Honorable Professor Ruth Oniang’o

Ruth Oniang’o is Honorable Professor of Food Science and Nutrition at Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture & Technology, Nairobi and Founding Director of Graduate Studies. As first professor of nutrition in Kenya she has greatly influenced the development of nutrition training, research, and development discourse both locally in Kenya and in much of Africa.

Prof. Oniang’o is a former Member of Parliament in Kenya and the Founder and First Executive Director of the Rural Outreach Programme (ROP), a non-profit community development organization whose main activities target improving livelihoods of the rural poor population in Kenya. As the Founder and Editor-In-Chief of the African Journal of Food, Agriculture, Nutrition and Development, Prof. Oniang’o has authored numerous articles and papers on household food and nutritional security, women’s nutrition and children’s health. She had mobilized women, particularly from Western Kenya to engage in income generating activities that has greatly improved livelihoods of families.

Prof Oniang’o has served as external examiner for a number of Universities in Africa and in the process assisted them to develop or revise their Food Science and Nutrition curricula. She has worked as a consultant/expert for organizations such as FAO, ICRISAT, WHO and the Gates Foundation.

Among numerous other awards, Prof. Oniang’o is a recipient of the Silver Star Medal and Distinguished Service Medal for outstanding service to Kenya, and the Woman of the Year 2000 award granted by the American Biographical Institute. She holds a BSc and MSc from Washington State University and a PhD from the University of Nairobi.

Professor Dan Ariely

Dan Ariely is the James B. Duke Professor of Psychology and Behavioral Economics at Duke University, with appointments at the Fuqua School of Business, the Center for Cognitive Neuroscience, the Department of Economics, and the School of Medicine. He is a former Alfred P. Sloan Professor of Behavioral Economics at MIT Sloan School of Management and a founding member of the Center for Advanced Hindsight. Prof. Ariely’s interests span a wide range of daily behaviours and his method of showcasing scientific results is ground-breaking. He has published numerous academic papers in leading psychology, economics and business journals, and is the author of two New York Times best-sellers: Predictably Irrational and The Upside of Irrationality. In addition to appearances on CNN and CNBC, he is a regular commentator on National Public Radio's Marketplace and spoke at several TED talks where he delivered thought-provoking presentations on topics such as human irrationality and intuition or how the pursuit of knowledge and insight can be affected by shortsighted personal goals. Prof. Ariely has received various appointments and awards, including The 2010 William F. O'Dell Award for: Placebo Effects of Marketing Actions: Consumers May get What They Pay For. He earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Tel Aviv University, his master’s and doctorate degrees in cognitive psychology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and a doctorate in Business Administration from Duke University.