Highlights: Intergovernmental council on pandemic prevention; risk drivers include deforestation, wildlife trade; tax high pandemic-risk activities; 540,000 – 850,000 unknown viruses in nature could infect people; economic impacts 100x prevention costs

Future pandemics will emerge more often, spread more rapidly, do more damage to the world economy and kill more people than COVID-19 unless there is a transformative change in the global approach to dealing with infectious diseases, warns a major new report on biodiversity and pandemics by 22 leading experts from around the world.

Convened by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) for an urgent virtual workshop about the links between degradation of nature and increasing pandemic risks, the experts agree that escaping the era of pandemics is possible, but that this will require a seismic shift in approach from reaction to prevention.

COVID-19 is at least the sixth global health pandemic since the Great Influenza Pandemic of 1918, and although it has its origins in microbes carried by animals, like all pandemics its emergence has been entirely driven by human activities, says the report released on Thursday. It is estimated that another 1.7 million currently ‘undiscovered’ viruses exist in mammals and birds – of which up to 850,000 could have the ability to infect people.

“There is no great mystery about the cause of the COVID-19 pandemic – or of any modern pandemic”, said Dr. Peter Daszak, President of EcoHealth Alliance and Chair of the IPBES workshop. “The same human activities that drive climate change and biodiversity loss also drive pandemic risk through their impacts on our environment. Changes in the way we use land; the expansion and intensification of agriculture; and unsustainable trade, production and consumption disrupt nature and increase contact between wildlife, livestock, pathogens and people. This is the path to pandemics.”

Pandemic risk can be significantly lowered by reducing the human activities that drive the loss of biodiversity, by greater conservation of protected areas, and through measures that reduce unsustainable exploitation of high biodiversity regions. This will reduce wildlife-livestock-human contact and help prevent the spillover of new diseases, says the report.

“The overwhelming scientific evidence points to a very positive conclusion,” said Dr. Daszak. “We have the increasing ability to prevent pandemics – but the way we are tackling them right now largely ignores that ability. Our approach has effectively stagnated – we still rely on attempts to contain and control diseases after they emerge, through vaccines and therapeutics. We can escape the era of pandemics, but this requires a much greater focus on prevention in addition to reaction.”

“The fact that human activity has been able to so fundamentally change our natural environment need not always be a negative outcome. It also provides convincing proof of our power to drive the change needed to reduce the risk of future pandemics – while simultaneously benefiting conservation and reducing climate change.”

The report says that relying on responses to diseases after their emergence, such as public health measures and technological solutions, in particular the rapid design and distribution of new vaccines and therapeutics, is a “slow and uncertain path”, underscoring both the widespread human suffering and the tens of billions of dollars in annual economic damage to the global economy of reacting to pandemics.

Pointing to the likely cost of COVID-19 of $8-16 trillion globally by July 2020, it is further estimated that costs in the United States alone may reach as high as $16 trillion by the 4th quarter of 2021. The experts estimate the cost of reducing risks to prevent pandemics to be 100 times less than the cost of responding to such pandemics, “providing strong economic incentives for transformative change.”

The report also offers a number of policy options that would help to reduce and address pandemic risk. Among these are:

• Launching a high-level intergovernmental council on pandemic prevention to provide decision-makers with the best science and evidence on emerging diseases; predict high-risk areas; evaluate the economic impact of potential pandemics and to highlight research gaps. Such a council could also coordinate the design of a global monitoring framework.
• Countries setting mutually-agreed goals or targets within the framework of an international accord or agreement – with clear benefits for people, animals and the environment.
• Institutionalizing the ‘One Health’ approach in national governments to build pandemic preparedness, enhance pandemic prevention programs, and to investigate and control outbreaks across sectors.
• Developing and incorporating pandemic and emerging disease risk health impact assessments in major development and land-use projects, while reforming financial aid for land-use so that benefits and risks to biodiversity and health are recognized and explicitly targeted.
• Ensuring that the economic cost of pandemics is factored into consumption, production, and government policies and budgets.
• Enabling changes to reduce the types of consumption, globalized agricultural expansion and trade that have led to pandemics – this could include taxes or levies on meat consumption, livestock production and other forms of high pandemic-risk activities.
• Reducing zoonotic disease risks in the international wildlife trade through a new intergovernmental ‘health and trade’ partnership; reducing or removing high disease-risk species in the wildlife trade; enhancing law enforcement in all aspects of the illegal wildlife trade and improving community education in disease hotspots about the health risks of wildlife trade.
• Valuing Indigenous Peoples and local communities’ engagement and knowledge in pandemic prevention programs, achieving greater food security, and reducing consumption of wildlife.
• Closing critical knowledge gaps such as those about key risk behaviors, the relative importance of illegal, unregulated, and the legal and regulated wildlife trade in disease risk, and improving understanding of the relationship between ecosystem degradation and restoration, landscape structure and the risk of disease emergence.

Speaking about the workshop report, Dr. Anne Larigauderie, Executive Secretary of IPBES said: “The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the importance of science and expertise to inform policy and decision-making. Although it is not one of the typical IPBES intergovernmental assessments reports, this is an extraordinary peer-reviewed expert publication, representing the perspectives of some of the world’s leading scientists, with the most up-to-date evidence and produced under significant time constraints. We congratulate Dr. Daszak and the other authors of this workshop report and thank them for this vital contribution to our understanding of the emergence of pandemics and options for controlling and preventing future outbreaks. This will inform a number of IPBES assessments already underway, in addition to offering decision-makers new insights into pandemic risk reduction and options for prevention.”

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The full report is available here: http://www.ipbes.net/pandemics

Executive summary: http://bit.ly/PandemicReportExecSum

The report, its recommendations and conclusions have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by the member States of IPBES – it represents the expertise and perspectives of the experts who participated in the workshop, listed here in full: https://ipbes.net/biodiversity-pandemics-participants

The IPBES workshop report is one of the most scientifically robust examinations of the evidence and knowledge about links between pandemic risk and nature since the COVID pandemic began – with contributions from leading experts in fields as diverse as epidemiology, zoology, public health, disease ecology, comparative pathology, veterinary medicine, pharmacology, wildlife health, mathematical modelling, economics, law and public policy.

The report is also strongly scientifically substantiated, with almost than 700 cited sources – more than 200 of which are from 2020 and 2019 – which offers decision-makers a valuable analytical snap-shot of the most up-to-date data currently available.

17 of the 22 experts were nominated by Governments and organizations following a call for nominations; 5 experts were added from the ongoing IPBES assessment of the sustainable use of wild species, the assessment on values and the assessment of invasive alien species, as well as experts assisting with the scoping of the IPBES nexus assessment and transformative change assessments.

Resource persons who contributed information but were not authors of the report included experts from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), the Secretariat of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), and the World Health Organization (WHO).

Often described as the “IPCC for biodiversity”, IPBES is an independent intergovernmental body comprising more than 130 member Governments. Established by Governments in 2012, it provides policymakers with objective scientific assessments about the state of knowledge regarding the planet’s biodiversity, ecosystems and the contributions they make to people, as well as the tools and methods to protect and sustainably use these vital natural assets. For more information about IPBES and its assessments visit http://www.ipbes.net

Coverage highlights

Newswires

Thomson Reuters Foundation, UK, Scientists propose tax on meat and livestock to help avert future pandemics, click here

Press Association, UK, via Daily Mail, UK (24,234,282) Worse pandemics to come without action to curb harm to nature, report warns, click here

Agence France Press, via Yahoo news, United States (62,060,100) Nature loss means deadlier future pandemics, UN warns, click here

French, via Le Figaro, France (28,585,893) Les pandémies vont se multiplier et faire plus de morts, selon des experts de l’ONU, click here

Portuguese, via Globo, Brazil (12,086,233), Protejam a natureza ou enfrentem pandemias mais graves do que a Covid-19, alertam cientistas, click here 

Agencia EFE, via Infobae, Argentina (36,782,390) Reducir la pérdida de la biodiversidad evitará una era de pandemias (Reducing biodiversity loss will prevent an era of pandemics), click here

ANSA, Italy (12,621,632) Covid: studio, rischio pandemie peggiori. Serve prevenirle (Covid: study, worse pandemic risk. We need to prevent them), click here

Deutsche Presse Agentur, Germany, Forscher: Naturschutz kann Pandemien vorbeugen (Researcher: Conservation can prevent pandemics), click here

Kyodo News, via Yahoo! Japan (potential impressions: 92,198,566) 環境破壊が動物由来の感染症招く コロナの損害16兆ドル試算 (Environmental destruction causes infectious diseases of animal origin Corona damage estimated at $ 16 trillion), click here

The Canadian Press, via CTV News, Canada (14,461,132) Nature loss means deadlier future pandemics, UN warns, click here

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Major news sites

UK

Daily Mail

Worse pandemics to come without action to protect wildlife: Scientists warn there are up to 850,000 undiscovered viruses in birds and mammals that could infect humans, click here

The Guardian (87,129,192) Protecting nature is vital to ‘escaping era of pandemics’ – report, click here

BBC News (75,721,184) Cheaper to prevent pandemics than ‘cure’ them, click here

New Scientist, Controlling deforestation and wildlife trade could prevent pandemics, click here

The Independent, Halt the climate and nature-loss crises to prevent more pandemics, scientists tell world leaders, click here

USA

The Hill (24,796,323) UN warns of deadlier pandemics, click here

Gizmodo, Why Saving Nature Is the Best Way to End the Pandemic Era, click here

France

Le Monde (26,209,339) Prévenir les pandémies plutôt que guérir serait cent fois moins coûteux (Preventing pandemics rather than curing would be a hundred times cheaper), click here

Le Parisien (18,817,118) L’ONU anticipe des pandémies plus fréquentes et plus meurtrières (The UN anticipates more frequent and deadly pandemics), click here

20 Minutes (16,456,797) Les pandémies vont se multiplier et faire plus de morts, avertit l’ONU (Pandemics to multiply and kill more, UN warns), click here

Germany

Der Spiegel (24,711,886) Weltbiodiversitätsrat fordert Strategiewechsel im Kampf gegen Viren (World Biodiversity Council calls for a change in strategy in the fight against viruses), click here

Süddeutsche (14,705,059) Zoonosen Das Pandemiezeitalter muss nicht kommen (Zoonoses The age of pandemics need not come), click here

Spain 

LaVanguardia (32,424,925) Los expertos reclaman rearmar el planeta contra pandemias “más frecuentes, mortales y costosas” (Experts claim to rearm the planet against pandemics “more frequent, deadly and costly”), click here

El Diario (12,162,225) La ONU certifica que las mismas agresiones ambientales detrás del cambio climático causan las pandemias como la COVID-19 (The UN certifies that the same environmental aggressions behind climate change cause pandemics such as COVID-19), click here

Latin America

Infobae, Argentina (36,782,390) Las pandemias del futuro serán más mortales y costosas sin cambios en los modelos de producción (Future pandemics will be more deadly and costly without changes in production models), click here

El Tiempo, Colombia (13,807,544), ¿Qué es el ‘efecto dilución’, clave para evitar futuras pandemias? (What is the ‘dilution effect’, key to avoiding future pandemics?), click here

Poland

Onet (21,015,525), Eksperci nie mają dobrych wieści: kolejne pandemie będą gorsze niż obecna (There is no good news for experts: future pandemics will be worse than the current one), click here

Korea 

Daum (28,902,455) 미발견 바이러스 170만종 중 85만종 인간 감염 가능 (850,000 out of 1.7 million undiscovered viruses can infect humans), click here

Coverage summary in full, click here

News release in full, click here

Grand Challenges Canada innovators offer resources, ideas, affordable solutions for low-resource countries in need of pandemic essentials: medical oxygen, ventilators, masks, more

Novel, affordable ways to acquire medical oxygen, ventilators, masks and other critically-needed COVID-19 supplies and services are among 20 Grand Challenges Canada innovations mobilizing to assist developing countries through the global pandemic.

