Dr Musangi is currently the Head Librarian at Amref International University. She holds a PhD in Information Studies, a Masters in Library and Information studies as well as a Bachelor’s Degree in Information sciences specializing in Information Technology.

She is a recipient of the coveted IFLA/OCLC Fellowship Award in the information and knowledge management field in 2016. Dr Musangi has been instrumental in the development and implementation of institutional repositories and open access (OA) policies in various universities in Kenya through an EIFL/Spider project 2015-2020.

The success of this project saw an increase in the number of institutions with institutional repositories rise from 13 in 2015 to 43 in 2021, as well as an increase in OA policies from 7 to 15. Dr Musangi’s research interests are aligned to open science practices evidenced by several articles published in the area. She is also involved in teaching in library schools course units around open access initiatives.

Tom Kwanya is an associate professor in the Department of Information and Knowledge Management at the Technical University of Kenya. He is currently also serving as the Director of the School of Information and Communication Studies. Prior to joining academics fulltime in 2013, he worked as a consultant on public information and knowledge management. Some of the key consultancy positions he held include serving as a World Bank communication consultant seconded to the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of Southern Sudan, Juba; knowledge management consultant for the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women); public information specialist and team leader of the Public Sector Information Project for the Republic of South Sudan, Juba; communications consultant for the County Government of Bungoma; technical advisor on communication, documentation and knowledge management for Management Sciences for Health, Kenya; and a facilitator of a 5-day professional course on the fundamentals of organisational knowledge management on behalf of the African Advanced Level Telecommunications Institute (AFRALTI) in Kenya, Mozambique, the Gambia, Sierra Leone and Liberia. He holds BSc in Information Sciences (MU); MA in Communication Studies (UoN); and PhD in Information Studies (UKZN). He is an associate trainer for communications and e-resources management at the Training Centre in Communication (TCC).

Key Accomplishments

• Authored 31 articles in peer review journals; 2 university-level books; 4 edited books; and 17 book chapters;
• Presented 46 papers in international, regional and local academic conferences;
• Delivered 6 keynote addresses in international academic conferences;
• Supervised 5 PhD and 22 Master’s candidates;
• Examined 13 PhD and 23 Master’s theses;
• Served as external examiner for 6 Kenyan and 4 foreign universities;
• Serves as the Editor in Chief of the Regional Journal of Information and Knowledge Management, and as an editorial board member of 3 academic journals;
• Authored several articles in newspapers and magazines;
• Serves as a member of the Information Science Services Technical Committee, the Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS);
• Designed and/or reviewed several academic curricula; and
• Serves as the Lead Trainer, the Regional Institute of Information and Knowledge Management.

Mr. Nicholas Outa is a Doctoral candidate in the field of Fisheries and Aquaculture at Maseno University, Kenya. He obtained a Master’s of Science degree (MSc) in Limnology and Wetland Management from UNESCO-IHE, Netherlands, BOKU University, Austria and Egerton University, Kenya. He also holds a BSc. Applied Aquatic Science from Egerton University, Kenya.

Mr. Outa has published more than 25 scientific articles in peer-reviewed journals. Currently, he is a trainer in Scientific Writing and Communication at the Training Centre in Communication (TCC-Africa) and a mentor for early career researchers at the various universities and colleges where he lectures. He joined TCC after undergoing a ToT on content development and delivery which was conducted by senior trainers at the institution. He trains in the areas of Research Proposal and Thesis writing and Defense, Manuscript Preparation and Publication (including the use of AI in journal selection and the use Preprints like https://info.africarxiv.org/ ), Research Output and Researcher Visibility through Open Access Platforms (including ORCID, Google Scholar, Publons, and Researcher ID). Mr. Outa also trains on Oral Communication and Presentation skills including Designing of Posters and Power Point Presentations for talks, seminars and conferences. One of the highlights of his career at TCC is when he trained researchers and students at the International Institute for Tropical Agriculture (IITA) in Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria in 2019. He is also a part time lecturer in various universities and colleges in Kenya including Maseno and Kisii Universities and the Kenya Wildlife Training Institute (KWSTI).

