For his commitment to advancing health equity from Newark to Ghana, Joachim Sackey, a faculty member at Rutgers School of Health Professions, has been named a 2025 Champion in Global Health by the Rutgers Global Health Institute.

Joachim Sackey

The annual award recognizes Rutgers-affiliated faculty, staff, and volunteers who demonstrate exceptional leadership in addressing health inequities locally and globally. Sackey is an associate professor in the Department of Clinical and Preventive Nutrition Sciences.

Born and raised in Ghana, Sackey sees global health as “not a distant concept but a local reality.” To him, the same barriers that affect communities abroad—such as food insecurity and unequal access to care—are also felt close to home.

Since 2021, Sackey has helped lead efforts to address food insecurity on campus through the Rutgers Health Food Pantry, distributing more than 500,000 pounds of food and supporting over 27,000 client visits. His role has spanned grant writing, data analysis, community outreach, and transitioning pantry operations to a digital platform to better serve those in need.

Sackey also mentors students researching links between food insecurity, academic performance, and mental health, fostering a new generation of health equity advocates. His scholarly work examines how food insecurity shapes the lives of vulnerable populations both locally and worldwide—from college students to individuals living with HIV—and how culturally responsive interventions can strengthen resilience.

His collaborative projects include working with Dr. Diana Finkel and the North Jersey Community Research Initiative (NJCRI) to explore the experiences of transgender individuals living with HIV in Newark.

“Through my work, I strive to bridge local and global perspectives,” Sackey . said “What we learn in Newark can inform efforts in Ghana and beyond—and what we learn globally can help us better serve our neighbors here at home.”

As a Champion in Global Health, Sackey was be recognized at the Rutgers Global Health Institute’s annual membership meeting on Oct. 28, where a brief video spotlighted his work.