In the past decade, the innovations received GCC support in several forms, including over $19 million provided by the Government of Canada, based on the criteria of “bold ideas with big impact” in global health. These project now offer critical resources, ideas and solutions for low-resource countries struggling to meet an acute need for affordable, locally-sourced products and services, most urgently:

• Medical oxygen, ventilators and related training
• Local manufacturing of personal protective equipment for health care workers
• Life-saving information for hard-to-reach populations

Says Karina Gould, Canada’s Minister of International Development: “To overcome the unprecedented global health challenges presented by COVID-19, the world needs innovation and ingenuity. Over the past 10 years, Canada’s funding for Grand Challenges Canada has helped hundreds of innovative ideas become a reality. Today, some of those very ideas are saving lives by helping people prevent and respond to COVID-19 and other health challenges in developing countries.”

Adds GCC co-CEO Dr. Karlee Silver: “Innovation in global health means provisioning low-resource areas with needed goods and services that are better, faster and cheaper. Such solutions take time to develop, scale up, and evaluate as they transition to scale.”

“With Canadian Government funding, we have supported a portfolio of solutions over the past 10 years that are particularly relevant to the developing world’s COVID-19 response. It is during times like these that the value of investment in innovation becomes most obvious.”

“Grand Challenges Canada is lending expertise and other support to the innovators as they focus on the pandemic, and several will receive additional funding as needed to help accelerate their response to COVID-19. Many others among GCC’s 228 active innovation projects are working to mitigate the fallout of COVID-19 on reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health services disrupted by pandemic control measures,” says Dr. Silver.

“We have been guided by local governments’ needs, with locally supplied medical oxygen topping the list — a resource in tragically short supply and high demand throughout much of the developing world.”

The innovators leading these 20 solutions are based in 11 countries — Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, South Africa, Brazil, India, Bangladesh, Cambodia, Australia, Canada and the United States — and operate in low-resource areas throughout Africa and beyond, from the Amazon to the Himalayas.

• 4 projects provide medical oxygen
• 2 produce rugged, battery backed-up ventilators
• 1 is pivoting from affordable locally-produced sanitary pads to low-cost masks
• 2 offer innovative diagnostic / imaging equipment
• 7 support remote patient care, monitoring and essential products delivery
• 1 supports mental health care
• 2 support safe water, sanitation and hygiene
• 1 supports at-home education

Oxygen

1) Assist International (USA)

Assist International provides healthcare facilities with reliable, affordable medical oxygen supplies via local production plants and partners in over 40 hospitals in Kenya, Rwanda and Ethiopia. GCC helped Assist expand in Ethiopia, and supports its further geographical growth.

The group will increase capacity to supply additional oxygen as COVID-19-related demand increases. It will also provide equipment, such as ventilators, concentrators, pulse oximeters, and masks, training, and short courses in repairs and maintenance.

Tele-monitoring and training provided via Project ECHO in Ethiopia, Tanzania and Cambodia will include new COVID-19 curricula for healthcare workers and technicians covering Intensive Care Units for both adults and newborns.

Photo gallery: https://bit.ly/2xGjDYG

2) Hewa Tele (Kenya)

Hewa Tele Limited delivers reliable, cost-effective, life-saving medical oxygen to health facilities in Kenya that have little or no access to it otherwise, operating production plants in partnership with governments and hospitals. An associated NGO provides relevant training for healthcare staff.

Currently serving a population of 15 million with GCC support, Hewa Tele will now provide medical-grade oxygen to Nairobi’s COVID-19 isolation hospital, with a set of cylinders dedicated solely to that facility, and will gear up to meet the oxygen needs of a growing number of patients. Its expansion plans include hiring additional staff to facilitate 24-hour coverage, leasing more distribution vehicles, adding new oxygen cylinders to its inventory, and training health care staff to administer oxygen safely.

Photos: http://www.hewatele.org/index.php/our-solutions

3) University of Alberta / Global Health Uganda Ltd. (Canada / Uganda)

GCC-supported University of Alberta researchers and their Global Health Uganda partners developed an easy-to-use “SPO2” solar powered system that turns ambient air into medical-grade oxygen with battery banks enabling uninterrupted service through the night and on cloudy days.

SPO2 systems include how-to “roadmaps” for local procurement, training, and maintenance of solar oxygen concentrators helpful to COVID-19 responses in remote, off-grid facilities or those without a reliable electricity supply.

Oxygen therapy systems are currently installed in 10 African hospitals (8 in Uganda; 2 in DR Congo), and the team is exploring partnerships to expand their reach to meet demand.

4) FREO2 Foundation (Australia)

The University of Melbourne’s FREO2 team, with support from GCC and the Saving Lives at Birth partnership, has created a rugged, low-cost medical oxygen system (OxyLink) that maximizes oxygen output, minimizes energy use, and can switch to backup power to bridge common short power cuts in low-resourced health facilities. Their Low-Pressure Oxygen Store System, meanwhile, helps facilities that often experience longer power outages, combining OxyLink with a novel oxygen storage technology.

With clinical trials complete and product field-testing underway, OxyLink systems may be particularly helpful in smaller facilities without access to oxygen plants or reliable electricity sources. The cost and power savings may also benefit regional hospitals and other larger facilities facing a surge in demand for oxygen therapy due to COVID-19, routine pneumonia cases, and other illnesses. Scheduled to debut commercially this fall, prioritizing low- and middle-income countries, FREO2 is working through complications to international roll-outs caused by travel restrictions.

Video: https://youtu.be/Dy8j9xWrVlU

Ventilators

1) Gradian Health Systems Inc. (USA)

This non-profit has established distribution and service networks providing and sustaining world-class medical equipment in facilities across more than 30 sub-Sahara African countries. Support from GCC and the Saving Lives at Birth partnership fostered Gradian’s validation and scale-up of a simulation-based training model being rolled out alongside installations of the ventilator.

The Gradian CCV (Comprehensive Care Ventilator) supports critically-ill patients in settings with unreliable supplies of power and oxygen, including temporary field hospitals being set up to manage COVID-19 patients in many countries. The ventilator can run for 21 hours on battery power, and its portability features enable single-ventilator use throughout critical care, including patient transport. Simulation-based training is a critical component of Gradian’s model, with teams of clinicians and bio-medical technicians providing remote and on-site training to healthcare providers.

Gradian has placed ventilators in Nepal, Sierra Leone, Kenya, and several other countries, conducted several remote trainings with clinicians, and is continuing to work with more health systems to build capacity for COVID response and other critical care needs.

Video: https://vimeo.com/261709384

2) OneBreath Inc. (USA / India)

With Stanford University intellectual property and GCC support, OneBreath has created an affordable ventilator for intensive care units, emergency rooms and ambulances. The device provides continuous respiratory support for all patients, from infants to adults, and is optimized for low-resource settings: affordable, portable and rechargeable, with an internal compressor that allows it to operate independent of compressed gas lines.

OneBreath anticipates its devices serving India soon and is seeking expedited regulatory processes (including US Food and Drug Administration approval) for a wider geographic rollout.

Masks

1) Saral Design Solutions Private Limited (India)

Saral’s “Swachh” is a fully-automatic, compact machine designed to produce low-cost, ultra-thin disposable sanitary pads through a decentralized manufacturing system. With GCC support, the company sells machines to local entrepreneurs and NGOs in India, and supports them as they operate their Swachh as a “business in a box.”

Saral has modified a Swachh machine to create 3-ply disposable surgical masks, adapting its ultrasonic sealing technology for non-woven materials to produce masks at a rate of 50-70 units per minute for less than US 6 cents per mask. Saral is partnering with a Mumbai-based auto firm to mass produce masks in their factory, to be distributed through Maharashtra Government networks. Saral will manufacture more machines and support existing sanitary pad machine customers pivoting to local mask production.

Video: https://youtu.be/QVepn4CDx3c

Diagnostics and imaging

1) Atomo Diagnostics Limited (Australia)

Atomo, with an early investment from GCC and the Global Health Investment Fund, created an innovative casing for rapid diagnostic blood tests. Originally developed for HIV diagnosis, the user-friendly devices enable home testing and testing in medical facilities without highly-trained healthcare workers. They will be deployed under a partnership with a French diagnostics company, NG Biotech, to detect COVID-19. Results from a drop of blood indicates within 15 minutes indicate whether a person is infected or been in contact with the virus.

The company will produce millions of the all-in-one, easy-to-use devices for professional and self-testing.

Video: https://youtu.be/t99iJv0Eyr8

2) KA Imaging (Waterloo, Canada)

KA Imaging’s Reveal X-ray imager, created with an early investment from GCC, is an affordable, portable, low-dose, high-resolution device designed with tuberculosis, pneumonia, COPD, and lung cancer diagnosis in mind. Late-stage discussions with hospitals in different countries are underway on clinical trials to determine the efficacy of the imager in COVID-19 diagnosis.

Video: https://youtu.be/ljfULCfcVXM

Monitoring, information technology

1) WelTel Incorporated (Vancouver, Canada)

WelTel integrates virtual care and patient engagement, connecting remote outpatients with the healthcare system between clinical visits via their mobile phones. Public health agencies are using it to monitor and support COVID-19 cases and contacts in home quarantine. Patients respond to automated text messages sent via the Internet-based app; WelTel collects message data, using natural language processing and predictive algorithms, to inform healthcare providers and public health officials to priority patient issues.

WelTel’s system supports appointment scheduling and reminders, and broadcasts video or public health information on a secure patient portal. Proven in Rwanda, Kenya, Uganda, the USA and elsewhere, WelTel is adapting and deploying its platform for COVID-19 public health monitoring in Canada, the UK, Kenya and Rwanda.

GCC’s previous investment in the WelTel platform for HIV patients will be augmented to support COVID-19 response in Kenya and Rwanda. Its priority focus: pregnant women, young children and other vulnerable populations requiring enhanced healthcare monitoring while simultaneously avoiding COVID-19 exposure at healthcare centres. The WelTel program has formed the backbone of Rwanda’s national COVID-19 case-contact monitoring response and has already demonstrated benefit.

Video: https://vimeo.com/238653892

2) Praekelt.org (South Africa)

Praekelt.org has created MomConnect, a free WhatsApp-based text messaging platform to promote healthy pregnancies and infant care. Registered users receive biweekly advice tailored to each stage of motherhood, including clinical visit reminders and information on health services, with a feature allowing mothers to question Health Ministry employees, and to offer direct feedback on public health services.

A proven success scaling up nationally in South Africa, Praekelt.org has now introduced HealthAlert, a WhatsApp-based helpline disseminating accurate, timely COVID-19 information, with automated answers to frequently asked questions, relieving call centre traffic. Machine learning and its ability to understand natural language enable automatic triage advice and large volume conversations. Insights from real-time data support effective systems-level COVID- 19 decision-making.

South Africa has launched HealthAlert as COVID-19 Connect, while the World Health Organization has launched HealthAlert for WhatsApp globally.

3) TNH Digital Health Limited (Brazil)

TNH’s GCC-supported Vitalk mobile phone app provides highly-personalized, stage-based, interactive text messaging to pregnant women and new mothers, allowing healthcare providers and decision-makers to track development milestones and link women to care.

With private and public sector clients across Brazil and other countries, TNH is now using the platform and artificial intelligence to launch COVID-19 education and monitoring chatbots to facilitate patients getting treatment and case surveillance. The platform is being rolled out freely in Brazil’s Amazon state and, in partnership with municipalities across northeastern Brazil, is launching systems to be integrated with local community health efforts, with specialized COVID-19 content for pregnant women, as well as resources intended to reduce pandemic-related anxiety and stress.

