, such as malaria and Ebola.
Michelle Nodskov is with Rice360 Institute for Global Health Technologies. Rice360 collaborates closely with partners in resource-constrained medical settings, including low- and middle-income countries and the US. Rice360 co-founded the Newborn Essential Solutions and Technologies (NEST360) international alliance of clinical, biomedical, and public health experts from 23 leading institutions and organizations. The NEST360 alliance works with African governments to transform hospital newborn care through a systems approach to improving hospital-based newborn care.