THE CROWN CHRONICLES

April 2023

Dear Friends of the Collaborative for Research on Women’s Nutrition (CROWN) Project,

We are so excited to share with you a resource that has been percolating in our heads for a while now – our brand-new project newsletter, CROWN Chronicles!

On the 15th of each month, we will share updates from one of our country projects in Ethiopia, Nigeria, and India, including resources, write-ups, and media. We’ll also spotlight one member from each of the featured country teams, highlighting their contributions to the project (and some fun facts too!). Feel free to send us your nominations for spotlighted team members in advance, otherwise we will reach out for nominations a few weeks before that country’s project is featured for updates and other key project milestones. We will also keep you informed of upcoming events, workshops, conferences, as well as link you to any relevant resources that can assist your invaluable work on maternal nutrition in each of the three countries.

We have more exciting advancements coming soon, so please be on the lookout for updates from the CROWN team regarding our new-and-improved website, social media platforms, and other knowledge management resources for your team!

All the best,

Daryl Stephens
CROWN Program Manager

News from the Kick-Off CROWN Convening
From March 14-16, 2023, for the first time ever, the three CROWN projects came together in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, for three days of learning, sharing, and networking. We had over 40 in-person participants, as well as a robust virtual presence, making for great discussion and providing an opportunity to develop effective partnerships across projects.

Over the three days, participants from Ethiopia, Nigeria, and India not only presented on early learnings from each of their projects, but also learned about a variety of topics including social behavior change, nutrition, human-centered design, and incorporating a gender lens into projects.
Participants who would like to revisit these materials can check out the notes and links in the shared CROWN Dropbox.
Dropbox

Pictured above: A look back at the dedicated work accomplished during our first annual convening.

The full Convening report can be accessed here:

CROWN Convening 2023 Report
We are already looking forward to the next Convening – stay tuned!

Team Spotlight: Bee-Ah Kang
My name is Bee-Ah Kang, and I’m from Seoul, South Korea. I’m a PhD student in the Department of Health, Behavior and Society at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Role on the CROWN project: I’m serving as a research assistant for the project, and I have been leading literature reviews on nutritional supplementation adherence interventions and the application of human-centered design in health interventions in LMICs.

What the CROWN project means to you: I joined the project because I’m interested in promoting women’s health through innovative interventions by applying social and behavioral change theories and frameworks. Also, CROWN provides a really unique platform where I can learn from many different fields of practice and research fostering capacity across teams.

Hobbies: I have so many hobbies! I’m especially passionate about painting and drawing. Whenever I travel, I always carry a small notebook to draw scenes right in front of me, so I can appreciate the moment more vividly than taking pictures. I also enjoy cooking, visiting art museums, backpacking, hiking, playing tennis, golf, and violin, and doing absolutely nothing at all!

Fun fact about me: Although I cook every single day, I never make the same dish again because I believe cooking is equivalent to making art.

Upcoming Events
May 23, 2023
This meeting will kick off the first quarterly CROWN virtual “mini-convening” for all projects (Ethiopia, Nigeria, and India). More details and an agenda to be shared soon.