Video: https://youtu.be/BGalGKe1nfI

Mental health

1) Friendship Bench Digital, Zimbabwe

Friendship Bench is an accessible, approachable problem-solving intervention offering cognitive behavioural treatment for common mental disorders beyond the psychiatrist’s office.

Developed in Zimbabwe with GCC funding, the Friendship Bench offers a proven, one-on-one therapy delivered by trained community health workers (“grandmothers”) on the grounds of municipal health clinics. Tens of thousands of people have been treated at 72 clinics in four cities across Zimbabwe since 2016, and studies have documented that Friendship Bench users are three times less likely to experience depression and four times less likely to have symptoms of anxiety. Transitioning to scale as part of Zimbabwe’s Mental Health Strategy for 2019-2030, the model has been applied in diverse contexts, including Malawi, Zanzibar and New York City. Partnered with Inuka Hero — an affiliated, SMS-based mental health support service also initiated with GCC support — the Friendship Bench program has been adapted for remote COVID-19 pandemic response, delivered free of charge via phone and SMS by trained non-professionals, enabling those in need to access effective, evidence-based psychological support while maintaining social distancing protocols.

Video: https://youtu.be/Th77mCuL5GY

Remote care and supplies

1) North Star Alliance East Africa (Kenya)

With high risk populations (i.e. truckers and sex workers) in mind, North Star Alliance has created a network of semi-mobile “Blue Box” facilities — shipping containers repurposed as health clinics situated along major transport routes in six sub-Saharan Africa countries.

GCC-funded programming includes multi-sectoral Crisis Response Teams to combat violence against sex workers, and an electronic medical records platform to follow and manage health data for highly-mobile, hard-to-track populations, and was already attracting attention of local governments for its ability to serve hard-to-reach populations.

North Star now serves a key role in minimizing COVID-19 transmission within high-risk demographics, supporting infection prevention and control and health education via the Blue Box facilities, while its cross-border electronic health records system may help monitor the health of frequent high-risk travellers. Video: https://youtu.be/P5cLTIoWHKI

2) Friendship Bangladesh (Bangladesh)

Friendship Bangladesh’s model delivers comprehensive health care and education for isolated communities in northern and southern Bangladesh, with a strong focus, developed with GCC investment, on maternal, newborn and child health, and sexual and reproductive health.

The system includes community medical aides, satellite clinics and hospital ships to reach people living in complex, remote environments — populations particularly vulnerable to a rapid spread of COVID-19.

Video: https://youtu.be/YdSxGNJbAak

3) Healthy Entrepreneurs Uganda (Uganda)

Healthy Entrepreneurs’ integrated, end-to-end supply chain business involves a network of trained micro-entrepreneurs delivering affordable, reliable health products and services to rural women and children. Transitioning to scale with GCC support, the system offers soap, sanitizer, disinfectant, fever-reducing medications and other goods essential for containing COVID-19. IT is operating in Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania, and expanding into other African countries.

A telemedicine platform facilitated by the organization allows for remote triage, risk assessment and referrals for last mile populations / self-isolated homes. It will also promote COVID-19-related knowledge and awareness, preventing rumours and misinformation.

Video: https://youtu.be/j9gYLLXJ7xk

4) Karma Primary Healthcare Services Private Ltd. (India)

Karma Primary Healthcare Services facilitates access to reliable, affordable primary healthcare for the rural poor in four districts and two states in India. Over 100,000 people have been consulted at Karma’s nurse-assisted “e-Doctor” clinics, offering medicine, and diagnostic services in addition to remote doctor consultations. The clinics help prevent and address illnesses and promote good health, covering a range of medical concerns, including reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health services thanks to GCC support.

The service has been upgraded to help address COVID-19 by providing contact-less audio-video consultations and referrals, a phone helpline, and awareness campaigns, reducing the need for in-person engagement. This augments local government efforts and reduces the burden of healthcare facilities preparing for COVID-19 cases.

Video: https://bit.ly/GCCKarma

Water, sanitation, hygiene

1) Max Foundation (Bangladesh)

Through its Max Healthy Village Program, supported by a GCC investment, Max Foundation trains local NGOs to promote improved water, sanitation, nutrition and safe motherhood in rural communities in Bangladesh. Initial payments let NGOs adapt and implement interventions, incentivized by follow-on payments when results targets are met.

The Max Healthy Village program emphasizes accelerated water, sanitation and hand-washing efforts critical to a COVID-19 response, and, with its database of 400,000 mobile numbers for beneficiary households and community leaders, can facilitate quick dissemination of relevant, accurate health information to support behaviour change and decision-making in designated villages.

2) Water Sanitation Hygiene Enterprise Development Cambodia (Cambodia)

WaterSHED Cambodia’s “HappyTap Labobo” is the only commercial indoor / outdoor portable sink specifically designed for low-income settings, promoting hand washing — a critical tool in preventing COVID-19 contagion. HappyTap is an affordable, attractive hand washing station for use by anyone, including children. Produced in Vietnam and Bangladesh, it is available across Asia and expandingglobally.

Video: https://youtu.be/uCW6WBvtOzw

Educational services

1) Ubongo Learning Ltd. (Tanzania)

With GCC support, Ubongo locally produces culturally-relevant, multi-lingual, multi-media “edutainment” and other learning resources for young children and caregivers in Tanzania, Kenya and Uganda. TV and radio shows deliver engaging stories, animations and songs that teach children early numeracy, language and literacy, motor development, socio-emotional learning and good health / wellbeing, with complementary content and guidance for parents and caregivers to support home learning.

In light of COVID-19-related school closures across Africa, Ubongo is freely offering its library of TV and radio content, as well as public service announcements and educational videos to support health and hygiene.

Video: https://youtu.be/6VVHoIzAC14

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Grand Challenges Canada acknowledges Global Affairs Canada, and for some the Saving Lives at Birth partners (USAID, Norad, UK DFID, KOICA, GCC, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation) for funding that initially supported these innovations.

About Grand Challenges Canada

Grand Challenges Canada is dedicated to supporting Bold Ideas with Big Impact®. Funded by the Government of Canada and other partners, Grand Challenges Canada funds innovators in low- and middle-income countries and Canada. The bold ideas Grand Challenges Canada supports integrate science and technology, social and business innovation – known as Integrated Innovation®.

One of the largest impact-first investors in Canada, Grand Challenges Canada has supported a pipeline of over 1,250 innovations in 105 countries. Grand Challenges Canada estimates that these innovations have the potential to save up to 1.6 million lives and improve up to 51 million lives by 2030.

Grand Challenges Canada is hosted in Toronto at the Sandra Rotman Centre at the MaRS Discovery District, and in partnership with the University Health Network.

Mission: To catalyze innovation that saves and improves the lives of the most vulnerable in Canada and low- and middle-income countries.

Vision: A world in which innovation accelerates the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals.

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Media coverage highlights

New York Times, USA, In Poor Countries, Many Covid-19 Patients Are Desperate for Oxygen, click here

BBC World Service World Business Report, 9m:40s aired x2, click here
BBC World Service People Fixing the World, 23m aired x3, click here
BBC World Service Newsday, 3m:20s aired x2, click here

Voice of America, Radio and TV Global 3m; distributed online in 47 languages, airs on TV in 25 countries, click here
Agencia EFE, Spain, Canadá financia proyectos en países en desarrollo para luchar contra la COVID-19, click here
Xinhua News (Eng.) Mainland China, African states to benefit from Canada funding to fight COVID-19, click here

Standard News, Kenya, Innovators mobilise to assist developing countries combat covid-19, click here

News release in full, click here

Full coverage summary, click here

At least 140 million people in 50 countries have been drinking water containing arsenic at levels above the World Health Organization guideline

A United Nations University study compares for the first time the effectiveness and costs of many different technologies designed to remove arsenic from groundwater – a health threat to at least 140 million people in 50 countries.

Released today by UNU’s Canadian-based Institute for Water, Environment and Health, the report draws on 31 peer-reviewed, comparable research papers published between 1996 and 2018, each describing new technologies tested in laboratories and / or in field studies.

And while no single technology offers a universal solution, the research helps point to remedies likely to prove most economical and efficient given the many variables present in different locations worldwide.

Serious health, social and economic losses are caused worldwide by arsenic-contaminated water and a wide range of technologies exists to remove it but “their widespread application remains limited,” according to the report.

From 2014 to 2018, over 17,400 arsenic-related publications were published and “there is a myriad of reportedly ‘low-cost’ technologies for treating arsenic-contaminated water. But the specific costs associated with these technologies are rarely documented,” says Duminda Perera, a Senior Researcher at UNU-INWEH and report co-author.

The summary of costs and effectiveness of the few dozen arsenic remediation technologies that are directly comparable in those respects (table: http://bit.ly/2MpVWaa) can serve as a preliminary guideline for selecting the most cost-effective option, he says. It may also serve as an initial guideline (minimum standard) for summarising the results of future studies describing arsenic remediation approaches.

The report notes that “arsenic-removal technology should only be seen as efficient if it can bring the water to the WHO standard” (in 2010, WHO’s recommended a drinking water limit of 10 μg/L – micrograms per litre), but countries with resource constraints or certain environmental circumstances (e.g. typically high arsenic concentrations in groundwater) have much higher, easier-to-reach concentration targets.

“While this may help national policymakers report better results for their national arsenic reduction efforts, it may have the opposite effect on public health,” the report says. “Higher thresholds will not help solve this public health crisis. On the contrary, if a country has a feeling that the arsenic situation is coming under control, this may reduce the sense of urgency in policy circles to eradicate the problem, while the population continues to suffer from arsenic poisoning.”

“This policy approach is not well-conceived as it does not effectively resolve the issue.”

It is estimated that in Bangladesh, for example, where the nationally-acceptable arsenic limit in water is set to 50 μg/L, more than 20 million people consume water with arsenic levels even higher than the national standard.

And globally, despite international efforts, millions of people globally continue to be exposed to concentrations reaching 100 μg/L or more.

Key findings:

UNU studied 23 technologies independently tested in laboratory settings using groundwater from nine countries – Argentina, Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, Guatemala, India, Thailand, the United States, and Vietnam – and demonstrated efficiencies ranging from 50% to ~100%, with a majority reaching >90%. About half achieved the WHO standard of 10 μg/L.

14 technologies tested in the field (at the household or community level, in Argentina, Bangladesh, Chile, China, India, and Nicaragua) achieved removal efficiency levels ranging from 60% to ~99%, with 10 removing more than 90%. Only five reached established the WHO standard.

Technologies that demonstrate high removal efficiencies when treating moderately arsenic-contaminated water may not be as efficient when treating highly contaminated water. Also, the lifetime of the removal agents is a significant factor in determining their efficiency.

For lab tested technologies, the cost of treating one cubic meter (m³) of water ranged from near-zero to ~US$93, except for one technology which cost US$299 per m³. For field tested technologies, the cost of treating 1m³ of water ranged from near-zero to ~US$70.

Key factors influencing removal efficiencies and costs:

• the arsenic concentration of the influent water
• pH of the influent water
• materials used
• the energy required
• absorption capacity
• labour used
• regeneration period and
• geographical location

Remediation technologies that demonstrate high arsenic removal efficiencies in a laboratory setting need to be further assessed for their suitability for larger-scale application, considering their high production and operational costs.

Costs can be reduced by using locally available materials and natural adsorbents, which provide near zero-cost options and can have high arsenic removal efficiencies.

