What to Expect at the GBCHealth Conference

The GBCHealth Conference 2013 is right around the corner and it’s going to be our best ever. We have a lineup of speakers, sessions, awards and special experiences that will challenge your thinking and inspire you to continue your tremendous work. Register today!

70+ Speakers Take the Stage
This year’s speakers are the leading thinkers and doers in business and health. They include: Mark Dybul (Global Fund); Mayor Cory Booker (Newark), Richard Besser (ABC News), Jeffrey Sachs (Earth Institute), Linda Fried (Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health), Michael Moss (Salt Sugar Fat), Cookie Monster (need we say?) and the list goes on. Plus, we have several big names in the wings which you’ll hear about soon. Meet the speakers.

25+ Sessions and Spotlights
This year’s conference will explore a wide range of issues, including digital health, urban health, health funding and non-communicable diseases. But the centerpiece of this year's program is the push to achieve the Millennium Development Goals, with a sharp focus on maternal health, child health and the elimination of HIV/AIDS, TB and malaria. Explore the conference program.

Networking, Entertainment and Activities
With two major cocktail receptions, a film screening of “How to Survive a Plague” about the early AIDS activist movement (including a Q&A with those in the film) and entertainment including the incredible Sleepy Man Banjo Boys, you’ll have plenty of opportunities to network and have fun during your program breaks. Register today!

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GBCHealth to Coordinate Private Sector Support for Health Systems in Mozambique

The newly formed Private Sector Constituency to the Southern African Development Community (SADC) recently entered into a formal agreement with the Mozambique Ministry of Health. GBCHealth will serve as the Private Sector Focal Point, overseeing and managing private sector participation with the ministry on issues such as HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria, women’s and children’s health and food and nutrition. The Private Sector Constituency will also work to strengthen the overall health system in Mozambique. The SADC Private Sector Constituency was formed in November 2012 and includes Anglo American, AngloGold Ashanti, Bayer Environmental Science, BHP Billiton, BD, Eskom, International Organization for Migration (IOM), International SOS, IIlovo Sugar, Merck, Nando's, Philips Healthcare, Rio Tinto, SABMiller, Vestergaard Frandsen, Volkswagen and Vale.

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Global Fund News: Private Sector Delegation Elects New Board Member; Target Announced To Raise $15 Billion

The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria has elected Paul Schaper of Merck as the private sector's Board Member. Schaper will replace Dr. Brian Brink, Chief Medical Officer, Anglo American plc, who will step down after serving his second two-year term, the maximum allowed. In addition, Renuka Gadde of BD was re-elected to serve as the private sector’s Alternate Board Member. GBCHealth congratulates the new leadership and looks forward to working with them over the course of their two-year terms. Read more about the appointments here.

The Global Fund also announced last week that it will need to raise $15 billion to effectively fund the fight against those three diseases in the 2014 to 2016 period. The announcement came as the Global Fund held a meeting April 9-10 to prepare for the pledging conference, known as the Global Fund’s Fourth Replenishment, that will be held for donors in late 2013.

The Private Sector Delegation (PSD) was represented at the two-day meeting by PSD Board member Dr. Brian Brink, Chief Medical Officer of Anglo American plc., and GBCHealth’s Whitney White, the PSD’s Focal Point.

The Fund called for increased support from all donors and partners, including the private sector, to meet this goal. Read more about the event and the Global Fund's announcement.

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World Malaria Day

Join GBCHealth, the World Health Organization and members as we observe the seventh annual World Malaria Day on April 25th. This year’s theme, “Invest in the Future: Defeat Malaria,” is a call to action for all sectors to work together to accelerate progress toward ending malaria. Since 2000, malaria death rates have fallen by more than 25 percent due to a galvanized effort by all sectors. But to prevent a resurgence and achieve eradication, a US$3.6 billion funding shortfall must be bridged and contributions of technical support and resources must be stepped-up immediately. Read about what some GBCHealth members are doing to fight malaria.

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World Malaria Day Member Feature: Jhpiego

For 40 years, Jhpiego, an affiliate of Johns Hopkins University, has been working to prevent the needless deaths of women and families in the developing world. Best known for its work in maternal health, Jhpiego is also a recognized global leader in fighting malaria and has supported malaria prevention and treatment programs in more than 25 countries in sub-Saharan Africa and Asia. Oil and gas companies have been key partners in Jhpiego’s malaria work in Nigeria, Ghana and, most recently, Chad and Cameroon.

