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Monthly Bulletin
January 2021
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A MESSAGE FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR |
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January 14th, 2021
Dear colleague,
The invasion of Capitol Hill, assaults on police officers, and vandalization of property in the seat of democracy in the United States was jarring, but not surprising. This was a planned terrorist attack. Participants were a mix of members of known, far right extremist groups, individuals who had absorbed the steady stream of disinformation they were receiving from many sources and those who heeded Pres. Trump’s request to march to Capitol Hill and overturn the election that President-elect Joe Biden won fairly and handily.
For many years, through many means, a steady stream of disinformation has poisoned the US body politic. Lies about minority groups, immigrants, the Covid-19 pandemic, traditional media, the Democratic Party and others have fueled rage amongst some Americans. Other individuals have been left out of the economic advancements enjoyed by others and the disinformation they have been viewing has fed into their anxieties and fears. Sadly, the events of January 6th do not mark the end of this story. Falsehoods are repeated, scapegoating continues, conspiracy theories remain embedded in people’s minds, and the fears many have about surviving and making ends meet remain unaddressed.
A nation cannot move forward fighting against itself. Democracy cannot survive unless the public and political parties battle over ideas but agree on a common set of facts. So where do we go from here?
We in global health can and indeed must play an important role in healing these divides. We need to confront disinformation wherever we see it. This means informing the public about the facts on our social media accounts, on regional TV, radio and the print press. We need to offer policymakers and the public the evidence-based initiatives that can address people’s everyday needs: access to healthcare, jobs, housing, public safety, quality education and a healthy environment. Bridging the gap between science and policy to affect substantial improvements in people’s lives will act as a bulwark against the disinformation that poisons public discourse. Finally, we need to call out the vile, discriminatory, and sometimes violent rhetoric promulgated by extremist groups.
The driving forces behind the invasion of Capitol Hill this month are not unique to the United States. The rise of far-right hate groups, ascendancy of nationalistic autocratic leaders, assaults on democracy, the weakening of public institutions and the scapegoating of minorities and vulnerable groups is happening around the world. At CUGH we remain committed to applying scientific knowledge to address the needs of people and our planet and speaking out against those who seek to attack the vulnerable and destroy the values and rights that unite us.
Stay safe.
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Keith Martin, MD, PC
Executive Director
Consortium of Universities for Global Health
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CUGH's 2020 Annual Report is now live! The report includes a letter from our Executive Director, Dr. Keith Martin, and the Chair of the CUGH Board of Directors, Dr. Michele Barry, information about our growth in membership over the past year, the most up-to-date status on all of our committees, and much much more. If you'd like to get to know our organization better, and learn about all of the exciting things we got up to in the year of 2020, please read the CUGH 2020 Annual Report here.
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See our website www.cugh2021.org for the expanding list of outstanding sessions we are featuring, including: Dr. Anthony Fauci, Director of NIH's NIAID and a leading member of the White House's Covid-19 Task Force; Dr. Hugo Ramirez, the Deputy Secretary of Prevention and Health Promotion for Mexico; Inger Andersen, Executive Director of the UN Environment Program; Elizabeth Mrema, Executive Secretary of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity and others; more than 600 posters, 31 satellites, over 42 other sessions and the Pulitzer-CUGH Global Health Film Festival.
Register before January 15th to take advantage of our early bird registration rates!
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ICODA has launched the new Grand Challenges ICODA COVID-19 Data Science initiative. This pilot initiative is coordinated by the International COVID-19 Data Alliance (ICODA) in partnership with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s Grand Challenges program. It’s an open funding call that seeks to identify and support research studies that harness the power of health data in a safe and trusted way to respond to the current COVID-19 pandemic and have direct impact, as well as to enhance global health data responses to health challenges of the future.
The application deadline for the pilot initiative is January 19th 2021, and successful applicants will receive $25,000-$100,000 over 6-12 months from mid-March onward.
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The association of air pollution with multiple adverse health outcomes is well established, including being a leading cause of mortality worldwide. Its negative economic impact is less appreciated. However, this paper published in The Lancet Planetary Health sheds light on this important issue.
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The Global Health & Development Essentials course is intended as an introduction and orientation to international development policies and practices. Participants will gain an improved understanding of the global health policy environment in low and lower middle income countries; learn about the global frameworks and key players providing sustained humanitarian assistance and response for global health and health systems; explore the dynamics and coordination of international disaster and pandemic response, and complexities of medical product donation programs within these contexts and existing frameworks. Read more here.
Spring Session: June 2-July 14
Fall Session: September 15-October 27
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The CORE Group conference brings together implementers, civil society, UN Agencies, governments, advocates, youth, and many more! Anyone who is committed to improving the health and well-being of children and adolescents worldwide is welcome.
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Visit here to view the proceedings from the Academic Medical Education Interest 2020 Workshop, which took place on December 26th, 2020. The materials include 500 abstracts, 43 slidesets, and 65 videos.
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The Roux Prize is intended for anyone who has used health evidence in innovative ways to improve the health of the population. They welcome diverse entries: winners might be workers within government agencies, researchers at academic institutions, volunteers in charitable organizations, or health providers working in the community.