Leading authors Yina Shan and Praem Mehta, who worked at UNU-INWEH and are now at McMaster University, noted that exposure to arsenic can lead to severe health, social and economic consequences, including arsenicosis (e.g. muscular weakness, mild psychological effects), skin lesions and cancers (lung, liver, kidney, bladder, and skin).

Social implications of these health impacts include stigmatization, isolation, and social instability, they added. Arsenic-related health complications and mortality also lead to significant economic losses due to lost productivity. The economic burden in Bangladesh is projected to reach US$13.8 billion by around 2030.

Looking ahead, the study identifies priority areas to assist in commercializing wide-scale implementation of arsenic removal technologies.

“The main objective of the report is to help accelerate the wide-scale implementation of remediation solutions to alleviate, and ultimately eradicate, the problem of arsenic-contaminated water consumption over the next decade and meet the world’s Sustainable Development Goals,” says UNU-INWEH Director Vladimir Smakhtin.

“This report aims to inform decision-makers who face an arsenic public health challenge, of the specific costs and effectiveness of technologies tested in laboratory or field settings. It also urges researchers to present cost and effectiveness data cohesively to better inform planners’ and policymakers’ choice of the best arsenic remediation technologies.”

“Today, the current science and knowledge on arsenic remediation technologies may be mature enough to help significantly reduce the numbers of people affected by this public health problem. However, the effective translation of research evidence and laboratory-level successes into quantifiable and sustainable impacts on the ground requires a concerted and sustained effort from policymakers, engineers, healthcare providers, donors, and community leaders.”

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Authors

• Yina Shan, UNU-INWEH, McMaster University
• Praem Mehta, UNU-INWEH, McMaster University
• Duminda Perera, Senior Researcher, UNU-INWEH
• Yurissa Varela, UNU-INWEH, University of Ottawa

Background

High natural levels of inorganic arsenic exceeding the WHO limit are a characteristic feature of groundwater in many countries, including Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Mongolia, and the United States.

Most arsenic-contaminated groundwater is caused naturally, some is caused by industry – mining, fertilizers / pesticides, waste disposal, and manufacturing.

In nature, the poison can be released from arsenic-rich rocks by high acidity (pH) in oxygen-rich groundwater. Arsenic contamination is also mobilized by human interventions, such as.

Globally, the primary route of human exposure to arsenic is contaminated drinking water; some is the result of irrigating crops with contaminated water.

Sustainable Development Goal 3 (“good health and wellbeing”), adopted by UN Member States in 2015 for achievement by 2030, recognized the need to remove hazardous chemicals, including arsenic, from the world’s ecosystems. SDG 3.9 aims to “substantially reduce the number of deaths and illnesses from hazardous chemicals and air, water, and soil pollution and contamination.” And SDG 6 (“Clean water and sanitation”) includes target 6.3, calling for an “improvement to water quality by reducing pollution, eliminating dumping and minimizing the release of hazardous chemicals and materials” (https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org).

UNU-INWEH

http://bit.ly/1vjfKAS

The UNU Institute for Water, Environment and Health is a member of the United Nations University family of organizations. It is the UN Think Tank on Water created by the UNU Governing Council in 1996. Its mission is to help resolve pressing water challenges of concern to the UN, its Member States and their people, through knowledge- based synthesis of existing bodies of scientific discovery; cutting edge targeted research that identifies emerging policy issues; application of on-the-ground scalable solutions based on credible research; and relevant and targeted public outreach.

UNU-INWEH is hosted by the Government of Canada and McMaster University

Coverage highlights:

Full coverage summary, click here

News release in full, click here.

In study, children with a particular genetic variation were 4 times more likely to develop strong attachment to mother after intervention

A child’s genetic make-up can play a large, hidden role in the success of efforts to maximize his or her development, South African research suggests.

The study, published February 28 in PLoS Medicine and supported by the Government of Canada through Grand Challenges Canada’s Saving Brains program, sheds new light on why some children benefit more than others from interventions and raises complex questions about psychosocial intervention programs in future.

In a study led by Professor Mark Tomlinson of Stellenbosch University, the study followed-up an intervention implemented between 1999 and 2003, in which expectant mothers underwent mentoring to improve attachment with their children — attachment being a measure of a child’s psychological security, and predictive of future wellbeing. In the original study, a control group of roughly equal size was composed of expectant mothers who did not receive mentoring.

The original study concluded that the intervention had a small-to-moderate effect on mother-child attachment, evaluated once the children reached 18 months of age.

The follow-up study, conducted thirteen years after the intervention, re-examined the original attachment results and revealed something surprising: the intervention had in fact worked well for toddlers who had a particular genetic characteristic.

Conducted in collaboration with colleagues from the University of Reading, University College London, and Western University, the study re-enrolled and conducted genetic tests on 279 of the original 449 children.

220 children had both genetic and attachment data, enabling the investigators to test whether the original attachment outcomes were influenced by their genes.

The researchers factored in whether the child had the short or long form of gene SLC6A4 — the serotonin transporter gene, which is involved in nerve signalling, and which other studies have linked to anxiety, depression and other conditions. Serotonin is popularly thought to contribute to feelings of well-being and happiness.

The attachment of children with the short form of the gene, and whose pregnant mothers were mentored, were almost four times more likely to be securely attached to their mothers at 18 months old (84 percent were secure) than children carrying the short form whose mothers did not receive mentoring (58 percent were secure).

Meanwhile, children with the long gene were apparently unaffected by their mother’s training or lack thereof: in both cases, the rate of secure attachment was almost identical (70 and 71 percent).

Subject to further validation, says Professor Tomlinson, the insight has “important implications for scientists designing and evaluating interventions to benefit as many people as possible in South Africa and worldwide.”

“Without taking genetics into account, it is possible that other studies have under-estimated the impact of their interventions, as we originally did.”

Says lead author Dr. Barak Morgan of the University of Cape Town: “The immediate significance of this research is the revelation that in principle, and probably in many cases in practice too, the effectiveness of interventions has been mis-measured — under-estimated for genetically susceptible individuals and over-estimated for those who are genetically less susceptible. But even more worrying is the implication that the negative consequences of not receiving an intervention also differ by genotype.”

“This is an enormously important insight because, in this case, the subgroup with the short form of the SLC6A4 gene is also the one with the most to lose if not helped.”

“Individuals with the long form of the gene, on the other hand, appear less sensitive and derived little benefit from the same intervention, and little detriment from not getting it.”

Adds Professor Tomlinson: “In the original study, we did not see such a big impact from this intervention because only those with the short gene improved, and this improvement was ‘diluted’ by the large number of children with the long gene who did not improve.”

The researchers caution that, among other limitations, this study involved a relatively small sample and only measured one gene and one outcome (attachment).

Dr. Morgan stressed: “We are certainly not saying that only some people should receive the intervention — those who are ‘susceptible’ to improving from it. There is little scientific justification for this. For example, many children with the non-susceptible long genotype of the SLC6A4 gene may carry the susceptible form of another gene which renders them much more likely to benefit from the same intervention but for a different but equally important outcome.

“Going forward, the implications are therefore two-fold. Firstly, measuring genetic differences allows for proper assessment of the effectiveness or lack of effectiveness of an intervention for a particular outcome in different individuals. Secondly, this information can then be used to find out how to intervene effectively for all — to guide what might be done to improve outcomes for a non-responsive gene-intervention interaction while continuing to optimise outcomes for the responsive one.”

Says Dr. Karlee Silver, Vice President Programs of Grand Challenges Canada: “This work is fundamentally about better understanding the impact of interventions which is an important step forward to creating a world where every child can survive and thrive.”

Says Dr. Peter A. Singer, Chief Executive Officer of Grand Challenges Canada: “This is a startling finding that changes the way I think about child development. Why is it important? Because child development is the ladder of social mobility used to climb out of the hole of inequity by millions of children around the world.”

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For more information, visit grandchallenges.ca and look for us on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and LinkedIn.

About Grand Challenges Canada

Grand Challenges Canada is dedicated to supporting Bold Ideas with Big Impact® in global health. We are funded by the Government of Canada and we support innovators in low- and middle-income countries and Canada. The bold ideas we support integrate science and technology, social and business innovation – we call this Integrated Innovation®. Grand Challenges Canada focuses on innovator-defined challenges through its Stars in Global Health program and on targeted challenges in its Saving Lives at Birth, Saving Brains and Global Mental Health programs. Grand Challenges Canada works closely with Canada’s International Development Research Centre (IDRC), the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) and Global Affairs Canada to catalyze scale, sustainability and impact. We have a determined focus on results, and on saving and improving lives. http://www.grandchallenges.ca

About Saving Brains

Saving Brains is a partnership of Grand Challenges Canada, Aga Khan Foundation Canada, the Bernard van Leer Foundation, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, The ELMA Foundation, Grand Challenges Ethiopia, the Maria Cecilia Souto Vidigal Foundation, the Palix Foundation, UBS Optimus Foundation and World Vision Canada. It seeks and supports bold ideas for products, services and implementation models that protect and nurture early brain development relevant to poor, marginalized populations in low- or middle-income countries.http://www.savingbrainsinnovation.net

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Example coverage:

The Times, South Africa
SA study sheds new light on how babies respond to developmental interventions, (click here)

Africa Science News, Kenya
To maximize a child’s development, genetics provide important insight, study shows, (click here)

Independent Online, South Africa
The long and short of child genetics revealed, (click here)

Herald Live, South Africa
SA study sheds new light on how babies respond to developmental interventions, (click here)

SciDev, UK, (click here)

Agencia EFE, via El Confidencial, Spain, Genética puede explicar reacción en niños de tratamientos psicosociológicos (click here)

Coverage summary, click here

News release in full, click here

Mothers who take multi-micronutrient supplements during pregnancy can add the equivalent of up to one full year of schooling to a child’s cognitive abilities at age 9-12, says a new study published today.

	Photos for media use bit.ly/2j81cTJ Credit: SUMMIT

Says Provincial Secretary General Dr. Rosiady Sayuti: “The findings led us to create, with the Summit Institute of Development and colleagues, the inter-sectoral Golden Generation Program to enhance social interventions to foster early childhood development.”