Read the Huffington Post op-ed about Jhpiego’s projects with the private sector here.

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CEO Roundtable on Business Engagement on Non-Communicable Diseases

April 23 | Nairobi, Kenya

GBCHealth and Standard Chartered Bank will host a roundtable in Nairobi, Kenya, on the evolving role of the private sector in addressing non-communicable diseases (NCDs). The forum will provide a unique opportunity for business leaders and global and local health stakeholders to share insights on NCDs, such as diabetes and heart disease, and their emergence as a grave health issue. Opportunities for companies to create both social and business value through working to control NCDs and the paradigm shift away from disease-specific health interventions toward overall workplace wellness will also be addressed. Participation is by invitation only.

For more information, please contact Neeta Bhandhari.

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The Future of the Global Fund: A Conversation with Executive Director Mark Dybul

April 5, 2013 | Webinar

GBCHealth’s first of a three-part Expert Connections Series on The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria featured its new Executive Director, Dr. Mark Dybul. In conversation with Dr. Brian Brink, Chief Medical Officer from Anglo American plc, Dybul discussed how private sector companies can partner with the Global Fund to achieve the biggest impact in the fight against the three diseases. Dybul also provided broader insight into the Global Fund´s private sector strategy for 2013. Participants from over 45 companies and organizations joined the webinar. Read more.

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World Health Summit

April 8-10, 2013 | Singapore

Michael Schreiber, Executive Director of GBCHealth, moderated a panel at the recent World Health Summit Regional Meeting - Asia in Singapore. The panel discussed the private sector’s role in furthering public health, and Schreiber explained the role that GBCHealth plays in facilitating and coordinating business action. Speakers included executives from BD India, International SOS and Standard Chartered Bank.

Asia presents new market opportunities and health challenges with its aging population and rising affluence. By 2050, Asia’s population of people over 60 years old is expected to grow beyond 100 million. In view of these developments, the Summit was held in Singapore - the first time it has been outside of Berlin. Themed, “Health for Sustainable Development in Asia,” it provided a platform for health care policy makers, experts, and practitioners to exchange ideas and explore solutions for the region’s pressing health challenges. Read more.

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Designing Cities for Better Health Webinar

April 8, 2013 | Webinar

GBCHealth’s Cities, Business and Health webinar series, created in partnership with Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health, explores the ways in which the unique features of cities affect public health and how business leaders can think about their own urban facilities as settings for addressing employee and community health. The second webinar of the three-part series, entitled “Designing Cities for Better Health,” gave examples of how urban design can have a positive impact on workforces and communities. Speakers stressed that while urban settings frequently exacerbate public health problems, well-designed environments – including workplaces - can enable and encourage healthy behaviors, suggesting a key role for the private sector. Read more.

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GBCHealth Welcomes Pfizer Global Health Fellow to China Office

GBCHealth is pleased to welcome our new Pfizer Global Health Fellow, Lesley Shane, who will work on developing a workplace diabetes awareness and prevention program for companies in China. Shane is the third of five consecutive Fellows in 2012-2013 who are working on the diabetes initiative in our Beijing office. They are part of Pfizer’s signature corporate volunteer program that pairs employees from technical and functional areas across the company with organizations like GBCHealth for a period of three to six months.

Shane has worked for Pfizer since 2004 in various capacities and is currently in the Global Specialty Care Business Unit of the Market Access Department. She began in the GBCHealth Beijing office in April. Read more.

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Ray Chambers Launches Global Health Blogging Column in Huffington Post

GBCHealth Board Co-Chair Ray Chambers has launched a regular blogging column in the Huffington Post where he will share his expert perspective on global health issues.

His columns to date have focused on the final push to achieve the Millennium Development Goals, the surprising facts about who is carrying TB and, most recently, the announcement of a contest calling for stories from the field from those with direct experiences with malaria, HIV/AIDS, TB, maternal health and other global health challenges. In addition to his role at GBCHealth, Chambers is Chair of the MDG Health Alliance and is the U.N. Secretary-General's Special Envoy for Financing the Health Millennium Development Goals and for Malaria.