Currently, he is researching on the potential of Freshwater Multitrophic Aquaculture (FIMTA) in reducing the negative environmental impacts of cage Aquaculture in Lake Victoria under the Kenya Climate Smart Agriculture Project (KCSAP). The project is being implemented by Maseno University in collaboration with Kenya Marine and Fisheries Research Institute (KMFRI), University of Eldoret, Egerton University and Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT). Mr. Outa is also part of the Artemia Project being implemented in Kilifi County, at the Kenyan coast. The project collaborators include Kenya Marine & Fisheries Research Institute (KMFRI), Tanzania Fisheries Research Institute (TAFIRI), and Gotheburg University, Sweden. Local partners are Khadzuhoni community and Kensalt Co. Ltd.

Earlier in his research career, Mr. Outa also worked on several research projects including the Japanese funded Lake Victoria Comprehensive Research Development Project (LAVICORD). The project focused on fisheries and Aquaculture technologies around Lake Victoria. Under the project, he conducted the first transport experiment on Nile perch (Lates niloticus). He managed to transport and rear Nile perch in fishpond and cages. This was among (if not the first) of such kind in Kenya and Africa. The results of this research were published in the Journal of Aquaculture Society Magazine. He also underwent a training on live food culture and use in Aquaculture as well as the use of otoliths in determining fish age at Nagasaki University, Japan. He also worked in the Ecology of Livelihoods in African Papyrus Wetlands (ECOLIVE) project in Nyando Wetlands, Kenya.

Outside academia, Mr. Outa is a trained Peer Counselor with immense passion for the youth. He founded the AQUITY Youth Group in 2010 to mentor and educate the youth in Obunga slums, Kisumu on social issues including Drug abuse, HIV/AIDS, Relationships, Religion and violence as well as on matters education.

Mr. Outa is an independent, open minded scholar whose dream is to bring a change in the world through research and community service!! He also loves music, comedy and martial arts (tae-kwo-ndo).

Google Scholar: https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&user=P-mAhyUAAAAJ

ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4085-0398

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicholas-outa-01236846/

Academic Qualifications

2015: Certificate in Science communication, Stellenbosch University, S. Africa

2015: Master of Information Science, Kisii University

2009: Master of Arts in Medical sociology, University of Nairobi

2001: Postgraduate Diploma in Gender and Development Studies, University of Nairobi

2000: Bachelor of Library and Information Science, Makerere University, Kampala

Career Objective

To utilize the knowledge I have gained from my experience and studies in empowering others to make the world a better place to live in.

Employment

Currently: University of Nairobi Institutional Repository Manager

Previously : E- Resources Librarian, College of Biological and Physical Sciences, University of Nairobi

·         My work involves training both students and lecturers on how to use online and electronic resources.

·         I am the lead trainer on issues of academic integrity, the use of plagiarism detection software and research communication in the university of Nairobi

·         College of Biological and Physical Sciences Chairperson of the Gender mainstreaming College Committee. My responsibility is to carry out bi-annual Gender mainstreaming training in the college, write reports and do annual evaluation of the gender parity progress in the college.

·         2000- 2012  National Secretary of the Kenya Library Association (KLA), Vice Chairperson as well as a member of  the organizing committee of the Maktaba Library of the Year Awards.

Consultancies

My main consulting areas have been on Academic integrity, Science communication, Information literacy, Automated Referencing & citing, Gender and information utilization, Gender mainstreaming and Gender and Health

Publications

Five publications which can be found in my ORCiD No. 0000-0002-2010-0784

I am a senior lecturer with fourteen (14) years teaching experience in crop production under varying environmental conditions, postharvest handling and food safety having 17 publications in refereed Journals of which, I am lead author on 7 publications. I am involved in the management of agricultural R4D involving national; regional and international partners including extension services, NGOs, private sector participation and farmers. I have experience in strategic thinking and formulation of research projects and development strategies, project management and evaluation. I have been the Principal Investigator on four projects since completing my PhD in 2010 and in total involved in eight research projects with international partners. I have effective communication skills in articulating results to scientists and other audiences. Besides I have proven writing, presentation and facilitation skills.

I am currently serving and have served in various positions in the university committees that include; Departmental Curriculum Review committee, Faculty of Agriculture proposal development committee, Faculty focal point for common undergraduate courses, Departmental representative in the Faculty Time tabling committee, Chairman- Faculty of Agriculture Industrial attachment Committee and Coordinator-Mentorship program in the centre for Sustainable Dryland Ecosystems and Societies (CSDES) of the University of Nairobi.