On 8 May 2025, UNU will host “Pandemics and Human Security Threats: Challenges and Opportunities in Global Health”, a BIG IDEAS Dialogue with Ms. Susan Brown, Director of the Bureau for External Relations and Advocacy of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). This hybrid event (online and in-person) will start at 18:30 on Zoom and in the 1F Annex Space at UNU Headquarters in Tokyo.
The environment surrounding global health is evolving significantly — in funding flows, cooperation modalities, and use of digital technologies and artificial intelligence. Climate change and extreme weather events are expanding vector habitats and shortening the transmission cycles for multiple infectious diseases, further accelerating infectious diseases and pandemics, and straining communities, health systems and economies.
This is why innovative solutions and partnerships to enhance resilience and human security are critical. Such solutions may include maximizing the power of digital technologies and artificial intelligence to accelerate drug discovery, safeguard health supply chains and enhance access to essential health services. Securing innovative health financing strategies is also a priority for resilient and sustainable health systems and communities. These are needed more than ever to prevent and respond to future pandemics but also to advance universal health coverage as a prerequisite for ensuring human security.
Ms. Susan Brown will join UNU Senior Vice-Rector Sawako Shirahase to explore emerging threats to human and health security. The discussion will consider how addressing threats to global health such as pandemics and climate change in a context of declining official development assistance presents challenges and opportunities. The session will examine how innovation, technology and sustainable financing can help tackle interconnected challenges to health, well-being, development and human security.
Registration
Please note this event will be in English; Japanese interpretation will not be provided. Advance registration (by 7 May at 15:00) is required.
To attend this event in person at UNU Headquarters in Tokyo, register at: https://go.unu.edu/1gIEM
To attend this event online via Zoom webinar, register at: https://go.unu.edu/RaKgf
For the in-person event, please be prepared to present identification at check-in.
UNU@50
This event is part of the UNU 50th anniversary celebration. To learn more, visit: https://unu.edu/unuat50
About the speaker
Susan Brown (Swiss) is UN Assistant Secretary-General, Assistant Administrator and Director of the Bureau of External Relations and Advocacy of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). Prior to this role, from 2016 to 2022, she was Director of Public Policy Engagement at Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, a public private partnership of WHO, UNICEF, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the World Bank, civil society, the private sector and government partners. From 2005 to 2016, she worked at WWF International, one of the world’s largest conservation organizations, active in more than 100 countries — for the last six years as Director of Global and Regional Policy and Head of the Policy and External Affairs Cluster, achieving significant outcomes for the organization across multilateral dialogues over all areas of sustainable development. Prior to this, Susan worked as a print journalist from 2000–2005, as a senior advisor in the Australian Federal Parliament from 1994–2000 and from 1993–1994 as Coordinator of the North Queensland Conservation Council.
