My name is Beate Ringwald, and I was born and raised in Germany’s beautiful Black Forest region.
I hold a Master’s degree in Social Education from the Catholic University of Applied Sciences in Freiburg, Germany, and a Master of Science in International Public Health (Sexual and Reproductive Health) from Liverpool University/LSTM, UK. At LSTM, I undertook a research project on “Modelling the association between intimate partner violence and adherence to HIV treatment among women in Southern Malawi“, supervised by Dr Gabriela Gomes, and was awarded the Debbie Quinney prize for the highest overall marks in my class.
I have held a wide set of roles, in which I have sought to address issues of vulnerability through empowering individuals and communities. As a Technical Adviser with Action for Development, I supported prevention of sexual and gender-based violence programs in Uganda (2012-2015). At the same time, I represented EIRENE, International Christian Service for Peace, and supervised German volunteers across Uganda. From 2010-2012, I manged a pastoral community development programme, and campaigns of Missio, including on HIV in Africa, across Limburg Diocese, Germany. I also facilitated community groups, trained students (Uganda, 2009-2010), and managed youth education programs (Germany, 2002-2008).
I completed the MRes in Global Health at Lancaster University, an integral part of the MRC DTP. Through the MRes, I gained better understanding of Statistics including Geostatistics, acquired skills to manage and analyse quantitative data using R, and developed clarity about my career prospects within Global Health.
My research interests centre around gender and health. For my PhD, I aim to explore opportunities for addressing intimate partner violence in the context of community-based HIV services in Kenya and steps toward testing community-based interventions, supervised by Dr Rachel Tolhurst and Dr Miriam Taegtmeyer. I am grateful for the partnership with and support of LVCT Health Kenya towards the data collection. LVCT is a non-governmental organization that pilots innovative solutions, implements evidence-based programs, and supports policy development for HIV and sexual and gender-based violence. At LSTM, I am affiliated with the Gender and Health group, and the Community Health Systems group.