Read Chambers’ most recent Huffington Post article.

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PATH's Amie Batson Joins Child Health Team at MDG Health Alliance

Amie Batson, Chief Strategy Officer at GBCHealth member organization PATH, a leading international nonprofit global health organization, has joined the Child Health Pillar of the MDG Health Alliance. The pillar focuses on accelerating efforts to achieve Millennium Development Goal 4 to save the lives of millions of children. Much of Batson's 20-year career with leading global health organizations, including the World Health Organization, UNICEF, the World Bank, the GAVI Alliance and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), has focused on child health.

In January, GBCHealth announced a three-year collaboration with the MDG Health Alliance. The private sector-led organization works in partnership with UN agencies, companies and non-profits to accelerate progress toward achieving the health-related MDG targets on HIV, TB, malaria and maternal and child health. Read more.

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Waggener Edstrom Study: Social Media Drives Social Good

Waggener Edstrom, a global communications agency and GBCHealth member, has published a study that shows how social media is galvanizing people to support social causes offline. The report, “Digital Persuasion: How Social Media Motivates Action and Drives Support for Causes,” includes data from more than 2,000 digitally engaged, cause-supporting adults who were polled online. The study was conducted in partnership with Georgetown University’s Center for Social Impact Communication. You can hear Waggener Edstrom’s CEO, President and Founder, Melissa Waggener Zorkin at the GBCHealth Conference on May 16th. Read more.

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ABC News’ Dr. Richard Besser, Author of “Tell Me the Truth, Doctor,” to Speak at GBCHealth Conference

Dr. Richard Besser, Chief Health and Medical Editor at ABC News, will participate in the “Saving Children's Lives: How Smart Businesses are Building Shared Value” session on May 17th at the GBCHealth Conference. He has recently authored the book, Tell Me the Truth, Doctor: Easy-to-Understand Answers to Your Most Confusing and Critical Health Questions.

Besser’s book breaks down complicated medical issues, provides clear information on nutrition, exercise and disease prevention and suggests immediate actions to take for better health.

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GBCHealth Members Named Best Corporate Citizens by CR Magazine

GBCHealth member companies Bristol-Myers Squibb and Merck & Co. received a top 10 ranking in Corporate Responsibility Magazine's broadly recognized list of 100 Best Corporate Citizens. Merck stood out in the environmental sustainability and philanthropy categories while BMS was commended for its climate change policies and philanthropy. GBCHealth is also proud to recognize the following members ranked in the top 100: The Coca-Cola Company, Johnson & Johnson, Accenture, Abbott, Dell, Exxon Mobil, Eli Lilly, HP, Dow Chemical, Chevron, Ford, Freeport-MacMoRan Copper & Gold, Cisco Systems and Marathon Oil. Read full list.

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West Africa Malaria Workshop

GBCHealth’s Corporate Alliance on Malaria in Africa (CAMA), in partnership with Roll Back Malaria (RBM), will convene a workshop this July (date to be finalized shortly) in Accra, Ghana, to strengthen indoor residual spraying programs (IRS) in West Africa. Critical stakeholders from government, private sector and technical partners will come together to discuss ways in which cross-sectoral engagement and co-investment in West Africa can help scale up national programs for sustained malaria control and elimination. The workshop will bring together industry experts to share best practices, connect the business and public sectors, and work toward meeting the looming MDG target of reducing malaria deaths to near zero. Please contact Pam Bolton if you are interested in attending.

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GBCHealth’s Banerjee gives TED talk in Barcelona

GBCHealth's Joya Banerjee gave a TED talk at TEDxChange in Barcelona on April 3rd. Banerjee spoke about the NGO she co-founded in 2004, the Global Youth Coalition on HIV/AIDS, and the need to engage young people in the AIDS response. While young people make up 40 percent of new HIV infections, prevention programs often fail to take their unique needs into account – particularly those of young men who have sex with men, sex workers and injecting drug users. Banerjee’s talk focused on the gains in health outcomes that can occur when young leaders infected with or affected by HIV are given a seat at the table and an opportunity to help craft programs and policies for youth. Banerjee’s talk will be available online in late April at: http://tedxbarcelonachange.com/.

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