Example coverage

Newswires

Agence France Presse, France, Researchers investigate the factors that boost kids’ brains, click here

Agencia EFE, Spain (at 25 news sites / 12 countries), via Yahoo! News, Suministro de micronutrientes a embarazadas mejora la función cerebral de los niños, click here

Press Trust of India, Happy, educated moms key to smarter kids!, click here

IndoAsian News Service, India, Want your child to be smart? Taking proper vitamin supplements during pregnancy might help, click here

Europa Press, newswire, Spain, El ambiente de crianza estimula el desarrollo del niño, click here

ANSA, newswire, Italy, Vitamine in gravidanza ‘nutrono’ l’intelligenza del bebè, click here

News sites

Today’s Parent, Canada, Prenatal vitamins will make your kid smarter, says new study, click here

The Telegraph, UK, Failing to take multivitamins during pregnancy could set child back a year in school, study suggests, click here

The Sun, UK, BABY BRAIN Mums-to-be who take 2p-a-day pregnancy vitamins ‘boost their kids’ IQ by the same as one school year’, click here

The Mirror, UK, Pregnant women can boost their child’s IQ by up to a year’s schooling by taking supplements, click here

Daily Mail, UK, Want to have smart children? Taking vitamins during pregnancy can help to boost their IQ by as much of a year of schooling, click here

Hindustan Times, India, Want kids with high IQ? Take vitamin supplements during pregnancy, click here

Science Daily, USA, Maternal micronutrients, nurturing environment boost child development, click here 

Medical Express, USA, Maternal micronutrients, nurturing environment boost child development, click here

Medical News, Australia, Maternal multi-micronutrients, nurturing environment in early life foster childhood development, click here

Nutraceuticals World, United States, Supplementation & Nurturing Environment Boost Child Development, click here

Elaph Journal, United Arab Emirates, عدم تناول الفيتامينات أثناء الحمل يؤخر الطفل في المدرسة (Not taking vitamins during pregnancy retards the child at school), click here

Albeu, Albania, Fëmijë të zgjuar? Konsumoni këto vitamina gjatë shtatzanisë! (Smart kids? Consume these vitamins during pregnancy!), click here

Republika, Indonesia, Suplemen dan Lingkungan Jadi Pendorong Perkembangan Anak (Supplements and Environment Boost Child Development), click here

Punjab Tribune, Indonesia, Proper Maternal Vitamins, Good Nurturing, May Boost Kids’ IQ, click here

* * * * *

News release in full, click here

Coverage summary, click here

National Public Radio, USA, The Friendship Bench Can Help Chase The Blues Away, click here

SciDev, UK, Bench talk boosts mental health in Zimbabwe, click here; French: Des méthodes innovantes pour stimuler la santé mentale au Zimbabwe, click here

Press Trust of India, ‘Friendship Bench’ may help fight mental illness, click here

BBC World Service English to Africa, Focus on Africa, starts at the 15:30 mark, click here, 

BBC Swahili, UK, Gumzo la benchi, tiba ya magonjwa ya kiakili, click here

Newser, USA via Fox News, ‘Friendship Bench’ chats ease symptoms of depression, says study, click here

Medical Daily, USA, Are ‘Friendship Benches’ The Cure For Depression, Anxiety In Poor Countries?, click here

IndoAsian News Service, India, Community-based Therapy May Alleviate Depression, Anxiety: Study, click here

Newser, USA, 5 most incredible discoveries of the week, click here

Upworthy, USA, This country has only 10 psychiatrists. That’s where ‘professional grandmothers’ come in, click here

Agencia EFE, Spain Charlas Semanales Con Abuelas Reducen Dramaticamente Enfermedades Mentales (Weekly talks with grandmothers dramatically reduce mental illness), via Yahoo News, USA, click here

South Africa Broadcasting Corp.

Ontario Farmer, Canada helps Zimbabwe with bench strength

Forskning, Norway, Mindre depresjon med bestemor på en benk, click here

Psychology Today, USA, What if You’re Depressed or Anxious and Can’t Find Help? Friendship Benches offer a new tool in the fight against depression and anxiety, click here

FJ China (+ several other news sites), China, 这群大妈每天找人闲聊,却做着救人的大事被称为“黄金夫人, click here

Good News Network, USA, ‘Friendship Benches’ Alleviate Mental Illness Symptoms For Thousands, click here

Health Canal, USA, Friendship Bench therapy reduces anxiety and depression in Zimbabwe, click here

Psych Central, USA, Friendship Bench Therapy Proves Effective in Treating Mental Illness, click here

MedIndia, India, Friendship benches help reduce mental illness in developing countries, click here

MedScape, USA, Novel Strategy May Boost Access to Mental Health Care, click here

Quo, Spain, En este puedes confiar: nace el banco de la amistad (Psychology — In this you can trust: the Friendship Bench is born; It is a resource that has proven extremely useful for treating depression), click here

* * * * *

News release in full, click here

Coverage summary, click here

Study funded by Saving Brains shows Kangaroo Mother Care kids 20 years later are better behaved, have larger brains, higher paycheques, more protective and nurturing families

Two decades after a group of Colombian parents were shown how to keep their perilously tiny babies warm and nourished through breastfeeding and continuous skin-to-skin contact, a new groundbreaking study finds that as young adults their children continue to benefit from having undergone the technique known as Kangaroo Mother Care.

In young adulthood, they are less prone to aggressive, impulsive and hyperactive behaviour compared to a control group of premature and low birth weight contemporaries who received “traditional” inpatient incubator care. They are more likely to have survived into their 20s. Their families are more cohesive. They have bigger brains.

Supported by the Government of Canada through Grand Challenges Canada’s “Saving Brains” program, as well as Colombia’s Administrative Department of Science, Technology and Innovation (COLCIENCIAS), the study is published today in the journal Pediatrics.

“This study indicates that Kangaroo Mother Care has significant, long-lasting social and behavioural protective effects 20 years after the intervention,” says lead researcher Dr. Nathalie Charpak, of the Kangaroo Foundation in Bogotá.

The technique’s early impact was still present 20 years later for those who started life as the most fragile individuals, she says. Families trained in Kangaroo Mother Care were more likely to remain together and to be more protective and nurturing, reflected in their children’s lower school absenteeism, ability to express feelings, and reduced hyperactivity, aggressiveness and antisocial conduct as young adults.

“A premature infant is born somewhere in the world every two seconds,” says Dr. Peter A. Singer, Chief Executive Officer of Grand Challenges Canada. “This study shows that Kangaroo Mother Care gives premature and low birth weight babies a better chance of thriving. Kangaroo Mother Care saves brains and makes premature and low birth weight babies healthier and wealthier.”

What is Kangaroo Mother Care?

About 15 million premature infants are born each year, according to the World Health Organization. Preterm birth complications are the leading cause of death among children under 5, responsible for nearly 1 million deaths in 2015; many survivors face a lifetime of disability, including learning disabilities and visual and hearing problems.

Premature and low birth weight infants generally require extra care to avoid illness and death from secondary, preventable complications such as hypothermia and infection. This is a particular problem in developing countries, where incubators and similar technologies are often scarce, over-crowded or unreliable, as well as costly.

A trained Kangaroo Mother Care parent or caregiver becomes a child’s incubator and its main source of food and stimulation. The technique involves continuous skin-to-skin contact between caregiver and infant, with the baby nested in a “kangaroo” position on the caregiver’s chest as soon as possible after birth. The technique is accompanied by exclusive breastfeeding.

Kangaroo Mother Care also requires and prepares the mother and child to go home as soon as possible from the hospital, after which there is rigorous monitoring of baby and mother until the infant reaches one year of corrected age (the baby’s age based on due date rather than date of birth). Family solidarity around the frail child is a key element in the success of the Kangaroo Mother Care technique.

Revisiting Kangaroo Mother Care babies 20 years later

The Kangaroo Foundation research compared 18 to 20 year olds who, as premature and low birth weight infants, had been randomized at birth to receive either Kangaroo Mother Care (KMC) or traditional incubator care until they could maintain their own body temperature.

During that initial randomized control trial in 1993-96, researchers documented the short and mid-term benefits of KMC training on the infants’ survival, brain development, breastfeeding and the quality of mother-infant bonding.

In 2012-2014, 264 of the original participants who weighed less than 1800 grams at birth were re-enrolled (61% of infants that qualified).

Looking at mortality, the research found that KMC offered significant protection against early death. The mortality rate in the control group (7.7 percent) was more than double that of the KMC group (3.5 percent).

Among other results of the study:

• School: The KMC group spent about 23 percent more time in preschool and had less than half the rate of school absenteeism compared to the control group.
• Work: As young workers, their average hourly wages were almost 53 percent higher.
• Family: A higher percentage of KMC children (almost 22 percent) grew up living with both parents. The families of KMC children were found to be more stimulating, protective, and dedicated to their children compared to the families in the control group.
• Behaviour: Scores for aggressiveness and hyperactivity were 16 percent lower in the KMC group, particularly among less-educated mothers. Scores for externalization (the ability to express feelings, especially negative feelings), a trait associated with risk of juvenile delinquency, academic failure, and inadequate social adjustment, were 20 percent lower in the KMC group on average. The parents of KMC children also reported that their children exhibited less antisocial behaviour compared to the reports of the parents of the counterparts in the control group.
• Cerebral development: Compared with those in the control group, KMC participants had larger brains – significantly larger volumes of total grey matter, cerebral cortex, and left caudate nucleus, which plays a vital role in how the brain learns, specifically related to the storing and processing of memories.
• Overall IQ: Tests after 20 years show a small but significant (3.6 percent) advantage in overall intelligence (IQ) for the most fragile KMC babies (those with an abnormal or transient neurological exam at 6 months) compared to similar infants in the control group.

The world needs Kangaroo Mother Care

Dr. Charpak notes that as neonatal technology becomes more accessible throughout the world, more premature and low birth weight infants are saved with fewer serious consequences in later years.

“That is why the detection of ‘minor’ consequences becomes important,” she says. “Minor effects like mild cognitive deficits, lack of fine coordination, poor hearing or eyesight and attention deficit can often go undetected but have a profound effect on the lives of families.

“The findings of our 20-year KMC study should inform the modalities of medical, psychological and social postnatal interventions such as Kangaroo Mother Care so that we can continue to reduce the disorders caused by prematurity and low birth weight.”

Dr. Charpak says that this new knowledge must be used to extend KMC coverage to the 18 million premature and low birth weight infants born each year who are candidates for the technique.

“We firmly believe that this is a powerful, efficient, scientifically based health care intervention that can be used in all settings, from those with very restricted to unrestricted access to health care,” she says.

“This study demonstrates that Kangaroo Mother Care can make all the difference in the world for premature and low birth weight infants,” says Dr. Karlee Silver, Vice President Programs at Grand Challenges Canada. “Kangaroo Mother Care is a cost-effective, modern method of care that can and should be applied in every country.”

###

About Grand Challenges Canada

Grand Challenges Canada is dedicated to supporting Bold Ideas with Big Impact in global health. We are funded by the Government of Canada and we support innovators in low- and middle-income countries and Canada. The bold ideas we support integrate science and technology, social and business innovation – we call this Integrated Innovation. Grand Challenges Canada focuses on innovator-defined challenges through its Stars in Global Health program and on targeted challenges in its Saving Lives at Birth, Saving Brains and Global Mental Health programs. Grand Challenges Canada works closely with Canada’s International Development Research Centre (IDRC), the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) and Global Affairs Canada to catalyze scale, sustainability and impact. We have a determined focus on results, and on saving and improving lives.
http://www.grandchallenges.ca

About Saving Brains

Saving Brains is a partnership of Grand Challenges Canada, Aga Khan Foundation Canada, the Bernard van Leer Foundation, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, The ELMA Foundation, Grand Challenges Ethiopia, the Maria Cecilia Souto Vidigal Foundation, the Palix Foundation, UBS Optimus Foundation and World Vision Canada. It seeks and supports bold ideas for products, services and implementation models that protect and nurture early brain development relevant to poor, marginalized populations in low- or middle-income countries.
http://www.savingbrainsinnovation.net

* * * * *

Example coverage:

Newswires / syndicates:

Reuters, UK, Skin-to-skin ‘kangaroo’ baby care tied to better health years later, click here

Agencia EFE, Spain, Los beneficios de método canguro para bebé prematuros duran décadas, dice un estudio, click here

HealthDay, USA, ‘Kangaroo Mother Care’ May Improve Preemies Lives into Adulthood (via US News and World Report), click here

Deutsch Presse Agentur, Germany, Känguru-Methode kann Frühchen lebenslang nützen (Kangaroo method can improve premature life), click here; in Spanish: Los bebés prematuros se benefician del contacto constante con la piel de la madre, según estudio, click here

Anadolu Agency, Turkey, “Kanguru bakımı” çocukların sağlığını ve zekasını olumlu etkiliyor, click here

IndoAsian News Service, India, Kangaroo mother care helps premature babies thrive, click here

Press Trust of India, Kangaroo cuddles can help premature babies thrive: study, click here

ANSA newswire, Italy, Pelle a pelle con mamma e papà, benefici ‘canguro-terapia’ durano decenni, click here

* * * * *

CBC, Canada, Kangaroo care for preemies shows profound power of touch, click here

