Four professors from the Rady Faculty of Health Sciences were named among Canada’s Top 100 Most Powerful Women of 2024. The award recognizes bold women for their leadership and groundbreaking achievements. The annual list is compiled by the Women’s Executive Network, a national organization that celebrates the advancement of women.
DR. HOPE ANDERSON
Award category: Professionals
Hope Anderson [B.Sc.(Hons.)/92, PhD/97] is vice-dean graduate and postdoctoral studies of the Rady Faculty of Health Sciences and a professor in the College of Pharmacy.
Anderson, a cardiovascular disease researcher, is a member of the Rady Faculty executive leadership team. With more than 15 years’ experience in academic governance, she leads the development of initiatives and programs for graduate students and postdoctoral fellows.
She empowers these learners and trainees as future thinkers and problem-solvers. She is a champion for the promotion of women in academia.
DR. KRISTINE COWLEY
Award category: Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics
Kristine Cowley [PhD/98] holds a Canada Research Chair in function and health after spinal cord injury. She is an associate professor of physiology and pathophysiology and director of the Spinal Cord Research Centre at UM.
Cowley, a neurophysiologist, is recognized internationally for her research in the areas of biomedical neurosciences, spinal cord injury and community-based knowledge translation.
Some of her recent work focuses on health policy, highlighting inequities in government support for medical services, supplies and mobility equipment required by people living with spinal cord injury.
DR. LEIGH MCCLARTY
Award category: Emerging Leaders
Leigh McClarty [B.Sc.(Hons.)/10, M.Sc./13, PhD/20] is an assistant professor in community health sciences and in the Institute for Global Public Health at UM.
McClarty’s research focuses on public health programming for HIV and other sexually transmitted infections. She is committed to improving health outcomes for people who face barriers to accessing safe, inclusive care.
She works locally in Manitoba and globally in Kenya, Nigeria, Pakistan and Ukraine, aiming to apply research findings to optimizing public health programs. She is the board president of Nine Circles Community Health Centre.
DR. NEELOFFER MOOKHERJEE
Award category: Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics
Dr. Neeloffer Mookherjee, professor of internal medicine and immunology, holds the Canadian Institutes of Health Research Sex and Gender Science Chair in Respiratory Health. She is also a researcher with the Children’s Hospital Research Institute of Manitoba.
Mookherjee is at the forefront of integrating sex- and gender-based analyses into biomedical research. Her work has revealed how air pollution affects males and females differently, with implications for respiratory disease.
She is the founder of WISDOM (Women in Science: Development, Outreach and Mentorship), a Rady Faculty-supported organization that connects and encourages women in science.