Ogweno Stephen, a Kenyan public health advocate and researcher, has been selected as one of nine fellows for the 2027 Mira Fellowship, where he will advance Beyond The Scale Africa, an initiative seeking to change how obesity is understood, addressed and represented in health systems and policy across the continent.

Obesity is still too often framed as an individual failure, with discussions around body weight focusing on personal choices while overlooking the wider social, environmental, economic and health-system factors that shape people’s experiences. This narrative has significant consequences for prevention, access to appropriate care and the development of effective public health policies.

Through Beyond The Scale Africa, Stephen aims to challenge this framing by building a movement that places people living with obesity at the centre of conversations about their health. The initiative seeks to equip individuals with knowledge, strengthen peer and community support, and create meaningful opportunities for people with lived experience to influence obesity prevention, healthcare delivery and policy decisions.

The project reflects Stephen’s longstanding commitment to addressing obesity not only as a clinical and public health issue, but also as a matter of health equity, dignity and representation. His work spans obesity advocacy, non-communicable disease prevention, implementation research and health policy, with a particular focus on ensuring that the experiences of affected communities inform the decisions that shape their care.

His approach also recognises that improving obesity outcomes requires more than awareness campaigns. It calls for stronger health systems, informed healthcare professionals, supportive communities and policies that address the broader determinants of health.

Selection for the 2027 Mira Fellowship provides a platform to develop this work alongside eight other fellows seeking to rethink systems that are not adequately serving the people within them.

At the heart of Beyond The Scale Africa is a fundamental question: what would change if people most affected by obesity had a meaningful say in the policies, programmes and healthcare systems designed to support them?

For Stephen, the answer begins with moving beyond weight stigma and recognising people living with obesity as essential partners in shaping solutions. Through the initiative, he hopes to contribute to a future in which obesity prevention and care across Africa are more informed, inclusive and responsive to the realities of those most affected.