RISE-MICCAI announces new Board Members and expresses gratitude to Islem Rekik

By Esther Puyol, RISE-MICCAI President

RISE-MICCAI is excited to welcome new members to its Board of Directors. We extend our heartfelt congratulations to the following individuals and announce their new positions.

• Esther Puyol, President
• Tareen Dawod, President Assistant
• Charles Delahunt, Industry Liaison
• Rabia Haq, Industry Liaison
• Andrea Lara, Public Outreach
• Alvaro Gonzalez-Jimenez, Journal Club Coordinator
• Pulkit Khandelwai, Journal Club Coordinator
• Rachid Zeghlache, Tutorials Coordinator
• David Dueñas, Summer/Winter School Coordinator

“Following Islem Rekik's inspiring vision for RISE, I am honoured to step into the presidency and continue its mission”, said Esther Puyol. “My sincere gratitude goes to the MICCAI Society for their continued support. I warmly welcome our new board members; I am eager to collaborate closely with you all.”

 “Together with the entire MICCAI community, we will build upon the strong foundation laid, amplifying our impact to empower minorities in LMICs within AI, medical imaging, and global health and propel our shared vision of inclusivity and innovation to new horizons.”

Opportunities to join the Board still open

A call for applications was recently announced for two new positions on the RISE-MICCAI board.

• RISE Storytelling Coordinator
• RISE Website Coordinator

We encourage applications from all genders, racial and ethnic groups, and career stages. Interested in getting involved? Please apply via the RISE-MICCAI Application Form before March 29, 2025.

Thank you Islem Rekik!

We are immensely grateful to Islem Rekik, who steps down as RISE-MICCAI’s first President. We also thank Shadi Albarquoni and Ahmed Shahin for their dedication to RISE-MICCAI as they complete their roles on the board as Deputy and Secretary, respectively. 

In 2018, Rekik identified the need to encourage inclusiveness and increase geographic diversity with the MICCAI community. Later in 2020, Rekik and Albarquoni co-founded RISE-MICCAI.  Since then, RISE- MICCAI has been a driving force behind a variety of impactful initiatives, including lunch events with inspiring keynote speakers, engaging journal club meetings, vibrant networking sessions, and enriching summer and winter schools. These initiatives have increased the participation of researchers from Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs) by providing accessible platforms for networking, learning, and collaboration. This inclusive approach has fostered a more diverse and dynamic research community, encouraged greater involvement from LMIC researchers and expanded their impact on the field.

Read below for Islem Rekik’s farewell message.

RISE-MICCAI President's Farewell Statement

Dear MICCAI and RISE Communities,

Peace be with you all,

"When you do things from your soul, you feel a river moving in you, a joy." — Jalaluddin Rumi.

Four years ago, I stepped into the role of President of RISE with a vision—a vision fuelled by passion, dedication, and an unwavering belief in the power of inclusiveness and geographic diversity within the landscape of AI in healthcare and beyond. Today, as I step down, I want to take a moment to reflect on this incredible journey and express my deepest gratitude to the remarkable RISE Board members and everyone who walked alongside us, whether for a step or a mile.

RISE isn’t just a network; it is a community, which stands for “Reinforcing Inclusiveness & diverSity and Empowering MICCAI in Low-to-Middle Income Countries”.So, how did the RISE come about? Through a few serendipitous encounters at MICCAI 2018 and 2020. At MICCAI 2018 in Granada, I had a conversation with Julia Schnabel (General Co-Chair of MICCAI 2024) about the absence of the whole continent Africa in the conference’s accepted papers statistics. In 2020, following a virtual chat with Shadi Albarqouni, we decided to co-found the RISE-MICCAI network, which gained strong approval from the MICCAI Board. At that time, only two papers from Africa were accepted, both from PhD students I co-supervised in Tunisia. This year, we saw seven papers from Africa, a significant leap forward. Change takes time, but progress is happening, and it is something we should all celebrate.

But the journey hasn’t always been easy. One of the most disheartening moments for me as RISE President was not being able to obtain a Visa to attend and chair several events I was organizing at MICCAI 2023 in Canada—the processing time from the UK is currently 402 days. I am sure a lot of our readers, including RISERs, can resonate with this. Yet, that year also marked a milestone: for the first time, RISE fully funded an LMIC student to attend MICCAI. Witnessing the entire MICCAI community rise in applause during the closing ceremony was breathtaking, as shared by Esther, who represented RISE. This experience only strengthened our resolve to ensure that our MICCAI community is accessible to all. We come into a world that has been shaped by the past and carry the biases and discriminations left behind by those before us. This needs to change. And it is only you and me that can do so.

Among the many initiatives RISE-MICCAI has championed lunch events featuring inspiring keynote speakers at MICCAI, journal clubs, networking sessions, and summer and winter schools. Our first winter school in 2022 was a prime step. From Nepal to Guatemala, from Chile to Africa, we brought together a community of learners, creating a space for education in AI and medicine from the top experts in the field. These online events stand as a testament to the RISE mission of empowering researchers in LMICs and paving the way for future stars to rise.

And now, as I pass the torch, I do so with immense pride and excitement for the future of RISE-MICCAI. With the incredible Esther Puyol as the newly announced President and a fantastic Board with new members, I have no doubt that RISE will reach new heights of geographic outreach and inclusiveness.

To everyone who has been part of this journey—thank you. A special shoutout to the MICCAI 2024 General Co-Chairs and organizing committee for making history by bringing MICCAI to Africa for the first time. Your support, enthusiasm, and unwavering belief in the power of community have shaped RISE into what it is today. Let’s always remember:

We rise together. We never rise alone.

Join us now at https://shorturl.at/ZDSkU 

Sincerely,

Islem Rekik