Faculty-researcher sees COVID-19 unfold from global perspective while on sabbatical at UNICEF
While the pandemic touched RIT locally, Ruben Proano, associate professor of industrial engineering in RIT’s Kate Gleason College of Engineering, saw it from a global perspective, as part of a year-long sabbatical at UNICEF in Copenhagen, Denmark. He has since returned to Rochester and is teaching this fall semester. His work in Denmark extended ongoing research on making the vaccine market more affordable and profitable, and studying how to set up a global safety stock for Ebola vaccines. As COVID-19 unfolded, he experienced the impact of the pandemic on the UNICEF Center responsible for global vaccine distribution. In an interview, he shared information about the different perspectives of the pandemic from the viewpoint of an international health care advocacy organization and how the experience will enrich his teaching and scholarship.