Abraham Openy

Abraham Openy is a medical doctor and public health researcher currently pursuing his PhD at the Centre for Environmental and Respiratory Health Research (CERH), Faculty of Medicine, University of Oulu. His work is supported by the Finnish government's Planetary Health and Sustainability Transformations (SusTra) doctoral education pilot.

Abraham’s research focuses on the intersection of climate change, air pollution, and respiratory health outcomes in sub-Saharan Africa. His doctoral project explores the respiratory health effects of household and ambient air pollution through geospatial and epidemiological analysis using Demographic Health Survey (DHS) and satellite data. He brings over a decade of professional experience in medical practice and implementation science research in areas of disease prevention, care, treatment and health systems strengthening, having worked on national and subnational programs in Uganda (Africa).

Before joining CERH, Abraham completed a Master’s research fellowship in Global Public Health (Health Systems and Disease Control) at the Institute of Tropical Medicine–Antwerp (ITM). His research investigated the sustainability of health development programs beyond external assistance in LMICs, especially within the context of climate crises and global health security threats.

He has undertaken advanced trainings at Columbia University’s Global Consortium on Climate and Health Education (GCCHE), Association of Schools of Public Health in European Region (ASPHER), and the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Abraham is an active contributor to global public health networks and has engaged in high-level policy forums including the 140^th WHO Executive Board Meeting.