The past few decades have been good for population health. Worldwide, life expectancy has risen from 46 years in 1948, when the World Health Organization was founded, to 73 years in 2024, driven largely by dramatic drops in maternal and child mortality and steady improvements in adult mortality. Global health programs, which are typically funded and led by people and institutions based in wealthy countries, have played a key, but at times controversial, role in this achievement.
But now, priorities in some high-income countries are shifting. Funding streams are drying up, and political will to support global health efforts is weakening. At the same time, public health leaders in low- and middle-income countries are seeking a greater say in how global health research is conducted and programs are delivered.
WashU School of Public Health has launched the Global Health Futures research network to re-envision the future of global health at this moment of change. The network aims to find innovative ways to advance collaborative research that builds on the success of the past, but with an increased emphasis on closing health gaps among and within countries; translating global knowledge, insights and interventions to local contexts; and strengthening international partnerships to achieve shared health priorities.
“The rapidly shifting global health landscape, especially the changing governance and funding structures, will create new frontiers to improve the health of the global population,” said Salma Abdalla, MBBS, MPH, DrPH, an assistant professor at WashU School of Public Health and one of three co-directors of the network. “Global Health Futures aims to anticipate these transformations and develop adaptive approaches grounded in the strengths of WashU and emphasizing connections between local and global contexts.”