In the last two years, some of the top organizations working in global health got new leadership. Do you know who they are?

1. Advancing global health:
Who’s in charge?
Part one
In the last two years, some of the
top organizations working in
global health got new leadership.
Do you know who they are?

2. This Harvard-trained doctor plans to immunize a
quarter of a billion children in the developing world
by 2015. He won’t stop there, though. His big goal
is to immunize every kid on earth. Just how will he
do that?
Well, he may not administer vaccines himself, but as
CEO of GAVI Alliance he’ll spend time leveraging
public-private partnerships to drive down the price
of vaccines to make them more accessible.
A task like this isn’t a first for Berkley. He founded
the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative in 1996 – a
move that earned him a spot in the Time 100. And
he’s definitely one who’s up for a challenge. He
once trekked through rebel-controlled Darfur to
document the famine there.
Photo credit: GAVI Alliance

3. Now that this former pharma exec has taken
over from founder, Seth Berkley, she has big
shoes to fill. But, she’ll make her mark at IAVI
with a new strategic plan.
McGlynn is super passionate about vaccines.
Growing up, she lost 3 siblings to disease.
That loss, along with her family’s retail
pharmacy, made her eager to help people
through medication and vaccines.
And she’s definitely had a chance to do that.
She spent 26 years at Merck making vaccines
accessible to the developing world. Now, at
IAVI, she’ll be leveraging partnerships across
academia, government and the private sector
to research and develop AIDS vaccines.
Photo courtesy IAVI

4. ,
“Gates hires another big pharma exec”. That’s
what headlines read when this medical doctor
was named the Foundation’s new health
director. But the move to philanthropy is
something Mundel always thought he’d do
eventually, having grown up in South Africa.
His background with pharma companies like
Novartis and Pfizer is likely to influence his
approach to global health, though. He’ll spend
his time at Gates ‘trimming the fat’ from their
portfolio, and accelerating the most promising
projects.
While he may miss the big budgets of the
pharma industry, he’ll probably enjoy having
more direct access to how drug interventions
impact the lives of millions around the world.
Photo credit: Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

5. As if advocating for refugees wasn’t enough on his
plate, this intellectual property lawyer has a new to-
do list since June. He plans to develop an
affordable meningitis vaccine and improve
screening and treatment for HIV/AIDS and
tuberculosis. A bit of an overachiever? Perhaps. But
as incoming President and CEO of PATH, it’ll all be
part of Davis’ new job.
So how does an IP lawyer end up leading the fight
against major global health crises? Well, Davis’
background is pretty diverse. He worked in digital
media as CEO of Corbis, and was in charge of social
innovation at McKinsey & Company.
That spirit of innovation and entrepreneurship is
exactly what Davis hopes to bring to the global
health sector. It may also be just what the sector
needs.
Photo courtesy PATH

6. When things weren’t going so well for The Global
Fund, they did what anyone else would do: hired a
banker. Yep. Jaramillo’s 35-year background in finance
is expected to help whip the Fund back into shape. He
sees the Fund as a financial institution and will spend
his one-year stint there focusing on aggressive
financial and operations reform.
If the Fund is a financial institution, then Jaramillo
seems like the man for the job. The Colombian native
has been at the helm of major global banks like
Citibank and Sovereign Bank.
Yet, while he’s all about efficiency at the Fund, and
uses ‘bankers’ speak’ like “return on investments”, he
won’t be cutting any programs. That’s good news for
the Fund and the millions of lives in the developing
world that benefit from their work.
Photo courtesy The Global Fund

7. She fought SARS, bird flu and then swine flu. And
although critics weren’t too happy with her
responses, she’s still a champ at managing crises.
That’s why, in 2006, former WHO director general
headhunted her as his replacement.
This July, Chan will take up her second term leading
WHO. And she has some big plans for the next 5
years. She’ll be tackling chronic noncommunicable
diseases – something that hasn’t been a priority in
global health.
She’s also really committed to improving the health
of women and the people of Africa. Her mantra is
“WHO stands for fairness”, and she’s serious about
the organization’s transparency and accountability.
She promised to produce a score card of her work
over the last five years. Let’s see if this former
teacher gets an A.
Photo credit: WHO

8. This list isn’t exhaustive. Think there’s someone who
should be on here? Tell us!
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