BBC World Service (Health Check) 9 minutes long, starts ~16 min mark, click here

The Guardian, UK: ‘Kangaroo care’ makes premature babies healthier and wealthier, study finds, click here

Daily Mail, UK (page 23), How ‘kangaroo cuddles’ can help premature babies: Infants given skin-to-skin contact with mothers develop better than those placed in incubators, click here

The Telegraph, UK, ‘Kangaroo mothering’ helps boost a child’s health and intelligence, study finds, click here

Huffington Post, USA: Incredible Study Shows Cuddling Preemies Helps Them For Decades click here

Forbes, USA, Kangaroo Care Still Benefits Preemies 20 Years Later, click here

NBC News, USA, Cuddling Preemies Kangaroo Style Helps Into Adulthood, click here

LiveScience, USA, Benefits of ‘Kangaroo Mother Care’: Do They Last?, click here

O Globo, Brazil: Método canguru faz prematuros serem adultos mais saudáveis e promissores (Kangaroo method makes premature babies are healthier and more promising adults), click here

Deutsche Welle, Germany, Portuguese: Método canguru beneficia prematuros no longo prazo, click here

Psychology Today, USA, What We Can Learn from Kangaroos, click here

Topsante (via Yahoo News, France), Le peau à peau pour accompagner les bébés prématurés, click here

Die Welt, Germany, Känguru-Methode nützt Frühchen noch Jahre später, click here

Parents .com, USA, Babies Given Kangaroo Care Show Benefits Decades Later, click here

WebMD, USA, Kangaroo mothering ‘helps premature babies’, click here

Spektrum, Germany, Känguru-Methode hilft Frühchen über Jahrzehnte (Kangaroo care helps preemies decades later), click here

Medpage Today, USA, Kangaroo Care Linked to Long-Term Benefits, click here

Epoch Times, China, “袋鼠育儿法”有助于提升早产儿的健康和智力 “Kangaroo Parenting Act” to help improve the health and intelligence of premature children, click here

International Business Times, UK: How ‘kangaroo mothers’ help tiny, premature babies survive and thrive, click here

International Business Times, India: ‘Kangaroo mother care’ turns out to be vital for pre-term babies, click here

Sunday World, UK, ‘Kangaroo mothering’ helps premature babies thrive, click here

ORF Science, Germany, Känguru-Methode schützt Frühchen, click here

Helsingin Sanomat, Finland, Kenguruhoidetuilla keskosilla on aikuisena isommat aivot – ja palkkapussi, click here

Sveriges Radio, Sweden, För tidigt födda verkar gynnas av känguruvård, click here

HealthMag, Greece, Η αγκαλιά “καγκουρό” κάνει πιο υγιή και πιο έξυπνα τα παιδιά (The “kangaroo” hug makes healthier and smarter children), click here

HKN, Korea: 캥거루 케어’ 받은 아이, 똑똑하고 튼튼하다 (‘Kangaroo Care’ receiving child is smart and durable), click here

Klix, Bosnia and Herzegovina: Klokan metoda čini nedonoščad zdravijom i bogatijom (Kangaroo method seems premature babies healthier and richer), click here

Videnskab, Denmark: ‘Kængurupleje’ gavner for tidligt fødte bedre end kuvøse (‘Kangaroo Care’ benefit premature better than incubator), click here

Ethnos, Greece: Τα πρόωρα βρέφη γίνονται πιο υγιή και… πλούσια με τη φροντίδα «καγκουρό» (Premature babies are healthier and … rich with care “kangaroo”), click here

* * * * *

Full coverage summary, click here

News release in full, click here

100+ presentations on cases worldwide, from Syria, Central America, Africa, Guantanamo Bay; Sexual violence as torture; Treatment and recovery from atrocities; Enforcing nations’ legal obligation to provide rehabilitation

Over 300 participants — 70% of them clinical professionals — from 80 nations will exchange expertise, experience and research on torture rehabilitation at the three-day event, organized by the Denmark-based International Rehabilitation Council for Torture Victims.

More than 100 presentations will address issues ranging from widespread torture in Syria, the refugee transit camps of southern Europe and elsewhere, the plight of Central American migrants, and a trio of talks on the US detention centre opened in 2006 at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, where the denial of help to survivors is called “torture by other means.”

Torture thrives in the 21st Century. Amnesty International has documented cases over the past five years in more than 140 countries — three-quarters of all nations — leaving victims to deal with a range of long-term consequences.

Torture victims have the right to rehabilitation under the UN Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment. Only a small percentage of victims, however, have access to services says the IRCT, an umbrella organization with more than 150 member institutions worldwide.

The symposium is billed as the first global event to look in detail and across disciplines at how to deliver on the right to rehabilitation.

Symposium speakers include service providers, researchers, clinicians, lawyers, funders and policymakers.

Presentations are clustered around three questions:

• What works for who, where and why? Trends and developments in research on rehabilitation methods
• What are the challenges in implementing the right to rehabilitation?
• Getting the needed political, financial, legal and public support
• What can we learn from others? Sharing knowledge with other human rights and health sectors

A complete set of conference abstracts is available online:

Oral presentations: http://bit.ly/2fhH9Qd
Posters: http://bit.ly/2g1xhLI

Torture by other means: The denial of rehabilitation help to Guantanamo Bay survivors

Three presentations, summarized in abstracts here: http://bit.ly/2fhFv0T, relate to the U.S. detention centre in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Says UK-based human rights expert and presenter Polly Rossdale, the condition of those subjected to detention and abuse at Guantanamo Bay since 2006 is “not adequately described by (post-traumatic stress disorder).”

And no single torture victim in the world today has received more international attention and support than Mustafa al-Hawsawi, according to two members of his defence team – Dr. Mitch Robinson of the US Department of Defence and Prof. Jess Ghannam, University of California, Berkeley.

Transported to multiple CIA black sites between 2003 and 2006 then transferred to Guantanamo Bay, Mr. al-Hawsawi’s case has been highlighted by the UN, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, NGOs such as Amnesty International, and others. Yet, he receives no formal rehabilitation.

Dr. Robinson and Prof. Ghannam argue that despite the Obama administration’s denunciation of torture, the United States continues a policy of government-sanctioned abuse by actively denying rehabilitation efforts, allowing victims to suffer for years from injuries inflicted.

Case study: Syria

It is estimated that up to one third of the 20 million people currently fleeing violence and conflict have been subjected to torture or ill-treatment or are secondary victims.

For more than three years, US human rights lawyer Christy Fujio has worked with doctors and lawyers in Syria documenting torture and other atrocities that have happened during that country’s bloody six-year civil war.

Ms. Fujio is among a committed group of human rights investigators gathering medical documentation of torture to build a strong, credible body of evidence to launch prosecutions when the conflict ends. All of these people know someone – a family member, friend, neighbour – who has been detained and tortured, often to death. Many of them have themselves been detained and tortured.

Her presentation is one of three related to Syria, summarized in abstracts online here: http://bit.ly/2fhHzWG

Sexual violence as torture

A deep stream of presentations relates to torture in the form of sexual violence against females and males (a collection of abstracts by experts from the UK, Australia, Congo, Senegal, Mexico, Denmark, Norway: http://bit.ly/2f1zkue)

Related issues include the restoration of victims’ dignity through livelihoods (abstract: http://bit.ly/2fYsHxr), and therapy (abstract: http://bit.ly/2fYsl9P)

Other topics include:

• Survivors of torture in detention, mass displacement camps, and post conflict settings, and victims of ongoing or systemic torture (abstract: http://bit.ly/2ghXuG3)
• Torture in the slums of Dhaka, Bangladesh (abstract: http://bit.ly/2f5t4F6)
• Treating elderly victims of torture and trauma (abstract: http://bit.ly/2fxXd0i)
• Rehabilitation of torture victims as a precondition to reconciliation in Bosnia and Herzegovina (abstract: http://bit.ly/2fGvwQF)
• Experiences of refugees transiting Serbia (abstract: http://bit.ly/2f5C7G9)
• Treating victims of torture in prison (abstract: http://bit.ly/2fi0VZf)

On the final day of the conference, a major workshop is devoted to the training of community mental health workers to deliver torture rehabilitation services in low resource, conflict-affected settings.

Keynote Speech – The Women of Atenco

In May 2006, Mexican police arrested 45 women selling flowers in the market square of San Salvador Atenco. They were responding to protests by a local peasant group and by the time the operation was over, two were dead, dozens were seriously injured and many of those arrested were sexually assaulted. Not a single person has been convicted as a result of the assaults.

Two of those women, Norma Jimenez and Italia Mendez, will be keynote speakers at the IRCT International Scientific Symposium. They will tell the story of the Women of Atenco, now known around the world because of their fight to bring the perpetrators to justice. The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights has filed an application with the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, noting the “existence of severe acts of physical and psychological violence, including diverse forms of sexual violence against 11 women and rape in the case of seven women”.

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Comments

“Centres worldwide involved in torture rehabilitation tend to work in isolation. This event is intended to help galvanize a sense of community, to develop an understanding within this inter-disciplinary field of the need to move forward together.”

“The rehabilitation of torture victims can take months or even years and is essential to allowing them to return to as full a life as possible. Addressing the damage created by torture takes time and requires long-term material, medical, psychological and social support.”

“States have a duty to provide rehabilitation but many countries do not live up to that obligation. By doing so, they are not only violating international law but also denying victims the care that they are entitled to and that they desperately need.”

— IRCT Secretary General Victor Madrigal-Borloz

“In providing rehabilitation services, practitioners have also developed in-depth knowledge essential to contributing toward the prevention of torture. Rehabilitation, in many ways, also affects the overarching goal of ending torture.”

“Unfortunately, rehabilitation centres, where they exist, are struggling to survive. The provision of rehabilitation must be sustainable, provided by countries and available to all victims until the practice of torture has been eradicated.”

— Edith Escareño Granados, General Coordinator, Colectivo Contra la Torture y la Impunidad, Mexico

International Rehabilitation Council for Torture Victims

Based in Copenhagen, Denmark, the IRCT is a health-based umbrella organization that supports the rehabilitation of torture victims and the prevention of torture worldwide.

Members comprise more than 150 independent organizations in over 70 countries, the largest membership-based civil society organization to work in the field of torture rehabilitation and prevention. Rehabilitation centres are working directly with clients, developing new treatment approaches, capturing data and ensuring as many victims as possible receive the best treatment possible.

These centres provide a high standard of specialized rehabilitation services to torture victims each year.

Despite an overwhelming demand for their services, many IRCT member centres are facing great financial challenges and some are struggling to survive. In recent years, seven member centres have either closed their rehabilitation section or closed down entirely and every year several are on the brink of closing.

The International Rehabilitation Council for Torture Victims (IRCT) concluded its fifth General Assembly 9 December 2016 with a resolution titled “The Mexico Consensus,” available online athttp://bit.ly/2h3Xeev

Coverage:

NY Times, Watching Trump, Many Fear a Leap Backward on Torture, click here

Agence France Presse, Posición de Donald Trump erosiona la prohibición absoluta de la tortura, click here

News release in full, click here

Coverage summary, click here

18 July 2016

Assembled by UNU-IIGH, six papers underline the value of applying science, technology to reduce disaster-related health risks; productivity in many jobs seen falling by up to 40 percent by 2050 due to heat stress; experts convene at UN forum in Malaysia

The rising price — in both money and health — of extreme weather events amid rapid urbanisation, and the corresponding value of applying science and technology to reduce the risks, is underscored in six new research papers formally launched at a UN event today.

Assembled by UN University’s Malaysia-based International Institute for Global Health (UNU-IIGH), the papers are published in a special issue of the Asia Pacific Journal of Public Health.