The winner receives $100,000.
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This is an invitation to participate in a survey about cultural representations of Borderline Personality Disorder. Currently there is very limited data and knowledge surrounding this topic. In a recent literature review, only 13 papers with information from 9 countries were found. The survey seeks to gather information about how other non-American cultures express Borderline Personality Disorder as we believe it could help improve outcomes for those affected by the disease.
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Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health will be hosting a Virtual Spring Career Fair on Friday, Feb. 19, 2021. This event offers the opportunity to meet with over 500 public health and healthcare management graduate students and alumni.
Areas of study include Biostatistics, Environmental Health Sciences, Epidemiology, Health Policy and Management, Population & Family Health, and Sociomedical Sciences. Approximately 11% of our graduates are MDs and more than 22% have additional graduate degrees. Register here before Thursday, February 4.
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Join the Us vs HPV Prevention week during January 24-30, 2021 for a series of webinars that will provide the latest updates on the FDA’s approval of the HPV vaccine for oropharyngeal cancer, World Health Organization’s (WHO) formal adoption of the global strategy to eliminate cervical cancer and American Cancer Society’s modifications to the cervical cancer screening guidelines, among other important topics. Register here.
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NEW ISGLOBAL SHORT COURSES AVAILABLE
Migrants and refugees health in the Mediterranean will be an in person class at the University of Barcelona and will take place April 27-May 6, 2021.
GIS for Exposure Assessment in Environmental Health Research will be a 5 day online course from May 3-7, 2021. Both of these courses will be run in English.
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The University of California Global Health Institute is pleased to announce an RFA for letters of intent (LOI) Global Health Incubator Awards.
We are launching a competitive grants program to provide 5 to 10 UCGHI Incubator Awards of between $5000 and $10,000. These grants are designed to stimulate multi-campus and multidisciplinary teams that also include international partners to propose innovative strategies for addressing significant global health challenge.
Proposed projects can focus on a variety of topics or approaches but should integrate anti-racism, diversity, equity and inclusion in global health.
UCGHI encourages diverse teams that include members from backgrounds who are not adequately represented in global health such as individuals from gender, racial or ethnic groups underrepresented in health-related sciences; with disabilities; and from disadvantaged backgrounds or areas of the country. The deadline for letters of intent is January 15, 2021.
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The book "Health: A Political Choice -- Act Now, Together", edited by Prof. John Kirton is a part of a series published by the Global Governance Project in collaboration with WHO. The book gathers perspectives from global health leaders from around the world and is free to read. You can access the book here.
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Job & Funding Opportunities
(see our new Jobs Board to see the latest listings)
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The Johns Hopkins International Injury Research Unit (JH-IIRU), within the Health Systems Program in the Department of International Health at the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health, is seeking candidates for a Senior Research Associate or Assistant Scientist position to serve as Operations Manager for a new USAID-funded project, Learning, Acting and Building for Rehabilitation in Health Systems (ReLAB-HS).
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The US National Cancer Institute Center for Global Health is inviting applications from qualified candidates for a Cancer Research Training Award Fellowship. The position provides opportunities for training and professional development. Fellows work with NCI staff to develop and implement projects that aim to strengthen cancer research and control globally. The fellowship includes a capstone research project. Candidates with an interest in cancer research and control in low- and middle- income (LMIC) countries, preferred. Application deadline is January 20, 2021. Fellowship will begin in the summer (June/July) of 2021.
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The Center for Global Health at the Perelman School of Medicine seeks candidates to serve as a Program Leader in the Penn Medicine Center for Excellence in Cardiology – Vietnam. Applicants must have a M.D or M.D./Ph.D. degree. Board certification in Internal Medicine and Cardiovascular Disease at a US-national or international level is strongly preferred. Candidates will be eligible for associated faculty positions at the University of Pennsylvania depending on qualifications. The primary responsibility of the position is to guide the education and clinical functions of the Center, which is jointly held by Penn and the Vinmec Health System. The position is based in Hanoi, Vietnam, however close linkage to Penn’s clinical cardiology program is essential.
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The Fogarty International Center at NIH offers funding to support global health research. Fogarty also offers a variety of resources for those seeking global health research funding across NIH, and from other organizations.
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The following three resources from Johns Hopkins University are continuously updated repositories of federal and private funding opportunities for individuals in various stages of their career.
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Featured Reading & Listening |
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New COVID-19 Variant Sparks Calls for Restrictions
Public health experts hope the discovery of four cases of a more contagious strain of COVID-19 acts as a “wakeup call” about New York’s troubling increase in cases. Read here.
Vaccines here, but doctor predicts it will take another year to get 'through this'
Even after the rollout of the first coronavirus vaccine, much about COVID-19 vaccines is unknown. Dr. Leonard Krilov, an infectious disease specialist and chief of pediatrics at NYU Langone Hospital-Long Island, explains to Newsday how New Yorkers aren't out of the woods yet. Read here.
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Global Health Journals & Newsletters |
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Consortium of Universities for Global Health
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