March has been a time filled with much excitement! Yes, although it’s April, March Madness is still upon us. Many brackets were busted, but there are still a few games left to go! Similarly, these past few weeks have been an exciting time for global health. Our members and partners have been pounding the pavement as a team to raise awareness about important issues in global health. Yes, we may be worn out, but we still have to stay in the game! The highlights of the past month included several Hill days in Washington, D.C. and several international awareness days as well.
World Water Day took place on March 22 and in the lead-up to the action, WaterAid kicked off a month-long effort to get people up and moving through their March for Water campaign. They took a creative approach to water issues by encouraging people to wear blue shoelaces and walk in honor of those who lack of access to safe drinking water. The response was tremendous on social media! Take a look at the creative ways people took part in the #MarchForWater challenge on Twitter. In mid-March, WaterAid also released their new report Beneath the Surface: The State of the World’s Water 2019. The report focuses on the use on the world’s groundwater, and includes a detailed review about how our water supply is used and where water scarcity exists. Takeaway: we need to reduce our water footprints. Read the report for recommendations on how to do so.
Following World Water Day, the ball was passed to tuberculosis (TB) advocates for World TB Day on March 24. This day recognizes one of the world’s oldest infectious diseases. Did you know that one-quarter of the world’s population is infected with latent TB? In the U.S., many would be shocked to hear that statistic. As David Bryden of RESULTS wrote in No ribbons, no marches, no Carlos Santana, there is a lack of awareness of just how common the disease is. To raise more awareness around the issue, RESULTS, the American Thoracic Society, the National TB Controllers Association, and the Treatment Action Group, held a Congressional Briefing on Capitol Hill to build momentum off of the first United Nation’s High-Level Meeting on TB that was held in September 2018. Moreover, USAID recently launched a TB data hub, which you can use to make informed decisions on how to address TB in your country.
Stay tuned for more exciting things to come. This week, Frontline Health Workers Coalition, in partnership with the Global Health Workforce Network at the World Health Organization (WHO), will host World Health Worker Week. This year’s theme is “Health Workers are the Heart of Health for All.” Show the love for all the workers who advance health in your community and join the conversation online by using #WHWWeek and #HealthWorkersCount. You can even thank a health hero by tagging them on Instagram and Twitter using those hashtags. Join the campaign by using these downloadable templates. Have time to pound the pavement? Sign up to participate in their Hill Day in Washington, DC.
This week is also National Public Health Week, hosted by the American Public Health Association, who has dedicated a specific theme to each day. Since global health spans so many topics, there are two days (April 6-7) dedicated to the work that we do! Promote the importance of public health all week long using #NPHW. Be sure to cap it all off on Saturday and Sunday by giving a big hurrah to global health efforts. We highly encourage you to highlight the work you do by using #GlobalHealthWorks in your posts and tweets.
As you can see, the clock isn’t stopping any time soon. Let’s continue to keep our heads in the game and fight for global health as one cohesive team! To learn more about the many global health issues the Global Health Council focuses on, read our Global Health Briefing Book.
This post was written by Nyana Quashie, Senior Associate, External Affairs at Global Health Council.
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