And they help inform a special Forum on Advancing Science and Technology in the Implementation of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030, hosted in Kuala Lumpur July 19 by UNU-IIGH and the UN Development Programme.

The papers include a warning about large productivity losses due to heat stress, estimating that in South-East Asia alone “as much as 15% to 20% of annual work hours may already be lost in heat-exposed jobs,” a figure that may double by 2050 as the planet continues warming.

According to author Tord Kjellstrom of the Health and Environment International Trust, New Zealand: “Current climate conditions in tropical and subtropical parts of the world are already so hot during the hot seasons that occupational health effects occur and work capacity for many people is affected.”

Dr. Kjellstrom’s paper cites estimated GDP losses due to heat stress for 43 countries: Australia, Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, Costa Rica, Denmark, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Fiji, France, Germany, Ghana, India, Indonesia, Japan, Laos, Malaysia, Maldives, Mexico, Myanmar, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, Norway, Pakistan, Philippines, Papua New Guinea, Qatar, Russia, Saint Lucia, Samoa, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Tanzania, Thailand, Tuvalu, United Kingdom, United States, Vanuatu and Vietnam (see tables at http://bit.ly/29BL0Dn).

The situation in Malaysia is typical of the South-East Asian countries: As work slows or stops to avoid dangerous heat stress, the country’s Gross Domestic Product will decline by an estimated 5.9% (value: US $95 billion) by 2030, more than double the estimated 2.8% GDP lost to heat stress in 2010.

According to latest estimates, the global economic cost of reduced productivity may be more than US $2 trillion by 2030. The most susceptible jobs include the lowest paid — heavy labour and low-skill agricultural and manufacturing.

In 2030, in both India and China, the GDP losses could total $450 billion, although mitigation may be made possible by a major shift in working hours, among other measures employers will need to take to reduce losses.

This problem is already placing major strain on, for example, electricity infrastructure, Dr. Kiellstrom notes. The additional energy needed for a single city the size of Bangkok for each 1°C increase of average ambient temperature can be as much as 2000 MW, roughly the output of a major power plant.

“It is very important to develop and apply adaptation measures now to protect people from the disasters that current climate and slowing changing climate brings,” says Dr. Kjellstrom. “However, adaptation is only half an answer — we must also take decisive action now to mitigate emissions of greenhouse gases. Failure will cause the frequency and intensity of disasters to worsen dramatically beyond 2050, and the situation at the end of this century will be especially alarming for the world’s poorest people.”

Heat stress is one of several direct and growing impacts on human health due to a warming planet, understanding all of which “is critical in planning for mitigation and adaptation plans,” the authors say.

According to the papers:

• Disastrously heavy rains can expand insect breeding sites, drive rodents from their burrows, and contaminate freshwater resources, leading to the spread of disease and compromising safe drinking water supplies.
• Warmer temperatures often promote the spread of mosquito-borne parasitic and viral diseases by shifting the vectors’ geographic range and shortening the pathogen incubation period.
• Climate change can worsen air quality by triggering fires and dust storms and promoting certain chemical reactions causing respiratory illness and other health problems.
• In extreme disasters, harm is often amplified by the destruction of medical facilities and disruption of health services
• Central and south China can anticipate the greatest number of casualties and highest economic losses from extreme weather events in the Asia Pacific region — the world’s most disaster-prone region — and a more integrated, multidisciplinary approach is needed to upgrade the nation’s emergency response system for natural disasters.
• From 1980 to 2012, roughly 2.1 million people worldwide died as a direct result of nearly 21,000 natural catastrophes such as floods, mudslides, extreme heat, drought, high winds or fires. The cost of those disasters exceeded $4 trillion (US) — a loss comparable to the current annual GDP of Germany.
• In Asia Pacific 1.2 billion people have been affected by 1,215 disasters since the millennium. Some 92% of human exposure to floods occurs in Asia Pacific, along with 91% of exposure to cyclones and two-thirds of all exposure to landslides. Between 1970 and 2011, two million people in the region — 75% of the world total — were killed by disasters.
• From 1993 to 2012, the Philippines experienced the highest number of extreme weather events (311), Thailand experienced the greatest financial loss (US$ 5.4 billion) and Myanmar experienced the highest death rate (13.5 deaths per 100,000 people).
• In just 40 years, from 1970 to 2010, the regional population exposed to flooding risk more than doubled from about 30 million to 64 million while those in cyclone-prone areas rose from roughly 72 to 121 million.
• Cities cover 2% of world land cover, generate 60 to 80% of greenhouse gas emissions and half of all waste, and are expanding at a rate of 1 million people per week. In a single generation — from 2000 to 2030 –urban land extents are expected to have tripled.

The authors underline that fast-rising numbers of people are being exposed to the impacts of climate change, with much of the increase occurring in cities in flood-prone coastal areas or on hills susceptible to mudslides or landslides. Especially vulnerable are people living in poverty, including about one billion in slums.

Cities — concentrated sources of energy consumption, heat and pollution, covered in surfaces that absorb warmth — create local heat islands and impair air quality, both threats to health.

And rising demand for cooling contributes to warming the world. Air conditioners not only pump heat out directly, the electricity required is typically produced by burning fossil fuels, adding to atmospheric greenhouse gases. As well, people acclimatized to air conditioning become less heat tolerant, further increasing demand for cooling.

On the other hand, better urban planning presents “tremendous opportunity” to mitigate the health impacts of more extreme weather events.

Urban planners, the authors say, can help by designing cities “in ways that enhance health, sustainability, and resilience all at once,” incorporating better building design, facilitating a shift to renewable energy, and fostering the protection and expansion of tree cover, wetlands and other carbon sinks, for example.

To mitigate the health impacts of longer, more severe extreme weather events, the authors stress the need to replace piecemeal reactive responses with integrated, multi-disciplinary planning approaches.

Beyond better preparation and warning systems to improve disaster response, recommended steps include enhancing drainage to reduce flood risks and strengthening health care, especially in poor areas.

In an introduction to the six paper collection, UNU-IIGH Research Fellows Jamal Hisham Hashim and José Siri write that humanity faces “substantial health risks from the degradation of the natural life support systems which are critical for human survival. It has become increasingly apparent that actions to mitigate environmental change have powerful co-benefits for health.”

Comments:

“It is not clear yet whether considerations of health and sustainability will overrule the press of economic progress in coming decades, and ethical considerations surrounding the right to development are thorny indeed. What is clear is that tremendous opportunities exist to design cities in ways that enhance health, sustainability, and resilience all at once. Decisions made today will have a profound impact on health around the world for many decades to come. We hope these papers help improve understanding of the complex relationship between global environmental change and health, of the threat climate change poses to hard-won advances in human health worldwide, and of policy options available to mitigate these risks.”

Anthony Capon, Director, UNU-IIGH

“The Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (SFDRR) underlines the increasing importance of science-based decision-making. Public health and disaster risk reduction needs the concerted approach of scientists, policy makers, civil society, the private sector, media and other stakeholders. It is now time to develop “Words into Action” for implementation of the SFDRR.”

Michelle Gyles-McDonnough, UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative, Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei Darussalam

“Disasters have killed more than 1.3 million people and cost over US$2 trillion during the last two decades. The only way to protect development gains from disasters and to eradicate poverty is to integrate disaster risk reduction into development and to make all development risk-informed. UNDP will continue to provide support for getting DRR on the political agenda as a cross-cutting development priority, and facilitating the translation of DRR policy frameworks into action at the local level for empowered lives and resilient nations.”

Rajib Shaw, Executive Director, Integrated Research on Disaster Risk Programme, China

“This excellent series of peer review papers help to focus attention on the impact of disasters and their health consequences, particularly in South East Asia. The papers summarise the need for emphasis on public health impact measurements as well as stressing the importance of enhanced scientific and technical work on disaster risk reduction. This very welcome series demonstrates that only by documenting the effects of disasters can evidence be provided to support the availability and application of science and technology to inform decision-making during difficult times.”

Virginia Murray, Global Disaster Risk Reduction Expert, Public Health England, and vice-chair, Scientific and Technical Advisory Group, United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UNISDR)

“People know intuitively that “react and cure” is a far more expensive strategy than “anticipate and prevent.” The experts behind these insightful papers, by detailing the high price of inaction in terms of both our finances and our health, greatly strengthen the case for taking defensive steps against disaster risks — and the sooner the better.”

Zakri Abdul Hamid, Science Advisor to the Prime Minister, Malaysia

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The six papers, published by the Asia Pacific Journal of Public Health

• Climate Change, Extreme Weather Events, and Human Health Implications in the Asia Pacific Region, by Jamal Hisham Hashim and Zailina Hashim
• Urbanization, Extreme Events, and Health: The Case for Systems Approaches in Mitigation, Management, and Response, by José G. Siri, Barry Newell, Katrina Proust, and Anthony Capon
• Impact of Climate Conditions on Occupational Health and Related Economic Losses: A New Feature of Global and Urban Health in the Context of Climate Change, by Tord Kjellstrom
• Impact of Climate Change on Air Quality and Public Health in Urban Areas, by Noor Artika Hassan, Zailina Hashim, and Jamal Hisham Hashim
• Review of Climate Change and Water-Related Diseases in Cambodia and Findings From Stakeholder Knowledge Assessments, by Lachlan J. McIver, Vibol S. Chan, Kathyrn J. Bowen, Steven N. Iddings, Kol Hero and Piseth P. Raingsey
• Emergency Response to and Preparedness for Extreme Weather Events and Environmental Changes in China, by Li Wang, Yongfeng Liao, Linsheng Yang, Hairong Li, Bixiong Ye, and Wuyi Wang

Background

The Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030 was agreed at the Third UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction in Sendai, Japan in March 2015 and endorsed by the UN General Assembly in June 2015.

The goal of the Sendai Framework is to prevent new and reduce existing disaster risk through the implementation of integrated and inclusive economic, structural, legal, social, health, cultural, educational, environmental, technological, political and institutional measures that prevent and reduce hazard exposure and vulnerability to disaster, increase preparedness for response and recovery, and thus strengthen resilience.

The outcome expected by 2030 is a substantial reduction in disaster risk and losses in lives, livelihoods and health in the economic, physical, social, cultural and environmental aspects of persons, private sector, communities and countries.

A key feature of the Sendai Framework is the shift of focus from managing ‘disasters’ to managing ‘risks’. Such a shift requires a better understanding of risk in all its dimensions of hazards, exposure and vulnerability.

The role of science and technology in providing the evidence and knowledge on risk features heavily in the Sendai Framework.

The UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR) Science and Technology Conference, held 27-29 January 2016 in Geneva, produced the Science and Technology Roadmap to Support the Implementation of the Sendai Framework.

The UNU and UNDP Joint Public Forum and High Level Roundtable on Advancing Science and Technology in the Implementation of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030 has the following goals:

• Raise awareness of the value of science, technology and innovation (STI) for disaster risk reduction
• Engage key stakeholders in options to build STI capacity in this field, and
• Identify strategic next steps.

It takes place in Kuala Lumpur Tuesday, 19 July, 9 a.m. to noon (full details: http://bit.ly/29BK7dW).

About UN University

Established in 1973, United Nations University (UNU) is a global think tank and postgraduate teaching organization headquartered in Japan. The mission of the UN University is to contribute, through collaborative research and education, to efforts to resolve the pressing global problems of human development, welfare and survival that are the concern of the United Nations, its Peoples and Member States.

In carrying out this mission, UN University works with leading universities and research institutes in UN Member States, functioning as a bridge between the international academic community and the United Nations system. Through postgraduate teaching activities, UNU contributes to capacity building, particularly in developing countries.

