Roundtable - Bridging the gap: Using PPIE to build trust and advance HE equity in marginalised groups

2.20pm – 3.20pm GMT, 24 March 2026 ‐ 1 hour

Room: Lowther - located on level 0

Roundtable

Engaging underserved communities in health research is widely recognised as essential for improving health equity, yet many researchers lack practical guidance on how to do this effectively and authentically. This interactive workshop provides a practical introduction to building meaningful community partnerships and embedding Patient and Public Involvement and Engagement (PPIE) in research.
The session begins with a series of short case study spotlights highlighting real-world examples of engagement with underserved populations, including Black communities affected by dementia, people living with sickle cell disease, and individuals in areas of high socioeconomic deprivation. These examples will illustrate the structural, cultural, and logistical barriers that often limit participation in research and highlight why intentional engagement strategies are needed.

Drawing on these examples, the workshop will introduce a practical framework to help researchers reflect on their motivations for engaging specific communities, identify potential biases, and consider key elements of effective engagement. Topics will include identifying target audiences, working with community partners and gatekeepers, designing accessible engagement activities, communicating research in culturally appropriate ways, and ensuring fair recognition and compensation for participants.

Participants will then work in small groups to apply these principles to real-world scenarios. Each group will be given a community engagement challenge and guided through a structured discussion to develop strategies for recruitment, partnership building, communication, logistics, and evaluation. The session will conclude with a facilitated discussion to share insights, challenges, and practical ideas across groups.
This hands-on workshop is designed to move beyond theory and equip participants with practical tools, reflective questions, and strategies that can be applied directly to their own research contexts.

Speakers

Dr Nathasia Mudiwa Muwanigwa

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Dr Nathasia Mudiwa Muwanigwa

Dr Nathasia Mudiwa Muwanigwa is an Alzheimer’s Research UK Fellow at the UK Dementia Research Institute at University College London. Her research focuses on understanding the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying early changes in brain cells in dementia. She graduated summa cum laude with a BSc in Human Biology from the University of Nicosia in Cyprus in 2016. She then completed a Research Master’s in Molecular Mechanisms of Disease at Radboud University in the Netherlands and received her PhD in Neurobiology from the University of Luxembourg in 2023. Since April 2023, she has been a postdoctoral researcher at the UK Dementia Research Institute at UCL and was awarded an Alzheimer’s Research UK Fellowship in 2025. Alongside her laboratory research, Nathasia leads Mindful Conversations, a public engagement initiative that raises brain health and dementia awareness in Black, African, and Caribbean communities through culturally grounded dialogue and education. She also served as the dementia consultant on the theatre production Miss Myrtle’s Garden, a play about dementia in a Jamaican woman staged at the Bush Theatre. In recognition of her impactful public engagement work, she was awarded the UK Dementia Research Institute Public Engagement Prize in 2025. Nathasia is a member of the 2026 cohort of the Falling Walls Foundation Female Science Talents Intensive Programme and a Fellow of the Zimbabwe Young Academy of Sciences, where she leads the Collaborations and Engagement Working Group. She also serves as Co-Chair of the UK Dementia Research Institute Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Think Tank.