Pedaling from London to Brighton to continue Val's legacy!
Sally Inman is raising money for London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine
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On 15 September, I will cycle 88.8km (including 976m uphill!) from London to Brighton to fundraise for the Val Curtis Memorial Fund, which remembers and celebrates the life of the extraordinary, pioneering LSHTM Professor Val Curtis.
As well as being a prominent professor, Val was an extraordinary mother to my friend, Naima. Naima and her brother Abi will be cycling on the day, and I'm honoured to join them in the challenge in order to continue their mum's legacy.
Right up to the end, Val was an advisor to the Indian and Tanzanian governments on their national sanitation campaigns, as well as contributing to the work of SAGE and being an active member of the Scientific Pandemic Influenza Group on Behaviours advising the UK government on how to encourage people to adhere to recommendations during the coronavirus pandemic. Her achievements and accolades are much too wide to mention here, and her colleagues at LSHTM say:
No one has done more to put hygiene on the global health agenda than Professor Val Curtis. Through careful research and powerful advocacy she inspired a generation of researchers and has transformed how we think about hygiene-related behaviour change and public health. Her legacy is far-reaching and will be felt for decades to come."
Many learned of Val's illness through an article published in The Guardian where she used her own terminal situation to highlight the human cost of austerity on the NHS. Publishing the article, as many have commented, was a courageous act, but not out of character: the NHS was one of many causes she fought for outside of her work, alongside being a committed Labour & anti-Brexit campaigner.
Val credited Naima for revitalising her radical side in the last few years, joining protests and campaigning vocally on issues close to her heart, even doing her part to contribute to the Black Lives Matter movement in July 2020, during what would be her last few months.
Although Val's ambition and drive cannot be replaced, her marching orders were to ensure that the work to achieve global hygiene goals continues.
To that end, the Val Curtis Memorial Fund provides scholarships and grants for students specialising in water, sanitation and hygiene to continue her inspiring legacy and work.
I would be so grateful if you would consider making a donation to support the next generation of global health leaders and keep Val's important work alive.