About UNU-IIGH

The UNU International Institute for Global Health was founded in 2007 with a US$ 40 million endowment from the Malaysian Government. Based in Kuala Lumpur, the mission of UNU-IIGH is to build knowledge and capacity for decision-making by the UN system about global health issues.

As part of the International Council for Science (ICSU), UNU-IIGH is a co-sponsor of a 10-year global interdisciplinary science program on Health and Wellbeing in the Changing Urban Environment – A Systems Analysis Approaches.

UNU-IIGH contributions include capacity building in systems methods for population health research; development and evaluation of metrics for healthy urban development, particularly those relevant to low and middle income countries; and leadership training for city planners, elected officials, public health workers and others.

About UNDP

UNDP partners with people at all levels of society to help build nations that can withstand crisis, and drive and sustain the kind of growth that improves the quality of life for everyone. On the ground in more than 170 countries and territories, we offer global perspective and local insight to help empower lives and build resilient nations.

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News release in full, click here

Example coverage:

• Newswires / syndicates

Reuters, UK, Too hot to work: global warming to cost $2 trillion in lost productivity, click here

Washington Post, USA, As the world grows hotter, some workers are becoming less productive, click here

Bloomberg News, USA, Soaring Temperatures Will Make It Too Hot to Work, UN Warns, click here

The Independent, UK, Global warming set to cost the world economy £1.5 trillion by 2030 as it becomes too hot to work, click here

EuropaPress, Spain, Investigadores detallan los riesgos crecientes para salud de los desastres naturales, click here

RAI Novosty, Russia, ООН посчитала, во сколько мировой экономике обойдется глобальное потепление, click here

PAP, Poland, ONZ ostrzega: Wzrost temperatury doprowadzi do skrócenia czasu pracy, click here

• News sites

Le Figaro, France, via Yahoo News, La hausse des températures pourraient coûter 2 trillions de dollars à l’économie d’ici 2030, click here

Les Echos, France, Selon un rapport de l’ONU, la hausse des températures en raison du changement climatique pourrait coûter des points de PIB et des billions de dollars d’ici à 2030, click here

BFM Business, France, L’économie mondiale victime du réchauffement climatique, click here

Sina, China, 全球变暖每年将夺走13万亿元财富, click here

De Morgen, Belgium, Toenemende temperaturen doen wereldeconomie serieus zweten, click here

Business Green, UK, Heat stress is already impacting the bottom line – and it’s only going to get worse, click here

Climate News Network, UK, Climate change’s costs are still escalating, click here

Clean Malaysia, Climate Change will Cost us … a Lot, click here

Free Malaysia Today, Malaysia, Productivity to drop in Asia Pacific due to heat stress, click here

Mic, United States, As Republicans Deny Climate Change, the U.N. Says it Could Cost the World $2 Trillion, click here

RP, Poland, Cena globalnego ocieplenia: 2 biliony dolarów w ciągu najbliższych, click here

Taloussanomat, Finland, Kylmyyttä Pohjolaan, tukalaa Aasiaan – tuoko muutos säissä lisää lepoaikaa?, click here

iDNES, Czech Republic, Kvůli oteplování se bude méně pracovat. Ekonomiky zpomalí, varuje OSN, click here

Экспресс газета, Russia, Глобальное потепление может серьёзно ударить по мировой экономике, click here

Klimaretter, Germany, Weniger Arbeitstage durch Erderwärmung, click here

Rappler, USA, Hotter climate causing lower worker productivity – study, click here

Rinnovabili, Italy, Il riscaldamento globale fa sudare anche l’economia, click here

Privátbankár, Hungary, Olyan hőség lesz, amiben már dolgozni sem lehet – óriási károkat okoz majd, click here

Kommersant, Russia, Мировую экономику ожидает солнечный удар, click here

Okezone, Indonesia, Pemanasan Global Akan Membuat Perekonomian Asia Menderita, click here

XãLuận, Vietnam, GDP, năng suất lao động Việt Nam bị ảnh hưởng nặng bởi nắng nóng, click herehttp://www.xaluan.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=1539110

iAgua, Spain, ¿Qué impactos tienen los desastres naturales en la salud?, click here

Full coverage summary, click here

(#1 most viewed release (415,000+ page views) of 29,500 news releases hosted by the American Association for the Advancement of Science at its EurekAlert news service in 2016.  Click here for the AAAS news release)

Video: bit.ly/1S3YFjH

Canadian Government-supported researchers use mosquitoes’ own perfume to lure them to lay eggs in trap; Sudbury-based scientist leads project in Guatemala

With Canadian Government funding, a team of innovators from Canada and Mexico have successfully tested a low cost, environmentally-friendly way of destroying the eggs of the mosquito genus that spreads dengue, and likely spreading the Zika virus.

The 10-month study, conducted in a remote, urban area of Guatemala, documents a cheap, easy system to reduce virus-carryingAedesgenus mosquitoes by capturing and destroying its eggs. The results appear today in the F1000Research Zika & Arbovirus Outbreaks channel: bit.ly/1P3chwX *.

The system includes an innovative Canadian-designed trap called an “ovillanta,” created from two 50 cm sections of an old car tire, fashioned into a mouth-like shape, with a fluid release valve at the bottom.

Inside the lower tire cavity, a milk-based, non-toxic solution developed at Sudbury’s Laurentian University lures mosquitoes. Inserted to float in the artificial pond is a wooden or paper strip on which the female insect lays her eggs. The strip is removed twice weekly, analyzed for monitoring purposes, and the eggs destroyed using fire or ethanol.

The solution, which now includes mosquito pheromone (the female insect’s chemical perfume that helps others identify a safe breeding site), is then drained, filtered, and recycled back into the tire. The pheromone concentrates over time, making the ovillanta even more attractive for mosquitoes.

With a grant from Grand Challenges Canada, funded by the Government of Canada, the researchers, led by Gerardo Ulibarri of Laurentian University with collaborators Angel Betanzos and Mireya Betanzos of the National Institute of Public Health of Mexico, conducted the project in collaboration with Guatemala’s Ministry of Health.

They found the rubber ovillanta significantly more effective at attracting the Aedes mosquito than standard traps made from 1-litre buckets.

During the 10-month study, the team collected and destroyed over 18,100 Aedes eggs per month using 84 ovillantas in seven neighbourhoods of the town of Sayaxche (population 15,000), almost seven times the roughly 2,700 eggs collected monthly using 84 standard traps in the same study areas.

A tantalizing but anecdotal observation was that there were no new cases of dengue reported as originating in the ovillanta study test area, a community that would normally anticipate two or three dozen cases in that timeframe.

Targeting mosquito eggs using the ovillanta, Dr. Ulibarri says, is one third as expensive as trying to destroy larvae in natural ponds and only 20% the cost of targeting adult insects with pesticides, which also harm bats, dragonflies and the mosquitoes’ other natural predators.

The ovillanta was modelled after a mosquito trap developed at Laurentian University in response to the outbreak of West Nile virus in northern Ontario, which uses a modified solution to lure the Culex genus of mosquito, the West Nile carrier thought by some to be also the Zika carrier.

“We decided to use recycled tires – partly because tires already represent up to 29% of the breeding sites chosen by the Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, partly because tires are a universally affordable instrument in low-resource settings, and partly because giving old tires a new use creates an opportunity to clean up the local environment,” said Dr. Ulibarri.

Key to the overall system is an online training program to strengthen the mosquito control expertise of local health workers, coupled with a community engagement strategy that involves households in the regular maintenance of their ovillanta.

The community members collect the egg-laden strips of paper or wood from the ovillanta and pass them to the health workers, who conduct the monitoring and destruction using fire or ethanol.

The Aedes genus of mosquito – the principal genus that transmits Zika, dengue, chikungunya, and yellow fever viruses – has proven extremely difficult to control using other strategies, according to the World Health Organization.

A female, with a natural lifespan of up to three months, can start to reproduce in one week. Pesticide-resistance, dwindling resources, and an increase in mosquito-friendly environments have thwarted traditional methods of controlling the insect’s rapid spread.

“Innovation is a key driver underlying the Government of Canada’s approach to international development,” said Canada’s Minister of International Development and La Francophonie, the Honourable Marie-Claude Bibeau. “Innovative solutions that deliver improved global health outcomes – such as for the fight against the Zika virus – are needed.”

“While in its early days, this integrated innovation of a mosquito trap coupled with training local health workers and engaging communities in vector control is a promising example of how Canada’s leadership in development innovation can respond to public health emergencies such as Zika,” said Dr. Peter A. Singer, Chief Executive Officer of Grand Challenges Canada.

High-res still photos: bit.ly/1RxJZ1O

Researchers’ how-to video for creating an ovillanta: bit.ly/1S3YFjH

Video of an ovillanta under construction in Guatemala: bit.ly/25jlxVW

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(* This paper is posted pending peer review, consistent with the open data approach proposed by the World Health Organization for Data Sharing in Public Health Emergencies: bit.ly/1QIEUx7)

For more information, visit grandchallenges.ca and look for us on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and LinkedIn.

About Grand Challenges Canada

Grand Challenges Canada is dedicated to supporting Bold Ideas with Big Impact in global health. We are funded by the Government of Canada and we support innovators in low- and middle-income countries and Canada. The bold ideas we support integrate science and technology, social and business innovation – we call this Integrated Innovation. Grand Challenges Canada focuses on innovator-defined challenges through its Stars in Global Health program and on targeted challenges in its Saving Lives at Birth, Saving Brains and Global Mental Health programs. Grand Challenges Canada works closely with Canada’s International Development Research Centre (IDRC), the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) and Global Affairs Canada to catalyze scale, sustainability and impact. We have a determined focus on results, and on saving and improving lives. http://www.grandchallenges.ca

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News release in full, click here

Example coverage by:

Agence France Presse, Cheap tire innovation could boost Zika control, click here; in French, “Zika: un piège à moustiques plus efficace, écologique et bon marché, click here; Portuguese, click here; Japanese, click here

ABC News, USA: Using Old Tires to Fight Zika Virus: Canadian Government Funds DIY Mosquito Trap, click here

The Canadian Press, Old tires a new weapon against spread of Zika, click here

CBC Radio As It Happens, How this Canadian-designed mosquito trap could help fight Zika virus, click here

Toronto Star, A Canadian team is testing a $4 hack to solve the Zika crisis, click here

Globe and Mail, Canada, Canadian researcher’s mosquito trap offers hope in fight against Zika spread, click here

The Huffington Post, Canada, Cheap Tire Trap Could Help Fight Zika Virus, click here

Gizmodo, USA and India, This Low-Tech Trap For Killing Mosquito Eggs Is Brilliant, click here

The Weather Network, Canadian team set to turn tires against Zika virus, click here

TreeHugger, USA, Mosquito traps made from old tires 7 times more effective than standard traps

Agencia EFE, Spain, Un método barato para combatir el mosquito Aedes aegypti podría reducir el zika, click here

Agencia Brasil, Cientistas fazem armadilha mais eficaz contra o a adeusa (Scientists make a more effective trap for Aedes), click here

IRIN News, Iran, Persian: روش عجیب کانادا برای مقابله با بیماری مرگبار زیکا (Canada novel way to deal with the deadly disease Zika), click here

Thanh Niên, Vietnam, Cách chống dịch Zika rẻ tiền bằng vỏ ô tô cũ và sữa, click here

Sciences et Avenir, France, Zika: un piège à moustiques plus efficace, écologique et bon marché (Zika: a more effective mosquito trap, environmentally friendly and cheap), click here

Sudbury Star, Sudbury-designed traps could help stop Zika, click here

Motherboard VICE, How Canadian Scientists Plan to Fight Zika With Old Tires and Milk, click here

Daily Beast, USA, Fighting Zika Mosquitos with Tires, click here

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Full coverage summary, click here