Mercy Namanya Kukundakwe

I am a community psychologist, research advisor, global health advocate, and educator with over 20 years of experience working across HIV, tuberculosis (TB), antimicrobial resistance (AMR), community engagement, health literacy, research, advocacy, and public health communication, with a particular focus on young adults and marginalised communities in Uganda. As Co-Chair of the Community Advisory Board at the UCSF Tuberculosis Research and Advancement Center, I provide community leadership and research advice, helping strengthen meaningful community participation and ensure that research is ethical, relevant, inclusive, and grounded in lived experience. I am also the founder of Pitch Point Blog, using blogging, digital storytelling, multimedia, and creative communication to make complex health and scientific information accessible and meaningful to wider audiences. My work connects evidence with lived experience to challenge misinformation, stigma, and health inequities while promoting health literacy and informed community action. My expertise includes research advisory, community engagement, patient-centred care, policy influence, health systems strengthening, behavioural change, and participatory approaches to public health. I am passionate about empowering communities to move beyond being beneficiaries of health interventions to becoming partners, advocates, experts, and co-creators of solutions. My professional mission is to bridge science, advocacy, policy, and community experience to advance inclusive, equitable, people-centred, and One Health-for-All solutions that create meaningful and sustainable health impact in Uganda and globally.