Newsletter 01/2021: New Year, New Presidency, New Events

Dear friends and colleagues,

I am exceptionally pleased to take on the position of President of the World Health Summit, as of January 1^st 2021.

It is surely one of the most successful initiatives of Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin. Not only do we look back proudly to the establishment of one of the largest and most important health conferences in the world, but also do we look ahead to its promising future.

The World Health Summit strengthens the international visibility of Charité, with its long and outstanding research tradition in global health. As Charité, we are proud of the World Health Summit, as a discussion forum of global political and scientific leaders with the civil society, and the outstanding work of the M8 Alliance, its academic backbone. 

We devote our upmost gratitude to Detlev Ganten, whose visionary commitment during the last 12 years, since the founding of World Health Summit, has been truly remarkable. I am honored to be his successor, and I am delighted that Detlev will continue to serve the World Health Summit in an advisory capacity.

Global health has been receiving growing public and political attention everywhere, especially over the past year, which has confronted us with an entirely new challenge. 2020 showed, once again, the crucial importance of international, interdisciplinary, and intersectoral cooperation. To achieve that, we need to continuously improve our collaboration. In the face of the global threat posed by COVID-19, it is our duty as researchers, to use our accumulated expertise to combat the virus and develop therapies. 

On one hand, we live in a time of uncertainty and major threats to global health; but on the other hand, it is also a time of hope, engagement and networking. In this sense, I look forward to working with all of you together, trying to make an impact on global health.

With kind regards,

New M8 Alliance Webinar Series on Migrant and Refugee Health

Kick off for the new webinar series of the M8 Alliance Expert Meetings on Migrant and Refugee Health on January 28:

"The Impact of COVID-19 on Migrant and Refugee Health" brought together speakers like Axel R. Pries, President, World Health Summit and Dean, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Luciano Saso, Sapienza University of Rome and Coordinator of the M8 Alliance Expert Meetings on Migrant and Refugee Health, Miriam Orcutt, Executive Director, Lancet Migration, and Paul Spiegel, Director, Johns Hopkins Center for Humanitarian Health. The webinar series is organized by Sapienza University of Rome, partner of this first edition was The Lancet Commission Migration and Health. 
You can rewatch the 90-minutes-session and get all the information on program and speakers here 

Save the Date:
"Migrant Health Issues in Massive Migration Areas in the COVID Period"
February 22, 3 p.m. CET
In cooperation with the Association of Academic Health Centers International AAHCI
Get all information on speakers, program and registration here

TRANSLATE! 2021 - Metrics and Milestones of Success

All about translation in medicine, on exploiting ideas, innovations and research findings for the benefit of patients and society was Translate! from January 25-26. The online symposium by World Health Summit partner Berlin Institute of Health (BIH) was organized by BIH Center for Regenerative Therapies together with Science Translational Medicine and the German Research Foundation DFG.

Watch all panels and discussions, get all the information on speakers and topics here 

Interviews with World Health Summit President Axel R. Pries

Read a brand new interview on public health in Germany and why the interaction between science and politics makes a difference. Published on Friday, Jan. 29 in a widely read German science blog with 100.000 users a month. In English and German

Listen to a radio interview on the new role as president of the World Health Summit and the COVID-19 pandemic. Aired on Saturday, Jan. 23 on radioeins, Berlin's popular station with an average audience of 100.000 an hour. Listen in here (German only)

More media coverage here