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Opening Keynote

Dr. Abdul El-Sayed Announced as Opening Keynote
Thursday, Oct. 17 at 3:00 p.m.

Abdul El Sayed.jpgThe LOC is pleased to announce that Dr. Abdul El-Sayed will deliver the Opening Keynote address for the upcoming 99th LOC Annual, scheduled for October 17-19 in Bend.

Dr. El-Sayed has dedicated his career to health equity, resiliency, and environmental justice. A physician and epidemiologist, he currently serves as the Public Health Director for Michigan’s largest and most diverse county, where he oversees everything from public health to veterans services.

Every week, on his podcast America Dissected, Dr. El-Sayed invites tens of thousands of listeners to go beyond the headlines with him and leading experts in science, public health, healthcare, public policy, and politics to explore the intersection between health and society. The award-winning show has earned national and international recognition, and has been featured among the best podcasts in science by the New York Times.

Dr. El-Sayed was the youngest health official in a major U.S. city when he was appointed Health Director for the city of Detroit. He led the Detroit Health Department to become a national leader in public health innovation and environmental justice, spearheading one of the fastest municipal public health turnarounds in American history. He has served as one of eight members of President Biden’s 2020 Unity Task Force for Healthcare.

As a professor at Columbia University’s Department of Epidemiology, Dr. El-Sayed became an internationally recognized expert in health policy and health inequalities. He was Director of the Columbia University Systems Science Program and Global Research Analytics for Population Health. He has also taught at the University of Michigan and American University. He has over 100 peer-reviewed publications that have earned over 3,000 citations.

Previously, the LOC had announced a different keynote speaker for this year’s event, but a scheduling conflict arose, and a new keynote was secured.

For more information on the 2024 LOC Annual Conference, including the full agenda and registration information, visit the conference webpage.

Contact: Brie Ligammari, Conference Coordinator - bligammari@orcities.org

Last Updated 9/13/24